The Fiancce Dilemma is the second book in the long game series. I absolutely adored fake dating romances and really enjoyed that aspect of this book. But the story also included instalove which I don’t enjoy as much. While this was a quick and easy read for me the instalove really put me off of the book.

Where do I begin...
First, I enjoyed the slow-burn of this book.
Second, Matthew Flanagan.
Third, small town, friends to lovers, and a touch of found family.
Fourth, Matthew Flanagan.

This book is told mostly from the POV of Josie Moore. After 4 previously failed engagements, with the return of her very public figure of a father looming, she now must face the public eye and her fifth engagement. Except this time, this isn't an actual engagement, just a friend helping a friend.

I LOVED Matthew as a friend, but as Josie's "partner". Regardless of the facade of their relationship, Matthew steps up to the plate and is the epitome of loving fiancé. He is willing to do anything for Josie, and I do believe it it was any other theme, he would physically harm others for Josie.

Josie's growth to accept herself and her worth over the story was a bit frustrating at first, but I think that is the nature of character development in a slow-burn story.

The Fiancé Dilemma is the second book in Elena Armas’ The Long Game series. I loved the first book in the series so I was excited to dive into this one, especially since it features two beloved side characters from the first book.

From her absentee father to her four failed engagements, Josie Moore hasn’t had the greatest luck when it comes to men. When Josie learns that her father plans to announce his retirement with a big magazine story about his family, she panics because she knows her history as a runaway bride is sure to create a PR nightmare. When her dad’s pushy assistant Bobbi shows up at the front door and sees an engagement ring on Josie’s finger, rather than tell the truth (it’s actually stuck on her finger), Josie panics and when she sees a man walking by, pretends that he is her fiancé. The lucky guy is Matthew, the brother of her best friend. Matthew is a bit shell shocked at first but goes along with it since he can tell Josie is desperate. What starts out as a fake relationship turns into so much more!

I enjoyed this book! I felt bad for Josie since she clearly has had so many duds in her life as far as males go. It was nice to see Matthew step in and be exactly what she needs him to be while she navigates this uncomfortable situation with her family. I loved their chemistry and their banter and was eagerly rooting for their fake relationship to give way to real feelings, especially since it became clear pretty soon that Matthew had feelings for Josie.

If tropes like fake dating, small town romance, and best friend’s brother are tropes you enjoy, you’ll want to check out The Fiancé Dilemma.

UGH! ELENA ARMAS! WHY DO YOU MAKE ME CRY AND SWOON WITH EVERY BOOK YOU PUT OUT! I usually don't like instalove. I usually don't like overly quirky FMC. I usually loathe when a fake romance goes WAY to far. But..... Not this time.

I loved this book. I adored Matthew. I loved Josie. I loved her sister and her SO. I loathed Andrew (until the end) and Bobbi (which I assumed I was supposed to. I loved the small town feel. I loved the way Matthew spoke through out the entire book. Man...

I will be screaming at people to read this book. It was fun, spicy, funny, and at times heavy. I seriously had so much fun reading it.

Good book just maybe not for me! Quick and easy read, I was just hoping for a bit more in terms of the story. Fake dating can be hit or miss and for me this was more of a miss.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice: 🌶️🌶️ .75

Do I have blue eyes? No.
Will I absolutely allow Matthew to call me Baby Blue and just MELT in a puddle if I was in Josie’s shoes? Without a doubt!!

If you thought you had enough book boyfriends on your belt, MAKE ROOM because Matthew is literally perfection personified and I don’t care how bold that is of me to say, because THE CHOKEHOLD THAT THIS MAN HAD—NO, HAS ON ME 🥵😭👏🏼

Before I continue blabbing about Matthew, let me just say that if you’re in a mood for a small town romance with realism from the MCs that you can relate to, the fluffiest moments, and the SPICEEE of a man that has made his way to my top 5 book bf list (look at Matthew creepin his way into my words even after I said I’d put a quick pause), stop what you’re doing and
PICK. UP. THIS. BOOK!! 👏🏼

This was my first Elena Armas book (don’t worry, I’m also twisting my arm, not understanding why it took me this long), but it definitely won’t be my last because did someone say, ✨in my Elena Armas era✨ Her work is absolutely phenomenal and an example of that is through her way of building a world filled with so many great characters, even the redeemable antagonist(s) except for one of Josie’s exes that can go eat dirt, but it’s okay because Matthew handled it -brb SWOONIN’ again-

But as I was saying, I absolutely fell in love with Elena’s writing; she just has a way of fully creating individual characters and their story. Grandpa Moe, for example, deserves the world and I’d be lying if I said I’m not craving a stack of his midnight grilled cheese sandwiches right now!!

I will say that as the pages started to dwindle, I started to get really anxious thinking that the ending would be rushed and unrealistic, but I—the smile on my face and the feelings I was FEELINGGG during the last chapter!! The ending wasn’t predictable, but instead provided a HEA in a way that felt true to its main characters and highlighted their growth (individually and together). That and Matthew’s 5 ⭐️ moment during the podcast, UGH. Unmatched 🥹🫶🏼

Thank you to Elena, Atria Books and Netgalley for this spectacular arc 💜

Rating 3

Fake dating is such a fun trope and one that I really enjoy. For some reason this book just wasn't for me. I can't tell if it was the writing style, length, or the characters. Either way, I struggled to get through it and almost dnf at certain points. If you are a fan of this author, I say give it a try! It could have just been a me thing and not the book. I do love the beautiful cover and am happy to own a physical copy.

✨ 𝐀𝐑𝐂 𝐑𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰✨

“𝙋𝙚𝙧𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙖 𝙢𝙖𝙧𝙠.”

𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐫 𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
𝐒𝐩𝐢𝐜𝐞 𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠: 🌶️🌶️🌶️
𝐒𝐩𝐢𝐜𝐲 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬: 14, 20, 23 & 25
𝐒𝐥𝐨𝐰 𝐛𝐮𝐫𝐧: 84%
𝐓𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐬: Small town romance, fake engagement, sister’s best friend
𝐏𝐎𝐕: 1st person, Single POV (1 chapter from MMCs POV)
𝐍𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧: Dual
𝐊𝐔: No

Fake dating is one of my favorite tropes, so I had high hopes for this one. But, I didn’t really care for the whole plotline where the FMC leaves 4 fiancés at the altar, and then provided little explanation for it. This very much felt like a retelling of the movie Runaway Bride, which I loved! But it just missed the mark for me.

I didn’t’ realize this was a companion novel to The Long Game until I was almost finished with the book. I typically recommend reading series in order because it gives the reader the most impact but with this one you don’t have to. You can read this without having read The Long Game and not have your reading experience impacted.

Overall, this wasn’t a favorite of mine by the author, but it might just be a me problem.

A sequel of sorts to The Long Game, I love this new book by Elena Armas. Josie is a small town North Carolina girl who’s been engaged four times but never married. Matthew is her best friend’s brother who happens to walk into her life at just the right time - to pretend to be her fifth fiancé as a PR stunt. Fake dating is my favoriteeeeee trope and this one was excellent and very, very hot. It’s funny, poignant, and an easy read. Highly recommend!

Elena Armas is an incredibly gifted writer. I have loved her earlier books, so I was honored to read her latest release, The Fiance Dilemma. Needless to say, I was not disappointed! In true Armas fashion, a series of unlikely events set the stage for the trajectory of this delightful rom-com. The plot is flawless, and the characters are likable and perfectly imperfect. All in all, if you are looking for a bit of sunshine in your next read, The Fiance Dilemma is the perfect choice for you.

Thanks NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for this digital advanced copy!

I didn’t love or hate this book. I found it pretty predictable and easy to read, much like the first in the series.

The FMC Josie was quirky but the “I’m not like other girls” personality felt a little forced at times. The main guy Matthew felt a little under developed. I felt we got the most personally from him at the very end of the book and wish we would’ve gotten more insights into what Josie saw in him.

I did appreciate the small town charms that came with the book and the call backs to the first book. I probably liked this one even more than The Long Game just because the characters were a little more likable.

I will most likely continue to read Elena’s books but they aren’t stand outs for me, though I know they are for other readers so take that with a grain of salt!

Josie Moore’s quiet small town life is upended when her estranged father announces her existence in a magazine. And then her four failed engagements are uncovered by social media. Josie needs to make this all go away. So when Matthew Flanagan, best friend to Josie’s sister, arrives in town, Josie has an idea - a fake fiancé.

Pros:
- Matthew (the MMC) is pretty much the perfect book boyfriend.
- Lots of chemistry between the MMC and the FMC
- The small town and side characters (especially Grandpa Moe) are so cute
- Pedro Pigscal is amazing (teacup pig)!
- We get to see the MMC and the FMC from the first book getting their happy ever after!
- The ending is nicely wrapped up.

Cons:
- The miscommunication running throughout the book really kicked me out of the story. I struggled through the first 60% but loved the last 40%.
- The set up of the story is a little flimsy and we never really learn why Josie got engaged to / left the first four guys (or much about them at all).

Overall - I hate that I don’t love this. I love Elena Armas’ other books. But this one wasn’t it for me. There was a lot of miscommunication that drove me insane in the first 60% of the book. The last 40% is rather good though.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC.

Elena Armas is back with this one! I loved Matthew Flannigan. The small town setting was just as cute and charming as it was in The Long Game, but Matthew really set this one apart from TLG. Josie was lovable and I truly, deeply appreciated the ending. Definitely one of my favorites of Ms Armas's!!

This was about 3.75 rounded up to 4.

I have to start by saying I am not a huge fan of fake dating. I can get behind it if the reason for it is valid. For me, this was a tough reason to get behind. So, it took my about 140pgs to get into this book, to the extent that I actually set it aside for a few weeks.

I’ve really enjoyed other Elena Armas books, so I knew I wanted to come back and finish this one and I’m so glad I did.

The connection between Matthew and Josie is so sweet. I think what could have bumped this up in rating for me would be if we had Matthew’s perspective throughout. While we did get it at the end, it was hard to understand why he was so immediately loyal to someone he didn’t really know. This was explained later, but I think having his perspective early on would have been really helpful for the reader.

Armas is still the queen of slow burn, swoon worthy romance and I will be back for more.

This book presents a blend of familiar romance tropes—fake engagement, second chances, and family drama—yet fails to leave a lasting impression. Despite the premise I did not feel much connection to story or to Josie or Matthew.

While the small-town setting and the close-knit community was charming, Despite the backdrop, Josie and Matthew’s relationship seems to lack the necessary spark, making their journey from a fake engagement to potential real love less engaging than anticipated. The narrative relies heavily on misunderstandings, which added some silliness but not quite romance.

In summary, the book is good but I did not continue to thinks about the book or characters after I finished. It offers a light read that checks the boxes of a typical romance. It’s enjoyable for those seeking a brief escape

This is the third book by Elena that I read and it was not my favorite. The characters were well developed and the plot of the story was great. I just personally did not enjoy the premise of the story. I felt like it did drag at some points and I did not like the “public” relationship of the story with the magazine.

I did enjoy the small town feel of the story and the pining that Matthew. I also loved how her reassured her that he cared about her.

Over all I would recommend this if you like the fake fiancé trope and where the man pines for the women. Otherwise I personally would pass.

A great romance for small town, fake engagement, sisters best friend and no 3rd act breakup! Her writing style is so unique and captures a beautiful romance

4 ⭐ || 2.5 🌶️
First and foremost, I was SO excited to be able to obtain an ARC of this book! This was one of my most anticipated books of the year and I was glad to be able to dive back into the town of Green Oak.

Josie Moore has a reputation for being the quirky town mayor, runaway bride, and recently discovered love child of famous soccer club owner, Andrew. When he announces his retirement, Josie's small-town life is suddenly thrown into the spotlight--along with her 4 previously failed weddings. When her sister's best friend shows up on her doorstep unannounced, they land themselves in a sticky PR stunt that leads to a fifth (fake) engagement.

I love the way that Elena Arms writes her men. I don't know what kind of magic she puts into her writing, but they are also so perfectly gruff, attentive, and utterly selfish (iykyk) 😏

Thank you, Net Galley and Atria Books for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

So I must start this review by prefacing that somehow Elena snuck the long game past me and I did not realize this book was in the same universe as that book. Had I known that, I wouldn’t have spent the first 20% confused about the familiarity with which the author spoke about other characters like Adalyn and Cam. That being said, once I realized my misstep (heh get it?), this book became utterly delightful!

Maybe I’m biased because I’m married to a Matthew, but I found the main male character SWOON WORTHY. We love a guy who is in tune with his emotions and doesn’t play games. I often find in fake dating tropes that the main characters act duplicitous with their real feelings but Matthew made sure Josie knew how he felt every step of the way.

Every bit of their love story felt pure and fated and lovely. Josie’s quirkiness was delicate and not overdone and Matthew’s protectiveness - and spiciness🔥 !!! - were the perfect foil.

Overall I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The character arcs were well done and I got the warm and fuzzies from start to finish.

*thank you NetGalley for this ARC. All thoughts and opinions herein are my own.*

The Fiance Dilemma by Elena Armas

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

“The Fiance Dilemma” by Elena Armas is her fourth book and the first one by her I’ve actually finished! I thought Elena Armas just wasn’t for me but the Fiance Dilemma changed my mind.

The slow burn is excellent and the characters are interesting enough to keep you enthralled throughout the long book.