disclaimer: I received an arc from the publisher via netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

╰┈➤ 𝐇𝐢𝐬 𝐠𝐫𝐢𝐧 𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐰 𝐰𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐫. "𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰, 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐬𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐞, 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐝𝐨 𝐢𝐭 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐰𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐞 𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐞. 𝐈 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐬𝐞𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐬𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐞𝐲𝐞𝐬. 𝐈𝐭'𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠." 🎀🍓

𝐬𝐮𝐦𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐲:
alexis stone & logan arther are 'forced' to fake a date after being caught in a 'compromising' position that could impact logan's political campaign.

𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐈 𝐝𝐢𝐝 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞:
this was an adorable romance. the meet cute these characters had ?! It was so funny and cute. probably the best one I've read !! I loved logan so so much. alexis I liked but at times she was kind of irritating. still loved seeing her progress throughout the book and watching her go out of her comfort zone to get what she wanted. this book also had some funny banter and I liked the found family that was formed throughout the book with multiple different characters. def a cute read.

𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐈 𝐝𝐢𝐝𝐧'𝐭 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞:
at times the book dragged on. though I loved seeing how passionate the characters were about their work and bettering society, the constant talk of it made it very hard to escape the real world. I also found that the romance was a little limited for my liking. the book was trying to explore so many topics that some of it felt very rushed. the main topic I felt was extremely rushed was alexis's relationship with herself. she has a very low self-esteem throughout the book but when she does suddenly gain confidence it feels unrealistic because she didn't really do much to get there?! and I would have liked to see more alexis and logan scenes, particularly for when they are pretending to date. I also hated alexis's older sister. she gets better but she always acted like she was better than everyone and also had a history of neglecting alexis.

𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐥𝐥:
def recommend to anyone looking for a cute fake dating romance <3

𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐲𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭: 🎧
𝐨𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐞 𝐛𝐲 𝐒𝐚𝐛𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐚 𝐂𝐚𝐫𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫.
𝐲𝐞𝐬, 𝐚𝐧𝐝? 𝐛𝐲 𝐀𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐧𝐚 𝐆𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐞.
𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐛𝐲 𝐀𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐚 𝐂𝐚𝐫𝐚.

Unfortunately this was archived before downloading but I’ll be returning to review when I’ve purchased + read!

such a beautiful romance!! i loooved that this focused on this grumpy rough guy politician (HELLO grumpy/sunshine trope xxxx) but inside he’s this sweet lil guy who loves animals and grew up on a farm like yes PLEAASE! the storyline was gripping and full of drama, the only kinda negative thing i have to say is i needed more SMUT there was so much potential to make this tuff guy melt UH 😔 “I can’t take this any more. Fuck the rules. Please, please let me kiss you.” 😩

Such a great book! I really enjoyed it.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this book.

A fake-dating romance in a political setting? It's like Ashley Winstead cracked open my brain and wrote this book just for me!

Shy school librarian Alexis was dumped for being too meek in bed. What better way to change her ways than by having a one-night stand with Logan, a foul-mouthed stranger she meets in a bar? Except a freak thunderstorm sets their hotel on fire and they have to evacuate. Logan ends up carrying Alexis outside, where his heroic rescue mission is caught by cameras. Logan flees, leaving behind a bewildered Alexis. But when the pictures leak the next day, Alexis is no longer confused: her Logan turns out to be a politician running for governor, and those pictures have the potential to ruin both of their careers. Logan's campaign consultant has the solution: Alexis and Logan will fake a relationship until Election Day, and then quietly break up once Logan has secured the governorship. But of course nothing is ever straightforward in love or politics.

I loved Alexis's character growth. She seems happy to go along with everything at first, which makes her a little bit of a boring character, but then she starts asserting herself and you feel yourself cheering her on at every step.

Now. Was Logan a dick at times? Yes. Was Alexis's sister a dick at times? Also yes. Did the entire plot make sense all the time? Not really. But when the fake-dating is this good, when the chemistry is this good, you kind of stop caring about those pesky little details.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an advanced copy of The Boyfriend Candidate by Ashley Winstead.

The only thing I didnt like about this book was that it involved politics . Politics is something that I avoid reading about or hearing about, so it was a bit of a turn off for me. Everything else was great. Loved the chemistry between the characters, and the laughs I got.

Ashley Winstead has definitely wrote a enjoyable story, the boyfriend candidate is a feel good romantic story which will captivate you from start till the end

I love a shy librarian who comes out of her shell and this book delivers. The heat from our two main characters leaps off the page. This book features a great take on fake relationships becoming real. I loved the chemistry and Logan is the hotheaded politician who genuinely cares.
This was a great read that kept me hooked from start to finish. It's a book I highly recommend.
I received an arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

If you like mills and boon style romance that has a happy ever after ending then this is the book for you. For me I found it painful to read. Really, two people in a pretend romance that really do love each other. Surely a better story line than that could have been found. It could have been good but it just was just farcical.

This is a slow burn that you can get into by the first chapter. The characters are good, and the story is not bad. However, the last chapter let this book down for me.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC.

Okay, so I'm a librarian, which might make me a little too invested in this kind of story. But I was surprised at how emotional I found this novel, especially the latter parts. The characters are totally realistic, if slightly idealised, and I really enjoyed the activism plotline (librarians are WAY more engaged in politics than anyone thinks!). I really enjoyed this and would recommend it to anyone looking for a romance novel with a bit more depth.

Really enjoyed this one!
An original plot, a fake relationship and two adorable charachters. Very entertaining

In love with this book 🥰 Shy librarian Alexis pushes herself out of her comfort zone to have a one night stand, which goes horribly wrong when she realises he’s a high profile politician. Fake dating hilarity ensues. Just adored both of these characters, and their longing and pinging which was all deliciously painful. I especially loved Logan and his unapologetic Logan-ness which was the complete opposite of Alexis. Their relationship was too adorable and hot at the same time?! A glorious high stakes romance, couldn’t recommend more.

What to expect:

- one night stand gone wrong
- celebrity romance (high profile politician in local spotlight)
- opposites attract
- slow burn
- fake dating
- spicy

I enjoyed this book. I really liked the way the two leads engaged with each other and the way the banter flowed.

Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher and Ashley Winstead for providing me with an ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

This was an enjoyable fake-dating romance! I love how it covered real issues (relating to teachers and school budgets) and was entertaining.

If you get a chance, I highly recommend you read this!

- Political romance (he's running for governor)
- Librarian FMC
- One-night stand
- Fake dating
- Opposites attract: shy FMC x charismatic MMC

This was such a fun premise! Alexis and Logan are caught having a one-night stand when the hotel fire alarm goes off. What they thought was a one-and-done deal turns into fake dating to rectify his playboy image as he's running for governor.

These two are complete opposites, which as we know always makes for a delicious dynamic! But they do have one main thing in common – not being themselves and shaping their personalities into what they believe people want. With Logan's support and encouragement, Alexis makes some big changes in her life and we love to see such character growth 👏🏻.

While things start strong between the pair, their romance is essentially a slow burn as they both struggle to admit their feelings for each other while fake dating.

The Boyfriend Candidate, written by Ashley Winstead is a light-hearted romantic comedy novel that follows the romantic escapades of the protagonist, Tammy Lee. Tammy is the quintessential single girl, working as a customer service representative at her father’s auto-repair shop. She is unfulfilled in her job, her relationship status, and her overall life. Tammy is desperate for change, so she embarks on a quest to find the perfect boyfriend, creating a list of must-have traits for her ideal man.

From the start, the novel establishes a comedic tone, relying on relatable humour and situational irony to tell the story. Tammy’s goal of finding the perfect man is the backbone of the plot. As she embarks on her quest, the reader is immersed in her quest for love. Winstead cleverly weaves Tammy's story within the structure of the competition-based Rio Grande Summer Festival, which offers a wealth of chances for Tammy (and readers) to explore the many facets of dating and relationships.

As Tammy gains insight into the complex world of relationships, she grows as a character. Although her primary goal is to find the perfect boyfriend, she eventually begins to understand that such a goal is impossible, and instead begins to accept love and relationships as they are.

The novel’s strength lies in its light-hearted tone and relatable comedic situations. Despite its comedic elements, The Boyfriend Candidate offers more than just laughs. It serves as a coming-of-age story of one woman’s journey to understand the intricacies of love and relationships. While it does not offer any ground-breaking revelations, it is an enjoyable read.

Overall, The Boyfriend Candidate is a charming romantic comedy led by a lovably flawed protagonist. The novel is a delightfully light-hearted and funny read that is accessible to both romance and comedy fans alike. Whether you’re looking for a lighthearted read to distract you from everyday life or a story with a bit more substance, The Boyfriend Candidate is sure to please.

Fake dating and Politics aren’t two things you would necessarily think of going together, yet they seemed to work well in this book.

A fun, light hearted book with likeable characters. An enjoyable read.

Thank you to NetGalley and Aria or Aries for providing me with this copy of the boyfriend candidate for an honest review!

The boyfriend candidate follows School librarian Alexis who meets a mysterious stranger at a hotel bar and after a flirty conversation decides to take it upstairs… The next morning Alexis finds her photograph all over tabloids as she is pictured sneaking out of the hotel with none other than Logan Arthur, the town's candidate who is running for Texas Governor. Logan can't risk these photos damaging his campaign so he has no choice but to enlist Alexis into pretending to be his long-term girlfriend.

2 stars

Whilst I know absolutely nothing about American politics, this was a nice read with a simple plot line that was easy to follow. This is a slow-burn book which i wasn't as big a fan of as it took more than 60% of the book before it got more romantic and the scenes were very simple. I did find Logan and Alexis very cute however due to the long slow burn and lack of communication (which drove me mad), i found the book did end a little flat and some aspects were rather predictable.

In some aspects, i still enjoyed this book as it is not one that i think i would usually pick up, so if you want a quick and easy book with a simple plot line to follow i think you would like this, but for me it just fell a little flat after the first few encounters.