The Art of Engagements: A Review of The Fiance Dilemma

This book contains adult themes that are not suitable for readers under the age of 18. Discretion is advised.

Book: The Fiancé Dilemma
Author: Elena Armas
Genre: Adult Romance/Contemporary Romance
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Spice: 🌶🌶🌶
E-Book
First Person POV

Disclosure: I would like to clarify that this review is based on an ARC (Advanced Reader Copy) provided by Atria Books via NetGalley. I want to assure my readers that this is not a paid review, and all opinions expressed here are my honest and unsolicited thoughts on the book. If you have any queries or concerns, please don't hesitate to reach out to me directly.

Josie Moore is a habitual runner.

No, I’m not talking about marathons and such. 

I'm talking the kind of running that made Julia Roberts in the 1999 film “Runaway Bride” look like she was taking a casual stroll. 

Josie, the Mayor of Green Oak, has been engaged four times. 

When the story of her previous engagements, where she left her would-be grooms at the altar, becomes a PR nightmare for her newly discovered billionaire father, Andrew Underwood, he sends his tough-as-nails PR strategist, Bobbi Shark, to clean up her image.
However, a misunderstanding involving an old engagement ring and a passerby, Matthew Flannagan, leads Josie to fabricate a story, leaving Matthew dazed and confused as Bobbi spins a tale about a fifth engagement. The town of Green Oak buzzes with excitement over their mayor's new engagement, and Josie must convince Matthew to pretend to be her fiancé until the situation calms down. She promises they will never get married and can remain friends once everything settles down. Instead, what transpires is a lot of sexual tension, forced proximity, and the impending question of “what could go wrong?”

Overall, Josie is such a relatable character. She grew up not knowing who her father was and was raised solo by her mother, Eloise. After Eloise passed away when Josie was just 17 years old, Josie had to learn how to care for herself and succeed without her mother at her side. Missing out on family, the discovery of not just a sister named Adalyn, but also her biological father, leaves her with hope that maybe they can help fill the hole her mother left behind.

“It was all I’d wanted for a long time…A family.” - Josie

 However, that wasn’t really what she got. She found a part of the family she was seeking when she met Adalyn, but the relationship with her father was anything but family-like. Instead, she felt immense pressure not to add to the fire surrounding her father’s image and it became even harder to bear once the news of her previous engagements and her most recent false engagement to Matthew reached not only the gossip queens of her small town but also the national celebrity gossip channels.
Think "Call Her Daddy" meets TMZ.

Matthew, Adalyn’s best friend, is just a dream. In the very beginning, he was completely reluctant to agree to Josie’s request to this false engagement. It was mainly because there were tell-tale signs of him being in love with Josie at first sight. He took his role of being Josie’s fiancé very seriously. From trying to figure out a good pet name for her. He didn’t play around when it came to protecting Josie and ensuring that she was okay.

“You can’t send me an SOS, then, Josie. An SOS means I fucking run.”
“Your exes…Am I on good terms with the idea of them, or do I want to rip their heads off?” - Matthew

 He had a no fucks given attitude and was the first to speak up if she was ever super uncomfortable, but most importantly, he was the only individual who truly saw Josie for who she was and not what she molded herself to be.

“There was a waterfall Josie - His Dream should have been getting married to you” - Matthew

 Elena Armas didn’t just write a novel about two unsuspecting individuals falling in love in the most unconventional of ways. She included humor, humility, and heart, going so far as to make Josie and Matthew as relatable as possible. She also did a great job of edging the living daylights out of you, like some evil villain, allowing the sexual tension to build so much I felt like i was going to scream. It only took about 72% of the way to get to the best bit, and that’s not including the bathtub scene (ifkyk). Forgiving the slowest of burns though, this was wildly entertaining and included just the right amount of fluff.
If you enjoy:
✨ Fake engagements
✨ Close Proximity
✨ He Falls First (and hard)
✨ Slow Burns
This is for you.
Plus, how can you not feel all flustered when you read this:

"You're going to be a good girl and let me work for those moans." - Matthew

Was it cheesy? yes. But it was a cheese that will leave you kicking your feet like a love-sick fool.

 The Fiancé Dilemma will be released on July 30th but you can pre-order your copy now