First, I LOVE the enemies to lovers trope. So fun! Second, I enjoyed the uniqueness of this story. DC lobbyists aren't the topic of many romances. I learned about the ins and outs of politics. I felt like the author was very knowledgable on the topic. This book was well written with solidly developed characters. It was a fun, quick read. Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for allowing me to read the story.

Right now, more than ever, America needs "Across the Aisle," by brilliant newcomer, Stephanie Vance. The book chronicles the story of two lobbyists in Washington D.C. on opposite sides of a legislative battle. The stakes are high, but so is the undeniable attraction between these two passionate, attractive, and witty combatants.

Ms. Vance's intimate knowledge of the Washington lobbying "scene" is undeniable. She brings us believably and viscerally into this world. I learned a lot about how this crazy show in Washington really works.

Told with the wry humor, truth, and humanity, "Across the Aisle" is a must read for Romantic Comedy fans.

Perhaps the distance across the aisle isn't as vast as we think! Loved it!

Synopsis: A story following two opposing DC lobbyists (Dallas McGrath and Grant Pierce) who are ordered to find a legislative compromise on a bill they both passionately disagree on. However, in meetings to find the compromise begin to understand where each other's hearts and opinions come from.

I love a good enemies to lovers story and this book did not disappoint! I loved learning about the two characters and their backgrounds as they slowly got to know each other. I don't usually enjoy when books alternate POVs so it did take a little while to get into the story but ultimately I think the two POVs added a lot to the story and character development. The only con I had with this book is as someone who is not from the United States it was hard to understand all the political frameworks and relationships at the beginning of the book but it lessens throughout the story and starts to really focus on the main characters which I loved.

Thank you, NetGalley, Stephanie Vance, and Entangled Publishing for the Digital ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Across the aisle by Stephanie Vance

Story is about two lobbyists on opposing sides asked to compromise for a bill to go through. Dallas or Grant must not lose face but nust get the bill through.

A good story with fabulous description of Washington but very slow ,repetitive and plodding for three quarters of the book last part of the book really enjoyable.

3.5/5

DC lobbyists Dallas McGrath and Grant Pierce are perched at enemy camps and sparks fly every which way when the two clash. Across the Aisle is a DC romance published in a time when politics are intense in real life and choosing sides can sometimes feel like the most important life decision. For those unfamiliar with political jargon, this book could have benefited from providing a glossary to the unknowing.
As for the romance between Dallas and Grant, the beginning was slow and fraught with tension, the all consuming real life questions of “should I risk my broken heart again…?”. The ending was straight out of a quintessential rom-com yawn with friends getting involved to bring the two back together. In a real life scenario, if someone was stubborn and uninterested in another person, you’d just move on from the dud, but in this book the connection was forced and untrue.

I received an ARC from the author and publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to Netgalley, Stephanie Vance and Entangled Publishing LLC for the Digital ARC of this book. All opinions will remain my own as always.

This story centers around two DC lobbyists - Dallas McGrath and Grant Pierce - who are forced to work together to create a legislative compromise on a bill and issue they both feel passionate about. Neither one is willing or allowed to compromise but that all changes as they get to know each other.

This story is told from the alternating perspectives of both Dallas and Grant which I love as you're able to see both characters feelings develop but I'll admit it did take me a bit to get into this book. There is a lot of political jargon and alot of minor characters in the beginning that made it hard to keep it all straight. As I kept reading though the story simplified and I really enjoyed the flirting and chemistry between the two main characters. Its filled with passion, honesty, misunderstanding, and sacrifice. Id recommend this book to anyone who loves a classic enemies to lovers style book.

it was fine. I didn't liked the story and I didn't connect with the characters, their story or the book in general.

So I thought this book was cute. Classic enemies to lovers which is literally all I read anymore lol. I did like that with this political drama there wasn't one party that was the bad or corrupt one. Honestly both sides pretty much sucked. A lot of times when it's democrats versus republicans one ends up switching sides or you can kind of tell the author leans a certain way. I think the author really did a good job of being equal and wasn't obvious with her political views.

I will say that I didn't know a lot about lobbyists and everything DC. So that did make the book sort of confusing. The terminology was hard to keep up with at times and I wasn't sure what the jobs were at all times. And that might just be me. I have very little knowledge so maybe that's just me.

Also I felt that it sort of dragged out at the end. Like we needed them to just get together. But the two characters were both so stubborn. At a certain point I would have just given up if this person really didn't seem interested in me.

Is this the best enemies to lovers book? Probably not. But if you like a good political romance, I'd definitely pick this one up.

3/5 stars

This book was a bit of a miss. The characters where all fine but the story relied too much on political understanding. All of the main characters work in D.C and while I am sure some people know what a lobbyist is and what they do. A lot of people do not. Since the characters entire relationship and personality revolve around the political world it is hard to recommend this book as a romance anyone can enjoy.

Thank you NetGalley, author Stephanie Vance, and Entangled Pubihsing, LLC (Amara) for giving me a free arc of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
4.5 stars
This book was "The Hating Game" comes to Washington D.C. two DC lobbyists, Dallas McGrath and Grant Pierce, are on opposite sides of an agriculture bill. Both are giving orders by the leading Senator to come to some sort of agreement that will create the best outcome for the legislation that will be introduced to the House floor in a few weeks. Both sides are not willing to give an inch, so Dallas and Grant set out to win at any cost. As they begin to spend time with each other at baseball games, jazz clubs, and outings around the Nation's capital, Dallas and Grant begin to see they may have more in common than just their desire to win. Can politics be put aside for a better outcome that both sides can agree on, a romance?
This book was well done. The readers can tell the author really understood and spent a lot of time in Washington D.C. Not only was there a lot of great policy content, but also a lot of time spent in the places within Washington D.C. Dallas was a strong character. I felt sorry for her due to her desire to please her father by allowing him to steer her life according to his plans. I loved how passionate she was about wanting to really make a difference in the world. I enjoyed Grant's banter with Dallas. Grant seemed to be always going out of his way to prove himself to those around him. He seemed to have a chip on his shoulder for the upper elite, but as he spent more time with Dallas, those insights changed his conclusions. The chemistry between them was well developed. The misunderstandings were a little annoying, but understandable due to the reputation of politics and policymakers. The side characters also were well developed and played an more active role in the relationship between the main characters. I would have liked the last few chapters of the book to have been wrapped up with a little less time separation between the main characters. That ending was so sweet and had me smiling with a cheesy grin. Overall, I was glad to read this book in one sitting. I hope to recommend this book to people who love enemies-to-lovers, opposites attract office romances. I look forward to reading more books by this author.

This is a cute book. I like the political fiction genre. The story is cute and I love the cover!
This review is my own.

Stephanie Vance’s ‘Across the Aisle’ in an adeptly written novel that is as much of a love letter to Washington DC the city as it is to an idealized version of what the city represents. It is, of course, steeped in partisan politics, and seems both aware of the realities of the current political climate but also dismissive of the deep divides that have emerged over the past four years. Had this been published before 2016 or set in an earlier decade (or two), the story would have seemed more plausible and less fantastical.

Lobbyists Dallas McGrath and Grant Pierce are on opposite ends of the political spectrum, and on the very last of each others’ nerves. When both are tasked with working together to come to a compromise on the language of an important bill, they’ll start to realize that they may just have more in common than they thought. And that there’s a thin line between hate and love.

I’ll be honest when I say that there are parts of this book that really work, and parts of it that really don’t. One of the places this book shines its descriptions of DC and its unique amalgamation of restaurants, bars, monuments, and architecture. It becomes apparent that Vance has an intimacy with the city that translates beautifully to the page.

It’s also clear Vance is a skilled writer. Her dialogue is sharp and witty, though many of the pop culture and style references feel a little dated at times. I so wish this was set in an earlier decade, which would mean that the aforementioned references would make more sense, and the political elements to the story would seem more plausible.

Dallas as a character befuddles me because she seems to take pride in her Republicanism while also deriding the main tenants of the party as it exists now. Grant is annoyingly immature at times, which seems so juvenile and out of place. My frustrations with the protagonists aside, the secondary relationship between Rebekah and Oshuna really shines; that's a story I would love to read more about.

'Across the Aisle' might frustrate a few as it seems to project a sort of privilege that tries to tread the line of being overtly political but also benignly issue-specific, which I’m not sure if it’s the best representation of what’s happening in politics right now. But if you're happy to lose yourself in the fantasy of a story without worrying about its real world applications, this just might be the book for you.

Thank you to Entangled and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This book was ok. It was a three star rating. I liked the plot and the cover is adorable! More will be coming later on. Thank you Netgalley and publishers for giving me the chance to read and review this. My thoughts and opinion are my own.

There is something about Political Fiction novels that I just love - and I’m happy to say Across the Aisle fits right up there with the best of them!

Across the Aisle takes a look at the Political world from the lobbyist perspective and author Stephanie Vance does a great job introducing readers into the DC world where we meet Dallas and Grant. On paper and first impression these two couldn’t be more different. Dallas represents a large farmers lobby and plays the Republican in the novel, while Grant plays the progressive Democratic. They are brought together by a Congresswoman to work together and compromise on a bill being sent to the floor for a vote.

What follows is a Enemies to Lovers tale which has laugh out loud parts, and swoon worthy parts as well. Dallas and Grant come to find they aren’t as different as once seemed - but could they make it work?

Readers be prepared to drop everything and get carried away into the DC world.

Fans of Sally Thorne rejoice!!

I loved every minute of this book. I thought I would be annoyed by the legal jargon and skip it but it's masterfully done and adds to the story. If you loved The Hating Game, you will love Across the Aisle!

Dallas is a conservative, republican who come from Texas and is in Washington to stop the ban on pesticides that will harm small farm growers who are already struggling.
Grant is a liberal who is fighting to ban pesticides to protect people and the environment. They have to work together to compromise but the pressure from their bosses is to do anything to win.

They meet before ever learning of each other's identity and the sparks are there right from the getgo. I loved watching Dallas explore this relationship and their banter was amazing.

Dallas and Grant work for different organisations working on opposite sides trying to pass/amend a bill through the US government. The story gives you background on their past relationships and dreams, and takes you on a journey of them figuring out where they should be to do what they both want to do: make the world a better place. They are both attracted to each other but don't want to show any weakness to allow their competition (each other) the upper hand. The two main characters Dallas & Grant were fun to read about. I liked her determination and drive, I liked how much he really cared about what he was trying to do

I struggled a little at the beginning with all the bits about how the American government operates (being from the UK!), I understood most of it but it did feel a little dry at times. However, towards the end I really enjoyed the story and seeing their relationships develop. I think all the characters were well developed & likeable, I laughed at the scheming of the best friends to make Grant & Dallas see sense.

Overall an enjoyable read - would look at other books by this author

I loved the premise for this book. I was excited to read a political romance with an enemies to lovers edge. Unfortunately, I couldn't finish reading even half the book. It was very dry and detail-heavy. The leads had little to no chemistry and description of side characters took up more of the book than it should have. I enjoyed that the political issue the leads were fighting over was more niche because it meant that I, as the reader, didn't have strong opinions about the subject (agriculture) and could see both sides. All in all, this book drew me in with a cute cover and an interesting description, but fell short in the execution.

While there was a lot I enjoyed about this book, unfortunately neither of the main characters really won me over. However the side characters, especially Jake and Oshuna, were also great. All of the characters really did feel well developed, as did the story.

I think my biggest issue was that I just never grew to like Grant. It was constantly mentioned how basically every woman just swooned over him the second they saw him, and he knew that. He wasn’t afraid to use that to his advantage. Meanwhile, it was mentioned that women, like Dallas, need to work twice as hard as men & they still get comments like “you should smile more, it makes you look even prettier.” Dallas wanted her work to speak for herself and to be taken seriously, and it felt like Grant did the opposite, despite very clearly being passionate about his job.

I’ve personally never been to DC, but I had to look up the ‘space window’ after it was described so beautifully in this book, and I would love to see it one day. The description in the book was lovely, and described it very well. Also, I loved that consent & protection were both included. It’s something that I think is important to see in a contemporary romance, and it was written into this book well.

Thank you to Entangled Publishing & NetGalley for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book!

Oppposites attract, the story of Dallas and Grant. They both know what they want, but others with their own agendas stand to ruin everything. Loved their best friends, and how the book is told from both of their points view.
I didn't understand all the politics, but enjoyed the book overall.