Josh and Clara were a super cute couple and it was so fun watching them pull down their guards and fall for each other. The conflict felt realistic and I loved how they were able to overcome their obstacles together. I also appreciated that there was no crazy ex-girlfriend and that Josh wasn't shamed for being a porn star/sex worker.

There are no words to describe to you how excited I was when I finally got approved for an ARC of The Roommate. I literally squealed. I have been hearing nothing but amazing things about this book for months. And I was SO JEALOUS of everyone who’d already read it. I’ve had it pre-ordered for months, so of course, as soon as I had access to the ebook I downloaded and devoured it. And guys. It lives up to the hype.

Clara Wheaton is an east coast princess who does all the right things in life. But when her childhood crush invites her to move in with him in Los Angeles, she decides to, for once, do the impulsive thing. So you can imagine her reaction when said crush tells her the moment she lands that he is going on tour with his band and has rented out the other room in his house to a guy Clara has never met before. Josh Darling turns out to be nice and not creepy and not too bad looking either, but Clara has some serious anxiety about the whole situation. Luckily, Josh turns out to be pretty good at soothing her nerves. Clara meets up with her estranged aunt, who hires Clara to work at her PR firm on a district attorney’s campaign. And she also reveals to Clara that Josh happens to be a super popular porn star. A porn star on hiatus as it were, as Josh is trying to renegotiate his contract after being taken advantage of by a slimy producer. Honestly, I don’t want to give too much away because this story is so unlike anything I’ve ever read before. Suffice to say, stuff gets sexy and they live happily ever after.

I know I talk a lot about books that make me want to quit writing because I know I’ll never be able to write anything as good, and this is definitely one of those books. From the first page, I was completely sucked in to the story, enamored by these characters, and in love with Rosie’s voice. Like there were many, many moments where I just put the book down and blinked a lot because a line or a sentence or a turn of phrase was so brilliant. And then on top of gorgeous writing, you have a pair of characters who are so endearing and real and lovable and perfect. I loved Clara’s insecurities and Josh’s heart. I loved that Josh’s ex-girlfriend Naomi is treated like an actual person and not just a crazy ex. I loved how Clara found herself and her independence and Josh learned to open up. It’s perfection.

And then on top of all that, this is a book that is unabashedly sex positive and feminist in a way you don’t see very often. And romance is definitely leading the charge in sex positivity and feminism, but The Roommate takes it to a whole other level. I am not lying when I say I loved every single second of reading this book. It is one I will return to again and again, and I am so excited to see what Rosie comes up with next!

I'll admit, I was unsure about this book. The cover makes it look like a YA novel and I didn't know how I felt about a porn star hero. But I was wrong! I LOVED it! The hero is delightful, not at all what you would expect when you hear "porn star". The book walks the fine line between being affirming of sex work and acknowledging the issues within the industry. It is also HOT, make no mistake, but it's also a really sweet story of a woman finding herself. If you're scared, I get it, but it's so good!

I loved this! Sex positivity and female empowerment woohoo! I enjoyed the first half more than the second half though. I managed to read most of it in one sitting!

What do you get when a somewhat OCD/neurotic good-girl who is known for being a prude moves to LA and finds out her surprise male roommate is an adult film star? GOLD! ROMANCE GOLD - That’s what! Gotta love fiction. The Roommate is a rom com lovers dream come true. SO addicting. Heat warning: it gets explicit.🔥

I adored this book. I laughed out loud, I swooned, and I could not stop turning the pages. Right from the start I was completely hooked. I also really loved the bigger message of women owning their sexuality, taking charge of their bodies and forgetting all the judgements society places on them. It’s a book about breaking social stigma.

I officially need more books from Rosie Danan. This was a debut novel, and I predict she is going to do exceptionally well as an author. She writes sexy and sweet like no one else. Because the book centers around the adult entertainment industry, I can see how more conservative readers would find this too risqué. However, I thought the way it was done was unique and empowering for females.

3.5 stars. I requested THE ROOMMATE by Rosie Danan on NG as soon as I saw @squibblesreads mention it on Instagram. Let’s start off with this is a white cishet relationship.

Ok, the good:
+ Sex positivity/normalization of female sexuality
+ Josh makes a very charming and heartwarming male MC
+ Interesting side characters (please tell me there’s a companion book in the works focused on Naomi)

The meh:
- Clara, the female MC, is a WASPy socialite. This trope is so damn old and no one cares about rich white women anymore
- The subplot about her other job and the conflict around that seemed so painfully obvious
- I’m done with the whole “women can’t drive” thing (even if the female MC grew up in NYC)

This book is VERY open door steamy so if you prefer chaste or closed door, I’d skip this one. The sex scenes were great in this book but a lot of the plot fell flat for me.

Thanks, NetGalley and Berkley Romance, for the digital ARC!

This book is very engaging with very likeable characters. Steamy and spicy with a very touching romance. Humourous dialog.

Clara Wheaton comes from a wealthy family that has had its share of scandals so she has spent her privileged life being the good girl. After attaining more academic degrees than a thermometer, Clara takes off cross country to California at the invitation of the man she has a long standing crush on much to her families’ dismay. When her hopes walk out the door with as her ersatz boyfriend to be leaves, Clara is stuck with a stranger as a roommate. Josh just broke up with his girlfriend whom he also works with so he needed a cheap place to crash.

Clara is stunned to find out what this seemingly slacker type does for a living. As they get know one another, it seems opposites do attract; however, his profession would send her family into a tailspin of epic proportions. Josh’s “career” is that of a porn star. He and Naomi, his former girlfriend, are quite the popular couple in the skin flicks. Josh is dissatisfied with the lot of a porn performer when it comes to money and managing his career. Clara is less than pleased with her hopes and dreams being dashed, and her lackluster sex life which is the opposite of Josh’s experience.

They combine forces to make big changes in each of their lives while trying to avoid acting on the major attraction between them. Both of them have some self-esteem issues while trying to learn to be successful adults. Clara thinks she has to be perfect for her family while Josh feels he is not good for much other than being a porn star. Clara’s cash and Josh’s connections in the industry lead then to become independent producers of their own to improve sex for women.

So, I feel conflicted about this book. The writing is good, and I understand it is supposed to be a rom-com yet the porn business has a lot to answer for and little of it good. It’s true in the story Josh describes how many of his coworkers are taken advantage by scurrilous people who run the adult films; however, with all the abuses that women suffer including sex abuse and trafficking as well as those people who become addicted to porn in a unhealthy way, I have trouble finding this story amusing or funny. The synopsis is a bit misleading and should mention more clearly Josh’s connection to this controversial industry.

It is really rare that a romance surprises me with a 5 star rating. I thought The Roommate would be your typical enemies to lovers trope and boy was I wrong! The story line was fresh and exciting and the language was far from cringe. Aside from the romance aspect the commentary on the adult entertainment industry was so intriguing. You can tell Rosie Danan did her research and cares about the people often overlooked in that industry.
What I enjoyed most was how the story took the tired concepts of the boy next door, the uptight prude, and the ex-girlfriend and completely changed how we usually view them in a romance novel. I can't wait to read the spin-off featuring my favorite side-character Naomi!

I loved this funny, adorable, and super steamy romance! Clara is a socialite from a proper, well-to-do family who gets stuck with a stranger as a roommate after her childhood crush leaves her high and dry. Josh is a porn star who knows he shouldn't fall for a girl like Clara. Their romance was compelling and full of chemistry. This is definitely a steamy book with the right amount of sex scenes!

I loved that The Roommate touches on the stigma around pornography as well as some of the issues within the industry. Josh fights back against unfair treatment and unsafe conditions in the porn world, and a chunk of the novel centers around Clara and Josh working together to create a healthy, sex-positive resource called 'Shameless' that is described as porn meets sex ed. So much of the book is centered around keeping sex workers safe and prioritizing women's bodies--I'm so here for this!

The only reason this isn't a five star read is the lack of diversity. The two main characters are cis, straight, and white, with most of the supporting characters also of the same identities. There is a side character who is bisexual, and during a casting scene, there is a brief mention of "people of all body types," but there were otherwise no mentions of BIPOC, queer & trans, or disabled folks. I would have really loved to see intersectionality touched upon with 'Shameless.' I still loved this book, but when recommending it to readers at my library, I'll be combining it authors like Talia Hibbert or Alisha Rai. I'll definitely read this author's next novel and hope that it is more intersectionally diverse.

I need a cold shower...a VERY cold shower to get my head on straight after reading The Roommate!!

An unlikely lease on love, yup that’s for dam sure. This is a story about two total strangers who end up having to live together. Total opposites now forced to live under the same roof and slowly leave their comfort zones. Right there I was pretty intrigued but based off of that description I wasn’t expecting the main character Josh to be a porn star! After that I was totally hooked, I almost fell off the couch I was so excited. The story took such a fun and unique turn and was something I’ve never read before but am so glad it exists!

My favorite take away from this book was the theme of breaking people’s expectations and doing what makes YOU happy even if it means risking everything and doing something that scares you. So many of us build our lives around other people’s expectations (or lake of them), but expectations are an illusion. By trying to please everyone, we end up pleasing no one — ourselves included. That’s why most people don’t live the life they want. Everyone feels frustrated and disappointed and that’s what are our main characters struggle with throughout the book. I absolutely love the line, “more often than not, the scary things, the ones you spend the most time and energy talking yourself out of, are the ones that make life worth living.”

Bravo Rosie Danan on your brilliant debut I am seriously OBSESSED with it! It’s sexy, funny, smart, all in a totally feminist way. Its become an instant favorite of mine. I can’t stop talking about this book!! Pre-order The Roommate NOW because it’s officially available on 9/15/20.

THANK YOU NETGALLEY FOR THE ARC!

I love the premise of this book. I really love Josh and Naomi. I can't stand Clara. The book was great.

I will be interviewing Rosie for the What to Read Next Podcast. Her episode will go live on publication week.

First I would like to thank Netgalley and Berkley Publishing Group for the ARC of The Roommate by Rosie Danan.

Publishing Date: September 15, 2020.

OH. MY. GOD. This book was amazing, truly like nothing I have read before. The Roommate was a forced roommate romance. A major porn star meets your uptight socialite. The tension in this book could kill someone.
This book is all about female orgasms and sexual pleasure, but it includes a lot of sex descriptions that might make some people uncomfortable.
The two main characters are absolutely hilarious right from the start with the flirty banter and EXTREME tension. I mean sometimes it made me legit want to scream at them.
I thought Naomi, the ex-girlfriend, was going to be problematic but turns out she’s her own badass bitch, and now Rosies writing a second book about her called The Intimacy Project.

A fun, cute, and sex-positive romance! I've read other books with sex worker characters before but they're usually of the dark and super angsty variety. The Roommate, refreshingly, was not that. Josh loves and is good at his job, but recognizes that there are some serious problems in the porn industry so he uses his privilege to do something about it. Clara has some hangups and prejudices about sex and sex workers, but opens her mind and also uses her privilege to make a difference and learns how to love and respect herself along the way. A really great summer read!

I've been wanting to get my hands on this book ever since I learned of its existence. And when I did snag an advanced copy? I devoured it.

All this time there was a raunch-com hole in my heart and I didn't even know it until now.

This book is EVERYTHING. It's sexy, funny, sweet...and I couldn't put it down. I love Josh and Clara forever. I need Rosie Danan's next book immediately, please.

4.5 ⭐️

Thank you to Berkeley Romance via NetGalley for proving me an arc of The Roommate to review!

The gorgeous bubblegum pink cover drew me in but the rich narration, amazing characters and fantastic concept is what kept me reading. This book is perfect in so many ways, and is a huge must for any romance lover (and let’s be real, romance novice too).

I was shocked when I found out this was a debut novel, mainly because the concept is so unique and uncommon for a romance story, but completely refreshing and original. It felt as though this was a book written by a long time author. The dialogue between characters was smart and sexy, and the dual POV was executed flawlessly.

This book follows Clara, a sheltered socialite and Josh, a renowned performer in the adult entertainment industry. They are forced together as roommates when Clara’s longtime friend (and crush) Everett ditches her to tour with his band. The forced proximity makes for Clara and Josh to spend a lot of time together, and the two of the navigate the waters of being roommates.

I love how sex-positive this book was, and how the author respectfully acknowledges sex workers and their jobs. It was also very steamy without taking away from the actual plot.

In my opinion, this book is completely deserving of all the praise it’s received so far. This is a knock out debut novel, and I can’t WAIT for the sequel that’ll be coming next year!

The Roommate by Rosie Danan was super sweet a lot of fun.

We have the shy, academic, socialite woman, Clara, who has never stepped a toe out of line in her life. In a turn of events that she wasn't expecting, Clara ends up being roommates with a really sexy.... porn-star! We get to watch these two strangers learn about each other and about themselves, as well.

A sweet, cute, light-hearted romp of a romance.

I really enjoyed this book! I found the relationship development between Josh and Clara to be done so well. I loved that they didn't immediately fall in love with one another but instead became friends before entering into a relationship. The banter between the characters was also my FAVORITE thing ever. I found the relationship to be so natural and realistic. The steamy scenes were also done very well. The only gripe that I have with this book was how quick the conflict was resolved, I felt as though it should not have happened at all or taken longer to resolve.

T his book induced insomnia I haven’t felt since the summer The Deathly Hallows dropped. I’d wake up and crave it. Toss and turn in my sleep anticipating reading it. Have you ever had it bad for a book?!

I have never read a character quite like Josh Darling. He’s wholesome without being cheesy and horny without being gross. His charm radiates off the page almost immediately. He’s so casually respectful and self-correcting that it’s just in his nature. There is something so indescribably ... sexy about how Josh Darling approaches consent and respects boundaries. With everyone, not just with Clara.

Scenes I would think I’d cringe at actually had me fanning myself. I’d catch myself sweating and think “yeah, this is it”. I’ve read MUCH raunchier material, this book is not necessarily tame though, but so much of this book made even me blush.

I’ve never read a romance novel that presents sex work/ers with such care and respect. Even some of the kinkiest romance novels demonize sex work and villainize sex workers. The Roommate is so much the opposite in the sweetest way. I really loved it

Reviewed for Shelf Awareness. This review will be published around release date.
***

The Roommate, Rosie Danan's debut romance is sexy, funny and absolutely charming. When Clara leaves her wealthy Connecticut family behind to move in with her childhood crush in California, she's shocked to find that he's taken off on tour with his band and in his place is Josh, a complete stranger who turns out to be a performer in the adult entertainment industry. As outgoing as Clara is reserved, Josh is easy to like and to live with. If only they could shake this pesky chemistry between them.
Danan treats her subject matter with a great deal of respect. The Roommate is feminist and sex-positive and Danan makes sure to center both the good and the bad within the adult entertainment industry. When Josh is threatened by the unethical production company holding his contract, he and Clara, along with Josh's performer ex, develop a project aimed at educating viewers on female pleasure. Moreover, while the book is high on steam and humor, it's not sexy because of the fact that the male lead is a sex-worker. While both characters are initially attracted to each other, their physical relationship builds in time with their emotional connection. Both have their own hang-ups to work through and their self-conscious pining is a nearly palpable thing.
Incredibly sweet and romantic, The Roommate serves up a passionate but buoyant love story between two slightly lost people who figure out they have more to offer the world than they ever thought.
***
I received a copy of this book from the publisher for review.