I really enjoyed this one! Starts out super fun and kinda light, and then delves into some heavy generational trauma and societal (and parental) expectations on Asian American teens and I really liked that! Part of me wishes we had gotten a bit more from Drew's POV but it might have bogged down the strength of Chloe's story.

I'm a big fan of the fake-relationship trope in romance, and I found that "Rent a Boyfriend" really satisfied that craving. It was sweet, smart and sexy. Chloe and Drew are both such lovable characters and I found myself really rooting for them. The stakes were so high in this book as well, which made me keep turning pages.

The fake dating trope is one of my favorite. I mean.... it always ends the same and I can't wait for everything to bloom (or go downhill, depending on your perspective).

I liked this one, but I feel like being a white woman, I may not have understood some issues with Asian families that are stated in this book. Maybe this will be more for an advised public? Add to that the sometime use of Taiwanese vocabulary, even with a glossary (that I discovered at the end, because... ebook), and I felt a little lost.

Nevertheless, I did enjoy most of the book. Especially the snippets of Chloe's application at the end.

Many thanks to Simon & Schuster Canada for the complimentary e-copy of this book through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

RENT A BOYFRIEND was so cute!!!!

I mean, I'm always a sucker for the "fake dating" trope, especially when it leads to such an adorable romance as Chloe and Drew. Plus, the sheer premise -- the absolute ridiculousness of the "Rent a Boyfriend" company, and the antics it brought along with it -- made for SUCH a fun read!

With love-to-love characters (and one love-to-hate one, too), a beautiful, blossoming romance, and a sprinkle of ear-to-ear smile-inducing humour, RENT A BOYFRIEND is one of the best YA rom-com/contemporaries on the market. Don't miss it!

Rent a Boyfriend was my first ever Gloria Chao book and I really enjoyed it! It's a super cute young adult romantic comedy that kept me smiling the whole way through.

Chloe and Drew are enjoyable characters. I love that Chloe decides to rent a boyfriend for the holidays, it's such a unique idea to me and I think it made for a really entertaining and humourous story. Chloe is really sweet and I liked seeing her character grow throughout the length of the book.

Drew is a fun romantic interest — while there is a little bit of "insta-love" in this book, it's wasn't enough to turn me off. I enjoyed watching his relationship with Chloe grow throughout the book and I enjoyed his personality too.

The overall storyline is so fun and one that keeps you engaged the whole way through. The family dynamics, the personal struggles, the important messages — they're all great aspects to this book. I laughed and smiled and I think it's a book that many will enjoy. I'm excited to read more of Gloria's books in the future and catch up on her backlist titles too!

I was so eager to read this novel because of its quirkiness and relatability! My own experiences with my family allowed me to sympathize with the struggles of both main characters. I liked both of their personalities and motivations individually. However, the actual romantic connection between them fell short for me. The pacing was also problematic, with choppy scenes and a writing style that was just over-the-top. This story had a lot of potential, but it just didn’t hit the mark.

Rent a Boyfriend was a frustrating, yet fantastically crafted read. I hated Hongbo, and for a minute, I really hated Chloe’s parents. However, being from a Chinese family myself, I know the stress of saving face and being seen as “obedient” so your parents are seen as “good parents” who teach responsibility and meekness. Chinese (and most East Asian) face culture is very toxic and I personally hate it.

ANYWAYS, the book. I totally understood Chloe’s impulse to try to bring home the perfect boyfriend so her parents would stop trying to set her up with Hongbo, a terrible man from a terribly manipulative family. It was so frustrating seeing her parents continuously trying to push Hongbo onto Chloe, not respecting her or Andrew when it came to their relationship (I mean – they didn’t know it was fake, like that rude?? Especially since they seemed to like him??). The situation was perfectly infuriating and frustrating as Chloe continued to question her choices and autonomy through the book.

I loved Andrew – he’s a huge softie who’s willing to fight for for Chloe, and I loved the story behind his art (ahhhh my heart). I also hate his family story, but again understood the reasons behind it, even if I didn’t like them. One thing I absolutely love about Gloria Chao’s books is that she shows that there can be a middle ground with parental relationships (though that’s still not always the case), and that it’s okay to fight for your mental health and boundaries. Personally, I’m still really struggling on that front with my family so books like these really give me hope and make me feel seen.

Plot: 4/5
Characters: 4.5/5
World Building: 5/5
Writing: 5/5
Pacing: 4/5
Overall: 4.5/5
GoodReads Rating: 3.62/5

eARC gifted via NetGalley by Simon and Schuster Books for Young Readers and Simon and Schuster Canada in exchange for an honest review.

This was an adorable and highly entertaining read!

The characters were relatable and fun. The story was touching and cute. Everything I thought it would be.

I would definitely recommend it!

What a cute fun read! Nothing says YA romance like a good ol fake relationship trope! I'm a sucker for it and if you liked Love Boat Taipei then check this one out!

This book landed at about three stars for me, but I still enjoyed it! Despite its length, it’s super readable. Chloe and Drew are really likeable characters and I enjoyed reading about their relationship. I liked how they were opposites in a way with Chloe studying economics and Drew doing art. There was also the imagery of Chloe being the sun (as the Kanji for her Chinese name was made up of three suns) and Drew being the moon (as he focused his art on moons) which was so cute.

There were a few points that made me decide on three stars. First, I had some issues with the pacing of their relationship. I feel like the feelings developed very quickly, probably because of the close proximity and having to fake it for 2-3 days instead of just a few hours, but then I don't know if I was sold on what made Chloe different from Drew's other clients. I guess they just clicked? Second, there is a lot of lying that happens in this book, which I don’t have a problem with. I think some lies are completely necessary, but the more lies and the bigger they are, the more time is needed to hash that out at the end. I think it took too long for the lies to come out although I did enjoy the way the author decided to reveal it all. As a consequence, I didn’t fully buy that Chloe’s parents were okay with it. They were so sexist and traditional throughout the book that while I expected a happy ending, I was surprised that it was so easy. Third, along with the sexism, this book tackled a lot of tough topics like what it means to be “educated”, if going to university is the only path, and being disowned for wanting to pursue a non-STEM career. However, because there was such a huge focus on Chloe and her parents, I don’t think these issues were fully addressed in the end.

In terms of Chloe's parents, they were A LOT. It was frustrating for me at times to read their views on virginity and boys will be boys and money. It was so in your face that I honestly thought it might be a bit exaggerated. I'm used to sexism in the South Asian community, but from my experience it's usually more subtle. However, reading this book at this moment was very timely as one of my East Asian friends posted on Instagram on Valentine's day exactly about this overt sexism. That put me in my place, so I'm not going to comment on if the sexism was too much as this also being an OwnVoices story, it was probably just right.

I think this would appeal a lot to Chinese American youth struggling with their parents expectations, especially women being pressured to marry or date. Even though there’s a happy ending, the sexism is hard to read at times so if that’s triggering, I would maybe pass on this one. On a side note, I love the fact that the author used to be a dentist! I wonder if she adds that into all her books as the parents in this one were dentists.

I’m the type of reader where I see fake dating and I add the book to my TBR pile!

For me, the fake dating tropes are a favourite of mine! BUT ONLY WHEN DONE RIGHT! And believe me when I say the author did this one justice!
I couldn’t help but fly through the book wanting to know what will happen! But don’t let that fool you. This book is more than a cute love story. Not only is this a cute rom-com, but it deals with some pretty heavy topics (family, health, love and IDENTITY) that are very insightful.

The blurb is obviously what drew me in, but as I was reading, I couldn’t help but read on, because of the main character, Chloe! This book had such amazing character development! She is a strong headed character! And I’m happy she fought for what she believed in. I loved how Chloe discovered herself along the way of this “rent a boyfriend” journey and even managed to help Andrew discover himself.
I felt so sad for Chloe when she had to endure so much because of her family's beliefs and expectations. So many feels!!! The relationship between Chloe and her mother was probably the hardest one to read through...I hated seeing how Mrs. Wang treated her daughter so badly. All she seemed to care about were appearances and wealth, instead of their daughter’s own true happiness. The family dynamics in this book were so complicated and raw...and it is sooo realistic! Honestly it is something that I feel many people can relate to!

The romance between Chloe and Andrew was really cute. I loved the moment where both characters had the “talk”(where they have a deep conversation that allows them to understand one another on a deeper level). I liked how they started to truly fall for one another as they shared their struggles and insecurities with one another. Both characters are great, because they are flawed! It honestly makes them that much more relatable.
This was a book I couldn’t help but get compelled and knowing this is based on real life practice...I couldn’t help but get sucked into the storyline...This book was such an eye opener read! I really enjoyed how authentic this book was. Would totally recommend this one!

THANK YOU to the publishing company, Simon & Schuster Canada and NetGalley for providing me a copy of Rent a Boyfriend by Gloria Chao!

Chloe is nervous to introduce her boyfriend to her parents when she goes home for Thanksgiving... but she hasn't met him either. She actually hired him from Rent for Your Rents, a company that provides fake boyfriends trained to impress Asian parents. Andrew loves art. His parents cut him off after he dropped out of college to chase his dreams. He joined Rent for Your Rents in order to support himself, and he knows how to play the part of the perfectly respectable Asian young man. Chloe rents Drew so that her parents will see that she already found a good guy and will stop trying to marry her off to this horrible guy. Chloe and Drew actually start falling for each other. Chloe has to discover who she is and who she wants to be while also trying to respect and honor her parents.

Buzz word: fake dating. Give me a fake dating trope and I will read it. I liked how the romance progressed and how Chloe and Drew fell in love as they confided in each other and really understood each other's struggles and insecurities. I loved how it was rooted in Asian American culture and reminded me of Chinese rom-coms.

I really enjoyed this book very much. It was a super cute romance. Main character Chloe hired a fake boyfriend because her parents were forcing her to marry a really bad guy.
I learned so much about the Asian culture that I’ve never known about. How much pressure parents put on their children to be successful and live a perfect life. Chloe was under such a huge amount of pressure from her parents. So I totally get why she would hire a fake boyfriend. The pressure Chloe felt is totally relatable.
I liked how Chloe stood up for herself and went after what she wanted. She never backed down.
I would pick up anything and everything this author writes. I do find that it was a bit long. But other then that I loved everything about it.
Thanks to netgalley for letting me read this book.

Chloe’s parents are pressuring her to marry their wealthy friend’s son, so she rents a boyfriend to bring home for Thanksgiving. Rent for Your ‘Rents is a company where you can fill out a questionnaire and rent a boyfriend who will fit all the requirements that your parents want in a partner for you. Chloe ends up bringing Drew to her parents’ home. Drew is an artist who is estranged from his family, so he is available to work as a fake boyfriend on holidays. As the Thanksgiving holiday progresses, Chloe and Drew get closer than he usually gets with his clients. Then, they start texting after he leaves. They start to fall for each other, which could become a problem since their relationship was built on lies.

The fake dating trope is one of my favourites so I was so excited to read this story. The tension from the fake dating comes from both people lying about their relationship. There were many secrets and lies in this story. Chloe was hiding Drew’s real identity from her parents. Drew was lying to all of the parents of his clients. Chloe’s parents were even hiding a few secrets of their own. These secrets created lots of tension when they were revealed.

This was a really fun story. There were a couple of tough moments, especially when Chloe’s parents weren’t treating fairly, but most of the romance was so cute. Chloe and Drew were meant to be together right from the beginning. They had similar relationships with their parents, though Drew ended up being kicked out of his parents home and Chloe was still visiting her parents while she was in university. They were both strong young adults, who knew they needed to follow their hearts to be happy.

I really enjoyed this story!

Thank you Simon and Schuster Canada for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to Simon & Schuster Canada and Netgalley for an e-arc of Rent a Boyfriend. This was one of my highly anticipated contemporary releases of 2020, and it definitely exceeded my expectations!

I don’t even know where to start with these reviews because my feelings are so complex and hard to put into words. Gloria Chao’s books are incredible. I go into them knowing it’s going to be relatable, and it’s probably going to hurt and make me cry, but also make me smile, and yet I’m still surprised every time. It goes to show how so many experiences are universal and that you really aren’t alone. Cultures may seem different on first glance, but there are just as many similarities.

I really felt for Chloe. So much. The reason I was drawn to this book was because of how easy it was to picture myself as Chloe. I am her in so many ways, and watching her make the decisions she made was like following me in the future.

There’s one moment that really stood out to me. Drew tells Chloe that her decisions came from a place of love, from wanting to try and make her parents happy, even if it was just temporary, to keep the peace, though at the expense of her own happiness. That this makes her a good person. Someone who is selfless and cares. And the guilt she feels for lying to her parents and also wanting to be happy and herself, just proves how difficult it is and how she’s only trying to do her best. She isn’t a bad person for making the decisions she did. And Drew understands how difficult it is to accept that and live with that, because he’s gone through it himself. And while Chloe stays silent, and Drew realizes she needs time to accept these feelings, it just hit me how his words are similar to ones I’ve heard. And it hurt to realize how similar of a position I am in as Chloe, and how one day I’ll go through this too and come to accept that my happiness and well-being is just as important.

I loved this about Drew’s role in this story. He’s Chloe years in the future, having accepted that the decisions he made were for the best, that he tried to keep his relationship with his family together, but it was his parents who chose to break it apart. It’s a lesson for a lot of us. To extend that olive branch, yet also stay true to ourselves. And give the other side the opportunity to reach out and grab that olive branch back. And if they choose not to, you tried, and there’s nothing more you can do except move on and try to heal.

Drew was a lovely character. He’s so kind and patient and observant. I also love how emotional he is and how openly he cries. It’s still rare to see guys showing emotion in books.

A couple other things I liked about this book were the conversations on culture. I understood why Chloe felt so disconnected from it. There’s a lovely part at the end where Chloe comes to realize that the good parts of her Chinese culture are hidden and forgotten behind all the toxic stuff. And it reminded me of how Pakistani culture is like that too. I’ve always said the toxic aspects outweigh the good, but that’s not completely true. We focus a lot on the toxic parts that we forget the good things that come out of it too.

I love how the ending contrasts with how things went with Drew and his family. I did not expect Chloe’s dad to come around so quickly, but her mom’s reaction was exactly what I would have expected. I am glad that they didn’t disown her, but I also like how realistic this was. It wouldn’t have made sense for her parents to immediately accept Drew and what Chloe had done. Yet, the opposite extreme would have left me quite miserable, so I’m glad things ended on a hopeful note.

Also, I totally love how Drew and Chloe got together to make Rent for your ‘Rents even better. They’re totally going to be a power couple in that company.

Overall, I recommend this book to everyone, but especially if you’re South Asian and looking for a contemporary book that you can relate to. This one hits on so many points, and I even almost cried? Or maybe I did cry and I’m blocking that out of my memory. <spoiler>There’s just a very painfully relatable scene where Chloe tells Drew what her mom said about her not being likeable and desirable enough for anyone else, so she should be happy Hongbo is willing to marry her and that just hit me a bit too hard</spoiler> 4.5/5 ⭐️

Rent a Boyfriend - Gloria Chao

Thanks to Netgalley and Simon & Schuster for an ARC of this book. I read American Panda earlier this year and loved it, so I was excited to get my hands on her newest book.

Rent a Boyfriend has such a fun concept. Chloe (Jing-Jing) rents Drew to be her fake boyfriend to impress her parents and get them off her back about setting her up with a guy she doesn’t like. The fake dating in this book was a lot of fun, as well as it was a holiday romance as it covers Thanksgiving, Christmas, Chinese New Year and Valentine’s Day.

Chloe struggles with being herself and making her parents proud. She tries to separate herself from her Chinese culture since she doesn’t like the community. Drew is attached to his Chinese culture and I like how Chloe learned she could have both Chinese and American culture and still be herself. The relationship was really cute, and the character growth plus the relationship with Chloe and her parents was enjoyable to read about.

This book came out November 10th and I’d definitely recommend picking it up!!

This was a super cute story about two young people who struggle between living their true lives, but also wanting to be involved in their family and their culture. The book starts with Chloe hiring Drew to be her boyfriend and go home with her for Thanksgiving. Chloe feels like she needs to bring home a fake boyfriend to get her parents to stop trying to get her to marry someone she does not want to. Hongbo was the absolute worst and I could totally understand why Chloe did not want to marry him. Chloe is a nineteen-year-old economics major and I thought it a little weird at first that her parents would want her to get married so young and before she was done school, but it is later explained in the book.
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The book represents the struggles people have when they immigrate to a new place and they want to hold on to their culture, and how they build a community to keep their culture strong. Chloe and Drew represent the children of immigrants and how they want to embrace their culture, but growing up in American changes things a bit. I loved reading about Chinese culture, and I found myself immersed in the story for this reason!
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Overall a cute romance novel that has a lot of complexities underneath the cover!

This book was an absolute treat to read! Many kudos – and all the mooncake points! – to Gloria Chao for writing such a thoughtful and sweet story.

Rent a Boyfriend tells the story of Chloe and Drew, both the children of Taiwanese immigrants; one a college student studying commerce who hires a fake boyfriend to impress her parents; the other a struggling artist who has made of career of pretending to be the ideal boyfriend to impress traditional Asian American parents. Their goal is simple: convince Chloe’s parents she’s better off with the perfect-on-paper “Andrew” than the slimy local billionaire bachelor, Hongbo, whose parents have convinced Chloe’s that their children are meant to be. (Or, at least that a wedding between them would be a good business transaction.)

What wasn’t in their plan was to fall in love… but that’s exactly what happens. And the more time Chloe and Drew spend together, the harder it is for them to stay the course and convince Chloe’s parents that Andrew – not the real Drew – is who Chloe should be with.

By weaving a relatable tale of two Taiwanese children trying to meet both the expectations of their parents as well as their own – sometimes contrasting – wants and desires, Chao manages to create a thought-provoking story that is equal parts serious as it is sweet.

Finding a balance between being serious and silly can be difficult to do, and the ability to do so can make or break a romance novel. However, Chao manages to do so with aplomb, resulting in a final product that is a funny, fresh and unique romance that feels both inspired and realistic.

Both main characters, Chloe and Drew, were fabulous, and I adored them both for different reasons. My heart broke for both of them over and over again as they tried to find their way in the world around them, and their place in it, while staying true to themselves.

The romance was equal parts adorable as it was steamy. I fell utterly in love with them as a couple at the same time that they were falling in love with each other.

Overall, I thought that this story was so cute it left me with a toothache. The type you only get after binge-eating the best kind of desserts~ ☺️

Thank you to the publisher, Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers/Canada, and NetGalley for providing me with an e-ARC of this book. All thoughts are my own.

This story was cute. The concept of a company that allows you to hire a boyfriend for special occasions is foreign to me, but I found it fascinating that women need to resort to such measures to appease their highly traditional families.

This read was closer to a 3.5/5 for me. I don't usually read romance novels because I'm inclined to find many of them cheesy (and not in a good way), but this one was enjoyable enough that I finished it! The main characters were likeable and the writing-style made it an easy read. I can see this translating well to tv/film.

This was a really fun book! I loved seeing the characters' relationship evolve and the plot as a whole was great. I'm a sucker for the fake relationship trope and this really delivered.