Dr. Emily Lawrence, a renowned pediatric surgeon, has recently moved to the DC area for a new job. In her first week, she treats a VIP patient but not just any VIP. It turns out that the boy is Zach Calvin, President Constance “Connie” Calvin’s son. After a comment she made gets passed to President Calvin…let’s just say she piqued the president’s interest.

Along with being POTUS, Connie’s a widow and single mother to twelve-year-old Zach. After she finds out Zach’s new cardiologist made a comment about healthcare, she becomes even more interested in meeting Dr. Emily Lawrence.

I liked that Connie was proud of her bisexuality and never hid it, not even from her voters. Their debates were entertaining as well as the banter. I wished there was more tension, but either way, Connie and Emily made for a good couple. Was it spicy? Just a few scenes and some of that faded to black. I loved the side characters because they were really sweet and supportive. The book was political, which obviously was expected, but I really hoped for at least a little more romance. It wasn’t bad, but a lot of it was political, and I would’ve liked at least a balance.


*Age gap
*Femme/Femme
*Past Trauma
*Homophobia 

I’d like to thank NetGalley and Ylva Publishing for the arc. I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Not my cup of tea
(Reviews from December 13 2022 and August 31 2020)
There is humor and drama along with the romance in this story, all elements I typically enjoy in wlw stories. This book was an exception which is unfortunate because I am a fan of nearly everything else the author has written prior to this and recommend those stories ahead of this one. Having a female US president fall for another woman is a novel twist and the diversity in the cast of characters is appreciated, but I found the words and actions of several characters (mains and secondaries) off-putting, character reactions to certain events and realities uneven and some minor plot threads abandoned rather than resolved or revisited by the end of the book. I read this story when it was first released several years ago (2020) and found the original iteration problematic (that review is below) and while this is a revamped version of that story now being published in 2022, the problems here overshadow what could have been a much more enjoyable read for me. I actually enjoyed reading the original version more than this one while expecting the opposite to happen. The issues for me remain in both versions despite revisions to the story. There were moments when I was invested in Connie and Emily's relationship but the continuous reminders of Connie being president and the power that office holds (real or assumed) overshadowed that more often than not. The politics in the story are unappealing as every character regardless of their profession (or political affiliation/leaning) is political at one point or another in the story and not in a good way. The power dynamic is less an issue and is addressed more directly here than it was in the previous version however the imbalance is still there and is rarely far from the mind of the reader or Emily who seems to remember or forget about it when it's convenient to plot requirements.
I really wanted to like this story and to enjoy it as much as others by the author and kept hoping the issues would somehow resolve or I would be pulled into the story enough to overlook them but instead I found it difficult to invest in wholly. The subject matter and characters may appeal more to others but it was clearly not my cup of tea and suspension of disbelief did not take me where I needed to be in order to love and recommend this story.

My review for the 2020 version of this book:
Diverse political romance for those in the mood for it (3.5 stars)
Presidential is a well written romantic drama with lots of humor and levity, no shortage of women in positions of power/authority (several lesbians, a bi main character and one nonbinary with some straight characters for diversity) and a variety of relationships to love and root for (friends, lovers, family, work colleagues, etc) throughout the book. I liked the main characters, Connie and Emily - and many of the secondary characters (even the well written villains who were so easy to root against) - and cheered for their relationship as it progressed, up to a point. Near the end of the book I was less invested in them being together and more concerned with the power dynamic that put Emily at a disadvantage (with the media and the public at large primarily) in terms of her being able to live her life in a normal and safe way, separate from Connie. It felt as though Emily had no option but to be with Connie no matter what (not in a romantic way); there were also a few romance/fanfiction cliches that cropped up in close succession at one point that felt over the top.
The other issue for me is that the story is set in Washington DC in part during presidential election season and is highly political so for escapist reading it does have an element of wish fulfillment with a queer female president of the USA but it's also got enough 'too close to reality' details about certain characters and 'how the sausage is made' in DC to be more a grim reminder of reality for some readers. Some of what's brought up in this book may hit too close to home - gun laws, gun violence/deaths, environmental issues, manipulative power hungry folk in politics - right now regardless of where you live in the world. The resemblance between some secondary characters and real life public figures was more of a distraction for me than anything else and not in a positive way.
I did manage to lose myself at times in the chemistry between main characters and the progression of their relationship, the relationships between family members and work colleagues and so on but then there would be a reminder of the ugly side of DC and how things get done there, at the expense of regular people who do not attend the parties and meetings in the Capitol where it all happens.
If you're not already oversaturated or exhausted by current US politics/elections and are a fan of fictional shows with a political theme set in Washington DC then this book is for you. If you are not then I'd suggest either waiting a while to dip into this story or giving it a miss and reading the author's other wonderful books instead. This was my least favorite book by Lola Keeley mostly due to its subject matter and the issues that stem from it.