Ashley Winstead writes such fun, smart, feminist romance. Her characters are real and fleshed out and she always situates them within incredibly realistic settings. I'll read anything she writes.

This book was such a fun read! Great mixture of characters who are just innately good. Alexis is learning what it means to make good use of her own abilities, even if they look a little different than the rest of her family. Logan is figuring out how to do his job on his own terms, while staying true to who he is. They are both delightful and have fantastic chemistry. If you like romantic comedies, the fake dating trope, and background politics, this might be a great next read.

This book has every element of successful romance from start to finish. The politics, "fake dating", the fact that there is a librarian as the main character....does it get any betters?! The tension throughout the book was delicious and I cannot think of anyone who enjoys romance that will not devour this book! I cannot wait to introduce it to many readers as I am sure they will feel the same as I do!

Alexis Stone would rather be curled up with a book than in the spotlight. But when she is unexpectedly dumped for being boring, she decides what she needs is a night on the town. At a hotel bar, she meets Logan, who seems like just the escape that she needs. Then, the hotel catches on fire, and, for some reason, when Logan carries Alexis out of the hotel, they are met with cameras eager to take their picture. The next day, Alexis discovers why when she learns that the pictures of the two of them have spread across the interest -- it turns out Logan is a candidate running to unset the current governor. The pictures threaten his campaign and maybe even Alexis's job as a school librarian. So they two agree, reluctantly, to pretend they are in a relationship for the two months until the election. As Alexis and Logan spend more time together, they push each other outside their respective comfort zones -- and realize that may be exactly what has been missing in their lives.

This was a fun and funny novel, with compelling characters and an engaging story.

Highly recommended!

I adored this book. Fake dating, politics, great supporting characters and the MC was a librarian? Sign me up. This was one of those romance books that just nails all the right ingredients to create a perfect story. Loved it.

I loved this book. If you have an interest in political campaigns AND love romance; this book is for you! I loved that the book had a duel POV between the two MCs. When it is hailed as a slow burn...baby it is. However, the relationship you get to dive into is worth the slow burn. As you can imagine in any fake dating someone falls for the other and it changes the trajectory of the relationship.

The author also added sideline stories where women empowerment was the central theme. Which was so awesome to read especially since politics has been wrought with masculine dominance since its onslaught in the country.

Do yourself a favor, sit back and enjoy the slow burn amongst some political especially with the next year we will be having in this country. At least in the end of this political story there is some love.

This scandalous, fake dating romcom had me hooked from the beginning. I'm not usually into political based books, but this wasn't too heavy on the politics. The fake dating relationship between Logan and Alexia was steaming with sexual tension. They were each others cheerleaders throughout the whole book, and their friendship only grew stronger. Definitely a slow burn Book, but worth the read!

Thank you to NetGalley, Ashley Winstead and Harlequin Trade Publishing for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I was excited going into this because I’ve read this authors thrillers and I gave them all 5 stars so seeing her branch out into romance was super fun!!

I loved the meet cute and one night stand god it was good!! it did get MESSY but it was great!! I like messy 🤷🏻‍♀️ I’m an absolute sucker for fake dating and I loved the way the trope was used to create the ultimate tension and ANGST!! 😮‍💨😮‍💨😮‍💨 for logan, it took me some time to like him but he was hot I couldn’t deny it!! I loved Alexis she was relatable and I ended up really loving the relationship between her and Logan.

Politics. I took some classes in college and it was not my favourite but I do find it interesting so I didn’t mind it!! This author is an auto buy author for me so I will always read her books!!

♡︎ fake dating
♡︎ one night stand
♡︎ forced proximity

I loved Logan and Alexis so much! Ashley Winstead has this unique ability to make you invested in the characters from chapter one. I related so much to Alexis' need to be seen and appreciated for who she is and not who she's related to. I also appreciated how open and honest she was about her past relationship and dealing with the hurts and hang ups of it even knowing her partner was at fault for so much. When you're committed to something, it's still okay to be let down by your experience and its end even if you didn't do anything wrong. Logan's brash confident nature balanced with the softness and vulnerabiltiy he had no problem showing Alexis was the right balance. I loved watching them nurture and challenge each other!

4.5 stars!

Now this was a fun romance!! The whole time I was reading this, I was so happy! Alexis is such a great main character and her dedication to education was so inspiring. I also loved Logan and his unique personality for a governor candidate. There was funny banter and the fake dating was awesome.

I'm docking half a star due to the fact the main issue was lack of communication which often makes me want to pull my hair out, but here it did really work with the story.

I'm forever impressed that Winstead can write seamlessly across genres. From romance to dark thrillers, her writing is incredible. I can't wait for more from her soon!

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗕𝗼𝘆𝗳𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗱 𝗖𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗲
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
I’ve always been a fan of Ashley Winstead’s thrillers and I was a little scared to read her romance books but omg I’m so glad I gave it a chance! I loved reading a book about a couple who pushes each other to be a better version of themselves! Also appreciate the 𝗽𝗼𝗹𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘁𝗼𝗻𝗲𝘀 in this book: the climate change issues, the animal shelter highlights, and most importantly, this book is a shoutout to all the loving 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗿𝘀 out there! I’m not a super fan of 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲 𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗹𝗲s but the use of this storyline worked so well for me in this book too!

This book has everything: fake dating, intense chemistry, an engrossing storyline, and two incredibly affable characters. Oh, and did I mention the chemistry? Needless to say, I adored this book! The only aspect that wasn't entirely my thing was the constant miscommunication between the characters, which I wish had been toned down a bit. However, the fake dating trope and the slow-burn romance had me completely smitten. Logan's quotes were so adorable that they made me scream with delight.

When school librarian Alexis finds herself in compromising photos with gubernatorial candidate Logan, the two agree to fake date until Election Day.

So I liked this, but like TALK TO EACH OTHER. It drove me crazy. I know part of the miscommunication was because Alexis hadn’t found her voice yet, but come on. I also appreciated the focus on education/educators, but rolled my eyes so hard at Alexis’s principal just giving her a day off a week and a raise - never going to happen. Maybe I’m too close to the situation as a “retired” school librarian?

Brilliant plot, absolutely one of the most captivating reads I couldn't put down! I would definitely reread it again.

This was a really cute rom-com with a fake dating premise. I loved how Alexis and Logan meet and how it turned into this whole whirlwind. A little bit more politics in a romcom than normal but as I agreed with all of Logan's idea it was totally fine! I look forward to reading more from Ashley Winstead in the future!

The writing was excellent and was so easy to follow and the characters were fun in their way but has a few issues in my opinion. It took me a while to really get into it and to find it enjoyable but I ended up liking it after a while.

"The Boyfriend Candidate: A Sizzling Slow-Burn Romantic Comedy" by Ashley Winstead is a fun and flirty romance that'll leave you swooning as you root for the perfect match.

I would give it 5 stars! Ashley Winstead is one of my new fave authors, having read Fool Me Once and now The Boyfriend Candidate! I am excited to read her thrillers, I have them waiting for me, haha. I loved Alexis and Logan's story and the snippets we got of Lee and Ben. Can we get a Will book next?!

As a teacher, I do not really know how to express the WAY I feel about this book... and as a reader I also have struggles figuring out how I feel about this book.

I do believe, after reading this, is that I'll stick with her thriller works going forward because mayhap the political field romance isn't her strong suit or my taste... and I don't feel like figuring out the true answer here.

An awesome slow burn, fake dating contemporary romance between Logan and Alexis. This book made me slightly interested in politics which is hard to do these days! If we had Logan as a candidate maybe more people would be interested too!

The miscommunication between Logan and Alexis was extremely frustrating, but made sense for the plot to develop.