I LOVED this book! Bennet felt so real and raw. I read this right after Promise me Sunshine and it did not disappoint!! It shows what it feels like as an adult to work through grief while moving past it but still feeling it. Henry was such an amazing love interest and I had such a fun time with the romance as well!

3.5 ⭐️
1 🌶️

I think this book had a lot of opportunity to blow me out of the park, however, it sorta fell short for me. The author attempted to write charming and lovable characters - but to me it read more like immature/childish behavior. The pacing also felt off on this one - not a lot was happening and the story had several lulls. When it did pick up, it was short lived and started to decline again. I believe this is a debut novel, and for what it's worth, I think it's a great first attempt.

3.5 rounded to 4 -- A unique story of a character navigating grief after the loss of her boyfriend. She needs to find her passion for life again and partners with a man she'd stood up for a date before to go on adventures together and they end up falling for each other. Some events at the end of the story didn't sit well with me which lowered my rating. Would be a nice book for a summer vacation especially in NYC!

Passion Project surprised me—in the best way. It’s not just about finding new hobbies with a cute guy (though yes, we love that). It’s about navigating the fog of grief, depression, and that very specific “what am I doing with my life?” chaos spiral of your twenties.

Bennet felt real. Her apartment’s a disaster, her life’s a mess, and she’s not magically cured by love or skydiving or whatever. The emotional slump is depicted with honesty—like, yes, girl, I too have sat on the floor surrounded by half-eaten snacks, dirty laundry, and unfinished thoughts.

Henry is sweet without being a savior, and their connection builds slow and soft, with just the right amount of banter to keep things light.

If you like your romance with depth, messiness, and a main character who’s actually working through it, this one’s for you.

4.5 stars. One star deducted for making me feel feelings I wasn’t prepared for.

Thank you to NetGalley, London Sperry, and the publisher for the eARC!

⭐⭐⭐⭐ = 4/5 Stars!

This book is about Bennet Taylor, who’s living in New York trying to start her life over after she lost her college boyfriend. She’s struggling to carry on without him with her grief and depression consuming her and affecting all her relationships in her life. After ghosting her blind date, Henry, they meet up again under odd circumstances and together they start Bennet’s Passion Project. Bennet’s humor was what made the book. It would have been a bit of a downer without her weirdness and the banter. I think this was a great portrayal of grief and how trauma can affect us. Henry was an absolute delight and the lightness that this story needed. The side characters were all fully developed and were woven in perfectly too. I loved London Sperry’s debut novel and I will add this author to my must read in the future.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Books for this eARC in exchange for an honest review!

I wasn’t sure what to expect when I started this book, but I was very pleasantly surprised. I ended up finishing the book in just a few sittings and really enjoyed the story and characters.

Passion Project is a very good debut novel! I loved the city setting of this rom com and the overall story. The ending wasn’t the best for me, I feel like it could have been a little more developed, but overall, loved the idea of this story and how it was executed. Henry and Bennet were well written characters that you could connect with.

Impossible not to love the characters Bennet and Henry. So relatable and adorable; the dialogue was perfect between these two characters.

The book fell a little flat in the middle; it got a bit redundant and I felt like I just kept waiting for some conflict that took forever to arrive. Still entertaining but kind of ho-hum.

All in all a really sweet book that yes, was a romance, but also really highlighted loving yourself and explored some serious themes. It didn’t feel OVERLY romantic - would definitely be a recommendation to someone who doesn’t typically read romance or wants to try the genre out!

Oh I loved this so much! I cried, which is usually a sign that a book really hit home for me. Thank you for giving me a chance to read and review this.

I didn't know anything about this book when I started but I was hooked right away. Little did I know that I would fall in love with this book. The chemistry and adventure between Bennett and Henry was addicting to read. Pick up this book if you want a fun read that will keep you entertained throughout.

Read if you like:
⭐ New York City
⭐ Lovable Characters
⭐ Enemies to Lovers
⭐ Rediscovering Your Passion
⭐ RomComs

Thank you to the publishers and NetGally for this Advanced Release copy. I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

OH MY GOSH London Sperry where have you been all my romance life?!

This is one of my top romance reads of 2025. I could not have loved this any more! Sperry you knocked the ROMANCE out of this world!!!

First off... the writing was flawless. I felt like I was sitting right across from Bennet and hearing her story. I couldn't get enough of Bennet and Henry. I wanted to climb in the story and sit side by side every moment with them. I loved watching their relationship naturally grow through exploring NYC and the beauty in discovering one another.

Ok... but exploring aside.. THE BANTER. Phew... the chemistry and sassy banter is off the charts. I couldn't get enough!!

Loss and Grief... Perry handled this with absolute grace and beauty. Learning to live with grief and not allowing it to eat you alive. I definitely cried.... a few times. Powerful and beautiful!

OK BUT....... Henry.... he COLLECTS ROCKS. My husband does too!! Oh my god I cried over this haha.

Ladies and gents watch out for Sperry... she just entered the rom com scene and dare I say it she's about to be IT. She is here to do all the things... steal our hearts, make us swoon over and over, and even a little give us some heartbreak.

UGH... loved this debut!!!

Huge thank you to the publisher and netgalley for my arc.

5/5 stars

4.5 ⭐️ rounded down to 4 for goodreads.

Bennet struggles to cope after the death of her college boyfriend. After she ghosts the guy her roommate tries to set her up with, she ends up running into him & having to face the music. They get to talking and Henry proposing he help her find her passion.

I read this book in a day. I didn’t want to put it down. I love Henry! Also legit inspired me to step outside my comfort zone and find new things to try and do. I think the first 250 pages were a solid 5 stars for me. My main problem with this book lay with Bennet… she was just not likable. Some of the things in the last 100 pages… just not a fan. Overall, I loved this. I just knocked it down a star because Bennet sucks a bit. Still would definitely recommend!

Thanks to NetGalley for a copy in exchange for an honest review!

Bennet had a one-way ticket aboard the hot mess express. I mean, who wouldn’t after unexpectedly losing their first true love? Life seemed to have the tendency to shit all over Bennet at every chance it got. Get over served at a bar? Check. Lose a job? Check. Dead (ex)boyfriend? Check.

Bennet was at an all-time low so it almost seemed like fate when she ran into Henry, the man she literally stood up mere hours ago. She confessed that she’s not ready for love and that she hasn’t felt a draw to anything in life for the past several years.

Thus, the “Passion Project” was born. Henry vowed to help Bennet find her passion. From business seminars to photography, they were going to try something new and exciting each week to try to spark some joy in Bennet’s life. The two quickly became great friends and HENRY. He was a godsend. He came in when Bennet was at her lowest and showed her how to enjoy the little things again. From being stuck in a rut to wanting to live life out loud, Bennet truly transformed as a character and showed us that there can be life after loss. This book brilliantly combined comedy and grief to give readers such a profound love story and I ATE IT UP.

I’ve been reading this book for a couple of weeks and I originally couldn’t get into it. It’s very similar to another book I just read. Once I sat down and got into it, it ended up being an enjoyable book for the most part.

Bennett is set up from one of her friends to go on a date with Henry. Bennett lost her boyfriend in college in a tragic car accident and she hasn’t really been the same since. She’s having fun with Henry though but she also doesn’t think she can ever love again after being so much in love with Sam, her boyfriend who died.

What I loved: I loved that Bennett was finding her passion again, being open to the idea of being friends with Henry.

What I didn’t like: Some parts of how she treated Henry, I didn’t like to be completely honest but he was a good friend to her and very patience.

The first 40% of this book I couldn’t get into but the second part of the book, I couldn’t put the book down. I feel like I might have enjoyed this more on audio.

Thanks netgalley and publisher for a chance to read this book for free in return for my honest opinion.

Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin/Viking for this advanced copy.

What a stellar debut from London Sperry!! This book is a love letter to New York, to grieving, to everything I love about romance. Can't wait to see what she does next!

Idk why this book doesn’t have more stars. Omg I loved it and it definitely was a tear jerker at the end. Similar to Funny Story with the passion project but BETTER. What a great first book for this author. I think she displayed grief, depression, and anxiety so well. I could relate to this book so much with how Bennets’ thoughts work. We overthink every situation, become avoidant, and unfortunately push our close friends away without meaning to. Patience is key, and that’s what Henry gives her. Highly recommend for those who suffer with depression. You’re not alone <3

Thank you so much to Viking Penguin for providing me with a digital ARC copy of this book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 🌟 rounded down. I really enjoyed Passion Project! It immediately caught my interest with its humor, quirky set up, and funny banter between the MCs. I was very much reminded of an Abby Jimenez story so I was all in on London Sperry’s debut novel. What brought my rating down was the overall seriousness of the topic addressed, which felt a little too heavy at times, and the way our FMC, Bennett, really kept messing things up for herself.

Bennett is suffering from severe grief throughout the story and describes herself as a directionless loser in her 20s who doesn’t have a passion. She doesn’t have any meaningful relationships in her life, works terrible jobs at a temp agency, and has so much baggage and trauma to sort through. When she stands Henry up for a blind date, the way they eventually connect is so comicable and adorable. There was immediate chemistry between the two of them and the banter was top notch.

Henry and Bennett make a pact to meet every Saturday, as adventure buddies, and try a new passion together. I absolutely loved Henry! He was kind, patient, laid back, and easy to talk to. He put Bennett at ease, took her on these darling dates (as friends), and helped her break out of her shell by showing her that it’s actually fun to meet new people and connect, even if only for a moment. I was also salivating over his bicep tattoo and tight hugging, short sleeve shirts.

The grief throughout the story felt so real. Bennett’s was immediate and changed the course of her life overnight while Henry’s was slow and heartbreaking. I loved that the two of them could connect on losing someone important in their lives but wished we dove a little deeper into Henry’s issues with slowly losing his father to dementia and how he managed to cope with it. Bennett felt so relatable with her anxiety and how she self-sabotaged her closest friendships and goals. I kept wishing she would see a therapist sooner than she did.

Overall, Passion Project was a fun, easy read! It was a beautiful story about unconditional love and loving someone the way they are, baggage included. I would definitely recommend this book but caution you to tread lightly if grief and loss of a loved one are triggering for you. Bennett’s struggle with depression and grief felt a little too real and heavy at times for a romance novel, but I still really liked the book and will look forward to London Sperry’s next one.

Overall I liked most of this book. Bennet and Henry’s friendship and blooming romance was really well done. I was loving the book until the wedding. Then it completely lost me. Bennet was terrible. It felt completely out of character after all of her growth to backtrack that much just for a third act breakup. The ending was really what brought my rating down.

Passion Project was just the friends to lovers that I needed. It was adorable with plenty of banter. There was enough of a hook in the beginning to pull me in from the start and I just didn't want to put it down. The perfect NYC setting with enough touch on real life scenarios to make it relatable.

I really enjoyed this book more than I though I would! I love that it takes place in the city and I feel like these two are a couple that is genuine and would last for a long time which you don't always get the feeling of. I really loved Bennet's journey and feel as if anyone has relationship trauma she is definitely relatable. I loved the self and relationship journey and it all felt really wholesome and well written. Also love Henry so much for understanding boundaries and being such an emotionally mature man.