Reviews tagging 'Sexual content'

The Hookup Plan by Farrah Rochon

21 reviews

thebookcoyote's review against another edition

Go to review page

slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

TW/CW: Sex, language, disordered eating, loss of a parent, illness, children’s illness, misogyny 

REVIEW: The Hookup Plan is the story of London Kelly, a pediatric surgeon who at the beginning of the book is in charge of her 15-year High School Reunion. While at the reunion she reconnects and ultimately hooks up with her high school nemesis, Drew Sullivan. It doesn’t seem like a big deal until she finds out at work that next Monday that he will be conducting a financial audit of the hospital where she works, forcing them to spend more time together than she’d ever planned… 
I am not a big fan of this book. Partially it’s because I’m not a fan of contemporary fiction in general (except in a few very specific circumstances) but also because this book definitely has its issues. 
First of all, I don’t think there’s a single time London eats something in this book without mentioning how bad it is for her. It turns out she has pre-hypertension…which doesn’t mean that she has to look at every food and make moral judgements on it. I was just made very, very uncomfortable by this because I don’t like books that seem to think that disordered eating is a good idea. 
Secondly, the way people talk about sex in this book, I’d guess the characters were in middle school. If they’re lucky, high school. Not the adults that they’re obviously supposed to be. The sex talk was literally cringy and I tried to get through those parts as soon as possible. 
Thirdly, there was no tension in this book. You always knew what was going to happen. The conflict that there was felt very forced, and not real. Honestly, I found the book pretty painfully boring and the characters mostly unlikable. (London more than Drew). 
If you are a fan of contemporary romance/fiction maybe you will enjoy this book, but it was not for me.

Expand filter menu Content Warnings

tostita's review against another edition

Go to review page

medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

This book was fine, although I didn’t enjoy it as much as previous books in the series. There were elements that felt like they were building up to something that never materialized—Drew’s uncle, London’s health issues, conflict-of-interest issues. I just felt like I was missing some oomph in the relationship. 

Expand filter menu Content Warnings

juffnstuff's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional informative medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.25


Expand filter menu Content Warnings

kshertz's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I’ve loved this whole series. I love these three women. I love all their happy endings. London is the woman I related to the most. Workaholic who doesn’t want kids. Can’t figure out a hobby? Just wanting to have hookups and be allowed to become an old cat lady? Check check checkity check. I’m happy with her growth and her sexy super rich dude. A fun rom com series I recommend to everyone. 

Expand filter menu Content Warnings

sarah_thebooknerd's review against another edition

Go to review page

funny inspiring lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

I read this series as audiobooks and the narration was good! 

4 ⭐️ 
2 🌶 

CW: narcissistic parent, medical content, death of a parent off page, grief

Tropes: enemies to lovers, one night stand, forced proximity 

I loved the friendship between each of the FMCS in this book series they met by being cheated by the same guy and a video going viral of their confrontation. London is a pediatric resident surgeon and Drew works for a financial advisory company that is reviewing the decision for a private entity to take over the county hospital. 

I liked the banter between these two that engage in a spice agreement to help each other out but they just cannot stay away. The discussion of grief, the Female MC dealing with a medical condition and narcissistic parent made for some complexity and depth. I would recommend this entire series!

Expand filter menu Content Warnings

kerrygetsliterary's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional funny lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0


Expand filter menu Content Warnings

arthur_ant18's review

Go to review page

dark emotional lighthearted relaxing medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

Thank you to NetGalley and Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for providing me with an eARC in exchange for my honest review! 
 
Farrah Rochon is publishing her latest contemporary romance novel, The Hookup Plan, which is the third standalone entry in her The Boyfriend Project series and is coming out tomorrow on August 2nd. The two MCs here are London Kelley, a hardworking pediatric surgeon who's in the final year of residency at her hospital, and Drew Sullivan, her high school archenemy and co-valedictorian whom she bumps into at their Austin, TX high school reunion after being apart for fifteen years. Since London's friends, Samiah and Taylor (who were MCs in the previous books), have been encouraging her to break out of her sex dry spell, she decides to get into bed with Drew despite the surprisingly deep resentment she harbors against him. However, once London is back at work in her hospital, which is in a financial quagmire and needs to make budget cuts, she's astonished to learn that Drew himself is going to conduct an audit on her hospital—an important little detail that he failed to disclose to her ahead of their night together. It takes a bit of time, but they end up agreeing to keep it casual with the eponymous hookup plan until Drew flies back home. How long will it take, though, for things to serious? 
 
**Trigger Warning** Readers, please beware this book's depiction of gaslighting, misogyny, sexism, a toxic relationship with a parent, discussion of the past death of a parent due to cancer, and minor inclusions of body shaming and eating disorder. 
 
Having read the two previous books in Rochon's series, The Boyfriend Project and The Dating Playbook, I was anticipating how The Hookup Plan would wrap things up with our core trio of women—Samiah, Taylor, and London—who had all formed such a powerful bond after realizing at the beginning of The Boyfriend Project that they had been dating the same three-timing dickweasel. Now, I'm glad to say that The Hookup Plan provides the series with a rewarding conclusion that merges the evolution of London and Drew's rivals-to-lovers romance (I think this trope is more befitting than the enemies-to-lovers umbrella under which the book has been promoted) with the growth that each of them make as individuals who are dealing with personal baggage. 
 
For London, she has to gradually untangle the grudge that her highly competitive teenage self had always held towards Drew and reflect on its connection with the approval she'd yearned for from her selfish and uncaring asshole of a dad. The emotionally riveting quality of her internal journey is a major part of the book that I couldn't get enough of. The fact that she's such a diligent surgeon who's capable of allowing her perfectionist tendencies to push her to the breaking point and take a toll on the hypertension she'd inherited from her dad (yep, give all the thanks to him) makes her even more endearing as a Black woman who has to weave her way through workplace politics and perpetually grapple with the twin patriarchal forces of misogyny and racism. The companionship she builds with her kid sister Nina is just as engaging. 
 
For Drew, I appreciate how he had to resolve the guilt he struggles with over his mom, who had died from cancer, and the perceived responsibility he believes he had for being unable to transfer her to a different hospital that would have been better equipped to detect her ailment, although it didn't feel as fleshed-out as London's arc. And I'll admit that I was initially turned off by him thanks to his unnecessary cockiness at the reunion, which was succeeded by his choice to not inform London about his role in the upcoming audit. Granted, he made that choice because he was being an impulsive fool who had sex on his brain, not because he's an ill-intentioned douchebag, but it peeved me nonetheless. Thankfully, he proves himself to be a cinnamon roll who knows just how to take care of London with thoughtfulness and generosity. On top of that, he's rich, which is a notable plus. 
 
Aside from London and Drew's relationship, the book thrives on the robust and supportive dynamic between Samiah, Taylor, and London. Sometimes, it feels like we don't get enough depictions of powerful and loving friendships between women of color to counter all the portrayals of women being hostile to one or another or of friendships between lily-white women. While it isn't necessary to read The Boyfriend Project or The Dating Playbook ahead of The Hookup Plan, I'll still recommend consuming the series in chronological order so that you can fully enjoy the development of their union. 
 
As strong as this book is, I do have a couple gripes with it. One concerns the spice factor, which is perfectly adequate but not stellar. It doesn't help that I'd started off feeling quite annoyed due to the first two sex scenes fading to black, which led me to wonder if the whole book was going to match that tone. It doesn't, with the majority of the sex unfolding on the page. While I don't mind reading romances that choose to go down such a route, it befuddled me this time because of the high amount of steam in Rochon's previous books. When the sex does happen, it comes off as vanilla and doesn't feel like it's advancing London and Drew's relationship. 
 
My other issue is with the odd involvement of body shaming. It pops up every now and then in the form of characters, particularly London, worrying over their weight and feeling ashamed for eating junk food. I'm very uncomfortable with this after The Dating Playbook had promoted a depiction of traditional diet culture that counters the tenets of body inclusivity. We've been getting more and more contemporary romances that support being comfortable in your own skin, no matter what your body type, from authors like Talia Hibbert and Olivia Dade, and it's crucial to keep the genre moving in that direction. Again, the body shaming in The Hookup Plan isn't blatant, but I still wish it had been excised entirely. 
 
All in all, The Hookup Plan brings Rochon's romance series to a heartfelt close that leaves me missing Samiah, Taylor, London, and their partners already.

Expand filter menu Content Warnings

rachreads925's review

Go to review page

emotional hopeful lighthearted relaxing medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25


Expand filter menu Content Warnings

zeebookdragon's review

Go to review page

emotional funny lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Hands down my favorite of the Boyfriend Project series. London Kelley, MD, is confident and successful. Her high school nemesis, Drew Sullivan, a former hedge fund manager, is just as confident and successful. After a chance run in at their high school reunion, the two frenemies end up hooking up. London is only looking for a fling to relieve the stress of her job, but Drew is determined to change her mind.

I loved everything about this book. London’s ability to be matter-of-fact about her brilliance was so cool. I was crushing hard on her awesomeness (she had my heart when she ditched a post hookup cuddle session for cupcakes). Drew is a lovely human being trying to make the world a little better by taking on social justice in a tangible way. At the core of this book is an important conversation about healthcare and poverty. 

I appreciate that this was a story featuring Black love and tackling social issues without directly diving into racial injustice as well. This whole book was a play on the idea of “tell me without telling me”. I might break my book buying ban when it comes out August 2nd.

Expand filter menu Content Warnings

bookwormbullet's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional funny lighthearted relaxing medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0


Expand filter menu Content Warnings