Reviewed by Stephen K.

TITLE: Boyfriend Material

SERIES: (Boyfriend Material #1)

AUTHOR: Alexis Hall

NARRATOR: Joe Jameson

PUBLISHER: Dreamscape Media LLC

LENGTH: 13 hours and 11 minutes

RELEASE DATE: July 7^th ,2020

BLURB:

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 20 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 someone who has never inspired a moment of scandal in his life. In other words, he’s 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 settles. 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.

REVIEW:

This is the romantic story about the building relationship of an over earnest barrister and the truly messed up son of two musicians. Luc was raised by his mother after his rock-legend father abandoned them. He still bears the insecurities engendered by that betrayal. And after his last boyfriend sold him out to the tabloids, Luc’s been in a five year downward spiral, “living down” to his press.

Plagued by paparazzi always looking for the next chapter of shame, it’s become a hate hate relationship. Having grown up reading scandalous pieces about himself in the gossip rags, Luc’s self esteem and sense of self worth are about what you’d expect.  

Problem is that his public notoriety has left him so stigmatized that he’s having trouble holding a job. When his latest debacle hits the tabloids, even his “CRAPPy” job won’t have him. No, that’s not exactly a scatological reference, but simply an acronym. He works as a fund-raiser for the Coleoptera Research and Preservation Project. It’s truly a CRAPP job… but Luc enjoys his somewhat loony workmates. Nevertheless, even the charity can no longer tolerate his press persona. His supervisor has given him an ultimatum; “Get a boyfriend, and become the “right kind” of gay, or get fired.

Enter stolid but boring (boorish?) Oliver. Oliver’s the seemingly perfect, put together, perennially principled boyfriend. Oliver’s  all about mindfulness, and manners, and ethics. While being extremely fit and conscientious, Oliver’s the perfect complement to Luc’s overly chaotic life, Oliver has his own family issues and has been single for a while after being left by yet another boyfriend. With his parent’s 40th anniversary party coming up, Oliver can’t bear the opprobrium of going stag. So the two agree to this fake dating relationship to satisfy employers, donors, and demanding parents. But while they are fake dating, they discover that they like each other’s company. 

Told primarily from Luc’s POV, this is a great fake boyfriends tale. In some ways it’s a much gayer, much less inebriated Arthur, without the Dudley Moore influences, and no faithful manservant. Both Luc and his “fake boyfriend” are both incredibly sympathetic characters and seeing them grow closer is a bit like watching the courtship of hedgehogs.

Luc (or Lucien as those who truly love him call him) is a modern little boy lost with more appeal and quicker wits than any paparazzi darling has a right to. Of course there will be a redeeming happy ending. There’s even a lot of jocularity along the way. There’s even one not so funny knock knock joke that manages to be the source of two laugh out loud guffaws and a chortle.

This was reviewed by Valerie in July of 2020 when released in text form. It’s even better when experienced as an audiobook as narrated by Joe Jameson.

Luc’s youthful voice is frequently self deprecating and at other times poignantly lacking in all self confidence. There are the “posh git” voices of his mostly upper crust workmates. There are several regional voices as well with a Welsh co-worker, Oliver’s upper middle class parentals, Luc’s loving but crazy mother, his deadbeat dad and a host of others.

Luc is the kind of guy that you find yourself pulling for even as early chapter one. The friends are all likable, the eccentric workmates are lovable.

Heck, I even liked the nice guy that tried chatting Luc up in chapter only to be disappointed by Luc’s paranoia. When he comes back later as something of a villain, I still liked him. So much so that I’m curious as to his story as well.

RATING:

BUY LINKS:

Audible

Amazon