Reviews with content warning for Emotional abuse - Boyfriend Material

I really liked this book. I've been focusing a lot in romance novels lately on the struggles leading up to the reunion at the end and if they feel justified and these definitely did! I thought it was great how they struggled beforehand and how it didn't feel linear up until the breakup but instead felt like there were lots of bumps and plateaux and periods of rapid growth. Also as a vegan it was fun to see veganism be a key plot point in multiple scenes.

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kitausu's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful 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? Yes

5.0

Absolutely adored this! Almost read it in one sitting and can't wait for the sequel.

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a_ira's review against another edition

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funny 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? Yes

4.0

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thereadinghammock's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful lighthearted reflective fast-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

5.0

Oh my gosh, where to begin with this one! I'd been hearing nothing but great things about this book on Instagram, and after discovering it was free on Spotify, I figured I'd give it a shot. I wasn't sure I was going to make it though, as Lucien is such a pessimistic narrator, especially at the beginning. I figured I'd push on, since so many folks had such good things to say, I figured it had to get better. And it did!! Firstly, I give HUGE kudos to Joe Jameson as an audiobook narrator. Not only did every character have a distinct voice, so you knew who was talking at any given time, but he even used different enunciation to distinguish the James Royce-Royce's so you knew which anyone was referring to at any given time.

Now, on to our wonderful garbage fire of a narrator Luc. As I said, he was so unlikeable at first. He was so despondent that it was clear why he had such a hard time connecting with anyone, even his friends (the ever changing What's App group name was a hilarious running gag). I'm pretty sure I liked Oliver from the start, despite his prickly introduction. He came off as the kind of person who was "Always Right" and although he didn't rub it in your face, also couldn't stand to not correct an error or mistake, if only because he wouldn't want anyone to think he also thought that misinformation was correct. I wasn't expecting, however, for Oliver to also want in on the "fake relationship" deal.

It was clear from early on, Oliver was having real feelings for Luc pretty quickly and he was so panicky about it. He was trying to build up walls so hard and so fast because he clearly had a lot of big feelings, and Luc was being self-defeatist and caught up in his own shit for so long it took him forever to realize he had those big feelings too! I spent a lot of my listening time flapping about in the car to and from work, faux crying about how much they liked each other and they just didn't know it yet!!

I LOVED Luc's mother and she was just the right person to help Luc get out of his own way. I adored Oliver throwing himself at Luc after seeing he [Luc] cleaned his apartment for him [Oliver] and Luc feeling briefly clueless at that moment. But then my heart SHATTERED at seeing how Oliver's parents treated him at their anniversary party!!! I totally get Oliver's mindset of, "they supported me and loved me, and it may not have always been perfect, but they're my family" but BEBE THEY'RE ABUSIVE!! Oh my heart, my poor, sweet bean Oliver. Seeing him fall completely apart after the party and realize no one had ever been there to help him pick up those pieces after an event like that was so heart breaking. I wanted to crawl inside the book and just give him the biggest hug and tell him it was going to be OK.

I definitely wasn't expecting to fall so madly in love with these two adorable train wrecks, and I loved how wildly different they were and how different their issues were from each other. I am SO EXCITED to learn that the sequel is only a few months away and I can't wait to see these two numbskulls navigate their for-real relationship a bit more.

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percervall's review against another edition

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emotional funny fast-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

5.0

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jselliot's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful 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

5.0

While I was disappointed by An Unexpected Kind of Love, this book handled the similar themes far better (not to mention it was a hundred pages longer and still only had two sex scenes versus the eight-nine that the other book had, so it had far more room for character building moments). Even with Luc starting out as an annoying and sometimes self-pitying over-paranoid git. (And boy did he spectacularly blow it with Cam in the opening chapter.) He at least learns to get over himself and decides to start making an effort in his life, and to move past the last five years of wallowing. Most importantly, both he and Oliver learned to work past their insecurities together and actually had me rooting for them as a couple. They worked together, even if it mutually scared the shit out of them as they realized it.

I will be reading the sequel when it comes out. ;)

- Secondary thought: Deadbeat dad is still an asshole of colossal proportions.

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onceandfuturereaders's review against another edition

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emotional lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Very enjoyable read! All I knew about it before beginning was it was queer and had fake dating. I’m a sucker for fake dating and love seeing queer rep so I borrowed it from our library. I just adored these characters. Luc is a hot mess, but he’s so lovable. Oliver seems put together, but also has his own insecurities and issues. Together they both seem to want to help the other face their issues and we love to see character growth.

Overall, I thought it was very funny and really loved how Luc and Oliver helped each other grow.This book is really funny and I thoroughly enjoyed reading it. I can’t wait to check out the sequel and read other books by this author. I’ve got my eye on the upcoming A Lady for a Duke.

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inkdrinkermal's review against another edition

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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

4.25

This book was laugh out loud funny with one of my all-time- favorite romance tropes of fake dating. Throughout the whole book, there were quips and jokes and situations that had me laughing. I loved Luc and Oliver and how they helped each other work through their problems and both are better off with each other. My one complaint is that they broke up one too many times for my tastes.

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