A thoroughly enjoyable read. It's rare that a romance engages in politics, and I liked how thoughtful each opinion was. It turns out that Shelley isn't really a Republican, but it was still interesting to see the clash of values between her and Rand. The points of discussion were current and relatable to the audience. I was fond of Shelley, and her character arc was admirable. I wasn't as fond of Rand, mostly because I couldn't understand her rationalization half the time. Obviously she has had her own issues to deal with, but I couldn't shake the subconscious thought that Shelley deserves better.
Four stars.

Ms. Jensen is a new author for me. When I read the synopsis for this book, I thought it sounded really good especially since I am very interested in politics. Unfortunately, I just could not connect with the characters nor the storyline. This book started slow with a lot of information about one of the main characters and the pace for me never picked up. I decided to put the book aside for a few days and then resumed reading it.. I finished it and never felt that satisfaction one gets when a book is done.

I do want to give this author another try and hope she continues writing. I rate this book 2 out of 5 stars.

I received this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It was my first time reading Jen Jensen's work and I found it to be very well planned and put together. I enjoyed the back and forth between Rand and Shelley from opposite sides of the political spectrum. The thing I liked the most is that they had actual discussions about their political differences rather than resorting to name-calling and tearing each other down. I was disappointed in Rand that she had such a hard time letting go of her Republican biases, only seeing Shelley believing everything that the party stands for. I would venture to say that most people fluctuate on certain issues and don't look to their political party for how they should believe. We have been taught by the media and the parties to hate each other rather than seeing each other's side. The Politics of Love does a really good job of showing both sides and it made me enjoy the characters all the more for it.

I loved the process that the author took Shelley through to discover who she was until she finally came out. It was on her terms, not on anyone else's, despite someone trying to force her out. I enjoyed seeing into her thought process. While never explicitly stated, Shelley has been through some sort of therapy or learned coping mechanisms for her stress. Her counting of things when in difficult situations alerts the reader of just how stressed she is. But when she doesn't count, she is more relaxed and able to accept where she is at. I thought that was a great element that continued to show up throughout the book.

it was a slow build until the end, but was well worth the journey. I would love to see a sequel to this following the 2020 elections to see where the characters are and if anything changed.

I received an ARC of this book from Netgalley in exchange for a fair and unbiased review.

I really enjoyed this book. It is about Rand and Shelley, who are on opposite ends of the spectrum when it comes to religion and gay/trans rights. Shelley has parents who are Evangelical and do not know that she is gay. She campaigns for their organization despite being closeted.
It isn't until she meets Rand, a gay/trans activist, that she begins to question the organization and what damage it does to those who are out. This begins her journey to accept who she is. Rand helps her with her acceptance and a relationship between the two forms.
I would recommend this.
I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is the first book I’ve read that starts in the studio’s of MSNBC. I’ve read books that have CNN as a starting place but…
Rand Thomas, or perhaps I should say Doctor Thomas, is an activist fighting for the rights of the LGBTQ community. She is dedicated and is more than willing to speak up on these issues. A few years have passed since she lost her wife to cancer and she has yet to meet anyone that made her take a second look. Imagine her surprise when she finds herself intrigued by a person like Shelley.
Shelley Whitmore has always done what her parents wanted, including working within the faith based organization led by her parents pushing the country to follow more conservative values. Like limiting the right of the trans community. The problem is that these goals are not what Shelley believes but it’s easier to just go along with their agenda. The only good thing was travelling throughout the country giving her a chance to explore the world that she herself wanted to be a part of. She has known from an early age that she wasn't what her family would want for her. She’s a very deep in the closet lesbian.
While Shelley’s character is someone that you find yourself liking despite her views or I should say her parents views on the LGBTQ’s community. She's smart and even though she has been in the spotlight for years representing her family’s concerns, you still find yourself cheering her for trying to finally live her life. On the other hand Rand is a little harder character to like. Rand has problems that she can’t seem to break free from including her late wife's parents. When she meets Shelley she is taken by Shelley’s willingness to look at the issues of LGBTQ community from a different angle.
First time I’ve read Ms Jensen’s and after this book I look forward to reading more of her works. A little choppy when it came to the dialogue but the story was worth a few minor hiccups . A very nice read.
ARC via NetGalley/ Bold Stroke Books.

I wanted to like this book more than I did. I really liked the writer's first book. But this one felt like the writer wanted to use a romance story to write about politics on a personal level but couldn't really incorporate the two together.

The book started well. But while the point the writer tried to make about politics and being able to have opposing views. But on the romance and character development level, I didn't feel Rand and Shelley really connected and grew together. The ending felt rushed too. I was really left wondering if this was a relationship that could stand the test of time.

To be perfectly honest, I struggled with this one. I wanted to like it or at least enjoy the political storylines but found it hard to follow the pacing as each chapter picked up at a different place with no context.

The political sections were weak and felt like forced lectures rather than banter or quick debates.

I also had trouble with Shelley and Rands entire relationship — I just didn’t find their instant attraction credible given their backgrounds etc.

And the ending truly killed it for me — the answer to polarization is not to become an independent — especially because the Independence Party is a political organization with its own platform. Likely, the author meant that they registered as “unaffiliated” voters.

Sadly this one was a miss for me.

I was super intrigued by the premise of people who supported opposite parties (Republican and Democrat) finding a common ground in loving each other. Sharing different view yet becoming romantically involved.

And I guess it delivered what it promised, but in such a dispassionate and bland way that I struggled to push through it - keep in mind this is a super short book and it took me 5 days to finish it.

My least favourite thing is probably the structure. It doesn’t flow well and has a lot of breaks. It doesn’t help that the pacing is awfully quick and we get told what happens instead of shown.

I didn’t like the romance. And, again, it’s because of the pacing. We go from the first time they meet to a year later. That wouldn’t be a problem if we then saw their relationship building up slowly. But that’s not what happens. We are told that during that year they shared emails consistently, which is cute, but we don’t see them interact much until Shelley decides to move to Arizona, where Rand lives, to be closer to her... I also didn’t feel like they had any chemistry other than when they first met. Rand also got on my nerves when she kept leading Shelley on just to turn her down.

The only thing I enjoyed about this book was Jamie and Rachel.

I was very intrigued by this concept and when reading immediately thought to myself: "I am really curious to see how the author places a queer woman within the Republicans and how the relationship between a Republican and a Democrat might look like."

Sadly, I have to admit that while there were a lot of concepts I loved (I am always SO excited when I can add a book to my "vegan-character" shelf), this wasn't a book for me.

I thought that the main theme, the politics, where dealt with only at the beginning and the end (properly) and in the middle there was a love story that I didn't get sucked into and that was riddled with drama. Somehow, I also felt completely disconnected by the fact that the story takes place over the course of a year and there were so many time jumps where I was left wondering "but wait, what happens in the middle of this?". Hence, I ended up being not at all invested in the love story, for me personally it could've gone either way and I also wasn't able to connect with the characters.

As for the politics and religion as themes... I ended up being even more atheist and democrat with the believe that no, I don't think being friends with a republican could ever be an option for me.

All in all, I am giving this two stars. I have to admit that the most exciting thing for me about this book was Shelley's veganism.

Rand, a liberal activist, meets a famous conservative republican lawyer Shelley on a political TV show in New-York and they agree on more than they thought they ever would. I loved this book, it was a quick read that cleverly took a political spin on the enemies to lovers trope.

Unfortunately, this was not what I was looking for at the moment. The writing was great, but the story line was not what I was looking for. I may try to pick this up again in the future.

Rand, a liberal activist, meets a famous conservative republican lawyer on a political TV show in New-York. This original novel is written in the third person.
I loved many aspects of the story. First, the characters are over thirty characters yet struggling with a lot of life issues. The author also highlights the influence of family even when we are adults. Despite than I'm not homosexual, many passages in the book echoed in my own life, such as the difficulty of grief or widowhood. Moreover, whether you're sexual orientation, the struggle to find the right partner, one that you're attracted to and who is your perfect match is just the same. I also learned a lot. For instance, maybe because I live in a European capital, I thought that nowadays most homosexuals come out at the latest in their twenties.
It is a pity that the writing is strictly factual. Because of that, the insta-love felt a little weird. Whether you believe in insta-love or not, as a reader, I need to sense the protagonists' emotions. It was too descriptive, to the point that I felt so little emotions that I wondered if the book could be considered as romance.

3.75 stars. All in all, I enjoyed this book. I appreciated the political/religious thread throughout having been raised much like Shelley, though I saw the Democratic light in early adulthood. Most of the characters were enjoyable and engaging. In the beginning I was sure I was going to root for Rand and not like Shelley much, but by a third of the way in it was totally reversed. Rand felt immature and selfish. Her marital history was tragic but how she handled it felt over done and forced, like the book needed a dramatic arch so one was manufactured. Shelley's journey felt far more authentic. Rachel and Jamie were almost scene stealers in this book. I'd love a book written for them, each or together. They were great characters. I liked this author's first book Jamis Bachman, Ghost Hunter better, but this was a good read too. I received an ARC of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I received an advanced reader's copy of this book from the publisher. This in no way effects my opinion.
I had high hopes going into this. I wanted to see two women somehow manage to find love despite having differing political views. I feel this is a real concern when finding a partner so I was curious to see how the relationship and story would develop.
Over all I was disappointed. I wanted more from the story and I felt like I was being short changed. The author spent the book telling me what was happening rather than having the reader experience the moment for themselves. For example, a photo gets leaked but we get no reaction from the character (not when she finds out or even after the fact). This is a big deal for one of the characters, I wanted to see their reaction not hear about how they felt or reacted weeks after the event occurred. I kinda felt the story moved to fast to let the characters and readers experience the events of the story. However, this may also be the fault of the writing or story structure.
The characters also fell flat in my opinion. There's very little to Rand and the story mostly centers around Shelley. We don't get any character moments with either one that engaged me as a reader to root for them. I didn't see the chemistry they supposedly had. The relationship lacked passion or um romance?
I was super intrigued by the plot but think the execution left me wanting a lot more.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author and publishers of "The Politics of Love" for the opportunity to read this novel for a fair review.

This is an interesting dynamic of two professional women. Rand is a psychotherapist specializing in transgender rights activism, who also happens to be Democratic in her politics. Shelley is a successful attorney, working on behalf of her Evangelical parents’ faith-based organization, and who happens to be Republican in her politics and also a closeted lesbian. Both have their own issues, but the chemistry between them is elecrifying and neither are able initially to respond to the other in a way that quenches their thirst for each other.

I enjoyed the dynamics which were considerably enhanced by other characters, especially Jamie and Rachel. It was also great to read something so intune with cultural and political differences and the spectre of trying to live an authentic lifestyle agaisn t the back drop of homophobic dissent and vitriol. I thought the author did a good job of the characters individual struggles with their need to emerge and be fully themselves, although I did think Shelley was way too tolerant of Rand's lack of appreciation!

4*

Thank you to NetGalley and Bold Strokes Books for the ARC of this book.

I'd been wanting to read a political romance for a while, and I think this one was well done. I was unsure of how I'd react to Shelley, who comes from an Evangelical Republican family, but she was the standout character for me. Her personal growth arc throughout this book was wonderful to witness, and I was strongly rooting for her. Rand, the Democratic activist, was also likable, though not without issues. Shelley and Rand have erudite conversations and for the most part are great at listening to each other. This book isn't necessarily a fluffy, escapist romance -- I like those kinds of stories, too, but this one had more angst. This book also wasn't a formulaic romance novel, which was refreshing.

The Politics of Love had potential to be a five-star book, but I had three major gripes:

1. There was so much head-hopping in the last ten-ish percent of this book, which was jarring.

2. I felt like Shelley's arc was fully realized, whereas Rand's was lacking. I would have liked a bit more focus on Rand's growth at the end of the book.

3. There's one scene near the end of the book where Rand tries to show how much she cares for Shelley, and...I don't want to give too much away, but I thought Rand's move was lazy, performative, and flat-out unnecessary.

Overall, I enjoyed this read and will be looking forward to more from Jen Jensen.

Thanks to the help of NetGalley I have been working on expanding the genres that I read. Romance is not a genre I usually gravitate towards, but a goal of mine this year is to choose my books more deliberately and make sure I am supporting all voices.

Well let me tell you, I love this story. I love Shelly, I love Rand - I love every moment that these two independent women show their strengths and weaknesses. I love the way politics are effortlessly woven into a story that educates you, breaks your heart, and then puts it back together again. I absolutely adore this story.

CW: homophobia

A book that is going to be politically active and socially relevant in times to come as it asks the most important question we need to ask ourselves right now does the politics matter more or love? Shelley and Rand are my personal favourite women and their narration in the book very beautifully paints through the words their worlds and their perspective. Another LGBTQIA story that I had a wonderful time reading not just because of its theme but it's deep internalised writing and such retrospective analysis of the characters was needed with its topic being a thunderous one. Glad to have read this one.

This is a hard book to rate, because I really enjoyed the first half, but found myself struggling to finish it. We follow Rand, a democrat therapist, and Shelley, an ex-evangelical Republican lawyer, as they intertwine themselves into each other's lives. It is a love story, but also not, because it takes so long for Rand to stop shutting Shelley out.

There were some chapters that felt very disjointed, as if there was a chapter missing in between, and the timeline felt very confusing. Some moments the characters acted as if they barely knew each other, and others they thought about the countless emails they had sent each other over the last year and how much they knew about each other.
What I did like about this was the political aspect, the discussion of both democrat and republican American politics without the author picking a clear side. However, the pacing of this novel left me feeling like it dragged on, so I can't give it more than 3 stars.

<i>The Politics of Love</i> follows Shelley, an attorney, and Rand, a therapist and trans rights advocate. They're both queer and they both like each other, which is a seemingly unlikely occurrence given the fact that Rand is a liberal and Shelley is a closeted conservative. After adding this to the fact that Shelley has mental health issues and a family that she knows won't accept her real self and that Rand is grieving the loss of her wife, there's certainly some obstacles to Shelley and Rand's relationship.

Although the premise was promising and the cover was gorgeous, I was admittedly disappointed in <i>The Politics of Love</i> for a few reasons. First, <b>the pacing was just way too quick.</b> I just wasn't convinced that Rand and Shelley could have fallen this hard for each other so quickly. I felt like a lot of the thoughts that these characters had about each other related to physical characteristics, which just wasn't something I particularly cared for. I also thought that some of the events didn't flow well. The structure felt like <i>okay this happened, now moving on, okay now this happened, alright next, now this happened</i> and so on.

Furthermore, even though I read this book because of the political subject, <b>I thought the message about politics was a little messy.</b> At some point, I thought the author was trying to make the point that two people can love each other even if they have different beliefs...but then Shelley changes her political party. The line <i>"I've updated my party affiliation to Independent. For you. Because I've heard you too."</i> just didn't sit right with me. I didn't agree with Shelley's political views, but I think I would have liked to see a portrayal of individual growth, not an action "for you" aka Rand, which is more of a weird proclamation of love and sacrifice than an indication of actual change.

<b>I think the thing that bothered me the most was the writing.</b> For an adult novel, this writing felt ridiculously underwhelming. I became hyperaware of the fact that nearly every sentence started with a noun--and most often a pronoun. Good writing will make you focus on what the words are conveying, not the order in which the words are written. It was incredibly distracting and did not flow at all. There was way too much tell instead of show, and something about the characters felt too surface-level.

<i>The Politics of Love</i> was a quick queer romance centering around politics and acceptance, but overall, the characters and writing style fell flat.