The Fiancé Dilemma
By Elena Armas
Narrated by Brittany Pressley and Zachary Webber
3.5 ⭐️

This one took me a full 30% in to warm up to. I just didn’t click with the FMC. She did grow on me eventually, but I still feel like I need to give an * about her saying she’s not really my cup of tea. Because of that, I had a difficult time getting fully invested in her story. I liked the themes, audio narration, and supporting characters enough to still enjoy my time with the book. Plus, I loved the author’s general writing style (except for the FMC issues I had) and humor. I was laughing out loud a lot throughout this story. I do recommend this one, but I’d give a warning on the FMC.

Thank you NetGalley, Elena Armas, and Atria books for the eARC. The audiobook was borrowed via my library/Libby.

Love love love. I mean this book is by one of my favorite authors so I knew I was going to appreciate the writing style and the plot.

This copy was kindly given to me by the publisher and Netgalley for review. All opinions are my own:)

I always seem to enjoy Elena Armas' novels. And while this one was more of a 4.5 stars compared to her others which I have rated 5 stars, it was still enjoyable. I loved the chance to see more of our MFC and her back story- these books are interconnected so characters from long game made a reappearance, but don't have to read in order to enjoy/understand what is going on. And while I did like our MMC, I just didn't feel the romance/ romantic connection quite as much as I have in other books.

After reading The Long Game, the first book in the Green Oak series, I was excited to dive into book 2. When Josie's famous father decides to take an interest in her life it becomes a PR stunt with her four failed engagements at the center. Andrew's PR person shows up at Josie's front door while she is wearing an engagement ring that has gotten stuck on her finger. In order to cover for what has happened, Josie announces she is engaged to her sister's best friend, Matthew, who happens to arrive at that exact moment.

Josie and the small town setting of the book are so fun. I loved Matthew and he stood by her and stood up to her father. He loved her from the beginning and just needed her to see that. I look forward to reading book 3.

I didn't realize this was a sequal when I decided to read it. I didn't think it matter much so I still tryed to read the it but I found it too formulaic and ending up not finishing it. Thank you to NetGalley anyway!

Josie is the mayor of a small town, who has a serious PR issue according to her estranged wealthy father. Josie is a runaway bride...a four time engaged runaway bride. In order to prove to the community and her father that she isn't flighty... she needs someone, but not just any someone. She needs someone to be her fake fiance. In walks Matthew, her sisters best friend and the perfect fake fiance. But what starts out as a fake engagement soon turns into something real and meaningful.

The Fiance Dilemma is an amazingly written story that pulled me in and kept me hooked from the beginning. The characters are well-developed and relatable. A perfect summer read.

Fake dating/engagement trope
Spice: 🌶🌶🌶🌶

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for my advanced digital copy!

I wrote ,y review on Goodreads but it never showed up on here.

This book was good. I loved the characters, the plot, the slow burn and the spice. I thought the story was done really well and was able to keep my attention the entire book. I did think there was a few slower parts that dropped my attention but the book was able to grab it right back.

I really try to read Elena Armas because of the general hype and my love of romance, but she does not do it for me. She continues to spend too long in the details that still fall flat for offering her characters more personality.

lowkey the most absurd plot someone could have come up with but the soulmate toe curling feet kicking kind of love made up for it

From the first paragraph, I knew this book would be a good one. I immersed myself into the book from the first chapter and I cannot say enough good things about this book! Honestly amazing! The writing is incredible and the plot is just one to die for. I am absolutely obsessed with this book. My favorite part would have to be the character development throughout the book. Character development is something I look forward to and this book did not disappoint.

I love this author, The Spanish Love Deception will always be a favorite of mine. I’ll be honest though, I didn’t love The Long Game and this one is very similar. I love the small town setting, I think it’s SO fun. I just didn’t feel connected to Matthew and didn’t feel the chemistry. I loved Josie’s grumpy grandpa roommate more than anything in this book. I just wanted more. The writing style is great as always. I liked Josie but sometimes was so frustrated with her. I usually love a fake dating situation but this just didn’t do it for me - it felt way too unbelievable. I’ll keep reading this author’s work though.

you guysss, this was really sweet! this was one of the first times in a LONG time that i stayed up finishing a book.

i didn't love the long game, so i was a little hesitant to dive into greek oak #2, but i ended up really, really enjoying this. josie was caring and funny and optimistic and.. flawed. matthew was the sweetest golden retriever who protects the one he loves and loves dropping a "good girl" from time to time. 🥵 they were PERFECT together and both provided exactly what the other people needed. truly soul-mates!

🎧 i highly recommend the audiobook. brittany pressley (who i've listened to and loved before) did a fantastic job bringing josie's high energy, peppy personality, and kindness to life. she also gave me goosebumps delivering some of matthew's lines! a really great narration!

read if you like:
-fake engagement
-small-town romances
-sister's best friend
-golden retriever mmc
-family drama
-soul-mates
-he falls first

thank you so much to atria books for the arc even though it took me so long to read it. 🫣

4.5/5

I’m so glad I didn’t wait to dive into this one—it's a perfect combination of swoon, spice, and small-town charm.

Josie is the heroine you’ll instantly love. She's funny, caring, and a little quirky, but most of all, she just wants to be loved. As the mayor of her small town, she’s always putting others first—especially her grandfather Mo, who will have you laughing out loud. Josie’s relationship with her father, her daddy issues, and her struggles with love after four failed engagements made her character so relatable and grounded.

Then we have Matthew, the MMC, who had me swooning hard. He's the embodiment of a golden retriever with a filthy mouth. He’s patient, sweet, and protective of Josie in the most endearing way. I adored how he stood up for her at every turn and how he truly cared for her. His dirty talk was spicy (and I mean spicy 🔥), and his possessiveness was the perfect touch. I also loved the originality of having a blonde MMC—thank you, Armas, for breaking the dark-haired hero mold!

The fake engagement trope here was executed so well. What started as a misunderstanding (Matthew turning up in Green Oak and being mistaken for Josie’s fiancé) quickly turns into a heartfelt and hilarious fake relationship. The slow burn was absolutely worth the wait, and the sexual tension between them was a chef’s kiss. The spice was delivered just right, with a buildup that had me on the edge of my seat.

The plot was full of drama, personal growth, and juicy moments. The podcast scenes added a fun layer, and I loved how Josie’s past failed engagements kept coming up, adding both humor and secondhand embarrassment (in a good way!). The ending was just perfect—no unnecessary drama, just a sweet and satisfying resolution.

This book made me feel all the feels, and I can’t recommend it enough! If you're a fan of small-town romance, fake dating, slow burns, and swoon-worthy heroes, The Fiancé Dilemma is a must-read. Elena Armas has firmly cemented herself as one of my auto-buy authors. This is definitely one of my favorites from her!

Overall, an incredibly enjoyable read that will make you laugh, swoon, and maybe even fan yourself a few times. Go read it—you won’t regret it!

This is such a great series of books made better by reading them in order, but also just as wonderful in their own. I loved the back and forth banter of this book and how the characters grow together and seperate. I did wish the story moved a long quicker, it seemed to repeat the same pattern for too long I felt myself rushing through skipping over words because I knew the outcome and wanted to get to the final status. Overall Will recommend to friends!

I loved everything about this book…except the female main character. The story itself was great, the quirky small town cast of characters were a dream, and the male main character? Swoon. And it was almost enough to sell me…almost. The problem? No character arc. She started as whiny and insecure with no backbone. Aaaand ended exactly the same way. Those things are fine at the beginning when the journey is still to come, but by the end when you still can’t stand up for yourself you’ve lost me. This has so much potential but for me, ultimately wasn’t my favorite.

The Fiancé Dilemma gave me everything I didn’t know I needed: fake dating, sister’s best friend, emotional chaos, and so much more. ughhhh so good.

Josie is a hot mess in the most lovable way—literally engaged FOUR time and suddenly fake-engaged to a guy she barely knows for PR reasons?? I was hooked. And Matthew?? So sweet I was obsessed with him. The way he shows up for her even when she’s spiraling?? Ugh. I’m in love.

This book felt like a warm hug with a chaotic edge. 10/10 would fake date a broody Irishman if it ended like this.

This book was so cute and fun and I loved it!

I’m still new-ish to this author, but the books I’ve read so far have been so amazing!

This book had THE BEST TROPES. Omg. Fake engagement? Best friend’s sister? Second chances? I. Ate. This. Up.

Thank you so much for this arc! I highly recommend this book to everyone!

The Fiance Dilemma is Armas's best book yet, in my opinion. Some of the storyline seemed forced, but overall it flowed well. Love a good fake dating trope. The slow-burn build of tension between Jose and Matthew is excellent - the wine tasting scene....swoon.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC!

I loved the middle and end of this book, but the beginning fell flat for me. It moved REALLY fast, and just didn’t seem believable that Josie would want to cover for her dad in this way. There wasn’t enough substance between Josie and Andrew to warrant this. I would have loved to see that fleshed out more. I did love Matthew and Josie’s relationship once they got into their fake engagement, however. And no third act breakup! I was worried in the wedding dress shop that we’d be hitting that, but I love that she called for him instead and they walked out together.

Overall this book has its cute moments and if you’re looking for an easy summer read with an HEA then this one should be right up your alley.

Such a charming and feel-good read! Josie and Matthew’s fake engagement had all the right ingredients—fun banter, undeniable chemistry, and just the right amount of small-town chaos. Josie’s messy romantic history made her super relatable, and I loved watching her grow past it with Matthew (who is totally swoon-worthy, by the way). The found-family angle and second-chance themes gave it a little extra heart, too. It dragged a tiny bit in the middle, but overall, it was sweet, funny, and full of those “aww” moments I love in a romance. Definitely worth picking up if you’re a fan of fake dating done right!