A review by startjpw23
Boyfriend Material by Alexis Hall

emotional funny hopeful sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This novel is set in England. Lucien is the son of rock star parents. His father is a long-time rock star who is having a career resurgence as a mentor on a music reality show. His mother had a short period of fame years ago before she got out of the business. Lucien's father left them when Lucien was 3. Lucien is 28 and struggling. He works for a charity where he is involved in fundraising. He thinks he won't be able to get another job if he loses this job. His last relationship didn't end well. He settles for short hookups. He is a minor celebrity because of his father. The tabloid paparazzi sometimes photograph him and have writeups about him in their papers. One night they photograph him in what was actually an innocent situation. The writeup takes liberties. Many of the donors are older English people. A few drop their sponsorship of the charity because the recent photo and writeup lead them to conclude that Lucien is a "bad gay". Between a co-worker and Lucien's friends, they decide he needs a fake boyfriend who will return him to a positive light in the press. And convince the donors who dropped him, or who might be thinking of dropping him, that he is a "good gay". The fake boyfriend they chose is Oliver. Oliver had a couple of brief interactions with Lucien in the past that didn't end well. The book is touching in parts. And funny in parts. Both Lucien and Oliver shoot themselves in the foot at points. But I rooted for them. There were some English references that I didn't get. That didn't stop me from enjoying the book. I will read more books from author Alexis Hall.
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