Operation Fake Relationship

About This Audiobook

Nick’s annual trek home for the holidays is less about gratitude and more about survival—his parents’ guilt-inducing questions have reached critical mass. Desperate to deflect, he drafts his perpetually supportive flatmate, Jackson, as his pretend boyfriend, a ruse that should be simple enough. But three days under one roof with his parents, their expectations, and the lingering tension between him and Jackson? That’s where the real challenge begins. Jay Northcote crafts a holiday romance that ditches the mistletoe clichés for something sharper: a story about the families we choose and the ones we can’t escape. The emotional stakes feel personal, the banter snappy, and the slow-burn tension between Nick and Jackson crackles with chemistry that transcends the fake-dating trope. If you’ve ever faked your way through a family gathering, you’ll recognize the relief—and the danger—of this setup immediately.

What sets this apart is the audiobook’s razor-sharp narration by Hamish Long, whose performance balances Nick’s prickly vulnerability with Jackson’s effortless charm, all while keeping the humor dry and the pacing brisk. Long’s skill at distinguishing side characters—Nick’s overbearing mother, Jackson’s laid-back dad—without resorting to caricature adds depth to Northcote’s layered script. The result is an audiobook that’s as much about the unsaid as the said, with moments that linger long after the last chapter.