REVIEW The Boyfriend Subscription

The Boyfriend Subscription by Steven Salvatore is a delightful and steamy contemporary romance that will leave you craving more. Teddy, a down-on-his-luck plant store owner, finds himself desperate and agrees to a "boyfriend subscription" with the handsome and charismatic Cole. What starts as a transactional arrangement quickly evolves into something much deeper, filled with unexpected emotions and sizzling chemistry.

Salvatore's writing is witty and engaging, and the characters are incredibly well-developed. Teddy's vulnerability and Cole's confident charm create a compelling dynamic that keeps the reader invested. The story has humor, heart, and plenty of steamy encounters.

While some readers may find the premise somewhat unconventional, The Boyfriend Subscription delivers a heartwarming and satisfying romance. It's a perfect blend of humor, sexiness, and emotional depth that will leave you wanting more.

Thank you, Netgalley and Harlequin - Romance | Afterglow Books by Harlequin, for the free advanced copy for my honest review!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for granting me free access to the advanced digital copy of this book.

Steven Salvatore never misses & is really so good at writing love stories. For this adult romance debut, we got to see a really lovely pairing with lots of steamy scenes & the gay Pretty Woman retelling of our dreams.

This story was way angstier than what I'm used to, and what I liked, so I tried going faster to get to the happy ending because I was in pain. The characters had so much going on, each, in their lives and adding their arrangement couldn't have made things easier. It made things messier and then we have an annoying character who is not really that annoying but you still hate a little until the end, and another you just hate from beginning to end. This played like a romcom and it was intriguing and painful in equal parts. It kept me glued to the pages!

A queer retelling of Pretty Woman! Yes Please! I loved this book and it was a great adult debut from a YA author.

This one was much steamier and sex-focused than I first believed but I thoroughly enjoyed it! I love pretty women so the story was fun in that aspect, plus both characters were just sweet and funny! They had great banter and I loved seeing their love story.

The Boyfriend Subscription was a great romcom! It was both a fun and well written. Quick love and a ton of awesome tropes. I found this book to be both entertaining and interesting! A very sweet read and it makes me eager to read more from this author.

So I've read all of Steven Salvatore's books and I followed him on social media and I think that's the reason I like this book. I like it because I knew how personal it was and understood why things were happening and how the characters were but I don't think I would have liked it had I not had that context. Or at least I wouldn't have liked it as much. This is definitely not a favorite of mine and it's honestly probably one of my least favorite of the author's books but it is a good book.

I think my issues came with the secondary plot lines. The main plot was fine and I liked the two main characters but there were some things going on in the background that didn't feel fully meshed out or dealt with and that was unfortunate. I also feel like their first sex scene was so awkward and so cringy to listen to. It got better as the book went on but that one did not work for me. That was very little consent happening in terms of kink and BDSM and I just was not here for it. I normally love kinky books but they have to be done well and that scene was done very poorly in my opinion.

Boyfriend Subscription
The premise of a LGBTQIA+ version of Pretty Woman sounded amazing but I struggled with this one. There were parts that felt clunky & discombobulated. There was one section that made me uncomfortable & I didn’t understand the lack of communication. When I struggle to connect to the story, I realize this just wasn’t the romance for me, but this could work for someone else!

Thanks to NetGalley & Afterglow Books for the gifted copy, which I voluntarily read & reviewed.

Because of my lower rating, I will not be posting this anywhere else.

A modern queer take on Pretty Woman should absolutely speak to me, but this one barely whispered.

Teddy’s marriage and plant business both go belly up and when he meets Cole, an entrepreneur with a massively popular sex-work app, the two hit it off. But Teddy’s insecurities don’t exactly mesh with Cole’s presence in the app and a very jealous former flame.

I wanted to love this. I would have settled for even liking it. But by the end of the third chapter, I knew that I was in trouble. The romance between the two never felt real or developed. The antagonist and ex from Cole’s life are so insanely cartoonish that I expected them to do some mustache twirling.

The book takes places over such a short period of time that it all seems so wildly unbelievable. Both Teddy and Cole have so many things they need to work out and the two of them going all in on this relationship despite that made me see red flags for them at every turn.

This was a nice quick read and there were some nice moments so 1.5 stars rounded up. But boy, did I want so much for from this.

I loved 'The Boyfriend Subscription,' and read it in one afternoon because I couldn't put it down. Steven Salvatore crafted characters whose love was so easy to root for, and who individually were easy to love. Don't get me wrong, some parts of this story plot wise are a bit ??? but they felt like background to relationship development. And while I'm not super interested in rich boys and their disgustingly rich families, I still loved Mallory and Brigette.

But here's the main thing: This book has endless instances of heartbreaking misunderstandings, but instead of people turning on each other and acting on that first emotion, there is a constant stream of communication, openness and owning up to faults. So many times I was ready to cringe at how something was about to go down, but instead there was listening, trust and kindness. Too often miscommunication-laden books use that as a way to create the central drama of the book, and it's exhausting and unnecessary. I want characters who work through issues together, rather than having their misunderstandings be the big issue.

please note that the trigger warnings and topes/themes may contain spoilers
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
HEA: yes
POV: dual 1st person POV
spice: a few open-door spicy scenes
TWs: anxiety, bankruptcy, cheating, classism, divorce, homophobia, SA, sex work shaming
Kink CWs: anal, Choking, frotting, grinding, oral, praise, rimming, “sir”, switching
standalone: yes
final thoughts: I loved the fake dating storyline between Teddy and Cole as well as Cole’s complicated family dynamics a lot. There was a lot of tension, spice, and angst which made for a great story.
I did feel that there were a lot of subplots that detracted from the main storyline and would’ve benefitted from having less subplots or a longer story to really get into the details of the other stories. I felt like focusing on the other aspects took away from the main romance and character development. There were loose ends that never got tied and avenues that were left unexplored for the MMCs. HOWEVER I really enjoyed what we did get! The side characters, specifically Kit and Mallory!, were so fun and added great depth to both MMCs.

read this book if you love

🎥 actor
😬 angst
🫡 big MMC
🍿 celebrity
💏 fake dating
🧑‍🤝‍🧑 great side characters
🤫 hidden secrets
🩹 hurt/comfort
🛏️ “it’s just a fling”
🌈 LGBT+ representation
💞 mutual pining
🔀 opposites attract
🌀 plot twists
📖 pretty woman vibes

HAPPY PRIDE! We love a queer romance novel and this one DELIVERED. Was kinda drawn in by the authors name and how close it is to a vampire diaries character and it payed off.

Absolutely no hate to this book, but this was not for me. Not in the sense that I was not enjoying the story (it definitely has potential and I've enjoyed Salvatore's novels in the past), but I am not the target audience for this novel and that's totally okay. I will definitely recommend it to others, however, as well as suggest it for pride and general romance displays this coming year.

This was a really fun rom com with fake dating and a cute main couple! I never really connected with them though, so maybe they were lacking some chemistry. I liked the plot though and this was a fun read.

Teddy is at a crossroads of his life after a divorce and failed business. Cole is at a place where is business is successful and possibly about to take off. He offers Teddy an opportunity as a fake boyfriend to make a few things in his life going a bit more smoothly. As everything life is messy, getting from fake relationship to happily for now is an adventure.

Hundred percent Pretty Woman vibes!

This unfolds as a poignant and at times heart-wrenching narrative, delving into the myriad obstacles two men face in their quest to connect with each other. The striking dichotomy between Teddy, a rugged bear of a man, and Cole, a sophisticated and enigmatic figure, forms the crux of their unlikely yet compelling bond. Their dynamic, reminiscent of a modern-day 'Pretty Woman' scenario with a dash of fake dating, sets the stage for a story brimming with chemistry and emotional depth. Steven's skillful storytelling weaves a tale of mutual discovery and growth, leaving readers yearning for more narratives of such caliber and warmth.

This was such an entertaining read. It's my first book by Steven and I truly enjoyed it. The premise, the characters, their relationship. It all just worked. I am definitely looking forward to reading more from Steven in the future!

The book started off great but teetered a bit for me until the end. The characters were kind of run of the mill but it was cute overall.

I feel like this book is a sign of the strides we've made in queer media! There are so many layers and nuance to the narrative that is based around the idea of having fun, while fully engrossed in a narrative. Salvatore's book scratches a particular itch that I didn't know could be fulfilled by a book! With the perspective switching between narrators, one feels so close to the characters by the end. I would eagerly follow these characters wherever their story takes them.