I would probably give this a 3.5. This is the third book I've read by these authors and while I enjoyed reading it and felt captivated at the time, I don't think this is one that will stick with me long term. The same way I would recommend The Breakup Tour to fans of Taylor Swift, I would recommend Book Boyfriend to fans of A Court of Thorns and Roses (and other romantasy, but especially ACOTAR). There were no glaring problems and there was nothing specific I didn't like, but there also wasn't anything that I found particularly heart-melting.

Book Boyfriend is perfect for fans of fantasy! Jennifer just got dumped, can't keep a relationship because she compares all her boyfriends to her book boyfriends, and as we all know, book boyfriends just don't meet reality. When she heads to a weekend retreat for fantasy lovers, think comicon for fantasy, she runs into her coworker, Scott Daniels. The competition between the two heats up as does the chemistry. This is the quintessential enemies to lovers trope!

This is a cute and fun read! It really is perfect for romantasy fans. I loved the setting and banter between the mc’s. It took me a while to get through because I kept putting it down and coming back to it, but that may just be because of my mood at the time.

Unfortunately, this was a DNF for me. While I know this writing duo can write some great books (I loved Do I Know You?), this was definitely not of the same quality. My dislike of both the heroine and hero was near-instantaneous, and that did not change as the story progressed. The setting could've been really interesting and fresh, but ultimately felt unnecessarily complicated instead. There was a ton of potential here, but too many things that rubbed me the wrong way.

✨ Review ✨ Book Boyfriend by Emily Wibberley; Austin Siegemund-Broka; Narrated by Helen Laser

Thanks to Berkley, PRH Audio and #netgalley for the gifted advanced copy/ies of this book!

Jennifer heads to an immersive experience for fans of her favorite book series Elytheum Courts after her boyfriend dumps her at work. But she’s shocked to find her nemesis Scott from work there -- and he’s apparently suddenly has swagger!?

This was a lot of fun - can you imagine being dropped into an experience made just for fans of your favorite world?!?! Cosplay, actors playing the roles, themed classes and activities, a competition - it was lots of fun!

...but the pacing feels a little inconsistent and the love and hate between the main characters was a little off for me. I wondered if it would have worked better for me if it was a dual POV book so you could hear Scott's POV too. I feel like it was hard fully believe the characters hated each other and then that they were starting to get along, but with that said I was still somehow invested in their romance lol.

🎧 I enjoyed listening to this, but the audio wasn't super distinct or memorable for me. 🤷‍♀️

⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 (3.5)
Genre: f/m contemporary romance
Length: 10.2 hours
Pub Date: Feb 25, 2025

Read this if you like:
⭕️ enemies to lovers
⭕️ workplace romance (but set outside the workplace)
⭕️ fandom obsessed
⭕️ for book lovers

The idea behind this book is total perfection for a bookworm. Offer an immersive event for a week at the Night Court and you would have people busting the doors down to get in.

Anyway....I got distracted.

It was fun reading how the characters try to solve riddles, go on scavenger hunts, dress up for balls, and more. I liked the concept behind this but I felt like a lot happened in the five days at the event to feel realistic. My favorite part about the story was the friendships though.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC copy of this book, it's always appreciated.

This was the first book I have read by Emily Wibberley & Austin Siegemund-Broka and I hate to say that I was not very impressed. I found this to fall short of what I expected. It was very, very hard for me to get into. I almost DNF'd but decided to push through because it was the first book I have read by them. The beginning is very slow and I was having a hard time just connecting to the story in general. I also found it to be muchhh longer than needed. I also felt like the FMC was kind of immature, and that is an automatic turn off for me in a story unfortunately.

I did like the concept, I just don't think it was executed to the best ability. The characters were lacking anything special about them and there was definitely a lack of romance through out the story as well. As a whole, the book just really fell short for me. 2 stars on this one.

Book Boyfriend has a cute concept and well thought out delivery however; I felt the chemistry was not there. I decided to "do not finish" at the 32 percent mark because when reading a romance love story, I want to root for the characters to make it (and stay) happily ever after. Jennifer and Scott I had NO belief in them lasting and would have rather had a story about Jennifer rediscovering her love for herself and joy of the fantasy book series she so adores.

Unfortunately this book was not for me. I had so much hope for it as it included a romance book set at a fantasy convention. While I really wanted to like this book, I had a hard time like the main female character and couldn't get past all the miscommunication.

A fun cute romance with nods to conventions of the genre. I thought the fan convention setting was super fun and the nods to book boyfriends, common tropes and the enemies to lovers romance was all a fun time
. As someone who is less interested in fan conventions this did a wonderful job of creating an enchanting environment you want to be a part of.

Book Boyfriend by writing duo and real-life couple Emily Wibberley and Austin Siegemund-Broka is a sweet rom com with a really fun plot! I absolutely ate this one up. Book Boyfriend is perfect for fans of the enemies-to-lovers trope and fans of classic romantasy series like ACOTAR and Fourth Wing will love the romantasy scavenger hunt setting. The banter between main characters Jennifer and Scott is witty and really build the chemistry between the two. The supporting characters add to the fun and I hope there are more books about these characters!

Thank you so much to Berkley and NetGalley for the ARC!

A fun and enjoyable romance read! I've never read a romance that was in the world of the fantasy books everyone loves to read and enjoy.

This was so cute! Giving off the same vibe as First Time Caller in that its a realistic love story that blossoms within a "cliche" of romance books. I love this approach of making an "epic" love story grounded in real life, real emotions, and real situations. Definitely a great read!
4.5 stars

I love the idea of themed parties. Especially if they are book-themed. So a book that centers around this concept seemed like a fabulous idea. And it was a cute story.

Jennifer, the FMC is recovering from a break-up. She decides to go on a trip and attend a week-long event themed to her favorite book series. The problem: her annoying coworker Scott shows up there, too. Classic enemy to lovers. Jennifer makes some really sweet friendships throughout the week - which I loved - but I had a hard time with the way Jennifer and Scott were written. They seemed A LOT younger and immature they should have. Especially Jennifer.

Quick and uncomplicated, but probably not one I will read again.

Engaging, charming, and fun!

Book Boyfriend is an amusing, feel-good, enemies-to-lovers romance that takes you into the lives of both Jennifer Worth and Scott Daniels, two coworkers who quickly discover that they may be more than workplace rivals when they are consistently thrown together while away at an immersive Elytheum fan experience.

The writing is humorous and light. The characters are hardworking, passionate, and lively. And the plot is a push-pull tale full of tricky situations, tender moments, humorous mishaps, workplace drama, self-discovery, friendship, expectations, chemistry, and love.

Overall, Book Boyfriend is an easy, spirited, sweet read by Wibberley & Siegemund-Broka.

BOOK BOYFRIEND
Emily Wibberley; Austin Siegemund-Broka, Co-authors
Romance

Jennifer makes a last minute decision to go to an immersive getaway based on her favorite Romantasy series after being dumped once again. What she doesn’t expect to see is Scott who despises romantasy. When he decides to be the best book boyfriend, will the sparks fly or will she brush him off as another hater?

This book was a quick fun read. With some spice and intrigue in it. I would give this book a 5 out of 5 stars.

This was a light and entertaining read, but it didn’t fully capture my interest. While the fan convention setting wasn’t quite my thing, I can see how readers who love fandoms and cosplay would really enjoy it! The enemies-to-lovers dynamic was well done—I understood why the main character felt rejected by her co-worker, and their relationship development made sense. While it wasn’t a perfect fit for me, I think it will really resonate with the right audience!

This was a cute, quick read with tropes of enemies to lovers, banter, workplace romance, anything for you. I love the plot of getting sucked into an immersive book comic con setting. Who doesn't want to meet a fellow book nerd while playing dress up from your favorite fantasy novel? The theme of living out a fantasy versus creating your own happiness strikes true for a lot of readers. There were some laugh out loud moments which made the characters all the more endearing.

The low points: I didn’t love the excessive use of exclamation points throughout. It made the text feel a bit juvenile at times. I would have loved a little more exploration into Amelia’s relationship.

All around fun book. Read this if you’ve ever fallen in love with a fictional character or dreamed of jumping into your favorite book’s fictional world.

*3.5 rounded down to 3 on goodreads

Thank you NetGalley and Berkley for providing me with an ARC! This was a fun romance book with a very unique plotline that I’ve never seen before.

Things I liked:
1. The setting. It takes place at a romantasy themed event of a book series (basically acotar inspired), which was so intriguing! Everything was described so well and it made me feel like I was there also
2. There was a small mystery aspect. The event has an aspect where the characters need to find clues to win a date with Lord Valance (rhysand equivalent). They got to use knowledge from their favorite book series to figure out the puzzles and clues and I wasn’t expecting that plotline when I first started
3. All of the side characters were really fun! They were actually really important to the character development of the main character and there wasn’t any character I disliked in the whole book. I really liked Erik and Fred’s storyline and also Fred and Jen’s friend (I can’t remember her name)

Things I didn’t like (as much)
1. A lot of this was easily anticipated. Despite what I mentioned about the plot being a little unique, the romance was lacking for me. There was nothing really special about either character and I liked the rest of the book way more than the romance. Considering this is a romance book, I don’t think that’s the feelings I should have

I still enjoyed this book, but it won’t be a new favorite for me. In a romance book, the romance should be the best part of it and it just wasn’t for me.

This is a book written for all fantasy lovers, and fantasy fandom! For anyone looking to meet their book boyfriend, and live in the pages of their favorite book!

While I loved the concept of this book, something about it just didn’t work for me. I just had a really hard time connecting with the fmc, she was very unlikable. I did like them slowly fall for each other, and watch the competition come together.

Read if you love:
- Rivals to lovers
- Books about books
- Fantasy fandom
- book conventions