My New Year’s Resolution this year was to read 15 books. I know, that doesn’t sound too impressive, but as I got older, I developed ADD and was unable to sit still long enough to read 5 books a week like I could when I was a kid, and so I was determined because I missed it so much… (Spoiler alert: I’ve read 46 books so far).
They’ve all mostly been a bunch of angsty gay books (what can I say, I’m a sucker for some angst), but someone quite literally shoved a copy of Boyfriend Material by Alexis Hall into my hands. Going by the synopsis, it wasn’t something I would normally pick out.
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.
Let me tell you, I was hooked before I even finished the first page.
I’ve never seen the point of fancy dress parties. You have two choices: either you make a massive effort and wind up looking like a dick, or you make no effort and wind up looking like a dick. And my problem, as always, was not knowing what kind of dick I wanted to be.
After a terribly hurtful and embarrassing breakup, Luc, the son of a famous rock star, just about hit rock bottom. He hooked up with a bunch of guys, got mixed up in some other questionable activities, ended up in the tabloids, isolated his friends, and ended up wallowing in his own unhappiness. After some misconstrued activities hit the tabloids again, Luc’s job was threatened because of his “lifestyle choices”, and so it was suggested to him to find a perfect and socially acceptable fake boyfriend in order to rebuild his reputation.
Luc’s narration had me laughing just about the entire time I was reading, and while his self-awareness was somewhat self-deprecating, it was charmingly so. It was a slow burn, but not agonizingly so, and I adored the dynamic between Luc and Oliver.
After being unable to put it down and becoming 100% hooked on Luc’s narration, I will say that I LOVED this book. Luc and Oliver are so human and relatable, and the whole thing was just perfect. If you’re looking for something super cute with a little bit of angst, dark humor, and some mental health-related topics mixed in (nothing that should be triggering), definitely check out this book. You will be laughing and smiling the entire time.
