Received an eArc from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

The Fiancée Dilemma is a sequel to The Long Game, following Josie, the mayor of Green Oak and recently discovered half sister of Adalyn, and Matthew, Adalyn’s best friend. When a PR fixer comes to try to fix Josie and Adalyn’s father’s reputation after his parentage of Josie is revealed, Josie accidentally tells a lie, claiming that Matthew, a man she had one texted but that has recently come to Green Oak and walks by her house at the right time, is her fiancée. Thus starts the fake fiancée dilemma.

Elena Armas wrote another fun book. If you don’t like her other books, you are not likely to like this one as it has many of the same bits: guy who falls first and hard, big protector energy, dominant guy in the bedroom, etc. I have grown to accept this is just how Elena Armas writes her heroes, so it doesn’t faze me. Fake marriage/fake dating is not my favorite trope, but this book was still very enjoyable. Josie and Matthew were both fun to follow. The lack of Adalyn and Cameron at the beginning felt odd, but the glimpses of them were fun. I am rooting for Maria’s dad to have the next book in the series (if there even is one).

I liked The Long Game so I expected to like this as well. I love that it’s mainly Josie and Matthew. I love how Matthew was with Adalyn so I couldn’t have imagined how great he was being a partner. Love the relationship between him and Josie and this was a feel good book.

I loved every Elena Armas’ books and this one is no exception. Relating Josie and Matthew’s story, the book revolves around a fake engagement leading to a real relationship. As always, I liked the characters, the setting and the romance, and would recommend this book as a nice summer read.

Thanks to NetGalley for an arc of this book.

I swooned for this harder than I have in a long while. I was a little weary about the concept going in. I really didn’t think it was going to work for me, but I quickly became obsessed. This is probably one of the best uses (and most realistic and believable portrayal) of a fake dating/fake engagement troupe I’ve read! I haven’t read a book that made my heart race that hard in a good minute.

First of all, the banter and chemistry between Josie and Matt was just perfect and they were a match made in heaven. Matt is just a dream and so understanding of everything that Josie is feeling and going through.

The way that the relationship developed throughout the story was really fun and sweet.

Plus let's not skip over the texts between Adalyn and Matt???? I melted

However, I do have some negative feelings about how Josie feels like she has to do things for her father, such as, ya know, having a (fake) fiance for PR when her father has never done anything for her, and never even met her. Josie didn't seem like she was afraid to speak her mind and had a strong personality, except to her father and Bobbi, which was weird to me.

Also, I do wish we got to see more of the familial bond between Josie and Adalyn. At times it just seemed like Adalyn was only mentioned and then forgotten, and then when she did show up, the story skipped over those scenes.

Almost every woman's dream is to find their soul mate in a person who treats them as Matthew treats Josie. These are the male & female leads in The Fiancé Dilemma by Elena Armas.
This book is the 2nd book in Elena Armas, The Long Game series. Both fun stories, but both get very looong & wordy in the middle, but then wrap up with sweet endings. The Fiancé Dilemma has family drama, swooning romance, a female lead (Josie) you just wanna tell "Get your act together" & a male lead (Matthew) that you'll fall absolutely in love with.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an ARC of this book on #NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own, buy please do yourself a favor & read any of the books by the talented author Elena Armas.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC of Elena Armas’ The Fiancé Dilemma!

I did have the pleasure of reading The Long Game which takes place in the same setting / world as this book. The main character of this story is Josie (Adalyn’s sister from the first book) and it’s about her pretend engagement to Adalyn’s best friend, Matthew, to help aid her (narcissistic) absentee father’s hurt PR image.

This book continues with the newfound family theme you get at the end of The Long Game when Adalyn and Josie discover they are half sisters. Their father decided to retire and when he did there was an article written about his family. Josie was mentioned and of course the media buzzed when they realized she had 4 failed previous engagements. She unfortunately sees herself as a liability to his public image or as a “misstep” in his life. Josie panics and lies to his PR strategist, Bobbi Shark, that she’s engaged for the 5th time to Matthew. Bobbi kicks off this elaborate plan for a wedding to happen 2 months later that’s paid for by Josie’s father and a wedding he would be present at.

Throughout the book you see that Josie has a more quirky personality. This personally was a little hard for me at first. Matthew tried to create these flirty moments and Josie would usually follow with a comment that completely torpedoed the mood and ruin the illusion of a romantic relationship. It did make me a little hesitant to read on but I’m glad I stuck with it. Matthew and Josie had a lot of undeniable chemistry even though their relationship was supposed to be pretend and getting to witness this relationship unfold was definitely the highlight of the book. I would’ve loved more duel POV chapters where we could read more about what Matthew was thinking in the moments where we couldn’t tell if he was playing pretend like he should be or actually flirting.

Overall, because of the slow start and I give the book a 3.5 rounded to 4! After I got to the 55% mark I was able to fly through the end of the book.

I definitely plan to read and look forward to Elena Armas’ next book! Part of me hopes we get to see more of Bobbi and maybe a friendship between her and the sisters.

I really wanted to love this book but it ended up falling flat for me. The writing was good and I liked the characters but it was just missing something. It took me almost a week to read because I just couldn’t get myself to focus on more than a few chapters at a time. It’s far from the worst thing I’ve read but now that it’s done I’ll likely never think about it again.

I am a huge fan of Elena Armas and really wanted to love this book. It just never came together as a story. Josie was very flat and Matthew just felt like a trope come to life. It sat on the edge of being a really good book but just never quite made it. I think it was supposed to be a slow burn of sorts but there was so little chemistry, the well written love scenes seemed implausible (if very hot). Every author has a miss, though, and I am really looking forward to the next from Armas!

I was so excited for Matt and Josie's book after meeting them in the long game and unfortunately it fell a bit flat for me. The way Matt so readily agreed to marry her and how quickly they fell "in love" was a bit unbelievable. I also so wished for Matt's pov.

I don’t think this is a bad book but I just think this is not the book for me. I couldn’t connect to the story and the characters at all and I’m just not interested in the story unfortunately.

Ok wow. I didn’t realize how much I would love Josie and Matthew. Josie’s people pleasing capabilities resonated with me and my own tendency to do the same. It was beautiful to watch her grow from “I can do it myself” and in Taylor Swift’s words, “I can do it with an [anxious] heart,” to “I don’t have to do it on my own,” and see her lean on Matthew. Matthew made me realize that I’ve been discounting cute blondies with glasses because WOW. This man. Top tier. Make all the men read this book so they can know what to do to help an anxious perfectionist. I wanted to leap into the pages to koala hug him and never let go. Finishing this book made me sad but I’m so happy at how it ended. My only complaint is the book cover wasn’t “Baby Blue.." However, the flowers are gorgeous and I do love the cover. Ok I lied, I do have one complaint: I do wish we would have dove a little more into why Josie always tried to make it down the aisle. Even a smaller scene of her explaining why she continues to hope for love. It didn't tarnish the story because of it, but I think it would have made her character in that area a little less surface level.

I really enjoyed this book. There were some parts that were a bit cringy, but Matthew and Josie were so sweet. I did think the initial meet was so awkward and it was weird how she begged him but I loved how they slowly fell in love. It was so sweet and made me smile often.

I’ve loved every single one of Elena Armas’ books, and this one is by far the best one! I am in love with Mathew and Josie and how their relationship is developed throughout the story. I dare say that Mathew is now my number one book boyfriend, beating Aaron Blackford! Can’t wait for everyone to get a chance to read it!

Combined Review
Elena Armas shines in the fake dating trope, and her latest book in “The Long Game” series is no exception. This standalone story follows Josie, Adalyn Reyes' stepsister, and Matthew, Adalyn’s former best friend.
Overall Impressions
Josie, dealing with trust issues from her father, has a history of broken engagements. Matthew is supportive, goofy, and a perfect book boyfriend. The narrative explores their evolving relationship and themes of trust and growth. While some backstory felt lacking, particularly the sisterly bond, it was satisfying to see Josie and Adalyn open up to each other.
Characters
Josie is sweet and capable but tends to ramble when nervous, which can be endearing yet annoying. Matthew is kind, patient, and honest, with thoughtful gestures that make him a standout character.
Positives
Writing Style: Armas' writing is amusing, cheesy, and spicy, keeping the reader engaged.
Chemistry: The intense chemistry between Josie and Matthew is well-written.
Ending: The conclusion is beautiful and creative, with Matthew valuing their relationship over marriage.
Supporting Characters: Grandpa Mo/Maurice adds comic relief and warmth.
Negatives
Josie’s Rambling: Her nervous rambling can be excessive.
Slow Burn: The slow burn feels prolonged.
Matthew’s POV: More of Matthew’s perspective would have been appreciated.
Final Thoughts
Despite some flaws, the dynamic between Josie and Matthew, their chemistry, and the engaging writing style make this a delightful read. I'm giving it 5 stars for the fantastic character dynamics and hope it gets adapted into a film.

4 stars

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Josie Moore has a complicated history with love. Four failed engagements followed by a surprise revelation about her absentee father and some bad PR leave her in urgent need of a fiancé - one that she will actually marry. Enter Matthew Flanagan, the down-on-his-luck best friend of Josie’s sister, Adalyn Reyes (The Long Game). What starts out as a wrong turn ends up as a pretty presumptuous proposal as Josie asks Matthew to be her fake fiancé. Josie insists there will be no actual wedding, but Matthew knows in his heart that likely isn’t true.

Another solid small town contemporary romance novel from Elena Armas! I loved The Long Game and was so excited to see that Matthew and Josie’s story was on deck. I would have loved to have seen more from Matthew’s POV, and I didn’t love that Josie totally strong armed him into her fake fiancé scheme (Granted, she was also strong armed into said fake fiancé scheme) but those are really my only major complaints. A quick, light read perfect for fans of small town and fake dating!

Thank you NetGalley and Atria Books for this arc in exchange for an honest review.

The writing was as expected from an Elena Armas book. Fun, cheesy, and slightly cringey but in a fun way. Josie is a really fun yet over the top character and Matthew is great but I wouldn’t say he’s my favorite MMC out of all Elena Armas’s MMCs.

My only complaints is the set up for the plot and the ending. Josie is not a weak character and knows how to stand up for herself, and as a people pleaser, it makes sense that she wants everyone to be happy but what I don’t get is why she keeps bending over backwards for her father who is vaguely in her life and who she has never met in person. As for the ending, it felt rushed and I wanted more, which sounds vague but I also don’t want to spoil the ending.

Overall, I had to take this book with a grain of salt. Fake dating tropes are typically going to be over the top, rarely is this trope going to be realistic, however it was really hard sometimes to follow how Josie thought making up a fake relationship with Matthew was the best choice when she owed her father nothing and could’ve told Bobbi to hit the road.

That said watching the characters interact together was really fun and I really enjoyed that we got to read segments of the podcast, I’d definitely listen to Sam and Nick. Also can we talk about Grandpa Moe? Everyone deserves a Grandpa Moe and the man must be protected. His character alone is why I’m giving this 3 stars instead of 2.

All in all, I wish I liked this book more but it was cute and an easy read.

I want to start by saying thank you to NetGalley for the arc of this book. I haven’t yet read The Long Game, so I wasn’t sure if I should read this first, but I did anyway. Josie lives in a small town in North Carolina, and she has what she likes to call a “reputation” for leaving men at the altar. When her father comes back into her life, she’s thrown into the world of PR and cameras. After accidentally making people believe she’s engaged, again, she asks none other than Matthew Flanagan to play the part of her fiancé.
The romance is very sweet, and the tension between Josie and Matthew is done very well.
I needed a romance after reading so much fantasy, and this was the perfect romance.

Hands down my favorite Elena Armas book yet!! You can easily get completely lost in this and forget you were even reading. Like all her other books, Elena’s writing is entrancing and fast-paced with quick dialogue while maintaining a consistent deeper self-development plot. And who doesn’t love a fake-engagement trope? Matthew’s stoic softness paired with Josie’s chaotic word vomit had me audibly laughing only 3 chapters in and swooning shortly after through to the end. The Long Game character cameos were perfectly placed to not overshadow the current storyline and I will never get enough of the crazy farm animals. All in all a ~bootylicious~ read!

I really enjoyed "The Long game" and I was sure that another story could spring from it. And here, we can read Josie's story, Adalyn's sister.
Josie has always lived in her small town, Green Oak. Until recently, she didn't even know she had a familly. But she has. And her father is a finance mogul, really keen on appearing as perfect as possible. At least on social media.
So when Josie's life, and more particularly her tendancy to flee from the altar, is dissected online, she panicks and pretends she is engaged. For good. With Matthew, Adalyn's best friend. And then, troubles begin...

I have mixed feeling with this story, and here's why : we never have Matthew's point of view. He's fun, not afraid to say things that need to be said, and act as if he's fallen in love with Josie, but until the last chapter, we don't know. And so this story is a lot of Josie panicking and wondering, and falling for him, but how about Matthew ?
Of course, everything is revealed at the end, but I kind of missed it in the story.