4 1/2 Caffeinated Stars
CW: Driving Anxiety, Discussion of leaked nudes, discussion of sex-shaming.

When I saw this book on NetGalley, I knew I needed to read it. Unfortunately, life got in the way, which means I ended up buying the audiobook instead. I tend to buy the audiobook anytime I’m late in the review game. I’m delighted that I bought the audiobook because the narrators were great! Brittany Pressley & Teddy Hamilton brought the book to life. At times, I did wish that the female voices were just a bit different but other than that, they did a fantastic job.

With COVID-19 and a lot of personal issues, I’ve been filling my life with romance, and this book was exactly what I needed. The Roommate is one of those books that will make you smile. It was well written, humorous, and incredibly spicy. Don’t let the cutesy cover fool you. This book packs a lot of steam, and I was here for it. OMG, there were moments that I had to turn off the audiobook because my grandma was in the room, and it just felt wrong.

I have to say that the character development was excellent. I loved that this book emphasized how different they were. We saw both Josh and Clara grow as individuals, and they both brought baggage into the relationship, which made them endearing.

All in all, this was a fun read. I laughed and even got second-hand embarrassment at times. I recommend this to anyone who enjoys their incredibly well-written smut with a smidge of second-hand embarrassment and a dash of humor.

THE ROOMMATE was such a delightfully raunchy read! At first, Clara got on my nerves. I was like yeah, okay everything sucks re: this guy you've been liking forever but also you're incredibly rich AND ALSO VERY HOT ROOMMATE. Josh was my fav from his first appearance. But bit by bit, I started to love Clara. Watching her become way more self-aware, take a job she didn't have to take, start Shameless, say goodbye to the childhood friend who was clearly never going to care for her in the same way... it just felt so good to cheer for her growth along the way, and honestly relatable (even though I am not. rich heiress, haha). I would read anything Rosie Danan reads. I'm here for all the raunch-coms forever. Also, I'm positive Clara is bisexual...the way she talked about how pretty so many women in the book were... I was like, girl... hahaha. It was really great. I definitely would've shipped her and Naomi had her and Josh not been so perfect for each other. Another amazing book from Berkley Romance, I am unsurprised. I loved this so much I bought a paperback for my shelves.

This was alright, and I will definitely be trying Rosie Danan again with her new book that just dropped on netgalley, but unfortunately this wasn't my favorite.

The Roommate is an amazing debut novel by Rosie Danan! This book exceeded my expectations, and I thought that was going to be really hard when I started this book because I had pretty high expectations already. I have been reading raving reviews about this book for weeks and I couldn't wait to jump in and see what the hype was about.

When Clara's friend, Everett, invites her to move from the East Coast to Los Angeles to try a change of pace, she throws caution to the wind and decides to take him up on his offer. Clara is normally overachieving, uptight, and predictable, but she is shaking up her life for once. She has had a crush on Everett for fourteen years and she will use this opportunity to get him to see her as more than a friend. Clara's plans are thwarted when she arrives in Los Angeles because Everett tells her that she will not be living with him for the next few months as they planned. He is going on tour and he has sublet his room to Josh, a stranger he found on Craigslist. Clara approaches this roommate situation like everything else in her life: with formality, structure, and boundaries. Josh goes along with her need to define and follow rules because that's the kind of guy he is - easygoing, charming, and accommodating. When Clara discovers that Josh is an adult performer, their relationship quickly takes a turn in a different direction than Clara expected.

There were so many elements that I loved about this book. There was depth to the story and to the characters and I was invested in finding out how the story would turn out. I loved that this book centered around a realm that is all about sex, but the book was not just a bunch of sex scenes strung together. That's not to say that there wasn't sex. Some parts were so steamy and intense that it had me feeling like I was going to combust! I thought that the characters would get down and dirty, given Josh's occupation, but it was more sensual than hard-core.

I loved Josh and Clara together. They had such contrasting personalities and it worked for them because they pushed each other to explore out of their comfort zones. I also loved that this book spoke to some societal issues around the judgment, stigma, and the marginalization of people who work in adult film industry. I think it's sometimes hard to forget that not all people go into this line of work because they have no other choice. Some people do this type of work because they enjoy it and there shouldn't be any judgment around that.

I can't wait to read The Intimacy Experiment, the next book by Rosie Danan!

Let’s just say this is very unlike anything I have ever read before👀 but I did enjoy it! ⁣
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I loved the banter between Josh and Clara and the friend (I guess) to lovers trope. I enjoyed the themes of finding yourself and discovering what relationships you view as important ⁣
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It was an easy book to get into and one that I read pretty quick! If you enjoyed The Kiss Quotient I definitely recommend this one

Steam Rating: 🍆🍆🍆🍆/5

Our heroine, Clara, moves to LA chasing a childhood crush and looking to escape the grip of her family back on the East Coast. As she arrives, her crush drops the bomb that he’s going on tour with his band and has rented his room out.

Josh is the opposite of Clara. Where she is hyper-organized and likes to be in control, Josh is laid-back and relaxed. It’s hard to tell you too much about the actual story without giving away some pretty critical plot twists and surprises. But while I liked their relationship and the way each of them grew throughout the book, I didn’t totally buy Clara’s background or family situation. It was eluded to constantly but we didn’t start to get any real information until 70% of the way into the book, which really bugged me.

As promised, The Roommate is was a fun, flirtatious, steamy read! This is perhaps the most sex positive book I have read, and does an excellent job of developing the characters who happened to be sex workers as relatable and multi-faceted...not simply defined by their careers. While the relationship between Clara and Josh did not quite work for me closer to the end of the book, I truly enjoyed this book as a whole.

I loved this sweet and spicy romance! The dialogue pulled me in right away and the characters were very relatable. I also learned a few things about the politics & business of the porn industry which was an added bonus.

There was a perfect balance between the side story and the main romance.

In addition, there was so much knowledge and politics about sex work, and the stigma. The idea that it’s not “respectable”. I loved that dialogue. I loved the spotlight shining on the topic because it should be talked about more.
There was a whole story about the empowerment of female pleasure.

There were some downsides. Like, the main character gets on my nerves a bit. Frequently, actually. She was a little too much. But, what was annoying about Clara worked in her relationship with Josh. It made his character even better. Josh was so sweet. He was understanding even when he shouldn’t be. He made mistakes, and sometimes he freaked when he didn’t need to. He also forgave fast.

I enjoyed this Rosie Danan’s debut, and I’ll be alert for her next release.

Holy Mother of all things steaminess. The premise of this book in itself is a steam bomb waiting to happen. Uptight and conservative girl goes on an adventure to L.A. to end up roommates with a popular porn-star hottie. I mean it was just so much fun. It boiled down to a hot and steamy romance with quirky banter was legit and one of the steamiest books I've read in a while.

If you don't mind some steam, and love a good roommates/friends-to-lovers romance than you MUST pick this one up! I loved it!

I have to admit, I didn’t think I was going to like this, but this book got me out of a reading slump! Not only was this a great commentary on sec worker’s rights and sexuality, it was super cute and fun. I loved the characters and I flew through this book!!

Thank you, NetGalley for providing me with a digital copy in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 stars but rounded to 4.

To be perfectly honest, I had no idea what The Roommate was about when I requested it on NetGalley. I just thought the cover was dope, and I felt like I could tell a lot about the book only by looking at it.

You got a movie star handsome man staring across a tiny couch at someone who’s presumably his roommate, a sweater and tie, mousey, yet equally attractive woman. I immediately got opposites attract vibes, and it turns out I was on to something.

I liked the incorporation of feminism and sex-positivity throughout the story, but I thought the chemistry between the couple was a bit lacking. Read my full review to see why I gave it 3.5/5 stars.

https://www.blackbookedandbusy.com/blog/book-review-the-roommate-by-rosie-danan

* A special thank you to the publisher for this review copy*

I enjoyed The Roommate. I think that's because I went into it with an open mind and zero expectations. The book is obviously a foray into disapproving of the stigmas associated with both sex and the sex industry. It does an outstanding job at that, but I liked the way the author turned the bad boy, good girl trope on its head. Instead of the woman doing the breaking down, the opportunity to love someone changed the man. I appreciated that the author took the time the downplay the stereotypes of the trope.

I enjoyed the way the author used sex to build and eventually topple the opposites-attract romance, to bring it all back together in the most heart-palpitating way. Sex wasn't a weapon, but a tool. I haven't seen that done often enough as it pertains to involving sex in novels. The Roommate is sexy and refreshing. I'd be eager to read more from this author. It's lighthearted when it could have been raunchy—and sexy where it could have been tame. A wonderful debut that's sure to please most romance readers. It sure pleased me.

The Roommate *was* one of my most anticipated Fall romance releases. And sure, I may have picked it up rather viciously after hearing not only raving reviews, but also how steamy and how sweet and how overall perfect it was and well.... Let's say hype is a nasty beast sometimes.

Don't get me wrong, it’s not that the book wasn’t steamy—being the love interest *and roommate* an adult performer with kind eyes, blond curls and the will to tutor our heroine in the horizontal arts. And it’s not like the book wasn’t sweet—being a romance focusing on a naive uppity girl that falls for a black ship kinda boy that masters the physical act of love and thinks doesn’t deserve someone like her. BUT I'll be completely honest here. It wasn't all that steamy. And it wasn't all that heart squeezing sweet. I must admit that I wasn’t completely swept off my feet by it, either.

Or in other words, contrary to what I expected (or hoped) I wasn't swept off my feet.

The Roommate was a definitely refreshing and original take on the roommates trope that contained the right amount of steam and heart. Definitely a good read, but in my eyes, not the unforgettable and uber steamy five stars the hyped masses led me to believe 🙈

Do I recommend it? SURE!
Should you push it up your tbr? Not necessarily.

What I loved most about The Roommate is how sex positive it was. It discusses not only the real de-prioritization of female pleasure in society, but also the sex work and porn industry. It was full of fantastic conversations about sex positivity, but also about the ways corporations can exploit sex workers. I don't want to delve too deeply into the conversations The Roommate brings up, because some of them might spoil the plot, but it was absolutely one of my favorite things!

And the other element about The Roommate I loved were the characters of Josh and Clara. This dual POV can be a bit frustrating at some points, because we know exactly what the characters are thinking - just tell them! But there's such lovable chemistry between the two of them. In this book, I could really identify with Clara who's sort of not sure where she should go. Her organization and some of her mannerism were very me. At the same time, I appreciated Josh's character arc so much, especially towards the end

Whoa! A very steamy book for sure. This is not a genre that I typically read but the premise had me excited. I really enjoyed this book that revolves around two unlikely roommates- Clara an uptight person and Josh the steamy porn star. Thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for an ARC copy in exchange for an honest review.

My book bestie recommended that I read this book ASAP so that is exactly what I did. She also told me this book was steamy, her favorite kind of book, and she was not lying.

This book was steamy but there were real moments of innocence that added to the story.
Rosie threw us into the deep end but then worked on peeling back the layers.

I loved forced proximity and roommate situations because of how domestic af these books are.
This book was no different! It is the little things for me and The Roommate has them in abundance.

Bottom line - This book was hot and very fresh, unlike any book I’ve ever read 🙌🏼

The Roommate has been making a big splash with early buzz being a cascade of enthusiastic praise. As a result of this I had fairly high expectations picking up this one. Luckily this book not only met those expectations but surpassed them.

I've seen this referred to as a raunch-com in various write ups about the book. I think that's a clever description that is worthy of the characters in the book for a few reasons. This book is funny and sexy (with a heavy emphasis on the sexy). It is seriously fan yourself steamy but also manages to pack in a lot of heart and humour. It balances everything perfectly and keeps the pace going so that the pages seem to fly by.

Sex positivity and female sexual pleasure are a huge focus of this book. It is all about being both shameless in asking for what you want in bed and for shaming less those who do. It advocates a healthy, consensual sex life that is enjoyable for both partners. It gives a female gaze to an industry that normally is strictly focused on the male gaze.

The opposites attract style romance works especially well here. Sheltered and more reserved Clara and more outgoing and social Josh are surprisingly perfect for each other. The road bumps they face along the way feel organic to who these characters are and blend in with the character growth they both have to go through. They each have issues outside the relationship that have to be overcome in order to move forward and I think both of them have very satisfying arcs.

Josh is going to be a favourite among romance readers. He is confident, charming, and easily likeable. I think he may end up being one of my favourite romantic heroes. Clara is fantastic heroine as well that I predict many will love.

Another way this book circumvented my expectations was with the inclusion of Josh's ex Naomi. It went in a direction I was not anticipating but should have expected from the rest of this book. The female support and empowerment was woven in seamlessly with the rest of this book's message.

Rosie Danan has quickly launched herself on to my list of must read romance authors. She has given us a delightful debut that will instantly leave you craving more. I definitely will have no shame in wanting to get my hands on her next book as soon as possible.

First, thanks for granting my wish! I really liked this book. The main characters are an uptight girl named Clara and a porn star named Josh, an unlikely combination and part of what made the book so much fun to read.

They end up accidentally living together, and the journey that they make together kept me waiting for time to read this book! Clara especially makes quite a few life adjustments, but it all makes sense. It's pretty steamy too, which is a plus as for as I'm concerned! I highly recommend this book, 4.5 stars.

Thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

THE ROOMMATE is everything I did not know I needed in a romance. Somehow, all at once, it is sweet, endearing, tender, and yet scorching and full of yearning. I've read a lot of romances at this point in my life, and I can say that this one, in particular, is different and special in the best of ways.

Clara and Josh are fantastic characters. I related to Clara, not really because of her family's status, but because of her being reserved and dare I say, sexually repressed as a young woman because of expectations put on you by others. Josh was a surprising character to me- he is confident, smart, and caring and I just simply adored the dynamic between Clara and Josh. Every scene between them was *chef's kiss.* Banter is extremely important to me and how much I enjoy a romance, and this book delivers it on a shiny silver platter. They sizzle when they are together!

I think the most impressive and unique part of this book is how the romantic interest, Josh, is a sex worker. Consumers of fiction barely, barely get truly good representation of sex work in media, and I thought Rosie Danan did a great job of portraying a nuanced story. Josh loves his work and he's good at it--of course, there are always going to be people who don't "get" it and feel that makes you less of a person, but THE ROOMMATE shows how empowering, educational, and great it can be in the right hands. Danan also touches on the worst parts of the sex industry, and I really enjoyed reading these parts of the book, although it is painful at the same time. Sex workers get taken advantage of so often, so it was nice to see a story that centers them and liberates the characters in their own way.

There are parts of this book that will surely stick with me for a long, long, long time. Really, you will find yourself suddenly wishing you had a fan nearby to point directly at your face while you read. To say the least, these scenes are compelling and memorable.

I'm so excited for Danan's future. I shout about this book all the time and recommend it often, and I will surely do the same for her next book. She is no doubt an author to watch.

THE ROOMMATE is a different kind of beautiful beast in romancelandia, and I'm so thankful for it.