I gave this a try since I liked Ashley's thriller novels to see how her Rom-Coms were. It was okay, I will probably stick to her thrillers though.

Short Synopsis: Alexis is a shy librarian, but decides to break out of her shell and have a one night stand. When the hotel bar catches on fire, and Logan Arthur (a governors candidate) carries her out they decide to fake date to avoid scandal.

My Thoughts: I was a bit skeptical going in to this one, but I'm so glad I gave it a chance. The characters were complete opposites, but they complimented each other so well. I adored watching their relationship blossom as their fake charade turned into the real thing.

Read if you love:
- Opposites Attract
- Fake Dating
- Politics

Alexis Stone has my fuckin heart too 😫

That's it. That was my whole review. I am a huge Ashley Winstead romance stan.
Her writing just does something for me and I cannot get enough. Her characters are well thought out and strong main characters to follow.
I am forever grateful to be able to review her books!

I loved this book, as all of this author’s books. The author’s writing is witty and funny. I def recommend.

This was good. It is amazing Ashley Winstead can be a master author in multiple genres. The characters were great, I really enjoyed the love story, even though the misunderstanding was a bit predictable. But overall, a worthwhile read if you can stomach the heaviness of the political aspect. Even though this book is clearly about a politician, I do agree with other reviewers that said I read to escape the political drama of the country, so maybe this one just wasn't the right fit to read right this second. But all in all, a cute romance.

The Boyfriend Candidate follows Alexis Stone, a school librarian who gets mixed up in a political scandal when she (almost) has a one night stand with Logan Arthur, a politician who is in the running to be the next governor of Texas. The two are spotted in a romantic entanglement at a hotel after a freak accident. To save face, Alexis and Logan pretend that they have been dating for a while and start to work together to get Logan elected.

Fake dating is a trope I cannot always get behind, but I really liked how it played out in The Boyfriend Candidate . Yes, they could have just talked and shared their feelings to realize they were into each other, but the characters coming to this realization took some character growth and then figuring themselves out before moving into the relationship. This depth justified the fake dating trope in a way that worked for me.

I am also not someone who likes the inclusion of "famous" or well known characters in books, but I think Logan being a politician was really interesting to read about. This book is obviously VERY political, which could have made it boring or preachy but it was actually fun and informative. I loved that Alexis's job as a librarian led to her adding to Logan's campaign by discussing political issues regarding libraries and public schools. I also really loved the inclusion of the teachers union and the ways in which people use politics to benefit themselves instead of focusing on the people the government is supposed to serve. A lot of this book involves political machinations and sometimes it seemed like a lot for a romance, but in the end I loved this plot and how it played out.

Overall, The Boyfriend Candidate is a fun and complex romance between two very well written characters. I will definitely be going back to the first book in this series since I did not read it before getting into this one. I look forward to more romance by Ashley Winstead!

The Boyfriend Candidate by Ashley Winstead is a delightful read for anyone who enjoys lighthearted, humorous, and romantic stories about self-discovery, fake dating, and the thrill of taking risks, making it a perfect fit for fans of contemporary romance and women's fiction who crave a fun, feel-good tale with a touch of politics and wit.

this was cute and iw ant like crazy about it but it was cute and I like the concept of the whole plot-story

Thank you NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this book.

This was a funny romcom that I enjoyed reading. There were a few times during the story where I wanted To shake the characters and tell them to get over it but it was just apart of the story.

As a librarian myself, I am always so excited when I see that a book featuring one of my own "colleagues" is coming out! This book did not disappoint.

Alexia's character growth throughout the story made it worthwhile enough, but pairing her up with a sexy Texan/British and making it a "fake dating" kind of relationship made it that much more enjoyable.

I look forward to reading more of Ashley Winstead's books in the future!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a digital copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

I've not read a book about two more obtuse characters. I wanted to reach in and shake both the MMC and FMC by the shoulder and to tell them to stop being so stupid.

I didn't know this book had characters from another book by the author and this was the first time that I read this author--the former of which would normally keep me from reading it yet. But
This is the first time in awhile that I have stayed up reading something two nights in a row.

Having a political celebrity as a main in a fake-dating trope was way more realistic than a musician or actor, as well as it being a--"oh, I had no idea you were a celebrity" trope. The politics were interesting, including the library politics of it all--having an MSLS and working the library system was helpful here and it was all pretty spot on. I enjoyed reading Alexis' interactions with her coworkers/friends, especially the fact that multiple of them were older.

For me, it was on par with titles like <i>Eight Weeks in Paris</i> by S.R. Lane, <i>The Rom Con</i> by Devon Daniels, and <i>The Nanny</i> by Lana Ferguson.

One of those romantic comedies that actually does make you laugh out loud. Very witty and charming, great for escapism.

I can't say anything bad about this book, I absolutely loved it!! The chemistry between Alexis and Logan is off the chart right away, and the slow burn is almost unbearable!! I hope Ashley Winstead keeps writing rom-coms because I'll read anything she writes!!

This slow burn was a little too slow for me, but it had good characters and was definitely making me laugh out loud. Will definitely be reading more of Ashley Winstead in the future.

As someone who likes politics but also needs to be able to turn my brain off from it all, this was a great one. The fake dating trope was very well done, and I believed when they started to care about each other.
Will read from this author again

I’m not sure how I feel about this one still. I liked it while I was reading it but I found it very forgettable. I did really like the characters and the story line.

A fun romance that was easy to read and kept me engaged. However, the miscommunication trope is my most hated trope which brought down my enjoyment of the novel.

DNF @ 46% the politics & banned books lost me. Not a fan. Love this authors other books but this is a no.

Winstead knows how to spin all kinds of tales and this time she made politics fun.

The Boyfriend Candidate follows two people-one a school librarian and a politician who get caught together and assumed to be a couple. And so begins a hilarious fake dating adventure. I LOVED the backdrop of the political realm as discussions about banning books is brought to the center. This book is for the bookish girlies who are passionate about not restricting books in various states. This story was a fun romp, but I will say an event that happened over halfway into the book threw me off and didn't quite make sense, therefore I bumped the rating down a star.

While it wasn't perfect, Winstead's writing, humor, and characters shined in her sophomore romance project.

I look forward to all that she writes in the future!