Author: Alexis Hall
Publication Date: 7 July 2020
Publisher: Sourcebooks Casablanca
Page Count: 434
Reading Method: Physical ARC
Synopsis:
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.
Review:
Sometimes second chances are worth it! I tried reading Boyfriend Material a few months back and just couldn’t get past the first couple chapters. The second time around, I flew through it! Honestly, once we met Oliver, I was hooked.
Luc is a bit of a wreck. He’s rash and flighty and just a mess. He’s a bit frustrating and hard to keep up with at times. I found myself constantly frustrated with his self-destructive patterns. It was a relief to see a lot of character growth for Luc throughout the story. Oliver is very well put together. He seems self-assured and mature. He’s a great constant in Luc’s life and I loved seeing their (fake) relationship develop.
The writing was great. I got totally sucked into the story and found myself feeling a full range of emotions as I was reading. I do think the ending was a bit frustrating and seemingly out of character. So much so that I was messaged friends who have read it saying “WTH?!?” But all in all, this was a sweet, enjoyable read.
Purchase a copy of Boyfriend Material here (amazon) or here (book depository)
Learn more about Alexis Hall here
