Second chance romance is a tricky trope to write. On one hand, second chance love is beautiful! On the other, what broke them up in the first place can't be so horrible you never want them together again. I say this because this book just wasn't it for me. I tried quite a few times but unfortunately it just fell flat. I couldn't get into the story. This one just wasn't for me.

🌟 🌟🌟/5

I received an advanced copy for free and am leaving this review voluntarily. Thank you to NetGalley, Harlequin Trade, and Ashley Winstead. ❤️

Lee Stone has given up on love. After having her heart broken first by her father and then by all of her boyfriends, she'e decided it's just not for her. When her ex-boyfriend, Ben, shows up back in her life, she doesn't know what to do about it because she can't avoid him. Five years ago, she dumped him before he could dump her like all the others and she really can't bare to face him. But her life is going well and she will need Ben's help to pass a bill in Texas to help make more green vehicles. Will they be able to get the job done without letting the past get in the way?

This was a cute story. I would say is an exes to friends, to lovers story. With lots of hilarious moments along the way. Ashley Winstead really made me laugh out loud in the book. Lee Stone is a Give No F's kind of girl and I love her. This is definitely a book to read if you haven't yet!!

I couldn't get through this title. It ended up not being for me, but I hope it finds a hope with other readers.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

I love Ashley Winstead's thrillers, so I was very curious to check out her romance novels. It's a rare author who can write equally well in both genres, but Winstead truly excels at both! This was just as compelling and unputdownable as her thrillers!

I read this series out of order but didn't mind this time. This is very cute, funny, and interesting (love the political setting) and Lee is a total bad-a$$. I'm glad I found Ashley Winstead and can't wait to read more from her.

Title: "Fool Me Once" by Ashley Winstead - A Disappointing Read

Rating: ★★☆☆☆

Ashley Winstead's "Fool Me Once" falls short of expectations, resulting in a disappointing reading experience.

While the book's premise had the potential for a compelling and emotionally charged story, it failed to deliver on that promise. The characters, while relatable, lacked the depth and development needed to fully engage the reader. The narrative, which explores themes of love, trust, and second chances, felt predictable and lacked the surprises or twists that could have elevated the plot.

Despite moments of heartfelt emotion and relatable dilemmas, "Fool Me Once" failed to leave a lasting impact. For readers who enjoy romance novels with a second-chance theme, it might hold some appeal, but for me, it did not reach the level of storytelling that would warrant a higher rating. With a two-star rating, it's a book that, while not without its merits, ultimately fell short of its potential.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for giving me a free eARC of this book to read in exchange for my review!

Lee Stone, aka "Stoner," had her share of heartbreak over the years and she no longer believes in love. She's experienced a broken heart more than once and she's seen it happen to her family and friends. In order to protect her heart, she sticks with relationships that aren't serious. Stoner's last heartbreak was five years ago over Ben Laderman, who ended up disappearing from TX to CA. Imagine Stoner's surprise when she finds out that not only is Ben back in TX, but they need to work together to pass an important green energy bill. Will those old sparks start firing again? Is Stoner able to change her mind about love?

Fool Me Once was just what I needed and I read it over the course of a day. I really enjoyed the banter between Stoner and Ben. Even though Stoner drove me crazy at times, I could understand her line of thinking. I loved how the author had strong, bad ass women as characters and pointed out how things today need to change. This was an enjoyable, quick read!

As a journalist in Texas I just couldn’t do it, it was all too close to home and I couldn’t focus on the story. The MC is also kind of a mess and immensely unlikeable (and not in a fun way).

Absolutely addicting, I could not put this down. I loved reading about characters who are flawed and messy and human! Too often characters in romances are flat and don’t feel real. I felt like I knew Lee and Ben personally. I thought the political storylines were interesting and appreciated that she was able to balance them so they didn’t bog the story down. I will definitely be picking up more from this author!

Thank you to Net Galley, the author, and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I love a good anti-hero(ine), so Ashley Winstead's Fool Me Once (mostly) worked for me. All you really need to know about our protagonist is summed up pretty succinctly by the woman herself. In an exchange with her younger sister about the rom-com genre, Lee Stone muses,

"I want the woman who stole money from her dead grandma, or did something unforgiveable to her childhood best friend, or, like, screwed over everyone who trusted her to get a promotion at work. Serious emotional issues. I want to watch those women find love."

Her sister is unimpressed with this, insisting, "No one wants to watch people they don't like fall in love."

And based on some of the ratings for this one? I'd say that is somewhat true. And yet, there is a category of people out there -- people like Lee... and myself -- who enjoyed reading about flawed humans in just about every capacity. This was no exception.

Lee is a very successful communications director for a female-led electronic car company (think Tesla, but better!). While working through the company's political campaign, she is tasked with working alongside an ex-boyfriend she previously cheated on. Their history is incredibly messy... and is entirely Lee's fault. Rarely are we, the reader, put in this kind of position. Ashley Winstead takes great care to unravel Lee's motivations and help the reader empathize with her mindset, while never really condoning it. It's clear she has a lot of unresolved emotional baggage and grief that she is sorting through.

This book really hooked me in the beginning. I loved Winstead's sharp, precise writing and the quippy dialogue infused throughout. And while I appreciated the political components -- and the commentary made about ethics and integrity as they pertain to finding success -- I do feel they took up a bit too much of the narrative.

That said, I am looking forward to reading more from this author, especially since she seems to be someone that switches up genres (a true talent, IMO).

I didn’t finish this read. While, I understand why a lot of people like this read, it has too many tropes that I don’t like and it didn’t really pull me in. However, I can see why others enjoyed it.

I've been in a book slump and this book did the trick. Lee doesn't believe in love after her father cheated on her mother. So as an adult she self sabotages and hurts the only man she truly cares about, Ben. I loved the tension between the two while they are forced to work together. I loved the growth Lee had through out the book as well. The way she accepted that her coping mechanism weren't healthy. The way Ben and her friends held Lee accountable. Ben was such a sweetheart and I loved when he held his ground and told Lee she needed to get it together. I cheered when he walked away. This book had several laugh out loud moments as well and highly recommend this story.

My first romance novel by Ashley Winstead! Lee Stone is a successful woman working as a communications director at a women-run electric car company. Despite her professional success, she has learned not to trust love due to four past heartbreaks. However, things become complicated when her former flame Ben Laderman, who she suspected of cheating on her during grad school, reappears in her life as a policy expert. They are forced to work together on a clean energy bill, and as tension builds between them, old sparks reignite, leading to a potential romantic conflict. It is an interesting story with themes of romance, professional success, and past relationships, and I loved the Texas setting!

I'm obsessed with Ashley Winstead and her books, and the fact that she writes in multiple genres? and I've love them all? PERFECTION. Lee is the kind of messy protagonist I've learned I really love, and her romance with Ben was so complicated and I ate it up.

I’ve read Ashley’s thrillers and quickly became obsessed with the books so I decided to give this one a try and I’m so glad I did. The writing style is great and the story line really flows nicely. This book is more than your average romance novel and I suggest checking it out!

Kinda have mixed feelings about this one. Ashley is an amazing writer and I love her ability to write in different genres but I'm not really a fan of a second chance romance after cheating. And the MC here is the one who's in the wrong so it's a bit hard to root for her at first. She does undergo some character development, but I think it could have been taken a step further. I wanted them to actually discuss the repercussions of her actions and maybe grovel a bit(I always want groveling in my books lol😂 no matter whether it's the FMC or the male love interest). It was still an amazing read though!

Hands-down, one of my favorite reeds that I’ve read in a long time. I laughed so much with this book had some tears and couldn’t put the book down. I cannot wait to read more books from this author in the future. I love this book so much that I ended up buying a copy for myself and gifting one to my sister. Definitely an auto buy for this author. Definitely a Autobuy for this author whenever her books come out. Totally recommend to friends and family.

Such fun tropes: enemies to lovers, second chance love, forced to work together! I'll be honest, in the beginning, i didn't LOVE Lee, but she had such a great character arc and there were some truly laugh out loud scenes here. I really enjoyed the book. This was a light, escapist read!

Fool Me Once is a second chance love where the mc has gained some experience and stands on her own two feet can be assumed to be in a better place the second time around. This normally would have worked for me but the mc seemed to be very immature still.