Im a sucker for a happy ending. Did I love the arguments no, but do I understand the portrayal of complex human emotions and connections, yes.

alexis hall needs to answer before the queens court for this

** spoiler alert ** DNF 48% i got bored because the story wasn't that much about the main couple anymore. i might pick it up again someday, but for now i'll drop it.

Rating,

Husband Material: 2.5 ⭐️

Plot: 2 ⭐️

Characters: 3 ⭐️

Spicy: 0 🌶️

  This was the most British thing I’ve ever read.

Writing:  It’s easy to read.  Love all the British slang.  The dialogue is entertaining.  Just wish that it was dual POV instead of single POV.

Plot:  Meaningless!  That is how I feel.  Without giving too much away.  The book is centered around marriage and what marriage means to different people.  Then you have Luc and Oliver and what they think marriage means.  Part five is a roller coaster.

Would I recommend? No.

I received a copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own. I have a feeling this is one of those times where I say, “It’s not you, it’s me.” I don't know what happened between this book and book one but I felt like I was going around and around and around in a circle and just never catching up with the point of this book. I would have been much happier if the author just left this story alone with book one. I just simply didn't care for this one. Not. One. Bit. However, the only reason I’m giving this book three stars is because of the wonderful narrator, Joe Jameson. He did a phenomenal job with not only this book but with book one as well. That’s all I have to say. ⭐⭐⭐

Having read Boyfriend Material, this book felt like a real let down.

3.5 ⭐️ I can’t quite put my finger on why I don’t LOVE these books. I like the humor, the story and the characters, but I think the pace is just too slow for me. I feel like nothing really happens. The best way to describe it would be that it feels like reading a TV show instead of a movie, and a TV show more like Gilmore Girls than Gossip Girl. No big plot twist, just following the characters into their lives. Which is not necessarily bad, but the lack of twists and turns make me just like it and not LOVE it. I’ll still read the rest of the series.

3.75 let me start this off by saying that I love Oliver and Luc so much. they will always hold a special place in my heart bcs Boyfriend Material was the book that got me back into reading again. with that being said...wtf was this? it is not that I didn't enjoy this book because I did but I also just felt like I read the book version of four weddings and a funeral except there were only like three and half weddings and a funeral. for the beginning part of the book it felt like Oliver was simply just a side character and Luc was just running around caring for everyone else in the name of friendship or getting "revenge" on an ex. (honestly if an ex asked me to go to their wedding it would be an immediate no bcs I simply do not care nor do I want to see that). I really thought giving Miles any screen time was unnecessary..like I really didn't need any reconciliation between them he could’ve stayed forgotten. the second half of the book just felt like mostly fighting between Luc and Oliver with occasional cute moments that ultimately just led into more fighting. in regards to characters Luc made a moderate amount of growth..at least in terms that he wasn't as self destructive as he was in previous books and openly communicated. what I love about him is his constant vocalization over the fact that feelings make him uncomfy but he's trying for Oliver. I didn't particularly like that he felt so obligated still to continuously have to prove or justify himself in the eyes of other people. Oliver was great as always. I loved that we got a more in depth exploration on who he is as a person and his relationship with his family. overall what felt short for me in this book was the need to try and be relevant. there was a constant mention of things that are currently popular in pop culture. or the addition of severe political issues and their detriment to society but honestly it just felt short. overall those moments just made me cringe. i understand what you are trying to get across but those issues go far beyond just a quirky little joke to be made. I loved Boyfriend Material and it will always hold a special place in my heart. However this book just fell a little short for me and made me wish that it was just a little sequel novella not a full fledged novel. however does this mean I'm not going to read the rest of the books that are meant to come out? absolutely not..I will continuously read almost anything about Luc and Oliver because they're a mess but they are my mess.

Pretty good sequel! I really enjoyed the first book and I like it slightly more. I love revisiting stories with characters you get familiar with and grow to love, but I hate reading about them arguing and not communicating well (hence the rating). As always, Hall's writing is super fun and hilarious, and ultimately delightful! At the same time, I don't want to read a book about Oliver and Luc being distant, arguing, and having issues every time they interact. I wouldn't have gone this route with this sequel, personally, but to each their own.

Still had a great time reading it!

it wasn’t the same as boyfriend material. focused a lot on other relationships. would’ve preferred if we saw some more growth from luc and didn’t see so many stereotypes. took a long time to get into.

I loved this book just as much as I loved boyfriend material in theory however, as much as I can understand Luc and Oliver's decision in the last chapter, it was definitely anticlimactic considering the book's title. I also think it could have been a good opportunity to write from Oliver's perspective- his struggles would have been interesting to read as he himself experienced them.

I am so happy this book exists since it gives us more from Luc and Oliver, but at the same time I'm kind of mad about how it came out... the book had a good premise given the fact that it explored Oliver's journey more (something we only started to understand by the end of the first book); but we're still reading from Luc's point of view and it seems as if he didn't learn much from the events on Boyfriend Material. Oliver's identity issues would have been incredible to read from his perspective, and not from Luc's endless doubts and whims. In the end, the book felt repetitive (not compared to the first but within itself); and the ending was extremely anti-climatic, needing at least one or two more chapter before the "twist". This isn't a bad book at all, it still manages to capture what makes Boyfriend Material my favorite romcom since Oliver and Luc are such a wholesome couple, but in my opinion the writer didn't have a clear plot this time and a wasted opportunity to have Oliver as the narrator.

I love this book so much,, except for the ending. Hated that. Literally made the whole book feel pointless.

I’m very very very upset with the ending. I feel broken. That’s all.

** spoiler alert ** I’ve never written a review before but I just have a lot of things to say so here we go! (Also English isn’t my first language, so I apologise for any mistakes) 1. The characters were wonderful! I really felt that distinct Luc and Oliver energy that I loved so much in Boyfriend Material. Especially because a few scenes from Boyfriend Material were “recreated”. Some other reviews mention that they don’t see a lot of character development, which I both agree and disagree with. Luc and Oliver are clearly more comfortable within themselves and with their relationship. Still, they are not perfect. Far from it. They are insecure and neurotic and doubt themselves and their relationship to a fault. And because only two years have passed since both of their low points in life, I feel like it would be unreasonable for both of them to have shed these major issues to a point where they wouldn’t be a major plot point. 2. THE SIDE CHARACTERS??? yes. I loved all of them (apart from Miles (and maybe JoJo?) obviously.) and I loved seeing them get more screen time. Especially Priya, who will always be a personal favourite. 3. THE ENDING I loved it. I loved it because it spoke to me in a way not a lot of books and book endings have spoken to me. Though I found it kind of frustrating that 1) they never fucking talked to each other and 2) it was clear from the beginning that neither of them actually wanted to get married. I’ve read lot of comments saying how they felt fooled. Which, okay, I understand because the book is called HUSBAND material and from the marketing, lots of people probably weren’t expecting the book to be what it was. But you can’t tell me you read more than 200 pages of this book and thought ‘yep, these people want and should definitely get married’. As someone who never saw a huge point in marriage either (as does most of my immediate family), I thought it was just wonderful to see characters not having to be married in order to be happy. I don’t feel as though the book wanted to overly lecture about the importance (or lack there of) of marriage within a queer context, because it is clearly a personal choice between the two of them. It’s not right for THEM, for deeply personal reasons, which I found great and connected to especially. Overall I really, really fucking enjoyed this book, though it was a lot darker and a lot more political than I (or perhaps a lot of people) expected from the marketing. However I had a great time and it made me happy.

boyfriend/husband material girlies… look away 🫣

Well this was adorable. And emotional.

Most times when I get to the end of a romance novel I’m wishing to spend more time with the couple and that’s exactly what this book delivers. It’s like getting a very long actually good epilogue.

Luc and Oliver are still dealing with big emotions and how they want to live their lives and I still love them. I feel like their characters are so real and beautiful. Sort of a side note but I do appreciate that therapy has been getting more positive attention these days.

Overall, this was funny and quite enjoyable.