This was such a fun read and exactly what I needed!! Elena Armas has a way to give swoon worthy character and transport you into a fun time!! I can't wait to see what's next!! Also I LOOOOVE a good fake dating and this delivered everything I love about it!!

ARC received from Atria Books via NetGalley

The Fiance Dilemma is the latest from author Elena Armas. Set in small town North Carolina, a quirky do-it-all mayor/cafe owner has a reputation as a runaway bride, and that reputation seems to be impacting her father's public image (who didn't much seem to care about her until now). In a spur-of-the-moment decision, she ends up fake engaged to her sister's attractive best friend.

This book was sweet and endearing but the dialogue was really cringe and a little clunky at times. I've loved pretty much all of Armas's other books, but this one isn't my favorite. The characters grow on you by the end but I felt unconvinced by the premise and the whole soulmates thing at the end felt a little contrived. I also had a hard time getting past the fact that Josie is so capable and intelligent but so flighty and unstable at the same time? Just a very interesting character choice. Matthew deserved a little more development as a character as well, he was so attentive and precious, but I don't know very much about his background or what drives him. Still, there were many parts of their relationship I really loved and won me over. Worth reading for sure, not a 5-star book but when you consume romance novels like they're your daily sustenance, this one is a great pick to add to the mix. Nothing revolutionary, very Hallmark cheesy, but heartwarming all the same.

this was SOOOOOOO SWEET and matthew is a literal dream. I could not stop swooning over this one. Probably her most swoony since the spanish love deception. Melted my cold dead heart. I will always be an elena armas romance fan

i love elena arms and i’ll read anything she writes wow.

i loved matthew so much, one of my favorite make mc’s! and i adored the found family, small town, and good vibes this book had.

slowwwwburn, fake dating or better yet.. fake marriage! boy obsessed.

What do I say about this wonderful book?! I love Elena Armas and everything she's written, and this book is no exception. Josie is a sweet, bubbly coffee shop owner living in Green Oak, NC. She also happens to be the town's mayor. Matthew is a man that has had his world flipped upside down after being fired from his job, and he's setting out to figure out what he wants from life. Josie has been through the ringer when it comes to relationships, having had 4 previous fiancé's that she never made it down the aisle with, and Matthew is on a mission to find his person. Josie gets herself in a bit of a pickle with her dad's PR lady, and she can't believe her luck when her sister's best friend walks up just in time to save the day. Matthew and Josie agree to become "fake" engaged, to get out of this pickle, and this is where the real fun starts. They suddenly have to do everything an engaged couple would be doing: announcing their engagement, taking photos together, planning an engagement party, and all the things you need to do to plan a wedding that is set for the very near future by that same PR lady that got them into this mess in the first place. And I may have forgotten to mention that Josie's dad is very rich and very high profile, and she was his dirty little secret, the child he never claimed or cared for, and now he wants to be a part of her life, going so far as to pay for all of the wedding festivities. Josie and Matthew not only fall for each other, but they also find themselves during their time together. The only thing that could have made this book better was getting Matthew's viewpoint, too! It was just a really great story with that Happily Ever After you want for them. Go read it. Right now. You won't regret it.

Thank you to Atria Books and NetGalley for the Advance Reader Copy of The Fiancé Dilema by Elena Armas.

Gosh, Elena Armas does it again and again and again. She has become one of my top auto-buy authors. All I can say is if you enjoy her other books, namely The Spanish Love Deception, The American Roommate Experiment and The Long Game ... just go ahead and hit the "purchase" button already! I loved it and I loved getting to know Josie more after her intro in The Long Game!

A fake enhancement turned into a love story… add a dose of drama from the reality podcast and a rich, never-in-the-picture father and his pr assistant… it carries all the ingredients! This is not my first Elana Armas stories and it isn’t my last!


What I loved::
🫶🏼 the journey for the perfect nickname! I would giggle at each suggestion and saw stars and hearts and butterflies when it finally stuck.
🫶🏼 just making a place for Grandpa Moe in my heart
🫶🏼 always love a good small town, hometown vibe and Elana just nailed it! From local animals (the names!), the coffee shop and all the things that made it home, it just made my reader’s heart happy!
🫶🏼 Matthew was a dreamboat through the final paragraph. Chef’s kiss 👌
🫶🏼 I loved that, despite gritting my teeth at Andrew and Bobbi’s characters throughout the book, she managed to throw them a bone and make them human and likable towards the ending of the book! That was a surprise for me— I thought I had my mind made up!


Would have loved more of::
✨ I love the banter and tension building but would have preferred reading about their togetherness a little more that the last 30%.
✨ Less wedding planning drama and more funny, romantic moments from the couple. It seemed rigid at times instead of just having some playful, poetic moments they could have authentically had in this small town setting.
✨ I would have loved more backstory to some of the ex’s or Matthew’s past. There were hints and I felt like I waited too long to uncover some hidden histories of the two main characters… and would have loved a little more.

The Fiancé Dilema was just what my heart needed and kept me turning the pages. I loved their story and their happy ending! It was the ending they both deserved and was the bow all wrapped up for their happily ever after!

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the opportunity to read this digital ARC copy in exchange for my honest opinions of this read!

Josie Moore is the heart of her town and even though she has had multiple failed engagements, she is still trying to believe in love. She has never met her father, but when her failed engagements start to affect Andrew Underwoods political appearance, his PR strategist sends her to Josie to fix the problem. Josie is stuck when her half-sisters best friend comes into town and she convinces him to be her new fake fiancé. Things escalate rather quickly and they are about to get married…but will she make it down the aisle this time?

There were so many good parts about this story! The only thing that really turned me off is why she thought it was a good idea to jump into a fake engagement with someone she barely knew after 4 failed engagements with people she did know. It took me a little bit to get over that. Matthew on the other hand was not willing to play along at first but then gave in. His story about how he actually asked about her to his sister and would call her his future wife when Josie knew nothing about it was sweet! I called the secret Adalyn had been keep from Josue the entire time. Once it was out there that she was crying all the time, it was obvious. This story had some spice towards the end. Grandpa Moe was excellent comedic relief 😂 I really loved this quote that Matthew said to Josie: “Beautiful things shouldn’t be boxed. It eventually dims their light”

Elena never disappoints, and this is not the exception I know people hate blonde men but this book ?? I don't hate blonde men at all. they are just hot and Matthew is blonde, hot, and has glasses what else should we ask for??? hello?? I love jossie and she is such an amazing character. she really is so me I love her. Elena give me more.
also the spice??? Elena knows how to build tension.

This is my second Elena Armas book and after giving the first of the series 3 stars, I'm giving this the same. The ideas were there, faking dating/engagement is one of my favorite tropes. At times, I was very interested in the story, but most of the time, I was sadly bored. The pacing didn't connect well with me. I really would've loved hearing about Josie's former engagements and how those didn't work out to then compare it to Matthew and see how their connection was so much better for her. It was not exactly as I had hoped or expected, but others may love it!

Thank you for the advanced copy through NetGallery.

I love Elena Armas’ writing, though it took me a little bit to be able to focus and get behind the FMC’s storyline. I feel like it started settling in during the middle, and overall enjoyed the book once I began to click with what was happening in the pages.

I have read a few books by Elena Armas. This was cute with a few fun quirky characters. Not quite as good the Spanish love deception by Armas but a solid read for those who like romance novels.

this has to be my favorite book written by Elena. It was so good my emotions were all over the place. I loved reading Josie and Matthew’s story.

I really enjoyed this story. Josie was a girl so used to making herself smaller so she could fit in without needing anything else to shift. Matthew wanted her to shift everything in his world if it meant she knew it’s where she fit best.

I loved “A Long Game” so much and I wanted to go back to Green Oak asap!

“The Fiancé Dilemma” was like revisiting our home town and seeing familiar faces and scenarios everywhere - like a big family reunion.

Elena Armas knows how to write a romcom and I adored every single moment in this book because of that - there’s nothing like a good laugh!

The book was also, like always, a good slow-burn with a lot of tension between Josie and Matthew - with the fake engagement plot - gave us a lot of “just pretending<” moments and who doesn't love that?

Long short story, I will love everything Elena gives us and DEVOUR IT - there’s nothing like a funny love story.

4 stars!!!! 🌟🌟🌟🌟

Okay, so I've had an up and down relationship with Elena Armas's books in the past. I really disliked The Spanish Love Deception and ended up loving The Long Game (even though I definitely had my issues with that one at first, too). However, I can confidently say that I thoroughly enjoyed this book from start to finish. Was it perfect? No. But it really didn't have to be. It's a fun, cute, quirky little small town romance, and it really gave me everything I could've hoped for in a book like that. The setting of this book is perfection (I'm a sucker for anything set in North or South Carolina, idk why, it's just my weakness) and the small town vibes just add to its charm. The cast of supporting characters is also very strong (Grandpa Moe, I'm looking at you) and I personally feel like Josie and Matthew are the most likeable main characters that I've read so far from Armas. Like, I don't think either one ever really annoyed me (they definitely made me cringe sometimes, but not too much, tbh and what's a romance book without a little cringe?). I do wish we dove a little more into Josie's past, specifically her relationship with her mother, as well as gotten a little more backstory on her past relationships and why exactly they ended. I mean, we definitely get a little of this info, but I maybe just wanted a few more scenes that really explored her past. Especially with her past fiancés being on the cover, I guess I was just expecting them to play a bigger part in the story. Matthew, though, was.... honestly, great (I just get the ick because he has the same name as my brother, which is really gross when reading certain scenes, ya know 🙃), but that's a personal problem, lol. Name aside, he really is the dream guy. Kind, caring, always putting everyone else before him, knows how to lighten the mood when he has to.... And I really thought him and Josie worked really well together, and the chemistry was definitely there, in my opinion. Even the whole finding the right pet name between the two of them was cute, and I usually hate pet names for anyone other than you know.... pets. I also loved how easily the writing flowed in this book. I never really got bored, and I personally see improvement in that since Armas's past books. Overall, this was a very fun read, and I'm glad I got to revisit the cutie little town of Green Oak, North Carolina, and its cast of characters. And I can confidently say that this was my favorite book yet from Elena Armas, and I look forward to reading more from her in the future.

Thank you to NetGalley, Atria Books, and Elena Armas for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for the copy. The Fiancé Dilemma is the second book in the Long Game series. It follows the story told in The Long Game but it could be read as a stand alone novel. Josie is the main character. Josie’s newly discovered father is a rich business man who does not want Josie’s past getting in the way of his plans. Josie ends up pretending to be engaged to Matthew. I had a tough time making it through the end of the book. I found myself losing interest throughout multiple points of the book. I didn’t really connect to any of the characters either.

Elena Armas writes excellent slow burn romances. This is a fake dating, small town romance with a host of quirky characters and animals. Love a blonde hero in glasses! Josie is the sweetest too. Family drama and found family are important to this novel too. I found it long at times but the worth the wait for Matthew and Josie's happy ending. Thank you, Atria Books and NetGalley for this eARC!

I’m a big fan of Elena Armas’ books, she doesn’t disappoint! I love the fake dating trope, it’s done very well in this book. It’s set in Green Oaks, the site of “The Long Game”. The characters of Cam the soccer player and Adalyn, Josie’s half sister, appear in this book.
Josie is the veteran of 4 broken engagements. She’s the mayor of her small town and is supported by people of Green Oak. Her father, who she never knew, turns out to be a rich man who wants to meet her.
Matthew is friends with Cam and Addy and has heard about Josie.
When they meet, she introduces him as her fiancé. He goes along with it and turns out to be an amazing guy who acts as Josie’s support system. They develop real feelings as they plan a wedding and deal with her dad and his controlling staff. Will Josie go through with this engagement?

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley, I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

I don’t even know where to start! This book was beyond adorable. I love a good fake dating trope add in a fake engagement and I am almost as giddy as I am when enemies find out they have to share a bed. I absolutely loved The Fiancé Dilemma. Plus a book based a few hours away from my hometown is always a win in my book!

I will admit the book started really slow for me, I did have some trouble finding a grove and I am not sure if it’s because I was in a reading slump or the slowish burn was the issue. But once the story began to pick up and the fake relationship started to shift I was hooked.

I absolutely adored Josie. She has a lot of the same qualities I do which made her really relatable to me and her awkwardness endearing. I could see how it could come across as insecure to some people but seeing as how that’s my natural state on any given day of the week, I thought she was a great character and her character development realistic.

Matthew…. Matthew could get it. He is so swoon worthy it’s not even funny. I enjoyed everything about his character from his physical description to his personality. He qualifies for a book boyfriend award for sure. He is sweet, and sexy, and has that air of confidence surrounding him that makes him not only likable but someone who truly root for as the lovers get closer to becoming official… and the ending. SWOON!!!

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the eARC! All opinions expressed are my own.

TROPES
Small Town
Fake Engagement
Slow Burn
He Falls First
Sister's Best Friend
Blonde MMC
City Boy x Small Town Girl