Samiah and Daniel are just...just perfection! I love the way the girls met and bonded, and can’t wait for their books! But, Samiah and Daniel own their book. They’re super smart, funny, sexy, and just awesome! You need to read this book to appreciate all the awesomeness!

In The Boyfriend Project, Samiah discovers (via Twitter) that the guy she's been seeing has not only lied to her, he's been dating at least two other women. When she confronts him she becomes the unwitting star of a viral YouTube video. She and the other two women he scammed develop a tight friendship and decide to swear off men for the time being. Of course that's when Samiah meets her new coworker Daniel, who is smart, funny, and super into her. This book was unputdownable. I loved the relationship between Samiah and her friends Taylor and London. They're supportive of each other and hilarious, and I particularly liked their discussions about the difficulty in finding and maintaining new friendships as adults. Samiah and Daniel are both well developed, complex characters, and I liked that we're not just told that Samiah is good at her job but we get to see her being consistently excellent despite dealing with microaggressions, idea-stealing coworkers, and being overworked. (The characters kept saying how great Trendsetters was to work at but to me it sounded like kind of a nightmare...) I also really liked Daniel's arc, though I felt he probably should have had to grovel a little harder at the end. All in all this was a great read and I can't wait to continue the series.

Better than I expected. The male character was as complex as the female. Not predictable like a lot of books in this genre are. Looking forward to visiting Austin after reading this.

So much goes down on Twitter daily that it can be easy to lose track of what happened but I’ll never forget the live tweet of a date that went wrong as a few women realized they were dating the same man, dumped him, and went out for drinks on their own. If that debacle sounds like the perfect setup for a romance novel, let me introduce you to The Boyfriend Project.

Samiah, London, and Taylor meet when they realize the same guy catfished them and form a strong friendship instead. All three women have struggled to make friends in Austin, either due to work or the plain difficulty of meeting new like-minded people once you’re no longer in school. Samiah has her sister but that’s about it and she hasn’t thought much of it since she’s so focused on her life goals. But when London and Taylor come into her life in this unconventional fashion, she soon realizes how much she needs them. They challenge each other to devote the time they’d spend trying to find a boyfriend to move forward toward a dream. In Samiah’s case, that's developing a friendship app, which honestly sounds amazing. I adored the friendships at the center of this story and I cannot wait to read London and Taylor’s respective stories!

But this is a romance so you’re probably wondering who Samiah’s love interest is. This is where Farrah Rochon tightens the screws on her characters. One would think after Samiah dumped someone who’d been lying to her, honesty would be paramount for her next partner and you’d be right. Only that’s not what we’re getting because Daniel is undercover for work.

If I'm going to read a lie of omission plot, work-related reasons are the only one that work. He can't tell Samiah who he really is or what he's doing at Trendsetters (which seems like the coolest place to work) but he’s intensely drawn to her. Samiah’s not a suspect but dating someone while undercover isn't exactly looked well upon by the higher ups. Plus, there’s the fact that he could get pulled away the instant the case is solved and not even have time to say goodbye to Samiah. It’s a quandary and I did get rather tired of how wishy-washy Daniel was about it. Either accept that you’re being selfish and go after her or leave her alone already!

Even so, I loved their relationship. They were so good together and I really appreciated how they tried to balance their career goals against what they want in their personal lives. The story does a great job highlighting their respective careers, how they deal with racism and microaggressions (Samiah is Black and Daniel is Black-Korean American), and how to not lose sight of what matters. I’m excited to see what Rochon does with the rest of the series!

CW: racism, microaggressions, reference to side character being hit by a bus while riding his bicycle resulting in long hospitalization, reference to side character's infertility and fertility treatments, side character’s pregnancy and healthy delivery

The Boyfriend Project by Farrah Rochon was excellent. I loved the friendship, Daniel was so sweet, and Samiah was one badass main character. Can't wait for the rest of the books in the series.

When three strong women discover they’ve all been duped by the same man, they make a pact to swear off men for six months. Of course, this is the exact moment Samiah, a talented coder and developer, meets Daniel at work and is immediately drawn to him. Is Daniel all she’s been waiting for, or is he a little too good to be true? And what about her pact?

The Boyfriend Project was a true standout to me in that the women were all strong women who knew they needed female support in their lives - something that I wish more novels addressed - the importance of female friendship. We already have the enviable heroine, the gorgeous hero, but where's the friends with a shoulder to cry on...I loved that Samiah found friends close enough to want to honor her pact despite falling in love simulaneously. Rochon has written a wonderful novel with some unique twists and turns along the way.

While not a debut novel, this is the first of Rochon's books I've read and I'll certainly be looking forward to more in the future from this talented voice!