Alexis Hall

Joe Jameson

Boyfriend Material

WANTED:
One (fake) boyfriend
Practically perfect in every way

Luc O'Donnell is tangentially-and reluctantly-famous. His rock star parents split when he was young, and the father he's never met spent the next twenty years cruising in and out of rehab. Now that his dad's making a comeback, Luc's back in the public eye, and one compromising photo is enough to ruin everything.

To clean up his image, Luc has to find a nice, normal relationship...and Oliver Blackwood is as nice and normal as they come. He's a barrister, an ethical vegetarian, and he's never inspired a moment of scandal in his life. In other words: perfect boyfriend material. Unfortunately, apart from being gay, single, and really, really in need of a date for a big event, Luc and Oliver have nothing in common. So they strike a deal to be publicity-friendly (fake) boyfriends until the dust has settled. Then they can go their separate ways and pretend it never happened.

But the thing about fake-dating is that it can feel a lot like real-dating. And that's when you get used to someone. Start falling for them. Don't ever want to let them go.

Izaac Richards

"Yes, but you'll slowly discover that you're not as different as you initially assumed, and then he'll surprise you with how thoughtful he is, and then you'l come to his rescue in an unexpected moment of need, and you'll fall madly in love with each other and live happily ever after."

"Someone else's actions may affect you. But what other people choose to do is about them."

We were both quiet for a moment.. “Will it...will it ever stop hurting?" 

"Non." Mum shook her head. "But it will stop mattering.

Then flicked his lapel aside to reveal a sticky label that read 'Nobody.' 

"I'm guessing that's an irritatingly obscure reference." 

"I only wish I had such eyes,' the king remarked in a fretful tone, 'to be able to see Nobody!'" 

Pia 

“Me too," I said. "But let's be terrified together."

Well you certainly have never watched Heartstopper my friend 

 Whereas if I tried to talk him now, I'd just have be like "hi." And I couldn't quite see that being a love story for the ages.

kai n "Okay. Then I...formally commit." "I don't think that's a good idea.

"Good to know. Now will you stop being reassuring and fuck me" "I will fuck you, Lucien"he'd gone all stern and, for once, it didn't bother me at all “in the manner of my choosing." I stared at him wide-eyed and blatantly into..whatever this was. "Steady on, I didn't sign up for Fifty Shades of Gay." “No, you signed up for me. Now go upstairs and get on the bed." I...went upstairs and got on the bed?

Oliver had mostly sat decorously on his sofa, reading The Song of Achilles

"There's no need to panic. We're just having a conversation." "Can I go back in the bath-“ “No.”

“As it Happens, I’ve always liked you.”

I let my head rest against his knee, and, somewhere between the mini-challenge and the runway, Oliver's hand began stroking softly through my hair.

“Oh my God, Luc," cried James Royce-Royce. “What's happened to your mouth?" I glanced up, startled. "If there's hummus on my face, just tell me." “It's far worse than that. You were smiling."

l” won't lie. It was fairly terrible. But there were some compensations.” “Like what?” I asked. “You”

I threvw my hands up in exasperation. “I'm confused. What on earth has given you the impression I'm not miserable?"

“You'd better be take worth it. "I am."

“But we're going to pretend to give it a go anyway because we're both desperate." “I knew you'd work it out.”

Then, Ill see you on Sunday... " He smiled. Oliver Blackwood was smiling. At me. For me. Because of me. “...Lucien."

This was why relationships sucked: they made you need shit you'd been perfectly happy not needing. And then they took them away.

You literally told him to so shut up it’s your fault

He was never going to call me Lucien again, was he? He was going to respect my wishes like some kind of arsehole.

"Oh stop it with the Lucien, will you?" "I’m sorry. I didn't realise you didn't like it." Except I did like it. That was the problem. I wasn't here to like

He can’t he is already in a longtime relationship with me

Ob hello, rock bottom. Nice to see you again. Do you want to be my boyfriend?

“What, so you brought me here to brighten my day wir a little casual homophobia?”

 Okay. No. I was in my head, and that was the worst place for anyone to be, especially me

This was the cutest read. The character development was done so well and you could feel everything they were going through. This legitimately had me kicking my feet 

Monserrat Navarro 

Zoe R

** spoiler alert **
           If you know you know:
🚪🚽
🥓
🛻
🌶🍲
And more but I can’t rly think of them rn

Bria

Elisavet Rozaki 

I wanted to like this book. I tried, I swear. Maybe this is a sign I'm not a fan of the fake dating trope.

Okay, so this book was ... a rollercoaster. I had a good time reading it, all the while it felt exhausting to read it, as the main character's inner monologue went a 100mph much as my brain does - and as I usually enjoy reading to wind down and to quieten the ever rushing train of thoughts, this was semi-helpful to that specific use.

The romance was kind of cute, kind of repetitive, but I didn't mind too much. The fact that I can't recall the names of the main two character mere days after reading, probably speaks volumes, though.

Leonie

Okay, so this book was ... a rollercoaster. I had a good time reading it, all the while it felt exhausting to read it, as the main character's inner monologue went a 100mph much as my brain does - and as I usually enjoy reading to wind down and to quieten the ever rushing train of thoughts, this was semi-helpful to that specific use.
The romance was kind of cute, kind of repetitive, but I didn't mind too much. The fact that I can't recall the names of the main two character mere days after reading, probably speaks volumes, though.

WANTED: One (fake) boyfriend Practically perfect in every way Luc O'Donnell is tangentially—and reluctantly—famous. His rock star parents split when he was young, and the father he's never met spent the next twenty years cruising in and out of rehab. Now that his dad's making a comeback, Luc's back in the public eye, and one compromising photo is enough to ruin everything. To clean up his image, Luc has to find a nice, normal relationship...and Oliver Blackwood is as nice and normal as they come. He's a barrister, an ethical vegetarian, and he's never inspired a moment of scandal in his life. In other words: perfect boyfriend material. Unfortunately, apart from being gay, single, and really, really in need of a date for a big event, Luc and Oliver have nothing in common. So they strike a deal to be publicity-friendly (fake) boyfriends until the dust has settled. Then they can go their separate ways and pretend it never happened. But the thing about fake-dating is that it can feel a lot like real-dating. And that's when you get used to someone. Start falling for them. Don't ever want to let them go. Discover the LGBT romance about exact opposites falling in perfectly imperfect love that New York Times and USA Today bestselling author CHRISTINA LAUREN calls "hilarious, witty, tender, and stunning."

Filipa Carvalho

Is this completely over the top? Yes. Am I absolutely in love with it? Also, yes.

Michaela Hudson

Pop culture references well used and NOT cringy (Brooklyn 99, 80s rock, rom-com classics, Welcome to Night Vale *my fav podcast btw*), major Meg Cabot vibe, MCs that really complimented each other, etc. Basically a ton of things that compensate other minor irritations i got to go rn im literally in PE writing this

Jonathan Garcia

I finished this book in a day and a half. It was such an addictive read. 10/10 would recommend this

well, i enjoyed this more than i thought i would.

"I like to feel that ‘slightly more friends than you can fit around your table’ is exactly the right number of friends to have."

This story is what I would call a cosy satirical romance, the stakes are low, it doesn't take itself too seriously and it ties itself in a nice little bow with a meaningful message at the end that makes you feel all warm and fuzzy on the inside. There's a quote from the movie Everything Everywhere All at Once 

"In another life, I would have really liked just doing laundry and taxes with you."

 and I think that sums up this story nicely. Luc has made a lifestyle out of pandering to the image the media paints him as: a self-deprecating, debauched, son of two 70's rock stars who gets drunk, does drugs and hooks up with men in alleyways outside clubs. His job panders to the rich upper class donors who fund the charity he does public relations work for and some of those donors have decided to be passively aggressively homophobic towards Luc, saying he is the "wrong type of gay" and so have pulled out of their upcoming fundraiser. Then, in walks Oliver, respectable, responsible, gaying the "right way" and here to fake date Luc to tidy up his image.

What I really liked about this book was Luc's inner monologue as the narrator, he's flawed and annoying and broken, and he copes with that by being a dick to everyone who loves him and using dry sardonic humour. But he really does mean well despite all of that. He is very witty and I found it fun to read his thoughts, although at times it did feel like I was being told a story rather than immersing myself in it. He finds it easier to just be who everyone thinks he is than himself, he's very clearly traumatised and in desperate need of therapy to unpack his daddy issues and his broken trust from his ex boyfriend who went to the media to air his dirty laundry. But instead he leans on a man who gives the impression of someone with their life together but is actually just as broken in his own ways and uses different unhealthy coping mechanisms, and they learn together to be better people. It's all very touching and heartfelt and there are some inklings at passion but mostly it's all just very light heartedly intimate and adorable.

I did feel like this maybe tried a little bit too hard in some ways and didn't try hard enough in other ways. The side characters all felt like one-dimensional clichés of queerness, Britishness and the class system in England, and a lot of how they all act just felt a bit like caricatures of real people. I think maybe that was Hall's intention because a lot of it was truly outlandish, but also I honestly think there were probably too many side characters and so the story just sort of lost the plot trying to keep up with them all. The romance also felt a little bit lacklustre, it was very intimate and heart-warming and they definitely had chemistry, but also I just didn't really 

 their love for each other. I'm not sure exactly what was missing, but it kind of felt very superficial other than their deep and meaningful chats on the bathroom floor a couple of times. And unfortunately the third act break up was just absolutely ridiculous and did not need to happen at all, Oliver became the ultimate hypocrite for all of 20 seconds in the last 10% of the book and I think the ending would've been better off without it. Plus, while the banter and mild bullying brought me right back to my time living in the UK, some of the conversations were overly dragged out and overly wordy that sometimes I got a bit bored.

Overall, this is a nice fluffy British sit-com/rom-com that was very entertaining to read but doesn't really have a lot of substance to it but is still something I would absolutely recommend to others because it is a lot of fun despite any of those let downs. I will read Husband Material as well because I think Alexis Hall's narrative voice has an easy and enjoyable tone to it and I thought their character's banter was really well written. I definitely saw what they tried to do with this book, that is was a bit of a tongue in cheek mockery of English stereotypes, and appreciate it for that and look forward to reading more from them.

Genevieve 

"I like to feel that ‘slightly more friends than you can fit around your table’ is exactly the right number of friends to have."

4 ⭐s

This story is what I would call a cosy satirical romance, the stakes are low, it doesn't take itself too seriously and it ties itself in a nice little bow with a meaningful message at the end that makes you feel all warm and fuzzy on the inside. There's a quote from the movie Everything Everywhere All at Once "In another life, I would have really liked just doing laundry and taxes with you." and I think that sums up this story nicely. Luc has made a lifestyle out of pandering to the image the media paints him as: a self-deprecating, debauched, son of two 70's rock stars who gets drunk, does drugs and hooks up with men in alleyways outside clubs. His job panders to the rich upper class donors who fund the charity he does public relations work for and some of those donors have decided to be passively aggressively homophobic towards Luc, saying he is the "wrong type of gay" and so have pulled out of their upcoming fundraiser. Then, in walks Oliver, respectable, responsible, gaying the "right way" and here to fake date Luc to tidy up his image.

What I really liked about this book was Luc's inner monologue as the narrator, he's flawed and annoying and broken, and he copes with that by being a dick to everyone who loves him and using dry sardonic humour. But he really does mean well despite all of that. He is very witty and I found it fun to read his thoughts, although at times it did feel like I was being told a story rather than immersing myself in it. He finds it easier to just be who everyone thinks he is than himself, he's very clearly traumatised and in desperate need of therapy to unpack his daddy issues and his broken trust from his ex boyfriend who went to the media to air his dirty laundry. But instead he leans on a man who gives the impression of someone with their life together but is actually just as broken in his own ways and uses different unhealthy coping mechanisms, and they learn together to be better people. It's all very touching and heartfelt and there are some inklings at passion but mostly it's all just very light heartedly intimate and adorable.

I did feel like this maybe tried a little bit too hard in some ways and didn't try hard enough in other ways. The side characters all felt like one-dimensional clichés of queerness, Britishness and the class system in England, and a lot of how they all act just felt a bit like caricatures of real people. I think maybe that was Hall's intention because a lot of it was truly outlandish, but also I honestly think there were probably too many side characters and so the story just sort of lost the plot trying to keep up with them all. The romance also felt a little bit lacklustre, it was very intimate and heart-warming and they definitely had chemistry, but also I just didn't really feel their love for each other. I'm not sure exactly what was missing, but it kind of felt very superficial other than their deep and meaningful chats on the bathroom floor a couple of times. And unfortunately the third act break up was just absolutely ridiculous and did not need to happen at all, Oliver became the ultimate hypocrite for all of 20 seconds in the last 10% of the book and I think the ending would've been better off without it. Plus, while the banter and mild bullying brought me right back to my time living in the UK, some of the conversations were overly dragged out and overly wordy that sometimes I got a bit bored.

Overall, this is a nice fluffy British sit-com/rom-com that was very entertaining to read but doesn't really have a lot of substance to it but is still something I would absolutely recommend to others because it is a lot of fun despite any of those let downs. I will read Husband Material as well because I think Alexis Hall's narrative voice has an easy and enjoyable tone to it and I thought their character's banter was really well written. I definitely saw what they tried to do with this book, that is was a bit of a tongue in cheek mockery of English stereotypes, and appreciate it for that and look forward to reading more from them.

wylan

i love gay people and i love seeing relationships where it isn't so immediately easy but it isn't solely centered around their sexuality. people who have trauma or previous experiences that make them think badly about themselves or love are still worthy of love!! your previous experiences or things that have happened don't make you a bad person or unlovable!! i adore these two so very much.

I liked the general plotline, but there were some really weird characters involved and sometimes it was all a little overdramatic

Brenda 🌙

** spoiler alert **
           well.... anyways... this book was good and bad at the same time for me. 

the only parts i enjoyed was the tension they had before they eventually started dating,luciens friends, co-workers and his mother. too much information got thrown at me in between situations/conversations...that i keep telling myself "omfg... just get to the point already or atleast simplify!!" so then i skip a few paragraphs ... which is not fun 🙃 also i felt something was missing between the two main characters... it kinda went too fast in my opinion.... sigh.

Camilla Marie Riksheim

I loved this book so much! I stayed up most of the night listening to the audiobook, it was really hard to put away.

Please write a sequel though! And I also think it would be lovely to hear the story from Oliver’s point of view.

Tania

Mi frase fav:
"Oh, fuck off and die. I mean, fuck off and literally die."

i did not think i'd go into this book and find, well, the most feels i've ever felt ever.

This was a roller coaster of emotions and I’m here for it absolutely perfect 

The way I cringed... and then it dragged on and was redundant so I cringed again

Lindsay

Just no, not for me. I was so confused while reading this.

Emma Kamer

Glenda

** spoiler alert **
           this was pretty solid; the cast and the main leads were great. the one thing that made me super frustrated was that the main couple "broke up" and got back together like.... 4 times? the whole thing with Luc's dad not actually having cancer was just kinda.. dropped due to him already being an established asshole... so it's like what was the point of that arc.. Oliver's family were assholes for seemingly no reason, and he didn't even tell Luc ANYTHING about what to expect at his family gathering like at least say SOMETHING, and it felt like it was just there to give him "something" ya know? I like how each of the characters grew (albeit quite minimally) but idk some things just felt... kinda there.

Dei umas esboçadas com algumas partes, gostei do desenvolvimento deles como casal. Se eu tivesse que criticar alguma coisa seria esse final meio apressado, mas de resto gostei bastante.

haley bertsch

Catherine Duplessis

Funny, different, relatable, very rom-comy, very predictable, but still enjoyed it. It felt like reading a TV show, instead of reading a movie. A series of little events makes the story evolved slowly, instead of having one big plot twist. Found myself laughing out loud a couple of times. A light fun read!

Boyfriend Material

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