The Perfect Guy

Luke O’Donnell is famous — albeit indirectly and completely against his will. His parents, rock stars, split up when he was still a child. Now, as his father decides to return to the stage, Luke finds himself back in the spotlight, and one compromising photo is enough to ruin everything. To fix his reputation, Luke needs to enter into a good, normal relationship… and Oliver Blackwood is as good and normal as it gets. In other words, the perfect candidate for a boyfriend. So they make a deal: to be in (fake) relationships until the fuss dies down. And then go their separate ways and pretend like none of this ever happened.

Review

Alexis Hall has a wonderful way of writing about love with humor — sometimes quite biting, sometimes utterly absurd, but almost always very accurate. «The Perfect Guy» is one of those romantic comedies that you start reading for the funny situations and witty dialogues, and then unexpectedly realize how attached you’ve become to the characters.

Luke and Oliver are completely different. One is used to hiding his insecurities behind jokes and sarcasm, while the other always tries to do the right thing. And both, as it turns out, are not very good at understanding their own feelings. Their awkward attempts to get closer are interesting to watch precisely because they are not perfect: they make mistakes, get hurt, say things they didn’t mean, and sometimes complicate things for themselves.

This book has a lot of funny moments — from brilliant banter to completely absurd secondary characters. But it also has something very real: the fear of being rejected, the desire to be liked, and the difficulty of believing that someone can love you just as you are.

«The Perfect Guy» is a warm, witty, and at times unexpectedly touching story. After reading it, you want to not so much ponder love as simply smile.