Don't you just love a book that has great character development? I do!!! This ultimate slow burn, sisters best friend, small town, runaway bride book was extremely entertaining. This is Elenas best work. I love how our FMC is a simple character that is good natured and just wants to be loved. and Who doesn't love a golden retriever MMC? I loved Matthews playful side and the nicknames! I love nicknames so much. The chemistry was insane and I loved the spice in this one. I feel like I simply connected with the story. The scenery of the book was enticing and atmospheric in giving us the perfect small town charm. This is a must read!

The Fiancé Dilemma was a charming and lighthearted read that will have you smiling and swooning over a cinnamon roll hero.

While this is a standalone it is part of the interconnected series, The Long Game, so I would recommend just reading the first book in the series.

This was in the heroine’s POV only, with only one chapter in the hero’s POV. I personally would have preferred dual POVs though. There were some great tropes though, like an engagement of convenience, friends to lovers, sister’s best friend, and a small town romance.

The overall premise was entertaining. There were some heartfelt, swoon worthy, and laugh out loud moments. All the side characters were amazing as well. I absolutely just loved how sunny and positive the heroine was. She was a bit of a mess at times but completely relatable.

I will say though, there were certain subplots that I wished had been more explored or discussed like, the heroine’s relationship with her father and the hero’s career. As those felt very rushed at the end.

The romance between the main characters was very much a slow burn but so worth it. The hero was the absolute perfect book boyfriend, so I wished we’d had gotten his POV at times. Their chemistry, connection, and banter was just amazing. I loved how understanding, patient and supportive the hero was at all times.

There was no third act breakup, which I appreciated. But the conflict that did occur was quite rushed and resolved too quickly in my opinion. The ending was really sweet though.

Overall, just an enjoyable read that I would definitely recommend!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I was lucky enough to receive a digital ARC of Elena Armas’ newest novel, The Fiancé Dilemma, and let me tell you... Matthew and Josie will now live rent-free in my head until further notice!

Elena Armas writes fake dating/relationships of convenience so well (as seen in The Spanish Love Deception) and I really enjoyed this story line. Josie is such a bright light for her little town of Green Oaks but, it is clear that she has dealt with plenty of loss and heartache between the loss of her mother, an absent (until recent) father, and the weight of multiple failed engagements. When Matthew shows up to Green Oaks and meets Josie in person for the first time, despite being in a group chat with her, her sister/his best friend, and her husband, it is so clear that he is enamored with Josie the second he meets her. Despite his confusion and hesitation to help Josie, he does it anyway and immediately steps into the protective fiancé role.

The love Matthew and Josie have for each other, despite their individual pasts, is so beautiful and Josie’s character growth is wonderful to experience throughout the book. Elena writes these characters with so much depth and details that make it impossible NOT to route for them throughout the entire story. Overall, I had such a fun time reading their story and can’t wait to see what else Elena Armas has in store for future novels!

Delightful! I really enjoyed this return to Green Oak. We follow Josie, small town coffee shop owner and Mayor and her complicated romantic history. When her sister’s best friend shows up in town at the same time that she could really use a fake fiancé, shenanigans ensure. With all of the heart and charm that Armas brings to all of her books, this was a great read. Highly recommend! Releases July 30.

The Fiance Dilemma is the story of beloved town mayor Josie. She has experienced four failed engagements and this lands her on the radar of gossip columnists when her famous absentee dad steps back into her life. Under this pressure, Josie agrees to a fake engagement with literally the first man she sees- Matthew. Matthew is best friends with Adalyn, Josie’s sister. As their lies begin to grow bigger, Josie starts to fall for Matthew more. Will this engagement end like all the others or will Josie finally make it down the aisle?

The Fiance Dilemma is a sweet rom-com! Josie is such a lovely character and it’s clear that she has given so much of herself to the town. When her father reappears on the scene, she is determined to form a connection with him. Fortunately for Josie, Matthew is more than willing to go along for the ride. This romance was surprisingly steamy and Elena Armas nails these scenes. I loved the cameos of Adalyn and Cameron and enjoyed seeing the town of Green Oak again. There is a cozy sense of town life and the supporting characters (Grandpa Moe!) are delightful.

Readers who enjoy sweet rom-coms, steamy connections, and the fake engagement trope will devour this!

Thank you to Elena Armas, Atria Books, and Netgalley for a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

For publisher: My review will be posted on Instagram, Goodreads, Amazon, Storygraph, and Barnes & Noble etc.

2 stars ★

I enjoyed this book, but it felt so messy. Yes, it has some sweet and funny scenes, which I loved. But besides that? it was disappointing given the incredible tropes this book has and the potential to be so much better.

I really hated how the fmc allowed her father and his PR agent to “dictate” her life so easily and quickly. This girl barely knows her father, and that man has done absolutely nothing for her, not even to get to know her better. She let his PR mess take control over her. She didn’t want to be a burden or a bigger problem for him and his PR mess/reputation, given her reputation of getting engaged and leaving her fiancés at the altar. So, what does she decide to do to improve the situation? getting engaged again knowing she wasn’t going to make it to the wedding. Did she really think this would calm the situation? The joke tells itself.

Also, she kept the rings and wedding dresses from her previous engagements. That was so weird. I don't want to judge, but it really seemed like she was collecting fiancés. And there was never any deep reason why she left them. She had daddy issues, she was scared, and… what else? There was no further explanation. Maybe that is the author’s goal? That some fears don’t need to have some deep meaning? I honestly don’t know, but it felt messy and confusing in this book. I understand that the book needed a plot, but… the plot wasn’t plotting. It was lacking and needed more depth and development of everything, including the main characters and the romance. The chemistry and the whole falling in love felt so rushed. This was a slow burn that somehow took them about two months to realize they were each other soulmates. Huh? No further comments.

────── ⋆⋅💐⋅⋆ ──────

Anyways💜🦋 thank you NetGalley and Atria Books for providing me with an arc in exchange for an honest review!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read an advanced copy of this novel in exchange for my honest opinion!

Minor spoilers!!!

When I read "The Spanish Love Deception", I enjoyed it and moved on. With this book though............I have ALL the feels!! Although I haven't yet read the first book in this series, I still was able to follow along super well and still really, really loved it. Josie is such a fun, crazy character and I ADORED Matthew for her!! She honestly deserved someone that loves her the way he does, we all really do if I'm being honest!! Seeing their relationship develop throughout this novel was so beautiful, and I'm hoping we will get to see them again eventually!! All of the side characters were super hilarious, especially Grandpa Moe and Bobbi Shark (side note: ADORE the cute Sharky name for Bobbi's coffee!). Maybe a Bobbi story next?!? Elena Armas....the ball is in your court! Seriously, if you enjoyed any of the author's previous works, you will love this silly, romantic, goofy book!

I really enjoyed this romance. You had me at fake dating. For some reason this trope has me in a chokehold and this author knocked it out of the park. The banter was perfect. I really loved the Spanish love deception and this one was a close second. Elena keep them coming!

Ever watched The Proposal with Sandra Bullock and Ryan Reynolds? Do you like the fake dating trope?

Then this is the book for you!

Josie has gone through four engagements, you could say she has had some bad luck. And the latest ring won’t even come off.

Matthew has also had a bit of bad luck. He’s been fired from his job and his truck gets stuck in the mud on the way to see his best friend. But his bad luck stops when he meets eyes with Josie and she panics, introducing him to her family as her fiancé.

Now the two have to keep this act up, but where is the line drawn?

This book was cute, it was fluffy, but it was also STEAMY. Baths will never look the same, nor will pies.

I gotta be honest, this book didn’t really click for me until about halfway through. And that’s a long time before I started to enjoy it. Maybe it’s because the first book was also not super impressive. I just keep hoping for another TSLD and keep getting let down.
However, once about halfway through it did get better. And I honestly think having his POV would have really helped. I’m happy with how it ended, I thought she’d give into the demands of everyone around her.
It just needed a bigger hook in the beginning to get me to want to keep reading.
I received this Arc from NetGalley and all thoughts are my own. Thank you NetGalley and Atria books.

I could not put this book down! I don’t know what it is but I enjoy reading Elena Armas’ books so much. The Spanish Love Deception is one of my favorites and I know this one is up there with it. I love how quirky and lovable Josie is. Let not forget about Matthew (where can I find one?!). I love how he sees her and understands what she needs. I think Grandpa Moe was my favorite character. Pedro Pigscal is an honorable mention. I would recommend this book to everyone if I could. It’s such a cute rom com that most would enjoy. The spice is a bit slow to start but I enjoyed the build up. Other than that this is filled with laugh out loud moments and moments that tug at your heart strings.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this arc in exchange for an honest review.

This book was amazing! This author continues to wow me! Thank you so much for the opportunity to read this early!

I loved this book! I am very thankful for being chosen to receive this arc before the release date of the book!

These are my honest opinions!

I loved Josie, she was such great. She was an amazing character and I could relate to her at times. She was funny and so heartwarming nice.

Matthew was a character indeed. I loved him once I got a better feel of him. I would have loved to seen more from his POV but still he was awesome too.

I totally recommend people to check out this book!
I will be reading the book about her sister that came out before this one!

📚The Fiancé Dilemma by Elena Areas
📕ARC Review(Copy gifted by @atria_books via @netgalley)
🚨While reviewed copy is gifted, opinions are always my own.
Status: Available July 30th, 2024, Not KU

🥰Enjoyment: This one is kind of a weird vibe from me. I haven’t really had great luck focusing on ebooks lately but this was one of those “auto read authors so I’m going to take the ARC in whatever form I can get it”. In the end it took me like 3 weeks to finish. But not because I wasn’t enjoying myself. I just had a lack of time and when I had time I had a lack of focus. In the end I really enjoyed the characters and the banter. I enjoyed the overarching plot well enough. What was missing for me, was the actual falling in love. They just kind of “were” and the reader was supposed to go “ah yes clearly”. The pacing was off for me because we were trying to fit so much hoop jumping with the fake engagement plot/PR crisis that the parts of the story that probably held the romance never hit the page.

Again I LOVED Matthew and Josie… I just didn’t love how we received their story. Does that make any sense?

P.S. I did love the last 20%

QOTD: Have you ever had a book where you just weren’t sure how you felt about it?

Elena Armas has gotten better and better with each book. While this didn't blow me away, I this is my favorite book of hers to date.

This book was fun and cute! Totally fun, sweet, and swoony 🥰🥰🥰
The set up for the fake engagement almost deterred me. I’m yelling in my head “just say no!!!”. But I persevered and wow was I happy I did. I loved seeing Josie’s character grow over the length of the book. And her and Matthew were a perfect match 😌

Thank you to Atria & Netgalley!

Thank you to Atria books & Netgalley for an ARC of this book, in exchange for my honest opinion.

Elena Armas writes some of my favorite Romance books. Although this is the second in the series, it can be read as a SA! This was a fun and unique romance read!

This took a while to reel me in but the last third of book made it worth it. If the authors goal was for us to hate Bobbi with a passion, then goal achieved. If this was a fantasy I would have hoped for her to be first picked off by a dragon. I love the fake dating trope and obviously it's never realistic but I did feel like Josie's reasoning for getting fake engaged was pretty lame. However, I did enjoy the growth of her character throughout the book. I have no complaints about Matthew but would have loved to see his pov throughout the book instead of just at the end.

When Josie falls into a predicament/PR nightmare and her sister’s best friend shows up out of no where, it seems like an easy solution to her problem.

You guys, Matthew is the BEST mmc Elena Armas has ever wrote. He’s got me over here giggling & blushing!!

I loved Josie’s character growth. She’s not afraid to be messy & take the world in her hands. The anxiety representation that her character gave us was amazing.

Even though this is Josie’s book, I feel like Matthew stood out the most. I loved how attentive he is to Josie, her emotions are his emotions. He has so much love and respect for her. The beginning of their love story was unconventional but what bloomed was so beautiful & unique. They deserve the world! .

"Beautiful things should not be boxed. It eventually dims their light."

Josie has been engaged. Four times. Those engagements have not successfully made it down the aisle for any of the weddings. When this goes viral, her rich absentee father sends a PR specialist to her door. Josie still likes to try on the engagement rings that she kept from all four relationships. When Bobbi shows up on her doorstep, Josie is wearing one of her rings. Bobbi notices and in a panic, Josie says she is engaged to Matthew who is just coming down the street. She convinces him to pretend to be engaged to her, but assures him that they won't go through with a wedding.

So there were some good things in this and some not so good things for me. I did not love Josie. I didn't like that she kept all of the rings from all of her relationships. That was just a weird detail for me. I don't think that the podcast was a real problem for her father either. I'm sorry, but who would actually care? & even then, Josie BARELY had a relationship with the dude. Who cares?

I did like Matthew as a person, but I think he just deserved better than Josie. I thought the way that he was written to handle the engagement ending was great. Totally unique that I haven't read before, but there is just something between Matthew and Josie did not click for me. I think that is definitely more on Josie than it was on Matthew.

There were too many pop culture references for me. Just not something that I personally love in books.

The cover is not great for the book you get. I thought that ALL the exes would show up. I thought there would be conflict with more of the exes. Having them on the cover is just misleading.

Grandpa Moe is my favorite character and he deserves all the love in the world.

This book was trying to sell me something, and in the end, I picked it up, considered it, but I didn't buy it.