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aromanticreadsromance 's review for:
The Build-A-Boyfriend Project
by Mason Deaver
emotional
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
I love Mason Deaver, and I am very thankful to have read an ARC of their newest book.
I was dying laughing from almost the very first page. Eli and Peter's meet disaster was over the top disastrous (but still realistic!), and I could feel the awkwardness through the page. Peter shows up to Eli's workplace, where Eli is executive assistant to a journalist, to apologize. When Eli's boss catches wind of what happened, he tells Eli that the staff writer position is his if he writes an article about "fixing" Peter by teaching him how to date. Eli doesn't like this idea, but he really wants to become a writer, after slogging away as an assistant for five years with nothing to show for it. Eli prefers hard hitting journalism, writing about things that matter, but his boss only cares about the clicks. Eli pretends to go along with the idea, while also choosing to write another article about growing up queer in the south, since Peter is from a small town in Georgia. He only pitches this second idea to Peter, conveniently leaving out that he's still writing the first article alongside it.
I could see the third act conflict and breakup coming a mile away. My heart broke for Peter. How dare Eli do my man dirty like that. The miscommunication is strong from the beginning. Eli is concealing his intentions from Peter.
Peter is precious. He is very autistic-coded. He finds it hard to detect sarcasm and is very literal in his interpretations. One of my favorite Peter moments (there are many!) is when Eli is reading Peter's dating profile. One of the prompts is "Favorite Dish" and Peter's response is "Mugs." When Eli says he doesn't understand, Peter is all like, "Mugs, they're good for hot things. You've got the handle there, they're comfortable in your hand." (exact quote from the ARC, subject to change, though I hope it doesn't, LOL) I literally laughed out loud during this scene.
Although I was mad at Eli, I could also relate to him plugging away at a career that doesn't fulfill him. He has big dreams but has become resigned over the years. I loved him as a main character.
Peter is Korean American; the author is not. The book is written from Eli's point of view (Peter is the love interest), but I am curious to see how Korean American readers react to his representation. I liked that Mason Deaver exposed the racism in the queer community, the reality that so many gay men write things like "No Asians" on their profiles. As a white reader, I cannot speak to the quality of the representation, but I did want to note it.
I was dying laughing from almost the very first page. Eli and Peter's meet disaster was over the top disastrous (but still realistic!), and I could feel the awkwardness through the page. Peter shows up to Eli's workplace, where Eli is executive assistant to a journalist, to apologize. When Eli's boss catches wind of what happened, he tells Eli that the staff writer position is his if he writes an article about "fixing" Peter by teaching him how to date. Eli doesn't like this idea, but he really wants to become a writer, after slogging away as an assistant for five years with nothing to show for it. Eli prefers hard hitting journalism, writing about things that matter, but his boss only cares about the clicks. Eli pretends to go along with the idea, while also choosing to write another article about growing up queer in the south, since Peter is from a small town in Georgia. He only pitches this second idea to Peter, conveniently leaving out that he's still writing the first article alongside it.
I could see the third act conflict and breakup coming a mile away. My heart broke for Peter. How dare Eli do my man dirty like that. The miscommunication is strong from the beginning. Eli is concealing his intentions from Peter.
Peter is precious. He is very autistic-coded. He finds it hard to detect sarcasm and is very literal in his interpretations. One of my favorite Peter moments (there are many!) is when Eli is reading Peter's dating profile. One of the prompts is "Favorite Dish" and Peter's response is "Mugs." When Eli says he doesn't understand, Peter is all like, "Mugs, they're good for hot things. You've got the handle there, they're comfortable in your hand." (exact quote from the ARC, subject to change, though I hope it doesn't, LOL) I literally laughed out loud during this scene.
Although I was mad at Eli, I could also relate to him plugging away at a career that doesn't fulfill him. He has big dreams but has become resigned over the years. I loved him as a main character.
Peter is Korean American; the author is not. The book is written from Eli's point of view (Peter is the love interest), but I am curious to see how Korean American readers react to his representation. I liked that Mason Deaver exposed the racism in the queer community, the reality that so many gay men write things like "No Asians" on their profiles. As a white reader, I cannot speak to the quality of the representation, but I did want to note it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Homophobia, Racism, Transphobia
Minor: Drug use