I was absolutely blown away by this novel. I don’t really know what I was expecting, to be honest, but what I got was a beautiful and gritty story about finding love again after loss, and finding it in yourself to rely on others to help hold you up when you need them most. The only thing keeping me from rating this as 5 stars is my frustration with Bennet and her lack of self-awareness, multiple times over. I found myself holding back the shouts of “go to therapy!” and “girl seriously?!” multiple times. That being said, Henry is the example of what everyone should want in a partner, and I’m relieved that the end and epilogue showed major character growth for Bennet. I would rate 4.5 stars, but for Netgalley's purposes I would round up to 5 stars.

!!!!!! 4.5 stars !!!!!!

If you enjoy “women’s fiction” with a little substance to them, and a romance woven throughout - think Annabel Monaghan, Cara Bastone, Abby Jiminez, Emily Henry, this is a book I suggest you add to your TBR!

This book is so much more than just “romance;” it deals with overcoming grief, finding one’s identity, and friendship. In fact some of it is a little heavy.

Taking place in NYC, our main character is depressed, filled with grief and guilt over the loss of her college bf. She is having a hard time finding joy in, well, anything, until a failed first date leads to the now we’re-just-friends pair’s aptly named ‘passion project,’ which is nothing more than trying new activities and experiences in the city. In the process, everyday simple joys begin to override the sadness.

There’s more to it, of course, but you’ll just have to read this one for yourself! I flew through this book and had a hard time putting it down. I would absolutely read this author again!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read an advance edition of this book in exchange for an honest review. This book is now published so look for it at your fave bookstore or library!

3.75! give me more like this!
I love a good friends to lovers romance book!
That was so good

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC!

What an amazing debut! This book perfectly balances grief and humor, and love and friendship. I loved the character development and growth. With the help of her new friend Henry, Bennet is trying to figure out her passions in life, and her place in the world after losing her most important relationships a few years prior. My heart broke for her, and her inability to move forward. Henry is the best kind of friend to her, and I loved how their relationship progressed. I understand why Bennet behaved the way she did at certain points, but I felt really bad for Henry during those times. Grief is such a hard thing to work through and we all handle things differently.
I really enjoyed the writing and I can’t wait to see what London has for us next.

Read/Listen if you like ⇣
•Friends to Lovers
•Reverse Grumpy x Sunshine
•Love After Loss
•Only One Bed
•Golden Retriever MMC
•NYC Setting
•Single First Person POV

Thank you to Penguin books, Viking books, NetGalley and the author for my ARC!

I can’t believe Passion Project is London Sperry’s debut! Between the realistic depiction of grief and trauma, the flawless writing, and the character development, Passion Project read like a book from a seasoned writer.

The progression in Bennet and Henry’s relationship from strangers to friends to lovers was well-paced and felt so natural. Henry and Bennet had an effortless chemistry- I loved their banter! They fit together so well, and what I loved most is how Henry made Bennet feel SAFE.

I related so strongly to Bennet in her journey through grief and depression and I absolutely adored Henry and the way he patiently supported her. Their Passion Project was such a fun way not only for us as readers to learn about these characters, but also for them to learn about each other. Both of these characters felt so real, I half expected them to leap off the pages and invite me on their excursions.

The messages in this story really spoke to my heart. Some of the things Bennet needed to hear, I did too. There’s something really beautiful about someone who will not only be there with you when you’re in your darkest moments, but will love you through them too. As one of the characters in this story said, “Having your shit together is not a prerequisite for love.”

This story made me feel like I was in New York City with Bennet and Henry, and I had so much fun living vicariously through them as they ventured through the city trying out different activities. It made me want to try out my own Passion Project!

If you liked Promise Me Sunshine by Cara Bastone, I think you’ll love Passion Project!

Thank you so much, Penguin Books, for a NetGalley of Passion Project! All opinions expressed in this review are my own. London Sperry’s debut is out today.

5 out of 5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Well this was delightful!

I’m not trying to knock debuts because there are plenty of great ones out there, but this felt incredibly polished for a first novel. Sperry’s writing is warm and insightful, and a lot of it is deeply funny (especially her dialogue). I loved the exploration of grief tackled by this as well (you know I’m a sucker for something heavy underpinning my romance). It delved into not only loss of a loved one, but also how changing relationships and feeling unmoored can both feel like their own types of loss as well. And it balanced all of that exquisitely,

I’m not ashamed to say that I full on cried at parts of this book like a big mush ball of emotion. It’s a story I think will stick with me for a while. And if you read it, I think it’ll stick with you too!

Thank you to Penguin Books and Netgalley for the ARC. Passion Project is out today!

4.5/5

Thank you Penguin Books for my #gifted arc and thank you PRH Audio for my #gifted listening copy of Passion Project! #PRHAudioPartner #PRHAInfluencer #PassionProject #LondonSperry #penguinbooks

𝐓𝐢𝐭𝐥𝐞: 𝐏𝐚𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐣𝐞𝐜𝐭
𝐀𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫: 𝐋𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐨𝐧 𝐒𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐫𝐲
𝐍𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐫: 𝐀𝐥𝐞𝐱 𝐅𝐢𝐧𝐤𝐞
𝐏𝐮𝐛 𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐞: 𝐀𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐥 𝟖, 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟓

𝟓★

Oh my heart! I ADORED this book and I will be one of my top books of 2025! Bennet and Henry were two of the most amazing characters EVER and I loved them so much. If this book is not on your radar, it needs to be! If this is a debut novel, I cannot wait to see what author London Sperry has in store for us next!

This book tackles so many different topics, but I love how delicately it approaches grief and love after loss. Bennet Taylor has been living with grief and guilt since the death of her first love. Now, living in NYC, her roommate matches her with someone named Henry on a dating app, only for her to stand him up instead. To her surprise, she runs into Henry hours later and confesses that she’s not ready to date and she’s not really passionate about anything these days. With her confession, Henry comes up with an idea to help Bennet find a passion for life. As friends, they will meet every Saturday and try something new in NYC. And so begins their ‘passion project.” As the two begin to get to know one another, secrets are exposed and it doesn’t take long before flirting turns into more. Is Bennet ready to move on, or will the grief and loss continue to hold her back?

🩷Mental Health
🩵Slow Burn
💚Blind Date Gone Wrong
🩷Friends to Lovers
🩵Reverse Grumpy x Sunshine
💚Love After Loss
🩷Uplifting
🩵Set in NYC
💚Lots of Flirting

🎧I alternated between the book and the audiobook, which was narrated by the AMAZING Alex Finke. I don’t care how you read this book, but let me tell you, Finke was absolutely amazing! She was so perfect for this book. I cannot even put it into words. I highly recommend this one on audio if you enjoy audiobooks!

Posted on Goodreads on April 8, 2025: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/144922955?ref=nav_profile_l
**Posted on Instagram - Full Review- on or around April 8, 2025: http://www.instagram.com/nobookmark_noproblem
**Posted on Amazon on April 8, 2025
**-will post on designated date

A perfect blend of emotion, love, and laughter. Passion Project is a journey of healing that explores the true depth of grief. How it shapes and changes a person to the point where along with missing someone they loved and lost, they’re also missing the past version of themselves who didn’t know this sadness.

Bennet Taylor is navigating life in New York while struggling with her mental health. She runs into Henry Adams hours after standing him up on their date and during an emotional conversation where she confesses how lost she’s felt, he offers to help her find her “passion”.

Bennet and Henry’s story is messy and heartbreaking, but it’s also hopeful. I loved Bennet’s growth and how sweet, genuine, and patient Henry was.

This book will really resonate with anyone who has ever felt directionless or overwhelmed by depression. Many times it felt like a punch in the gut for how relatable I found these characters.

Thank you Penguin Books for the ARC! I really enjoyed this one!

The fact that this is a DEBUT novel is absolutely mind-boggling, and has easily solidified me as a London Sperry fan!!! I cannot wait to read her future works and get to read more of her incredible, beautiful mind! Passion Project follows Bennet and her heartbreaking, relatable, and gritty struggle with grief, anxiety, depression, friendship, love and the struggles of life in your twenties.

Bennet is a beautifully written, complex and raw character. One that I think a lot of people will be able to relate to in some way. Being inside her mind as she battles unrelenting grief, mental health, and life itself is something I’m not sure I can put into words. I loved her character so, so much. She carries so much depth, love, care, and humor. It was an honor to see her character develop throughout this story.

We see Bennet embark on a journey of healing, self-discovery, and love with the help of her unexpected friend, Henry (I’m in love with him). We follow them as they try to find Bennet’s passion in life, the thing that will bring her back to life. We see Bennet be placed in positions of discomfort, see her face her fears and demons, watch her grapple with her confusing emotions. In the process, we get to see a lovely friendship bloom from the beauty of vulnerability, and turn into a gut-wrenchingly beautiful love story.

Henry needs a spotlight in this review because I love him dearly. He is a beautiful, relatable, and well-written character in his own right. He is such a beautiful, necessary person in Bennet’s life in more ways than a love interest. His story and his character carry so much depth, and details his own story of loss in a different, unique way than what we think of when it comes to grief.

The way that London Sperry portrays the most complex and confusing emotions is truly remarkable. Her ability to expose the raw, ugly sides of grief and mental health while also commenting on the whirlwind that is your twenties is incredible. The depiction of friendship and the way it can be affected by mental health was so well done. The intersection of love and loss was handled beautifully, the conflicting emotions handled with care. London Sperry balances heavy emotions with humor and joy perfectly. One second I was crying, the next I was laughing, then crying again, and then swooning. This story was gripping, unique, fast-paced and entirely beautiful. I literally can’t say anything other than this book was beautiful, incredible, amazing, wonderful, perfect, and inspirational.

I’m going to say it again: the fact that this is London Sperry’s debut novel is absolutely insane. It is an incredible introduction to the beauty of her writing and mind. An outstanding and truly remarkable entrance into the world of books, and I genuinely cannot wait to see what else she writes!

I’m begging you to pick up this book. Please do it. PLEASE.

4.5 stars! What a beautiful and raw look at the messy ways we find love after loss. Bennett finds herself in the depths of grief and sadness dealing with the death of her college boyfriend, Sam. She moved to NYC as a way to honor him and his plans for their future. She eventually meets Henry, who agrees to help her find some sort of passion again, after this loss. They dub it “The Passion Project”.

What unfolds is a messy and chaotic grasping at love and passion and living again. But “having your shit together isn’t a prerequisite for love”. If we could only see it, be open to it, and just continue to choose to keep loving, maybe we can grasp it again, even after heartbreaking loss. As someone who got engaged 6 months after my mom died, I am all too familiar that you don’t have to have your life perfectly in order to keep loving and to keep living.

I adore the banter and flirting. The grief and mental health rep was well done. I adore the exploration of female friendships. Henry is the most sunshine, patient, kind, sweet, and nerdy MMC and everything I could’ve asked for. Bennett is messy but trying. Shes grieving but learning. She’s self sabotaging but changing.

If you liked Promise Me Sunshine, you’ll like this one!

I really enjoyed this book, I don't think it was anything ground-breaking, but it was well-written and I liked the characters.

I really enjoyed this book by London Sperry. The main character, Bennet, has been struggling with anxiety and depression since the death of her boyfriend several years ago, and is set up on a date by her well-meaning best friend and roommate. However, instead of going on the date, she has a panic attack outside the door to the venue and ends up in the restaurant across the street, drinking too much wine and making a fool of herself. Fast forward to...meeting the man she was supposed to have the date with, who also happens to work in the restaurant she was in, and agreeing to be friends and to working together to try to find something she is passionate about. This is a slow-burn romance with a lot of 2 steps forward, 1 step back, as Bennet begins to trust herself - and Henry, her new friend - more and more. The premise and writing reminded me a lot of Cara Bastone's new book, Promise Me Sunshine (which I LOVED), but fortunately, knowing I was reading a book similar to another did not take away from my enjoyment of this book. There were a few times toward the end of the book that I got frustrated with Bennet and her inability to take a chance on Henry, but still was able to enjoy the book.

This book flows between moments of grief and moments of lightness and joy so seamlessly. I found myself relating to Bennet at times regarding going through major life changes while not being sure where exactly you want to end up while in your 20s. As much as I enjoyed the story, I don't love that her happiness ended up coming from a man rather than herself and personal passions in conjunction with the man. I can definitely see this being a big hit this year!! If you're looking for a book that will make you kick your feet and giggle at some moments and pull on your heart string HARD at others, this is the book for you.

I felt lukewarm about this book at first and ended up picking it through Book of the Month just because I wanted to give it a chance. I am SO glad I did. I ended up adoring the characters and their love story. This is such a funny, beautiful, moving story about friendship, going through grief, the healing process, and learning to be open to living life again. I liked that it wasn't overly sweet or unrealistic. There were real challenges to their relationship and real struggles for the characters. I love a flawed female main character as well and although sometimes Bennet made me want to throw my book, I get why she made the decisions and mistakes she did. Overall I loved this debut and can't wait to see what else London Sperry writes going forward!

I loved this book and all the feelings it gave me. As someone who has been to New York multiple times I love that. I recognize so many places and could picture them in my head as the story went on. This is a beautiful story of overcoming your past and moving on with your life after a Difficult time.

thank you to netgalley for the ARC.

I am so so sorry. I really tried to like Bennet. This was, in essence, starting to turn out like Promise Me Sunshine. But oh my god. Henry? You deserved so much better.

Look, grief hurts. Its hard and cruel, but the way Bennet treated EVERYBODY around her??? no thank you.

can we stop with unnecessary third at break ups pls??

This gorgeous book is a debut novel and comes out TOMORROW! It will have you kicking your feet from all the swoony moments one second and then staining the pages with your tears at the emotional moments. My favorite kind of book…a rom com with depth. I was sucked in and finished in one night. I couldn’t put it down.

If your twenties are supposed to be the best years of your life…someone forgot to tell Bennet Taylor. She’s stuck in a dead-end temp job in NYC, still grieving the loss of her first love, and can’t remember the last time she truly felt anything—let alone any excitement. But after awkwardly bumping into Henry Adams (the guy she just stood up for a first date), a slightly tipsy Bennet blurts out the truth: she’s lost all passion. Nothing can spark her interest. Instead of walking away, Henry proposes something unexpected—every Saturday, they’ll try something new together until Bennet finds her spark again. Totally platonic, of course…right?

This book got me. The banter is witty, the pacing is perfect, and the emotional layers hit so much harder than I expected. Watching Bennet rediscover pieces of herself through offbeat adventures and reluctant vulnerability was so relatable and unexpectedly moving. Everyone needs a Henry. Unwavering support, sunshiny personality, and lots of nerdy cuteness. This is not just a romance—it’s a life affirming celebration of healing, friendship, and saying yes to life (even when it’s messy).

where do I even begin??? this was another right book, right time moment for sure. 🍷🗽🍕🚕⚾️

The way London Sperry writes about grief and depression is so vulnerable, raw and real. This story is about finding yourself again through all of the heartbreak and grief, and how you don’t have to feel guilty for loving again. I adored Bennet because I could just relate to her so much. One thing starts to go well in her life and then something bad has to happen. But though things like this happen, there is still a life full of love and hope out there for you. Healing is not linear. And Henry…. the love I have for this man is unmatched. He helps bring our fmc back to life after her loss, and it is a beautiful thing to see. The adventures they go on together are so fun!!!! I just have so much love and appreciation for this book & DEBUT author.
Here are some quotes I love:

“It feels like I’m returning to him after a long journey, like i’ve met him in a past life, rather than mere months ago. it’s a kind of familiarity that lives below my skin, warming me from the inside out.”

“I refuse to believe i’m not enough. I won’t do it anymore.”

“It’s what people do. We’re imperfect. We hurt each other, but I don’t have any doubt in my mind you will make it right.”

“But losing someone slowly must be like having the person and the memory of them alive at the same time.”

This story gave such a full picture of the complications of life. Grief and sadness and love and hope can all exist at the same time. I felt myself relate to Bennet in so many ways and Henry's compassion and patience is something that I think we all can agree we hope for in a partner.
I think this story was a perfect example of my favorite aspect of a friends to lovers story - that these friendships are build on a deep devotion to one another through the good and the bad.

Thank you to Net Galley, Penguin Books, and London Sperry for an eARC of this book.

Friends to lovers is the best trope. I love the depth to both of our main characters!! They start fairly one dimensional but we see how the perceptions of others impact them, and the depth to each.

I relate to Bennet, and her quietness, and her desire for more coupled with crippling fear. And Henry is a treasure that must be protected at all costs. And I’m here for all his tattoos.

The last quarter of the book was ROUGH for me to get through because I was so emotionally invested, but that’s a good thing. The match analogy is everything. IYKYK.