So when I originally read this book, I remember saying that I wanted to read it on audio and get a better sense of the accents. And it did help a little, although it feels like watching Ted Lasso - so much that a native Brit would pick up from the regional accents is lost on an American audience. But I also wanted to reread this because I felt like there was a lot of wasn’t fully getting on the first go-round. I haven’t looked back at my original review yet, and honestly I finished this oh gosh maybe a week ago? So some things have already faded. And the fact is, I highly doubt anything will ever top Boyfriend Material for me, with the possible exceptions of Husband and Father Material. 

Part of the problem with this book that I did really enjoy is that you never really warm up to Jonathan Forrest, or at least I didn’t. Part of it is definitely the fact that you first meet him in Husband Material and Luc detests him. And I love Luc, so I must detest Jonathan as well. But also, because the book is told entirely from Sam’s perspective, so you never really get a chance to see how Jonathan changes. And I think this is an important distinction. Having read a lot of Alexis Hall’s Goodreads reviews especially on romance novels, this is something he points out in other authors — so much of Jonathan’s journey is very internal, and not having access to that internal process I think means you miss out on it. You do see it through Sam, but ultimately Sam is nearly the same person at the end of the book, except perhaps a little less numb. Jonathan also doesn’t have a complete personality transplant, but he grows so much more towards people especially his family. 

It’s actually something I remember reading about in relation to Pride and Prejudice, and especially the various adaptations. The mini series with Colin Firth succeeds in part because it actually shows Darcy changing, instead of the original novel and most other adaptations merely telling us. And while I’ve never actually watched the mini series (scandal, I know) this tension between show and tell is interesting. I was reading another reviewing, can’t remember the book or author or who wrote the review, but basically that we’ve gotten it into our heads that SHOWING is the only valid way to develop a story, whether it refers to characters or plot, and maybe that’s not actually the best thing? So maybe it’s not horrible that we don’t see inside Jonathan’s mind, but I do think it’s a missed opportunity. 

As always in an Alexis Hall book especially a contemporary romance, the side characters and puns/banter are top notch. Here those are Sam’s workmates, and Jonathan’s family. Top prize goes to Amjad, who refers to Sam as “Ban” because he is in fact Samwise, and it is such a deep cut Tolkien nerd reference that I even went so far as to message the author on instagram. But there are so many deeply intelligent things about Hall’s writing that I love, and I hope he keeps writing books for many many years to come.