Mason Deaver's adult debut beyond delivers. The Build-a-Boyfriend Project was so sweet and funny and relatable. I adored Eli, even when he made the wrong choices, and saw so much of myself in him. Peter was so sweet and charming and also relatable, as a queer kid who grew up in the south and moved to California, shy and unsure of how to meet people. I teared up at times during this one and laughed out loud, too. I honestly was devasted when it ended because I just wanted even more of these two characters and their sweet relationship. Sequel please?

Hmm, maybe a soft DNF?

When I can stand to read a book that spends the first 8% of the book talking about the MCs ex maybe I’ll try again. Constant ex talk is not something that’s gonna pull me in in the beginning 😂 also, Eli, grow a backbone and quit your job, which will be a problem later and you all know I have no patience for spineless characters 😩

This was a super cute story full of fake dating and tons of mishaps and mistakes! Absolutely loved this one! Peter Park

The Build-a-Boyfriend Project explores societal expectations of what growing up means by examining not only the coming out process for queer teens but also how a closeted life at that age can and likely will stunt someone's ability to suavely form friendships and romantic entanglements later in life. And while this book is listed as adult fiction (it is definitely not YA) I would probably recommend it as a new adult read despite the characters not being "new adults" themselves anymore. (For those who are unfamiliar with new adult, I'd say think ya+smexy times).

Eli and Peter are both equally floundering in their lives. One professionally the other socially (well also professionally but not because he's unsuccessful in his current job). Eli, healing from the dissolution of a long-term relationship, is struggling to figure out how to be seen as a potential staff writer instead of PA at an internet "news" outlet. When a disastrous blind date with Peter gives him the idea of writing about the divergent teen experiences of queer people based on their home town size/queerness. But his editor wants a salacious "Pygmalion" type of story from him instead. Peter agrees to the original article if Eli will teach him how to date. And thus shenanigans ensue....

I rated this book four stars because we all know 3 stars means meh to most... but I'd probably rate this 3.25 stars if given a choice. to me, 3 stars is a fun, quick read.... not something I'd likely read again but something I enjoyed while reading. (Friends, there is nothing wrong with a book like that, in fact, I often search out books in this category because I just can't stomach reading one heart-wrenching, thought-provoking, stays with me till I die type of book. I also want easy and joyful and let me relax type of reads. This one is the latter for me.

What to Expect: queer love (trans/gay), small town boy, self discovery, fake dating, teach me how to date, cute and fumbly, first ever date, etc..

Trigger Warning/Content Warning: discussed homophobia, discussed xenophobia, discussed transphobia, deception of intent.

So so so cute! I'm a sucker for a good romance, and the cover and description caught my eye first. I didn't read too much about this one before I started it so basically just going off the cover, title, and description, I was really pleasantly surprised by the depth with which Deaver touches on growing up queer in an area that doesn't love you for it. It's such a journey, truly, and I felt very seen. The characters are also classic disasters and this I love - like yess please give me a fixer upper love story where EVERYONE needs fixer uppered!! I really liked this one and will need to check out Deaver's YA works, which I remember having on my TBR in high school right as I entered my Big Reading Slump that's just recently ended.

The Build-a-Boyfriend Project is a new queer fake-dating romance with a twist. The book is about Eli and Peter, who are set up on a blind date by friends. Their date is so terrible that the two decide that Eli should teach Peter how to be a better date. Eli will use the dating lessons to make content for the website he works for, Vent, in hopes of getting a promotion. Meanwhile, Peter will get the dating experience that he missed out on while growing up in rural Georgia. 

At the beginning of the book, Eli is still mourning a breakup with a long-term boyfriend. He doesn't want to go on a date with Peter, but his friends encourage him to take steps to start moving on. Peter is sweet, but his awkwardness can easily come across as rudeness, and he doesn't really have many friends or a life outside his work. Their romance is a slow-burn, with them remaining strictly friends who go on fake dates for much of the book. Feelings do develop, of course, but it takes time, and complications arise. 

While this is a lovely romance, it delves into serious topics that add depth. Eli is trans and discusses the difficulties that trans men face when dating, as well as other aspects of being trans. Peter is Asian American and mentions the racism he faces, and how growing up queer and Asian in the deep South affected him.  Overall, this is an introspective and thoughtful romance with many earnest conversations about real issues. Along with being topics that many readers will identify with, these conversations also show how deeply Eli and Peter are becoming. These two have such a wonderful, open dialogue with each other! 

While it tackles those topics (and others), the book never gets too heavy. It's still mostly lighthearted and fun with a few emotional moments mixed in. 

One fun aspect of the book is that Eli is a big movie buff. There's some fun movie trivia mentioned as he fact-checks Vents's listicles, and he has strong opinions on films. He also watches many movies and references them often throughout the book. Each chapter is also named after a movie! It was fun to check off which of the films mentioned I've seen, and I'm sure bigger movie fans than me will have even more fun with all these moments. 

I haven't read any of Mason Deaver's YA romances, but after reading The Build-a-Boyfriend Project, I definitely will be. All of their books are going on my TBR, and I'm adding them to my list of must-read authors! I've read a lot of queer romances this year and this is one of the best. 



My Rating: 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌗 (4.5/5 stars / Rounded up on Goodreads).
Pages: 384 (Kindle Edition)
Tropes/Tags: Contemporary Romance, Achillean, Queer, Trans Main Character, Fake Dating
Spice Level: 🌶️🌶️🌶️/5. There is one spicy scene that is descriptive.
Content Warnings: Transphobia (mentioned), Racism (mentioned), Death of a Parent, Conversion Therapy (mentioned), Homophobia (mentioned)

4.5 stars! Thank you to NetGalley, Avon, Harper Voyager, and HarperAudio for this advanced copy! You can pick up The Build-a-Boyfriend Project on August 5, 2025.

This book was EXACTLY what I needed to pull me out of a reading slump. Heartbroken Eli goes on a blind date with the shy and overworked Peter Park, in what ends up being one of the worst first dates of all time. But Eli decides to give Peter a second chance -- along with some dating lessons, so Peter's next date won't be quite so disastrous.

Of course, as they spend more time together and open up to one another, real feelings enter the picture. But the relationship is made doubly complicated by Eli's decision to write about Peter's love life for work, in the hopes of seizing the opportunity to be a staff writer. What could go wrong???

Even though Eli's schemes were convoluted (in the way of all great rom-coms), I loved the execution and genuine romance between him and Peter. Plus, the LGBTQIA+ representation was wonderful, and I appreciated the couple's honest conversations about sex and intersectionality (as a trans man and gay BIPOC man).

I devoured this book in a day, and I can't wait to pick up the rest of Mason Deaver's backlist! Def grab this one if you love dating lessons/fake dating, friends to lovers, and MM romance!

I was originally going to rate this 3 stars. The "uhoh! I lied and now it's gotten out and my lover is disappointed!" trope is very overdone, so I could see the "3rd act breakup" coming from a mile away, and the more I read, the more I thought to myself, there's no way that Eli can manage to fix this to deserve Peter. But.. they didn't get back together right away. And that's one thing I hate the most.

But what I loved the most was the important discussion Deaver played out in this book about queer isolation and how growing up in a small town where it's rare to be queer is practically damning for queer kids who grow into queer adults. I feel the same way as Peter did; isolated from anyone and everyone. Now that I'm an adult and can get out more, I have no worldly clue how to make friends, much less romantic relationships or even entanglements. I fear I'd be much like Peter myself-- a bumbling virgin who has to be coached on how to date. It was so cringey at times, but in a way that I could see happening in real life, and that's what made me fall in love with it even more.

I loved How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days but this just doesn’t have the same appeal. I didn’t connect with the writing and the character Eli is insufferable. Who is he to act like some expert on dating? I saw the author normally writes YA and that checks out as this felt juvenile.

Simple but not simplistic and straight forward without being formulaic. The characters were believable and their motivations and eventual chemistry was easy to follow and believable. I was a big fan of Peter taking time to forgive Eli after the classic third act breakup instead of immediately forgiving him for the sake of the plot. It made the story feel more believable. I also think Deaver is going a wonderful job writing adult romance for the first time. The progression from "I Wish You All The Best" is clear and I'm excited to read more in the future.

I thought this was really good! I liked how much “natural” representation there was in this - no character felt added in just to check a box. I also really enjoyed how realistic the pacing of Eli and Peter’s relationship was, especially after everything at the end. The main conflict and plot was just slightly too predictable for me, but I enjoyed this overall.

The discussions this book has about being queer in small towns (and in general), as well as being trans are soso important and were put into this book with so much care and intention, and that really shined through throughout the whole story.

I also thought the narrator for this did an amazing job with the story - his voice really fit Eli perfectly and made it feel really immersive.

Thank you to Avon, HarperAudio, and Netgalley for the advanced copy!

firstly, thank you to the publisher for an arc and an alc!

2.5 stars because peter saved this entire book, despite everyone actively working to bring him down.

i’m sad i didn’t enjoy this adult debut by mason deaver because i really loved their ya debut i wish you all the best (which has a movie coming soon!).

but the build-a-boyfriend-project was a poor take on the fake-dating trope (one of my absolute favorite tropes because YEARNING).

our mmc eli is being deliberately held back at his online reporting job, being denied the staff writer position he’s been vying for for the past five years — not to mention he reports to his ex, who just broke up with him after being together for seven years. when the opportunity arises for eli to showcase his writing in the way his company wants (which is the exact opposite of eli’s passion, btw), eli takes the opportunity to finally earn his promotion… but at the expense of destroying his budding friendship and romantic relationship with peter, a young queer man from the south with zero dating experience.

ultimately, eli takes peter’s lack of dating experience and utilizes it to write a shmear article on peter to get a leg up in his promotion, ultimately embarrassing and breaking peter’s trust — and then eli wallows like HE is the victim, not peter…

while i DO understand eli’s motivation to earn his promotion after being wrongfully denied for years, how is bringing down someone you considered a friend and potential romantic partner the best way to go about it? of course, eli was remorseful but only because he couldn’t have his cake and eat it too…

as for the audio, the narrator was ok — i wish they had a little more emotion while reading.

Eli was a hard character to connect with. He really had a lot of growing up to do and I’m not sure he was there when the book ended. I also feel like we should have had something in the last chapter about Eli’s career so that’s a missing piece considering how unhappy he was at his job and the floundering thereafter. It sees no resolution. I liked Peter a lot better than Eli and found him more relatable.

what. a. book.

no seriously! this has to be one of the best books i’ve read this year and honestly i can see it securing a place in the top 5 of the year already.

this book had everything. sweet moments, tear jerkers, wanting the characters to be together so bad, and i even laughed out loud which doesn’t happen often when i read so i really enjoyed how the characters were able to make me laugh.

i loved getting to see both their personal lives as well as the time they spent together so no moment felt dull. the side characters were all strong so no boring moments here! this book truly feels like a rom com and honestly if this became a movie i’d be buying those tickets IMMEDIATELY! first in line.

we also have to talk about the amazing representation in this book both with a gay, korean man that grew up in a small town learning how to love and a trans man teaching him through fake dating. i appreciated getting to read both representations!

i’m so so happy to have been given an arc copy of this amazing book. i’ll miss them forever 😭

Who else is over the moon to have met Eli and Peter? I sure am. I’ve read many Mason Deaver novels but reading this as an adult (yes it is an adult romance) I felt the transition from YA to Adult. Is this what it means to grow up? Wow. Deaver packs so much humor into the story and that’s always been my favorite parts because his characters become lovable and make you roll your eyes with how corny their jokes can be. As a Trans reader (FTM), I felt seen. Now not everyone will or might feel comfortable with certain parts of description of Eli’s body but it’s valid. I could say it might be a trigger for some —- for me it was just someone letting me know that I can see myself in whatever way I want. We should validate Eli as we should those who view their bodies the same way. The pacing of this book definitely was my favorite because I didn’t want to cut to the romance without understanding Eli’s and Peter’s lives outside of the fake dating. Kudos to Deaver for another amazing book!!

actual rating: 1.5. Peter Park is a much better person than me because if I found out that the man i was seeing wasn’t actually tasked with writing an article about growing up queer in the South, but instead was writing about how shitty i am as a boyfriend, you would see me on national news. the government would have to reopen Alcatraz to keep me contained. Peter Park, my beloved, please run for the hills. Eli does not deserve you.

I have to say, Mason Deaver has done a fantastic job with their first adult romance book. I can't be more pleased with the writing, the pacing, and the chapters being titled after some really great movies. I'm ashamed to say that I haven't watched all of them, which I absolutely need to do. (Especially with some of them being true classics like When Harry Met Sally and Monty Python and the Holy Grail.)

I adore Peter Park with all of my heart. Like yeah, his first impression was one of the worst things I've ever read, but the redemption in this book makes him rank extremely high on my book boyfriend list. Now, I don't think Eli Francis deserves all the credit for his ranking, but wow, he does a damn good job.

Speaking of Eli, I adore him. He's probably my favorite Mason Deaver character (don't tell Ben De Backer I said that). Eli is such a fun character, who loves movies, his friends and family, and has so much passion for his journalism work. I see a lot of myself in him, which is maybe the reason why I love him so much, but I can't help it.

And to make my last comment as safe-for-work as possible, I thought the book's more explicit scene was some of the best I've ever read in an adult romance book. That's probably a crazy sentence to say in a review, but I needed it to be said with my full chest. I had to turn off my iPad and take a moment after finishing the chapter. Beyond impressed.

Thank you, Avon, for the digital ARC of The Build-a-Boyfriend Project!

Thank you to Harper Collins and Avon Books for this E-ARC of The Build-A-Boyfriend Project.

Imagine if your boss promised you a position at work. Then, during the interview for that position, he told you that he was trying to give the opening to his friend even though you’ve basically done everything for this man for the past seven years except wipe his butt.

Premise:
You have Eli who works at Vent an online newspaper that used to be an independent news source but now functions more like a buzzfeed tabloid website.

For the past seven years, he has been writing articles for the website and none of them have been published by the boss. The boss wants a scandalous story. So, when a job opening pops up, his boss challenges Eli to write an article about teaching a clumsy man he went on a disasterous date with how to be better at dating. If he can write a scathing article about this poor workaholic dude, his boss is willing to offer him the open position.

Comparable media:
How to lose a guy in ten days.

Thoughts:
I’m glad that this generation of authors that are up and coming have writtten the lgbt adult rom coms us lgbt folks have needed and wanted to see ourselves in for years. This is up there with Ali K Mulford and MA Wardell writing.
This needs to be a rom com on the big screen.
Peter is so cute and cuddly. Definitely can relate to him and how he sees the world.
Eli is a mess but just needs a push in the right direction to achieve his dreams.
Slow burn to the max.

Memorable quotes:
“Not Korean enough for the Korean community, not gay enough for the queer community.”

“I guess . . . growing up, I never got a love story for myself, especially not in Comer. I always felt like I was looking over my shoulder. Afraid that someone could just sense that I was gay,” Peter admits, his voice low, almost like he’s ashamed. “I found these stories of people falling in love, sharing themselves with each other. Some of them were gay, some of them Korean, sometimes both, but more often than not, I couldn’t find books that replicated my experience, the things I felt. It was just nice to read about something happy. I always knew what to expect. They meet each other, resist their feelings, one or both of them mess up before they reunite and have that big final moment where they admit their feelings for each other. They got the happily ever after. It made me feel safe.”

“Never settle for a life that you don’t deserve, because a boy like you deserves everything he’s ever wanted.”

“We don’t get to control who we fall in love with, Eli. It’s a complicated, stupid, ugly thing sometimes. And yet, at the end of the day, it’s really all we have.”

Mason Deaver takes a leap from YA to adult contemporary romance - and it totally works.

Read for:
•Queer romance
•Trans representation
•Fake Dating meets Dating Coach
•Opposites Attract
•A cozy, swoony read

A lot of things about this book worked for me. I really enjoyed how strong and clear the author’s voice and writing style is. It is cozy, relatable, engaging, funny, heartbreaking, and so much more all wrapped up in one book.

Both Eli and Peter felt so real to me. Like I could walk into a coffee shop and actually meet them. What sets this apart from other books is that both main characters are fully fleshed out, layered characters, with distinct personalities, history, and flaws, and neither of their stories felt like they were taking a back seat to the other.

The build up of the relationship between Eli and Peter was so gradual and natural. They truly became friends who then fell in love.

I did find myself getting frustrated with Eli the further into the book I got, knowing he was lying to Peter and was waiting for the shoe to drop. By the end, I wanted to just wrap Peter up in a big hug and tell him everything was going to be ok. The third act was handled so well. I appreciated that Eli didn’t try and minimize the hurt he caused or his part in it. He showed true maturity and growth from where he was at the beginning of the book.

This was actually my first book from Mason Deaver and I will for sure be checking out more of their work!

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

The Build-a-Boyfriend Project follows Eli Francis, an aspiring journalist stuck in the role of assistant at a Buzzfeed-esque digital magazine called "Vent." After a disastrous blind date with a man named Peter Park, Eli's boss suggests he take Peter on a series of "practice dates" in an effort to teach him how to be a better boyfriend so that Eli can write a click-worthy article about it; if the article is good, Eli can finally move up to the staff writer position he'd been vying for for years. Eli agrees to the challenge, but instead of the clickbait-y story, Eli plans to write a second, more serious article on how growing up queer in the southern United States made it difficult for Peter to gain any dating experience in the hopes that his boss will see the light and want to publish it instead of the mean, gossipy article he was initially fishing for. But the more time Eli spends with Peter, the more the lines blur between real and fake, and Eli may have to choose between the promotion he's wanted for years and a chance at real love.

This was SUCH a sweet romance novel, and perfect to read during Pride Month! "How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days" is one of my all-time favorite romcoms, and this story was very reminiscent of that. I really loved following along as Eli and Peter recovered from their particularly bad first date and grew to be good friends as they fell in love. I also really appreciated that both Eli and Peter still had growing to do despite being near 30. As someone who's also nearing 30, I always appreciate a reality check that not everyone has their life perfectly planned by now and that you can still grow and change.

I also really loved the queer rep in this novel. While neither Eli nor Peter had it very easy with Eli being trans and Peter growing up gay and Korean in a very conservative southern state, I appreciated that neither of them had especially traumatic backstories. Both Eli and Peter had loving and understanding families, and it's always nice when queer characters come from relatively healthy homes.

Some minor critiques I have that kept me at 4 stars vs. 5 was that Eli did get in his own way (he really could have left "Vent" a long time ago), Eli's boss and Eli's ex did NOTTT get any sort of comeuppance for being garbage people, and I did struggle to get into the story in the beginning, but it did pick up and I was really flying through the pages once I got going!

Overall, really glad I got to enjoy this story during Pride, and I will definitely be recommending to my friends and to my followers! Thank you so much to Avon Books and the Epic Tastemakers program for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review!