Fake it Under the Mistletoe by Claudia Burgoa
Faking the Holidays Book 3
Holiday Sports Romance
November 4, 2026
🎄Fake Engagement
🎄Hockey Romance
🎄Grumpy x Sunshine
🎄Big Loud Mexican Family
🎄Found Family
🎄Forced Proximity
🎄He Falls First
🎄Meddling Tías
🎄A cat named Don Gato Corleone who has opinions
There are three things people should know before letting me near an injured professional athlete.
One, I am very good at my job.
Two, my bedside manner has been described as “aggressively cheerful in a way that feels humanly questionable.”
Three, I will absolutely threaten a grown man with resistance bands if he lies to me about his pain level.
Crew Wolfcraft lies about his pain level. Constantly.
He also has a hip that’s one bad twist from ending his career, a charity weekend he’d rather die than attend, and the conversational range of a man being held hostage. I’ve been hired to keep him upright through Christmas. That’s the job.
Then a reporter asks a question under the mistletoe, Crew opens his mouth, and my grandmother’s ring—the one on my hand, the one being resized, the one I am absolutely not engaged with—becomes a headline.
I don’t correct him.
In my defense: my Tía Marta has lined up a dentist, an architect, and a firefighter for me to meet before Christmas Eve.
Now there’s a tamalada, four aunts with a group chat and no fear of God, a cat named Don Gato Corleone who has chosen him over me, and a man who was supposed to leave in January learning my grandmother’s recipes like he’s planning to stay.
I can rehab a hip in eight weeks.
I have no idea what to do about the rest.
From USA Today Bestselling Author Claudia Burgoa comes a grumpy-sunshine fake-engagement romance about a big, loud Mexican-American family, a hockey player with a bad hip and worse coping skills, and one very small lie that refuses to stay small.
Get started today on Amazon Kindle+, paperback & audio: https://geni.us/5eGj
Fake It Under the Mistletoe: A Fake Engagement Hockey Christmas Romance by Claudia Burgoa
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
🎧🎧ALC REVIEW🎧🎧
There is so much of the entertainment of this story that I could relate to that it made it impossible not to picture myself in the story. Don’t get me wrong, I really enjoyed the story and the characters, but it was the “big picture” that mostly captured my heart, and it was glorious. There is nothing like a big family full of chaos and meddling that just warms my heart. I am not from Mexico, but I am from Venezuela, and the vibe was very real!
This is not a short holiday novella type story by any means, but it felt like it went by in a minute! A good time was had by all, especially me as the listener. 🎤Stacey Gonzalez is a very new-to-me voice narrator and in just one listen, she jumped straight to the front of the line! She captured every layer of Motse’s character perfectly and I really enjoyed every moment of listening to her. She made a really great team with 🎤Jason Clarke, who honestly is pretty much winning every time I listen to him.
I listened to this story rather than read it and between the excellent character development and the realistic storyline all wrapped up in an outstanding duet narration, I honestly could have stayed in this story for a lot longer. I’ve been reading/listening to Claudia’s work for many years and every time she writes a story, her talent keeps on growing.
The overall vibe of this story is entertaining sarcasm, if that can actually be a vibe LOL. And I’m not just referring to the MCs. This vibe was embedded in every scene and character in one way or another and the good time I had listening because of it is immeasurable. I’ve really liked all of Claudia’s “holiday/season”, but this is my favorite of all! (thus far)
Claudia is an award-winning, USA Today bestselling author.
She writes alluring, thrilling stories about complicated women and the men who take their breaths away. Her books are the perfect blend of steamy and heartfelt, filled with emotional characters and explosive chemistry. Her writing takes readers to new heights, providing a variety of tears, laughs, and shocking moments that leave fans on the edge of their seats.
She lives in Denver, Colorado with her husband, her youngest two children, and three fluffy dogs.
When Claudia is not writing, you can find her reading, knitting, or just hanging out with her family. At nights, she likes to binge watch shows or movies with her equally geeky husband.
Keep up with Claudia Burgoa and subscribe to her newsletter: https://bit.ly/NwsletterCB%20%20
To learn more about Claudia Burgoa & her books, visit here!
Connect with Claudia Burgoa: https://claudiayburgoa.com/wp/contact/
