Loved loved loved it! Nicola Marsh warmed my heart with this fun feel-good story. Samira has returned to Australia to help her cousin start her business after a decade away. Samira has spent the last 10 years in LA working as a physical therapist and avoiding the cultural expectations of her mother. Mom was not thrilled after Samira divorced the Indian man the family had set her up with. But now she is back and what better way to kick off her homecoming then with a one night fling with a hot Australian man 10 years her junior? No one needs to find out... right? Well that’s what Samira thinks until Rory walks in two her office the very next day. Rory is a stunt man who has consistently avoided talking rolls because he has a speech impediment. But now his agent has found the perfect part for him so he agrees to speech therapy not knowing that his one night fling was going to be his therapist. Oopsie! 🙊

I loved both Samira and Rory so much in this story! they were both just such likable authentic people that you’d love to have as friends. now of course Samira‘s mom was not thrilled with the situation, but she really had a big heart and loved her daughter. It kind of broke my heart that they had spent so many years apart, if they had only had a true talk about this. The book was less angsty and more steamy then I was anticipating, but I was good with that! this was just a great story filled with amazing characters and yummy food. 😋

*** Big thank you to Berkley for my gifted copy of this book. All opinions are my own. ***

First, I should say that the "oops, I'm pregnant" trope is one of my least favorites. On some level, I always feel like these characters get together for the sake of a baby.

I didn't completely feel this way about this book, but it was always in the back of my mind. I liked Samira and Rory and enjoyed seeing them fall for each other. Though there were a few times, Samira annoyed me. All in all, this was a good but not great book,

I really enjoyed The Boy Toy. The characters were really well written and the plot kept me interested. I thought the writing was also really well done. I would love to read more from this author!

If you're a fan of the typically contemporary romance with perfect people, then this is the book for you.

There is nothing wrong with the story. It is just that it's about two perfect people dealing with a few issues.

Our protagonist, Samria, is heading back home to act as a consultant for her cousin's practice. While she arrives, she is welcomed with her mother's bickering regarding her lack of a husband. Already having been married, the mention of marriage creates a rift between the mother and daughter, with Samria wanting her mother to keep out of her love life and her mother not wanting her daughter to be alone.

At first, believing it was a rom-com, the book started as an emotionally heavy read. Samira is going through a rough divorce because of her "inability" to get pregnant. The book does appear lighthearted once Rory enters the picture. However, Rory also has parental issues with his father being distant. The characters seem to be unnerved by their parent's previous actions. But the characters sit their parents down to talk, it appears that their years of torment are over, but nothing signifies completion. For example, Samria's mother arranged her first marriage, which ended in divorce. Samria has been blaming the divorce on her mother for years and tells Kushi, her mother, that her failed marriage was Kushi's fault. Afterward, her mother apologizes, and then in the next few chapters, her mother introduces her to a doctor. It was as if Samria never told her mother that her arranged marriage had tormented her psyche. Nope, her mother just disregarded that and felt the need to help her daughter find a new man. With Rory, he sits his father down and questions him about his mother. In this conversation, his father reveals so much, and Rory is nonchalant and decides he needs to speed more time with his father.

It's hard to review this book. It feels like a typical contemporary romance story. Despite the character's "flaws," the main protagonists are near perfect. There is nothing wrong with Samria. The only "issue" with her is her blaming Kushi, her mother, for her divorce. Rory introduced with, "A deep Chris Hemsworth voice, low and resonant…and the kind of jaw and cheekbones that channeled Chris." and his only "flaw" is his speech impediment. Rory is perfect, but his speech impediment has left him feeling insecure for years and looked down on by his father.

The only ridiculous part of this entire story is Samria telling Rory that she will marry another man because he is culturally acceptable. A lie that is created to keep Rory from quitting his job. It was a ridiculous lie.

In the end, the book was a decent read that does sprinkle in a few emotional moments. It is hard to overlook the perfect characters with "flaws." But, they are struggling with their issues, disregarded issues. Instead, the author decides to focus on anything else. This is a book that leaves a reader yearning for more character development.

Took my time reading this one and I loved every second of it. The thing I appreciate the most about this book was how unabashedly it showed the different sides of the Indian culture. From the dishes mentioned (Not one explained, which was perfect that way. Google is there.) enough to pique someone's interest to the traditional mindset regarding women and their role as family maker. I also felt the raw emotions in the moments infertility was tackled. And the surprise accidental pregnancy had me clutching my heart because I didn't expect it. I honestly love that trope and has always been curious about how the characters will handle it. Both Samira and Rory didn't disappoint. From start to finish, I knew I would love their characters⁠—complexity and all.

Also, for a traditionally published book, I really do dig the way how sex was heavily mentioned/implicated in the story. Because romance but make it spicy is the only way, imo. I have been traumatized with enough trad pubbed "romance" books with heavy drama that this one, a book that has a sex scene on the second chapter had me singing hallelujah!

In summary, The Boy Toy is an enjoyable read with the perfectly balanced tradition, drama and sexy times. Definitely not the last Nicola Marsh book I'll be reading.

The Boy Toy is a cute and fun romance about a successful woman and a fling that may just turn into something more. It's an enjoyable read with a lot of heart, and definitely a contemporary romance to put on your radar.
Many thanks to Berkley and NetGalley for the advance copy.

This was a really cute and quick read! I hadn't read Nicola Marsh before but I'm looking forward to trying a few more of her books! I really enjoyed Samira and Rory's story and the emotional rollercoaster and intruding family members that came with it. I can't wait to read Manish's story in The Man Ban.

Thank you to netgalley and the publishers for providing me with an arc for an honest review!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

This is SUCH a great book!! Samira and Rory were so good together - between the sheets and out! I loved reading a RomCom with an older (37) heroine and younger (27) hero. Samira’s mom was so sweet I really enjoyed reading and learning a little bit about the Indian culture as well.

There’s steamy scenes scattered throughout the book (which were perfect - not too overdone but still there enough I wasn’t missing steam!!), but also a really great story about starting over and moving on (on so many different levels for so many different characters). It was such a fun, refreshing book I definitely recommend picking it up!

Thank you @berkleyromance for the gifted copy in exchange for an honest review!

The hero is very yummy, but the heroine seemed to have internalized some sad ideas about Indian culture, and the “caught between two worlds” mixed race storyline was cliched.

this is my first book by this author and i quite enjoyed it!. Not my favorite rom-com, but enjoyable for sure. I agree with others that they 'plot twist' wasn't my cup of tea. i admit, partial to the aussie-ness. quite a few trigger warnings i wish i'd known about before reading, but that happens with arcs sometimes. overall i liked it.

Thirty-seven-year-old Samira has returned to Australia from California, where she has lived for the past 12 years after divorcing her cheating husband. But her stay in Oz is just temporary: she's hear to help her bff and cousin get her medical practice off the ground. And to mend her relationship with her overbearing and matrimony-obsessed Indian mother.

Twenty-seven-year-old Rory is a stuntman who is up for his first speaking role as a host of a new Survivor/Amazing Race reality show. This is new territory that he's previously avoided because of his longtime struggle with his stutter.

Samira and Rory's one-night stand turns into two-nights and more when the sex is mind-blowingly amazing... and then the condom breaks. Surely Samira, who struggled to get pregnant with her ex won't conceive in this lighthearted and steamy romance....

The Boy Toy has lots of steamy sex scenes and decent character dynamism, but I didn't really find myself rooting for them. There seems to be more "telling than showing" when it comes to the emotions, and that makes it fall on its face every once in awhile.

Diverse reads:
- Samira is bi-racial. Her dad is American and her mom is Indian. She grew up in Australia.

It was a good book but not a great one. As in every romance book these days, a few issues were talked about, but I have read better books.

(May contain small spoilers)
There were some things I liked/was okay with:
1) Samira being in her mid-late 30's and having a successful career
2) Manish's humor, although he was coming off a little too strong for me in the beginning, even if it was a joke
3) I didn't mind the 10-year age gap and I liked the ease between Samira and Rory
4) I found Rory to be very admirable for wanting to help fund the program that has helped him practically his entire life

There were some things I didn't like:
1) The beginning felt boring and info dumpy. Samira arrived at her mom's house and it took 3-4 pages before she said hi to her mom
2) That the other people in her community were quick to shun her for her divorce, even after celebrating their marriage. It felt so wrong of them to do that
3) How Rory didn't tell Samira about his stutter in the beginning or at any time during their relationship. Why hide it until the very last chapter. It was stupid
4) Samira lying to Rory and throwing Manish's "proposal" at him. I felt like she was stupid to drive Rory away

Overall, this story did not hold my attention very well and I was bored throughout a lot of it. I gave this 2.5/5 stars.

Not my favorite rom-com and I agree with others that they 'plot twist' wasn't my cup of tea.
There is a lot a buzz about this one, though, so I think adult patrons will be asking for it.
Good for fans of Guillory's "The Proposal."
Thanks for the ARC!

I loved this book!! I couldn't put it down. I related to Samira's desire to give up on dating. I loved that I got to learn about a new culture through this book. I appreciated that Rory wasn't perfect - his stuttering made him even more hot and adorable. I cannot wait to read more of this author. It's the perfect romance book

Samira Broderick left her homeland of Australia for the United States 10 years ago, following a very nasty divorce. She has established herself as a Physical Therapist and has built a thriving practice. She has returned to Australia for 6 months to help her cousin set up a new therapy center. Her first night back in town, she meets up with her cousin for a few, many, drinks. After getting help from a very handsome, younger man, she ends up having a hot one-night stand.

Rory Radcliffe has avoided speaking roles throughout his career in the television/movie industry. When his agent calls him to meet up at a local bar to discuss a big opportunity to host a new reality tv series, he needs a few, many, drinks to deal with the pressure of it. While at the bar he sees an incredibly appealing woman in need of a rescue. He ends up having the most amazing one-night stand.

Neither expect to see the other again. It comes as a complete surprise when Rory ends up seeking diction therapy at the clinic Samira works at. They quickly give in to their mutual attraction and agree to start seeing one another. They find love despite their differences and the many obstacles they face.

I really liked this story. The author takes us into the world of a woman of multi-cultural heritage; her mother is from India, her father was American, and she grew up in Australia. The author does a fantastic job of describing foods, clothing, social gatherings, and expectations from the Indian society. The story deals with several difficult subjects, like cultural identity, infertility issues, and older women dating younger men. The author also did a great job taking the reader into the mind of someone who lives with a stutter and how it impacts their life. I found the characters to be easy to empathize with as they dealt with personal feelings of inadequacy and strained relationships with their parents. My only complaint is that the characters tended to repeat thoughts too often throughout the story and that got tedious. I definitely recommend this book. There some graphic sex scenes, but they are not long, nor are they frequent. I hope you get the chance to read this one, it was very good.

~ Andrea

This steamy but big hearted age gap romance was very enjoyable. I really enjoyed watching the romance between Samira and Rory, as they started out as a one-night stand that unexpectedly blossomed into a relationship. They struggled through their issues, and along the way dealt with family and cultural expectations, tested friendships, and more. I would definitely seek more of Nicola Marsh's writing out.

This was a wonderful fun and quick romance perfect for summer. It also dealt wit h some very difficult topics like fertility struggles and family expectations.

Starts out with a one night stand but develops into much more.

I appreciated the representation of infertility and speech impediments, as well as Indian culture.

Fun read overall!

Thank you so much to Berkley and Netgalley for an arc of The Boy Toy in exchange for an honest review.
This novel has a few wonderful aspects that I love. Being biracial myself, I love reading about other biracial couples! I also love reading sex positive romances and novels with strong, smart female leads. I really appreciated reading about Rory’s stutter and the struggles he had with it, the support that he was able to receive and his want to give back to the community that helped him.
While these aspects were great, there were aspects of the book that didn’t work for me. I feel like there was too much emphasis placed on Samira’s age, 37 is not old. I found the miscarriage scare written into the sorry line was pretty insensitively written, and as a woman who has experienced multiple miscarriages it didn’t sit well with me. I felt the pressure portrayed by Rory’s speech therapist for Rory to donate a huge amount of money to her program was unethical (as someone who needs to follow ethical lines in a job similar to a SLP in North America). I also felt that there were some plot lines that were written to create more drama but it just made me feel like there were too many tropes thrown into the narrative, and some were not able to be resolved.
I was quickly invested in the story and in Samira and Rory but it was difficult for me to stay invested with the constant miscommunication.