The Boyfriend Project

by Farrah Rochon

If you love Helen Hoang, Abby Jimenez and Talia Hibbert, you'll LOVE Farrah Rochon!

One of Cosmopolitan's '12 Books You'll Be Desperate to Read This Summer' and one of OprahMag.com's '38 Romance Novels That Are Set to Be the Best of 2020'!

'A prime example of how complex and insightful romances can be' Jasmine Guillory

'Relatable and real... I smiled the whole time I was reading' Andie J. Christopher

'The free-spirited, tell-it-like-it-is page-turner you've been looking for!' Kwana Jackson

What happens when three women discover, thanks to the live tweeting of a disastrous date, that they've all been duped by the same man? They become friends of course!

Three friends. One pact. And a temptation to break the rules...

Samiah Brooks never thought she would be 'that' girl. But a live tweet of a horrific date reveals the painful truth: she's been catfished by her three-timing jerk of a boyfriend.

Suddenly Samiah - along with the two other 'girlfriends', London and Taylor - have gone viral. Now the three new besties are making a six-month pact: no men, no dating, just time to focus on themselves.

This means Samiah can finally focus on her exciting career in app development - so having the deliciously sexy and distracting Daniel Collins walk into her office definitely isn't part of her plan...

But is Daniel really boyfriend material - or is he simply too good to be true?

'A multilayered story about friendship, love, and following your dreams - all of it told with heart and emotion' Nalini Singh

'Funny, fresh, sexy, and heartfelt. This is my new favorite romance series' Suzanne Brockmann

'A smart, funny digital-age romance about real women living in the real world. Couldn't put it down!' Abby Jimenez

'A masterpiece of modern-day Jane Austen with effortless, razor-sharp social commentary, romance, and humor. Farrah Rochon is one of the absolute best romance writers today. Period' Kristan Higgins

'Swoon-worthy romance, the power of true friendship, and a grand gesture that makes your heart sigh with pure satisfaction. Absolutely a must-read summer romance!' Priscilla Oliveras

'Rochon is a romance master who adeptly writes interesting and dynamic characters... A richly layered conflict adds depth and complexity to this charming workplace romance' Kirkus

• ISBN10: 1538716623
• ISBN13: 9781538716625
• Publish Date: 9 June 2020
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Forever
• Format: Paperback (US Trade)
• Pages: 352
• Language: English

Reviews

[Angie]

The Boyfriend Project is one of those books that promises an excellent and unique premise, and then falls flat. Samiah is getting ready for a date with her current boyfriend when her sister starts reading her a Twitter thread about the date from Hell. Well, it turns out that guy is her current boyfriend and he's out with another woman! Samiah shows up at the restaurant to tell him off and another woman who's dating him also shows up! The three women form a friend group and swear to give up men for six months in order to work on themselves. Sounds great!

I had to majorly suspend belief to get into The Boyfriend Project, because that opening chapter was just not believable. It's not like Twitter is very localized. What are the chances that Samiah's sister saw this thread? Maybe if it had been on Facebook or Instagram, and it was shared by some mutual friend or acquaintance. Fine. Random Twitter user? Not likely. Even more unlikely is that the third woman also just happened to have a friend who stumbled upon it. Basically, Twitter is the not the best platform to catch a catfisher.

As for the actually boyfriend project of The Boyfriend Project, it's abandoned about halfway in when Samiah decides that she wants to date the new hottie in her office, Daniel. She's suppose to be focusing on creating her app not on dating! But whatever. After that, the women's weekly check-ins weren't interesting anymore. They're each suppose to be working on something personal to them, but then it just becomes about Samiah's relationship when we even got those scenes at all.

As for Daniel, I didn't really care for him either way. He's completely smitten with Samiah right from the beginning, but it takes her a bit to catch up with him. However, it was annoying to me how he kept comparing himself to Twitter-Craig for lying to Samiah. Craig was living multiple lives and scamming people. Daniel is undercover to stop a money laundering ring at Samiah's company. That's not even remotely the same thing. At least until near the end when he does something unforgivable, which she forgives him for.

I need to talk about this unforgivable thing a bit more, because it was just awful. Daniel put Samiah's job at risk in order to complete his own job and it's just brushed aside as something that had to be done, but also turned out to be a good thing for Samiah! She doesn't get fired, but she does get into serious trouble, which...gives her more time to develop her app, which is exactly what she wanted all along. What?! No! He wrong her terribly! He could have gotten her in huge trouble! Do not forget that by flipping it to say now she can work on her dream project!

Another thing that annoyed me was how Daniel's ethnicity was handled. Samiah is a black woman and that plays a huge role in her characterization and how she handles work and her app. She knows she has to work much harder and be "perfect" or she won't get a second chance. Or worse, she might hinder other black women's chances of entering the tech field if she sets a bad example. Daniel is half-Black and half-Korean, but I honestly kept forgetting that he was Black, because he only talks about his Korean side. Being biracial has its own set of limitations and privileges; I would know...

So, The Boyfriend Project didn't work for me. I wanted a lot more from the friend group. A lot more. I feel like that was a lost opportunity. The romance was just okay, which is not okay for a Romance Novel. I was simply left annoyed and unsatisfied.

[llamareads]

Content warnings: discussion of microaggressions related to misogyny and race, minor character is hit by a bus (off-page), jokey reference to suicide

I’ve had a lot of issues with reading contemporary romance lately due to, well, *gestures at the world*, but this book sucked me right in. It’s a sexy and funny workplace romance, with a Black heroine and a half-Black, half-Korean hero, and the cat-fishing friend group was an incredible hook.

“Happiness had not been part of the equation when she’d made her plans. The concept was too vague for her to fully grasp it. She felt safer, more in control, when dealing in absolutes. True happiness—whatever that meant—would follow once she finally achieved these concrete items she’d set out to attain.”

For the most part, Samiah is firmly in control of her life. She’s already got the awesome job, downtown condo, and full package Mustang GTE, so the only thing left on her checklist is the man to share her life with. Too bad Austin seems to only have cheating scum – but at least her latest dating failure netted her two new friends, London and Taylor. The three of them pledge to focus less on dating on more on their own happiness, and for Samiah that means finally working on her app prototype. If only she didn’t immediately run into Daniel, the new hire at Trendsetters, who seems to meet every item on “get a man” checklist. But what she doesn’t know is that he’s actually a Treasury Department agent trying to unravel a money laundering scheme featuring the company’s software. Daniel’s used to rolling in to a company, uncovering the bad guys, and then rolling out, no complications or regrets. But from their first meeting, neither Samiah nor Daniel can deny their attraction to each other. Is their relationship worth Samiah putting her dreams on hold, and can it survive Daniel’s lie?

Samiah is, frankly, the definition of life goals. She’s smart, confident, knows her worth, and I would love to go out for a drink with her. I liked that the author didn’t shy away from the realities of being a woman in tech, especially as a Black woman. When Daniel tries to reassure her that she doesn’t have to have everything perfect with her app as it’s just a demo, she reminds him that no, she has to be perfect and better and more, or else she and every other black woman after her will be judged for her imperfections. The secondary characters were amazing, especially London and Taylor. Their meetings and conversations were the highlight of the book for me, and frankly I wanted more of them. In terms of non-supportive female characters, I cackled out loud at Samiah’s coworker Keighleigh (that NAME, y’all) and appreciated how Samiah handled that relationship. I also liked that the book repeatedly emphasized happiness over career ambitions for multiple characters. I know it’s a romance, and yes, it’s great to see characters be able to have it all, but in this case, it was more interesting to watch each character explore the pros and cons of their decisions.

“You’ll see how you like those jogs along the river when the thermometer is nearing three digits.”
“Aw, don’t tell me that.” Daniel groaned. “Just the other day I had to stop in the middle of my run and peel my shirt off.”
Her gaze dropped to his chest. “That must have been nice.” Her horrified eyes shot back up to his face, wide with dismay. “I said that out loud, didn’t I?”

The book is definitely funny and sexy, but I felt like the romance part got shortchanged. Everything happens over the period of a few months while both characters are focused on both their work for Trendsetters and their external projects (Samiah’s app and Daniel’s, uh, actual job). Even during the time they’re spending together physically, they’re still spending the majority of it working. There’s also a confusing time jump of a few weeks during which they go from “ok, let’s date” to actually spending a couple nights a week with each other, and it felt like a missed opportunity for building their relationship.

“It was difficult to grasp just how freeing it felt to tell her truth without fear of being branded a complainer or excuse-maker or any of the other labels people slapped on her when she tried to explain the pressure she’d been under to perform.”

Daniel never really quite meshed as a character for me. He’s sweet, yes, and definitely a cinnamon roll. But the two main character traits I got about him are that he was so supportive of her, from checking in how she felt to giving her foot massages and that he felt guilty about lying to her. It’s all in relation to her, though. It didn’t seem like there was anything else to him besides what he was to her. I also didn’t feel like Daniel groveled enough to make up for his actions during the dark moment. After repeatedly refusing to hear Daniel’s apologies, Samiah basically forgives him with little effort on his part, and while her thought process for why she did that was clear, it just felt too easy for something that could’ve had serious repercussions for her. The epilogue was a little weird, too, as it wasn’t the airtight HEA I expected, but then throughout the book Samiah proved over and over that she moves at her own pace.

Overall, this is funny and sexy, even if I wasn’t sold on the romance, so this is a 3.5 star read for me. Based on the end of the book, I’m guessing Taylor’s story is next, and I will definitely be picking it up.

I received an advance review copy of this book from NetGalley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

[whisperingchapters]

WHAT A BEAUTY OF A BOOK! Farrah Rochon stole the entire show with this first installment in a new series!

The story starts off with Samiah finding out that her "boyfriend" has been basically catfishing her. She arrives at the restaurant where he is, ends things with him, and gains two friends that this bf was also catfishing. This ended up going completely viral, something Samiah wasn't too happy about and even questioned if she should not be friends with Taylor and London. I have to say that this portion of the book had me laughing and giggling so much! It really set up the premise for the rest of the book.

She wouldn't tolerate anything less than world domination.

Samiah's character is surely one to admire. Being a woman of color in the tech industry hasn't been easy. She has had to climb through hurdles and fight harder than anyone else. The perseverance and patience this woman has puts my nonexistent one to shame. She has unfortunately been the victim of people stealing her ideas and even then, she has been a pro at handling these situations). Because of this, she has kept a project of hers a secret. She wants to launch a "Just Friends" app, and doesn't want anyone stealing this baby.

He made her feel bold and playful and so many other delicious things.

Now let's talk about the hotshot tech! I kind of melted a lot a little with Daniel throughout the entire novel. There's just something about him that had me swooning at every second. And yes, I just swooned right now thinking about him! Okay, back to this PG review. *ahem* Daniel isn't necessarily all that he seems to be. Yes, he's totally a great guy (amazing!), but the reason why he's at Samiah's job is not merely because he needs a job. Of course, this is something he keeps a secret from everyone, including Samiah.

I totally understood why Daniel did what he did and why he kept it a secret. I give him props for truly trying to stay away from Samiah, but he just couldn't help but be so attracted by this fierce and gorgeous woman. I loved how genuine their friendship and then relationship was. It made me root for them so much! They talked! THEY ACTUALLY HAD GENUINE CONVERSATIONS! This spoke volumes for me. The author did a fantastic job with this relationship!

"I don't mind waking up at the crack of dawn if it means I get to spend the night with you."

Now let's talk about the female friendships! Taylor, London and Samiah couldn't be more different, but they just fit so well together! These ladies are true #SquadGoals despite of how they met. I admired how these ladies supported each others' endeavors no matter what. They truly believed in each other and I find that so beautiful for women who just met!

"I'm not sure we can call ourselves #SquadGoals if there's only one person in the squad reaching her goals. We better get our asses in gear."

Overall, The Boyfriend Project is a wonderful romance filled with outstanding friendship, a strong and fierce and independent heroine, an oh-so-sweet and delicious hero, and it also features talks on racism in the tech industry as well as for women of color. I truly enjoyed that the author had those talks in the book because it added to the depth-level of the story and the characters. Also, that ending has me so freaking excited for the next book!

AUDIOBOOK IMPRESSIONS:
It was my first time listening to Je Nie Fleming as a narrator and it so won't be the last time! Her voice was so soothing and fit the characters so well. Her voice truly enhanced the experience for me and made me enjoy the story even more!
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[thebookdisciple]

The Boyfriend Project brings a fierce female friendship trio that I am LOVING! 3 women who find friendship after unwittingly dating the same man brought such a great girl squad vibe. Also, all 3 are smart, professional success stories. Other than dating a moronic idiot, these ladies are mind blowingly winning at life!

Samiah works for a hot tech company in Austin and she is killing it professionally. I loved the portrayal of a woman who is intelligent, professional, and yet still accessible.  Knowing that she has one area of her life where she isn't perfect (dating) made her relatable. And I know I mentioned it already, but seeing her, London, and Taylor develop and grow a great friendship was empowering. Also, we see Samiah struggle with racism in the workplace. I think this is such an important topic and Rochon shows how it occurs in even simple, daily interactions.

Daniel is undercover at Samiah's office, which added an interesting layer. While he and Samiah are obviously attracted to one another, she has decided to take a sabbatical from dating and he can't get involved with anyone when he won't be sticking around. The chemistry was solid and I enjoyed their interactions. He does screw up though and I wanted to shake him. Samiah is hurt and angry, but he grovels good and she is smart-she understands the logic and necessity in his decision, even if she wished it could have been different.

So, I actually had 3 copies of the Boyfriend Project-an e-ARC, an audio copy thanks to Libro.FM, and a hardback from Book of the Month! So, let me say the audio is GREAT! I loved the narrator, Je Nie Fleming. She did a wonderful job giving each character their own voice. It was easy to get caught up in the story and block out everything else.

 

•   POV: 3rd


•   Tears: no


•   Trope: office romance


•   Triggers: none


•   Series/Standalone: standalone


•   Cliffhanger: no


•   HEA: yes

Faker by Sarah Smith, Hero by Samantha Young, Rock Hard by Nalini Singh, The Allure of Julian Lefrey by RS Grey ...then you will probably like The Boyfriend Project!

 

The Boyfriend Project

 

See full review on The Book Disciple

[Sam@WLABB]

You know what they say, "Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me," and Samiah was far too intelligent to let it happen again. After being catfished by her alleged "boyfriend", Samiah and the other two women he was stringing along, agreed to take the next six months to eschew men, and use that time to put themselves first, calling this plan The Boyfriend Project. But, then she met Daniel, and began questioning her plans.

This was a workplace romance with a twist, and I rather enjoyed it. The book had all the makings for a story that was sure to win me over.

• It was funny. The set up premise alone had me chuckling, but there was humor throughout the book, which kept me smiling.

• Samiah was an incredible woman. I think if I only saw that viral video, I would have been intimidated by her, but the more I learned about Samiah, the more I admired and respected her. Samiah rose up through the ranks of her tech company due to her intelligence, hard work, and grit. She also KNEW she was phenomenal at her job, and was not ashamed to claim her crown. I love seeing that in a woman, because we have been conditioned to not flaunt our skills, while men can crow all they want. So, good for Samiah! But, it wasn't enough for her to just be amazing at her job, she wanted to support and encourage other women, especially women of color, to reach for their dreams, and she wanted to help them realize their aspirations as well. Her ambition and desire to give back made her a standout heroine.

• Samiah + Daniel = Something Special. I loved these two together. They were both fighting the attraction for so long, but the whole time, I was treated to their spectacular banter and electric interactions. Daniel presented as Samiah's unicorn man. She had shared a list of things she wished she had gotten out of other relationships, and there was Daniel, doing those things, checking all the boxes. I loved it! They also had this mutual respect for each other. Combine that with all the little things they did to show affection, and I was fully onboard this ship. Watching these two together was such a pleasure, and it made me wish there was a bit more of the romance in the story.

• Female friendship for the win! Though they were brought together under less than desirable circumstances, an incredible friendship formed between Samiah, Taylor, and London (the other catfished women). They joked around, calling themselves "Squad Goals", but they really lived up to the name. The beauty of their friendship was in how different they were, yet how much they complimented each other. They pushed each other out of their comfort zones, and supported one another as they took those chances. The focus on friendship filled that romance hole for me, and I was happy it was a bigger part of the story.

Overall: I felt like this book had it all. A standout heroine, fabulous unicorn-man hero, sweet romance, and a fantastic friendship were the driving forces for me, but I also appreciated the author taking on issues of gender and racial inequality in the workplace. Rochon expertly combined all these elements to produce a wonderful story, which has me eagerly awaiting the other Boyfriend Project books.

*ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.

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[Linda]

*I received a free copy of The Boyfriend Project. This has in no way influenced my voluntary review which is honest and unbiased.*

The Boyfriend Project is one of the most heartfelt, real, most adorable romances I have ever read! I identified so much with Samiah. I’m not in STEM, and I don’t have to think about every little thing I do because of the other women trying to climb up behind me. However, she was just so incredibly real to me.
And Daniel *sighs* he was such a fantastic hero! He had to fight with his own conscience so many times - and his work just had to come first. It was completely heart wrenching to read his inner thoughts as he fell for Samiah all the while not being able to be fully honest with her!
FRC