Fool Me Once – Ashley Winstead

Fool Me Once is the new “fierce and funny battle of the exes” from Ashley Winstead, the American academic turned novelist with a penchant for delightful romantic comedies. The wonderful team at Harper Collins Australia/HQ Fiction were kind enough to send me a copy for review.

Let’s meet the players. There’s Lee, aka Stoner, a feminist and environmentalist living in red-state Texas (of all places!), working as the director of communications for a world-first female-led electric car company (and she’s sick of comparisons to Tesla and Elon, so don’t even start). Then, there’s Ben, the new policy director responsible for a bill that could make electric vehicles standard across the government fleet. It would be a boon for Lee and her boss, but Ben and Lee share a past – and not a good one.

Sparks of all kinds are naturally going to fly when ex-lovers reunite in the workplace, especially with a separation as undignified and hurtful as the one Lee and Ben shared back when they were students. But Fool Me Once is a romance novel, so you know those sparks aren’t going away any time soon…

I found Lee to be a bit much, if I’m honest. Her savage determination to be a Cool Girl, and her incessant pathological fear of infidelity, ruined not only her own life but also any chances I had of sympathising with her. If I were her friend, I would’ve told her to wake up to herself long ago. If I were her paramour, I would’ve bailed long before Ben did. Still, that’s just my personal take; I can definitely see that she will be endearing to a lot of readers.

What will really sell Fool Me Once, I think, is the satisfying ending that promises a much brighter future than the voters of Texas are anticipating in reality. This would be the perfect rom-com for fans of Parks & Recreation, or The West Wing.

Read Fool Me Once on audiobook via Libro.fm here. (affiliate link)