I picked up an advanced copy of this book from Netgalley after falling in love with the author’s debut novel, In My Dreams I Hold a Knife. While Fool Me Once is a romance novel, the author once again did a fantastic job at creating relatable characters that I found myself drawn to read about even when I found myself not liking those characters. I will warn you that this is not your typical rom-com romance book. Our main character is the definition of a flawed character, and throughout the book I found myself rooting against her because of her toxic behavior and inability to take responsibility for her actions. It was hard to pull for this relationship to work out because of how toxic both characters were for each other. I absolutely loved the complex characters and how the author explored trauma and the consequences of failing to take responsibility for addressing one’s past trauma. I think people may be thrown off by our main character, but I do think it is a solid book with fleshed out real characters. There's a much deeper story here behind the romance that I hope readers can see. My full thoughts are in my time-stamped December wrap up at the following link:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KFLUCZWfGMw

I read In My Dreams I Hold a Knife this fall and loved it, so I was a little surprised when Ashley Winstead switched genres to romcom for her second novel - but she absolutely nailed this one too!

Although politics aren’t my favorite, I loved the depth and realness of the characters. Even though Lee drove me a little crazy at times, I enjoyed watching her grow and was completely rooting for her and her second chance with Ben. This book has so many creative and funny scenes and such witty banter, I couldn’t put it down!

I highly recommend grabbing Fool Me Once as soon as it hits the shelves on April 5, 2022. I can’t wait to see what the very talented Ashley Winstead comes up with next!

Special thanks to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for sharing this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I was all over the place with this book. The book started a little slow for me and Lee is a bit of an anti-heroine and that was a little hard to process. But once I got going in the book and understood her backstory and experience her progress, you cannot help but enjoy the ride and her pure heart. I was laughing out loud because Lee really does get into some odd situations. I mean really, who goes viral three times?!

And then there is Ben, the one that got (pushed) away, who is back and on her work team. He is such a great, grown up guy. You almost think he deserves someone different, someone better. But the heart wants what it wants and Ben’s just wants Lee to grow up enough to admit she loves him back.

There are a lot reasons to not like Lee, but bad decisions make for good stories, right? And this was a great story overall.

There are so many fun, quirky twists and turns in this it deserves it’s romcom designation, but there is so much more too. There is a lot of substance to the story too. Green energy, climate change, sexism in the media, and empowerment of women are all important topics addressed in the book. And I loved the ending so much. Sigh…. Ben.

Finally, a flawed female lead. Finally, a female lead who stays true to her principles and doesn’t immediately cave because the male lead is “tempting.” Lee’s been burned by love too many times in the past to the point where she realizes that love isn’t enough to keep a relationship. When her ex comes back to her hometown of Austin, TX, she faces an internal battle between her heart and her mind.

What I loved:

Lee’s backstory allows you to gain an understanding of why she is the way she is. The side characters are actually important and not just placeholders. Ben is really kind, patient, and caring. I did enjoy the banter and there were sweet moments scattered throughout.

The political setting was a refreshing backdrop for the book. Coming from a Texan, climate change is an uphill battle here and I could feel Lee’s frustration throughout the book.

I think the standout for me is the writing. Winstead writes SO WELL. She’s able to achieve a stream of consciousness style of writing where Lee’s internal monologue seems natural and dialogue between characters flows exactly like it would in real life. Just like In My Dreams I Hold a Knife, Fool Me Once excels in its ability to immerse the reader.

The marathon chapter and the press conference chapter were some of the funniest writing I’ve read in a long time, I couldn’t stop myself from cracking up.

What I didn’t love:

While I relate to Lee in so many ways, I did find her justifications and views against love to be stubborn at times. She finally learned the error of her ways but it was after 200 excruciating pages of me wanting to smack her. It also got a little repetitive with Lee constantly evading Ben and Ben (literally) following her everywhere, but that eventually resolved.

The lack of diverse characters. Everyone in the book is white (or at least not obviously POC). There is queer representation though. Lee’s political lens comes off very “millennial liberal white woman” like she just finds political issues (besides climate change) as a trend. I wish there had been more diversity to balance that out.

I docked a star for these two reasons. Overall, I really enjoyed this book and recommend it to anyone who enjoys romance. Fool Me Once releases April 5th, 2022. Thank you to Netgalley and Harlequin for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I will be posting a mini-review on 12/26/21 on Instagram @bookswithsiddhi as well as the full review on Storygraph. I will post my full review on Instagram @bookswithsiddhi one month from the publication date on or around 03/05/2022.

I really enjoyed "In My Dreams I Hold A Knife" so I was pumped to see this new rom-com from Ashley Winstead, but had some seriously mixed feelings about this one.

Pros:
- quick-witted dialogue
- great female friendships
- bada$$ girl bosses abound
- an interesting inside look into politics
- steamy chemistry

Cons:
- the main character, Lee "Stoner" Stone, was frustratingly immature and I had a hard time empathizing with her
- her self-destructive nature, hypocrisy, and inability to learn and move on from her mistakes made me want to pull my hair out

What a glorious rom com this was! The characters were so fleshed out and had a wonderful chemistry going between them. I highly recommend this novel to all readers craving a feel good book.

4.5 rounded up. I found this book endearing and culturally relevant. Much different than Winstead’s first book “In My Dreams I Hold a Knife” but very enjoyable as well. I LOVED her debut book. I knew that it would be hard to top, so I’m glad she took a different route.

Lee Stone, aka Stoner, was an infuriating and frustrating character. Took off a 1/2 point because I just wanted to shake her sometimes.

Thanks for the early reader copy!!

The first word that comes to mind when trying to describe FOOL ME ONCE is “masterful.” This book is so well-constructed on every level– plotting, pacing, characterization, chemistry– but most importantly, it is a goddamn DELIGHT. I fell in love with chaos queen Lee Stone from her Disney-princess-walk-of-shame in the first chapter, and Ashley Winstead does a beautiful job of peeling back her tough exterior to examine the wounds that molded her into the complex person she is. Lee’s relationship with Ben is full of simmering tension, and I was captivated by watching her sort through the emotional fallout of being forced to work closely with the person she hurt the most. I was also incredibly impressed with how the plot outside of the romance unfolded in a way that felt both surprising and well-earned.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Described as a fierce and funny battle of the exes, I was drawn into this novel's storytelling from the first pages. Lee and Ben are the epitome of the enemies to lovers slash second chance trope, as as a result they have such banter back-and-forth, which is so engaging and fun to follow. It reads quickly, and it's so fun, cute, authentic and vulnerable that I really didn't want to pause this read. All in all, it's equally fun, witty, romantic and relatable -- balancing the sweet romance with an authentic finding yourself tale all wrapped up in one.

This book had me at Disney themed wedding. The opening scene was hilarious and a testament to the type of character that we would find in Lee. I don’t gravitate toward rom coms often, but was given no choice, when one of my favorite debut authors came out with one! This story is relatable, funny, cringy at times and heartwarming. Sometimes the plot felt like I was in Groundhog Day, a will they / won’t they merry go round that wouldn’t quit. Just get back together already!! I also enjoyed the side story focus on clean energy, in a women led electric vehicle company (yes!), in all places, Texas. This story was written with plenty of sass, sarcasm, wit that I could relate to in Lee’s character (1920s flapper joke had me spitting out my water). She’s the type who I would want to grab a drink with any day.

This book yall. Let me tell you. 🔥
If you haven’t read a book by Ashley, you HAVE to. She has become an auto-buy author for me.

I love how Ashley has made a hot-mess of a character one my favorite female leads. Lee Stone, aka Stoner, is just that. One hot mess! She has so much baggage and emotionally spirals out of control, which makes her so relatable. But, she also has the most will-power in a romcom female lead. She parties and drinks when she wants to feel numb. Honestly, she made me a little sad while reading. I wanted her to get over her demons and move on!
Now, enter Ben Laderman. The Ex-boyfriend turned work partner when after 5 years, they have to work together to pass a bill. Even with all of her faults, Ben still loved Stoner.

This book is full of banter and I found myself rooting for our MCs throughout.
It is also very political heavy, so if you’re like me and aren’t a government gal- you may have to look up some terms like I did. 🤣

Loved this one! Especially the political aspect of it and the relationship/trust issues. Loved it being set in Texas - without being too “cowboy” and I’m so impressed that Winstead wrote one of my fave thrillers and a super fun romcom in the same year!!!

If you like romance novels, are a fan of second chance love stories, and enjoy reading about a main character that is flawed, I strongly urge you to add this book to your TBR and pre-order it immediately. Fool Me Once follows the incredibly real Lee Stone (Stoner to her closest friends and family) on her professional journey to get a progressive green energy bill passed in the red state of Texas. And her personal journey to never let herself fall in love again. After experiencing what she refers to as “the four major heartbreaks” throughout her life, Stoner is convinced that true love dosent exist, and anyone that falls love will inevitably end up heartbroken. But when she ends up working with her ex boyfriend, who she hasn’t seen in years, since he left town after their disastrous breakup, she is forced to revaluate the way she views love, and own up to the part she played in the demise of their relationship.

Stoner isn’t perfect, she is the definition of flawed. She is messy, real, authentic, and honestly quite relatable. I loved reading about her journey, and seeing all of her character growth through out the book. I truly feel like by the end of the book she was well on the way to letting some of her walls down, and finding out who she really is as a person underneath all of her protective layers. Ben, oh where do I even begin with Ben? I truly loved him, and was seriously rooting for him the whole time. He is kind, and caring, and he has such a big heart. He also truly values communication, which is something that I love to see in a male love interest. I think it’s safe to say that Ben is my newest book boyfriend, and he probably will be yours too once you read this book.

I also really appreciated all of the girl power in this book, Stoner and her two female bosses are working in a male dominated field, and because of that they aren’t always taken seriously by the males in the industry. But this dosent deter them from continuing to work hard. They are truly a kick ass group of women, fighting to make the world a better, and greener place, and I loved the representation of strong females in the tech industry.

Okay, wow! How Winstead is able to write such an incredible thriller and now an incredible romance, but here we are. So so good.

Real, sassy, heartbreaking, and heartwarming. I loved the writing style of this. I laughed on multiple occasions and found myself thinking, “same girl,” so many times. I was gripped early on and although I had my suspicions on how it would end up, I was kept guessing and questioning all the way to the end. The main character was relatable and intriguing to figure out as the novel went on. I found myself wanting to shake her silly but was rooting for her the entire time. And the main guy MC... swoon worthy. We love a supportive, driven man who isn't flawless. The side characters were great and made for an overall cozy, loved vibe for the entire book.

The amount of politics took me a little by surprise, but it did not bog down the story. You could feel the MC's passion and drive. Terms were described well where needed.

Such a good book that will live in my head for a long long time!

Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing, Graydon House for the ARC.

1 star. I'm really sad to be rating this book so low especially since I was very excited going into it.

Fool Me Once is a second chance romance story with the "forced to work together" trope. The cover is absolutely gorgeous and the blurb left me very intrigued as well, however after reading it I am left quite disappointed.

Lee "Stoner" Stone is our main character for this story and to say that I struggled to connect with her would be an understatement. I didn't really understand why she acted like she did, especially for a woman who is 29 years old. I couldn't get past how she treated her ex-boyfriend/ love interest, Ben, and I don't know why he would still have feelings for her after all that she did to him. There wasn't enough groveling to make up for what happened between them nor accountability on Lee's part. In their past relationship, there was a clear lack of communication/ trust and overall it was not a healthy one. Their present-day relationship wasn't much better in my opinion.

There are multiple times in the book where Lee pins the blame on other people and plays the victim when she's simply not. I found that there were a lot of moments of hypocrisy with her character, and in the end, I think that there was minimal-no character development.

Overall, I would not be recommending this book because the main character was just not it. I think that this book definitely had a lot of potential, but that it went wrong in the most crucial places which drove the rating lower and lower.

ARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Release Date: April 5, 2022

Additional Information (Slight spoilers)

Spice? Vague spice
Cheating? Yes
OW/OM? Yes (but is resolved quickly)
HEA? Yes

Condensed review to be posted to Indigo.ca

I loved this book about 2nd chance love and trying to work together on a campaign for green cars in Texas. I loved her friends and her romance. I enjoyed that she was trying to find herself and find love. I did enjoy the challenges that they both did. Great romance.

Five stars! Fool Me Once is a smart and steamy love story filled with emotional depth and flawed yet relatable characters. It’s a clever battle of the ex trope, with captivating females at the center! Lee and her mentor, Dakota, are running the show at Dakota’s female owned and run company, and are on a mission to put their big environmentally friendly dreams into action in a man-dominated field. However to accomplish this life-changing goal, Lee is forced to team up with her ex, Ben, who by the way will also be your next book boyfriend obsession. I loved that in this book, that while females run the world it’s also about the men like Ben who are worth fighting for and that it’s never too late for a second chance at love! I can’t wait for this book’s release and will absolutely be buying a physical copy to add to my own library!

This book releases in April of next year and following that, her next thriller, which I am SO excited about! Whether you read this book early or are waiting for release, I highly recommend it!

Ashley does it AGAIN. Wow, I can't believe this amazing author can just switch genre like that and still absolutely crush it.

I can't recount the number of times I laughed out loud in this book. talk about opening the story with a BANG. The first scene at Disney had me dying laughing and Ashley has a way with words I felt like I was there with Lee and Mac. Cackling I tell you.

I myself work in politics so I loved the work place environment and felt really familiar with what was happening and absolutely loved it. I'm passionate by my job and we don't have a lot of romance novel around politics. Loved it!

Lee & Ben's relationship was the sweetest. I was swooning HARD over Ben. What a stand up guy. The sexual tension between the two was really off the charts. I got annoyed with Lee at the thrid time she said "I matured so that's why I don"t believe in love" and I was like: how did you mature girl???? But I ended up forgiving Ashley because the whole book was such a big hug and made me laugh and swoon so much. Would absolutely recommend!

From the first page, this had me laughing out loud constantly, inciting strange looks from my family. Lee Stone (Stoner, as those who know & love her refer to her) is the main character and she is just a gem. She is quippy & insightful & stubborn and so relatable. She’s let four major heartbreaks take over the way she sees the world, and sometimes you want to shake her and push her through it. But watching her transform is a beautiful thing. Her on-off-colleague-“friend” relationship with Ben is cute & frustrating & might break your heart a little.

3.5⭐️ I feel torn on this review because there were many parts about the story that I really loved and then things I just couldn't stand. I give Ashley Winstead so much credit for her versatility as a writer and overall found this book to be well-written, smart and easy to read.

What I loved: I loved the second-chance romance, humor the character development, the feminist nature of the book, the interesting take on politics, Stoner's self-discovery, and the stress on the importance of friendship.

What I did not like: I found Stoner's immaturity and self-deprecating behavior annoying and hard to get past. I thought the chapters transitioned too quickly from one scene to the next. For instance, a MAJOR event would happen at the end of a chapter, and then there was no closure when the next chapter began a few days later. I also found the first 25% a bit slow.