I didn’t read The Boyfriend Project but now I feel like it’s a must! I enjoyed this book a lot. If you're looking for a cute, easy, fun read this is it.

We get Taylor who is a fitness instructor facing mountains of debt but trying to keep her hopes and dream alive. At one of her pop up training sessions she meets Jamar, a hot stranger who turns out to be a former NFL star wanting to get back into shape so he can play again after busting his knee. He asks Taylor to train him in secret. The press see them together and they decide to fake date and from there the tension and sparks we had already seen ratchet up.

This story was amazing because it’s set in Austin, TX and mentions Longhorn football plenty (hook’em horns!). It was cut and fun. I loved Taylor who is such a strong female who deals with what life throw at her but never lets it get her down. This was a perfect mix of friendship and chemistry. I also loved how she wrote about undiagnosed learning disorders and how that effects people as adults. I enjoyed seeing that play out with her, getting the help she needs and getting the support of her family. The only draw back was that the characters kind of became their problems and while we get the resolution we’re looking for I feel there were other ways to come around to that.

Thank you NetGalley and Grand Central publishing for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

-- Staci McIntyre

Farrah Rochon is quickly emerging as one of the romance authors whose books I look forward to the most. I love the depictions of positive female friendships throughout Farrah Rochon's books - in The Dating Playbook, Taylor's friendship with London and Samiah are just as important as her own self development (her work, her education) and in some ways, the romance feels like the least important part of this novel in terms of character development, even though it's the focus of the plot. I love a fake dating storyline, and this one was unique and fun. More romances with multidimensional characters, please! Thanks to NetGalley and Forever for the ARC.

The boyfriend project is a fantastic second book in The Boyfriend Project series. Taylor and Jamar have a chemistry that jumps off the page and makes reading their story exciting.

While Taylor is struggling to make ends meet and grow her business, Taylor'd Conditioning, Jamar is looking for a personal trainer to get him back to the NFL. It seems like the perfect fit. Except Jamar doesn't want anyone to know that he is in training hoping to return. In order to keep the secret, Taylor has to pretend to be Jamar's girlfriend. Of course, it becomes hard to keep their relationship professional the more time they spend together.

It was easy to route for these two almost from the beginning. Taylor is tenacious, relatable, and vulnerable, While Jamar is loyal and respectful. Together they seem to fit together. Both Taylor and Jamar have baggage that they need to work through. As the story progresses, we see their interactions develop and are able to be compassionate with each other in difficult times and push each other when that is needed.

I enjoyed Taylor's relationship with London and Samiah. All three are strong women who depict a supportive female friend relationship. Thank you Netgalley and Forever for the ARC. This is my honest review.

I really struggled to get through this one. I had a hard time relating to any of the characters.
Thank you to Netgalley for this arc ebook in exchange for an honest review.

Jamar is in need of a trainer with a boot camp attitude to get him ready to play in the NFL again after a devastating knee injury. Taylor needs to make money-fast-to keep her fledgling personal training business afloat. Since Jamar wants to keep his plans a secret, when they are seen together, they come up with the fake relationship trope. Together they develop a dating playbook to navigate how to fake date, keep Jamar’s secret, and promote Taylor’s Fitnessgram.

Both characters work through personal dramas for growth. His is grief and guilt, hers is family pressures and a previously undiagnosed learning issue.

Despite a bit too much waffling back and forth about staying focused and not being involved for real and staying professional and not dating clients for real even though publicly they were dating, you can’t help rooting for Jamar and Taylor.

The real strength of this series is the friendship between Samiah, London, and Taylor. That is where Rochon shines. All three met when they had a viral moment confronting a man who had lied to them all. The unconditional support they give each other has been the best part of these books.

I am greatly looking forward to London’s story.

Thank you NetGalley and Forever for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

First I would like to thank Forever Publishing (Grand Central Publishing) for both the eARC and the physical copy as well. This books was one of my most anticipated reads for this summer. When I finished The Boyfriend Project last summer, I couldn't wait to see what else these new best friends got up too, and to say I was so in love is an under statement for this book.

I enjoyed reading about Taylor and Jamar find love and healing with each other, they had this sexy banter between them that just made it so hard to put the book down. Together they both found answers to issues they were struggling with.

We first met Taylor in The Boyfriend Project, when they all went viral. Taylor is the youngest of an Army family, she considered herself the black sheep due to issues she has with school. I was able to really relate to Taylor because like all young millennials she struggled with financials.

Jamar is struggling is struggling with the way that his football career ended. He is trying get back to the field because he has people who rely on him. He believes that Taylor is just the right fitness trainer to get him back to his goals.

While reading the normal you really get the feel of their chemistry for each other, they push each other both in the gym and outside of the gym to be better. Together they are able to overcome struggles and issues from their past. This book was such an easy and super fun read, loved being able to see London and Samiah! I cannot wait to read London's book next summer.

First I would like to thank Forever Publishing (Grand Central Publishing) for both the eARC and the physical copy as well. This books was one of my most anticipated reads for this summer. When I finished The Boyfriend Project last summer, I couldn't wait to see what else these new best friends got up too, and to say I was so in love is an under statement for this book.

I enjoyed reading about Taylor and Jamar find love and healing with each other, they had this sexy banter between them that just made it so hard to put the book down. Together they both found answers to issues they were struggling with.

We first met Taylor in The Boyfriend Project, when they all went viral. Taylor is the youngest of an Army family, she considered herself the black sheep due to issues she has with school. I was able to really relate to Taylor because like all young millennials she struggled with financials.

Jamar is struggling is struggling with the way that his football career ended. He is trying get back to the field because he has people who rely on him. He believes that Taylor is just the right fitness trainer to get him back to his goals.

While reading the normal you really get the feel of their chemistry for each other, they push each other both in the gym and outside of the gym to be better. Together they are able to overcome struggles and issues from their past. This book was such an easy and super fun read, loved being able to see London and Samiah! I cannot wait to read London's book next summer.

Thank you to for the ARC from Forever (Grand Central Publishing) via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This amazing book gets published later this Summer on August 17th and I strongly urge you to add this to your TBR ASAP!

Now, what I loved about this book was not only the humor and the hot and spicy chemistry between Taylor and Jamar but also the real-life issues that were played out between the two.

Taylor is a hard-working, Army brat who is just trying to figure out her way through the world. Like many young adults her age, Taylor battles with her financial struggles and also trying to figure out if whether college is a smart decision for her financially knowing how much she struggled in school.

Jamar is well-known for not only being good-looking but also for his skills on the field. When a knee injury ruined his chances in the NFL, he ran across Taylor who not only got his attention for going viral, but also for her Army Style fitness program.

Throughout this novel, you not only feel their chemistry coming off the pages, but you cannot help but root for them to continue their fight to succeed. This book is a perfect way to end your Summer and if you want a steamy, yet funny book to end your Summer right make sure you pick up this great read.

I just knew that I would love Taylor's story!

I love the fake dating, I love how funny and genuine Taylor is, and I love how humble Jamar is!

I laughed my way through this and I was subdued by some hard things both Jamar and Taylor are dealing with. I thought that the author handled them both well. There is a scene with Jamar and his parents that just had me cracking up!

I love that there wasn't some HUGE blow-up (misunderstanding) between the two that tears them apart for so long and had so many miscommunicated feelings.... The relationship isn't without some hardships but nothing major and that's a relief.

First off, I'd like to thank Net Galley and Forever for this ARC. I tend to say that with most books I enjoy, I devour them.
The Dating Playbook was a fun read that while at it's core it is a romance, it covered various, deeper issues very well (financial, mental and physical health, education, and relationships). I loved Taylor and Jamar's dynamic, and their banter had me smiling and laughing along with them. The fake relationship trope is also one of my favourites so that scored major points with me as it was pulled off very well.

This was the first book that I've read by Farah Rochon, and I can absolutely say that it will not be the last. Going into the story blind, I was unaware that there was a previous story (The Boyfriend Project), but now I will definitely be picking that one up, and I can't wait for the final instalment in the series next summer!

Let me just start by saying I had some very impure thoughts while reading this and I ain’t mad about it. I literally kept finding myself screaming at the pages, “Girl, quit playing and kiss the man.” But if you’ve read The Boyfriend Project and enjoyed that, then you’ll definitely enjoy The Dating Playbook. And even if you haven’t read its predecessor, the chemistry between our romantic leads will not disappoint.

Picking up where we left off in The Boyfriend Project, Taylor has already been picked up from jail and is now at their weekly girls night out with Samiah and London and all Taylor can think about is the cost of the meal. Then the question comes up about how she ended up in jail. Long story short, it was all a misunderstanding and she was arrested because of an expired license and not because of the kids she cursed out (whom she apologized to) or the lawn chair she ran over (driving in reverse is hard okay). Panicking, Taylor blurts out that she is going back to school to get her degree. Anything to move the conversation into a positive direction.

I could really relate to Taylor in that moment as well as throughout the book. The less successful friend of the group, what with Samiah working in the tech industry and London a pediatrician. And Taylor with her Taylor’d Conditioning, her freelance business of fitness regiments tailoring workouts per clients needs. That whole mention of a degree was just a ploy to make herself sound better and haven’t we all been there?

However, things begin when Mr. Hot and Fit, as known as Jamar ‘Diesel’ Dixon, approaches her after one of her pop-up workouts and asks her to be his trainer. And come to find out, Jamar is a former football player who wants to return to the field. With what he’s willing to pay her, she could use the money to pay off her credit card debt and pay for the college entrance exam. Yet there’s just one condition: he wants to keep their training a secret, for now. Once he rejoins the NFL, he’ll endorse her for sure. Sounds like a win win. That was until they’re caught by a reporter and have to lie and say they’re dating.

But that isn’t the only issue. The reason Jamar had to stop playing was because he injured his knee while playing. For Jamar, he doesn’t just want to rejoin the NFL, he needs to come back to the NFL so he could go out on his own terms and shutup the naysayers. Even more so, Jamar wants to return to football to honor the memory of his deceased childhood friend, Silas, and be able to support Silas’s family.

Jamar is more than a ‘dumb’ jock. He got good grades in school and though he tells terrible jokes, he is funny and kind and humble. Rochon wrote a jock that has depth and layers with a smidgen of perfection and all the hotness. You can just tell from the descriptions. Yet you could appreciate Jamar’s resolve with Taylor’s determination. They pair well together.

Now the air is charged with electricity, sending sparks flying off the page. Jamar can’t help but be attracted to Taylor. He finds her drill sergeant approach to their workouts sexy, her passion for fitness inspiring and her desire to go back to college admirable. He just has to figure out how to fake date his trainer when he’s falling for her.

They start out small, just hanging out in public and taking selfies together. But that quickly leads to holding hands and intimate glances and out of nowhere, there’s a kiss. Sweet and innocent but definitely a smoldering burn of desire. Yet that burn ignites into flames when Taylor finds herself pinned against a tree in a rainstorm, Jamar pressed firmly against her as his tongue explores the furthest corners of her mouth. Ahem . . . moving on.

Clearly it’s more than just pretend between these two. Jamar doesn’t want to fake date anymore but Taylor is sticking to her rule of not dating her clients. Or at least she was until she got injured in a kickboxing session, spraining her ankle. And to make matters worse, her apartment building is being evacuated for toxic mold. Injured and out of a place to stay, Jamar offers to let her stay with him. He does have a huge mansion and she did fire him as a client because of her injury, so she reluctantly agrees. Forget flames, it’s a damn forest fire now.

The Dating Playbook is a red hot read that you’ll want to enjoy uninterrupted. The chemistry between Jamar and Taylor is on fire but the love they share is what truly keeps the flames burning throughout this novel. Not only that, there’s more to these characters than meets the eye and they are relatable. Never a dull moment in The Dating Playbook.

I am a sucker for a sports romance! Football? Yes, please. Baseball? I hope the bases are loaded. Hockey? Give me that puck!!

For starters, this is my first time reading a book by this author, and I don't know what took me so long! I need to go and read my copy of The Boyfriend Project now because this book was so fun and sweet! I love how Farrah Rochon also identified a character with a learning disorder in this book too because all our lives we're in school, I'm currently in university, and we're always expected to continue it rather than to stop and think of how we can further ourselves, and to shed light on a learning disability and the issues that arise from that was very informative and thoughtful!

I recommend this book ten fold!

Thank you to NetGalley and Forever Publications for the earc in return for an honest review.

After The Boyfriend Project, I was really excited to see how things would play out for the remaining two friends and I was not disappointed. This was definitely a page turner. I really enjoyed the banter between Jamar and Taylor. Although they tried to keep things on a professional level, their chemistry was undeniable. They were just what each other needed in order to overcome their struggles. Always a pleasure to see girlfriends supporting each other. I definitely recommend this book. I am looking forward to London’s story.

Thanks to NetGalley and Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for an ACR in exchange my honest review.

Worthy followup to The Boyfriend Project. Simiah, Taylor, and London are still meeting often and supporting each other in their goals. Taylor is the focus in this book but the friends make appearances being a sounding board and encouraging her. Everybody needs best friends like these.

Taylor is a personal trainer with ambitions. But she is finding that a lot of doors are closed to her without a college degree in fitness or nutrition. She is floundering in debt and needs new clients to stay afloat. Enter Jamar, he is 25 and played only half a season of NFL football before a knee injury put him on the sidelines. He wants to hire Taylor as his trainer to get back into the shape he needs to try out for the pros again.

I like that the author brings learning disabilities into the discussion. I've had more than one friend have diagnosis's as adults. I also appreciate that Taylor owns the fact that she made mistakes with her finances causing her debt situation. But her character was a little all over the place jumping what she wants from one thing to another. (May have been intentional given her disability.) She creates rules, disregards, makes new ones etc. Jarmar was great as a love interest. He is smart, gentle and caring, He is also dealing with his own back issues.

For me the story slows down with too much time spent on getting physically fit and healthy nutrition. I get this is what Taylor does for a living but in London's book I hope we don't have page after page of her doing surgeries. Also I think as a couple a lot of time is spent on their past problems. I just described the characters to my daughter and recited a list of their obstacles. I don't know much else about them after finishing the book.

I did enjoy the book and especially the BFF's. I and will look forward to London's story when it comes out. Thank you to NetGalley and Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for an ARC ebook in exchange for an honest review.

This was the first wish I had granted on NetGalley so it was awesome that I LOVED the book.
I love the women's friendship. It was real and spicy and relatable. I am that broke friend who doesn't have their stuff together 😕.
I love the depiction of Taylor's learning disability and how it's shown POSITIVELY. That's so important.
And the chemistry! Wow! I haven't rooted for a couple that fast in a while. Jamar and Taylor were hot, without being "can't read that in front of my boss hot."
I wouldn't recommend reading while eating anything like donuts or ice cream- there's a lot of health conscious exercise and vegetables, but as a fat person- I swear, it's almost empowering. It made me want to hike around Austin.
Points off because I saw the ending coming, but only half because it was such an enjoyable ride.

Ms. Rochon has done it again!!! She continues to create excellent stories with fully developed characters. The story masterfully displays humor, romance, friendships and real life issues. I see myself and my friends in her characters. Really enjoyed the banter between Taylor and Jamar. Hate that it is over because now I am ready for London's story. Perfect summer read! Had already preordered my copy. Will continue to recommend.

5 STAR READ, I would give it 5 eggplants... but that isn’t an option. I read this as an ARC, from NetGalley, in exchange for my honest review.

Let me start this off by saying that The Boyfriend Project was one of my top reads in 2020. Mainly because of the badass squad that came from it. Don’t get me wrong, I love the romance, but these powerful ladies are a highlight. The support and love that they have for one another is great. I can’t wait to read London’s story in 2022.

Now that we have the groundwork laid, let’s get down to business.

I, like Taylor, know little to nothing about football. I fell asleep during the SuperBowl last year... in my defense I had just flown into Florida for Disney, but that’s a different story. I also, am not, nor have I ever been a fitness guru. This being said, the storyline was fun, and didn’t go over my head. I enjoyed the fact that Taylor was Jamar’s trainer.

The book has a slow burn. The romance is fire 🔥🔥 Don’t get me wrong, but it takes a while to get there. Clients to fake dating turned real. I loved watching it escalate. I wanted them to bang the whole time. Like climb him already gurlll.

I also loved that the book covered many real life topics. Military childhood, grieving the loss of a loved one, learning disorders, poverty, walking away from a dream... just to name a few. Farrah develops real world problems for our hero and heroine. Their story is interesting, and she doesn’t just use them to drive the plot along. They are believable.

I definitely recommend this book, as well as The Boyfriend Project. Farrah has done it again.

I love fake dating tropes because there’s always so much angst. This one didn’t feel too angsty and like they jumped into both admitting how they felt too soon? I wanted more tension between them. A lot of their internal thoughts felt very repetitive and I didn’t fully buy into the sudden love that bloomed between them. I was left wanting more.

I loved the representation of mental health and learning disabilities. The heat and tension were also written very well.

I will say that this was a little bit of a hard read for me because the heroine is a trainer and there was a lot of talk about getting fit, and constant body talk/ relationship with food.

This story was cute and fun!! Taylor and Jamar are hot together and their chemistry is on fire!! I love Taylor’s character, her strength and tenacity, and Jamar is the perfect guy, respectful and loyal. I read The boyfriend project earlier this year so I was excited for the 2nd in the series and it did not disappoint! I liked The Dating Playbook even better!! Can’t wait to read book #3 next year with London’s story!

Thank you Net Galley and Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for the ARC in return for my honest review!

The Dating Playbook by Farrah Rochon is an amazing contemporary romance/ romcom that I truly enjoyed. It is the newest installment (second book) to the super awesome: The Boyfriend Project series. I cannot recommend this series enough!

I really enjoyed The Boyfriend Project, so I knew I just had to read it's follow up. I was equally impressed with this gem.

I am repeatedly blown away by how talented Ms. Rochon is with every book I read of hers. I loved all of the characters and strong, passionate, intelligent, and independent women from the previous book, so I was so eager to be able to read more about Taylor's story.

I loved Taylor and I also loooooved Jamar! Such an ingenious plot on how they ended up meeting and how their relationship began. Toss in money challenges, crazy fans and press, external factors/complications, hidden crushes/feelings, and a lot of chemistry and the reader has one amazing book. I loved the narrative, pacing, dialogue, wit, banter, humor, and chemistry!!!! I was rooting for Taylor and Jamar from the very beginning. I loved how each seemed to match what the other was longing for and secretly hoping for. They seemed to bring the best out of one another and I loved the progression that each brought to the table individually, as well as, together. And of course I loved the ending!

This series just keeps getting better and better. I cannot wait until the next book. I cannot recommend this series enough!!!!

5/5 stars

Thank you NG and Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for this arc and in return I am submitting my unbiased and voluntary review and opinion.

I am posting this review to my GR, Bookbub, Instagram accounts immediately and will post it to my Amazon, Instagram, and B&N accounts upon publication.