The moment I laid eyes on The Boyfriend Subscription I knew I needed this book in my life. When it comes to traditionally published books, I usually borrow them from the library (ya know, take them for a test drive first) and then buy the ones I really love. I never preorder trad pub books. Until this one. I couldn’t wait for my library to get this in—I needed it to show up on my Kindle the moment it was released.
Things that drew me in: The gorgeous cover! Look at those two beautiful men together. The tropes (fake dating, opposites attract—I hear you calling my name). Everything about the blurb, from the story being Pretty Woman inspired, to the sex-positive app VERSTL, to the mcs, Type A powerful businessman Cole who doesn’t do relationships and plaid shirt-wearing kind-hearted plant daddy Teddy.
I started reading the second it downloaded, couldn’t stop at just one chapter, and burned through it in under a day (I tried to slow down so it wouldn’t be over too soon, but I couldn’t. It’s so good.)
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The Boyfriend Subscription — An MM Romance with Pretty Woman Vibes
🥭🥭🥭🥭🥭
🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
(you can find my rating and spice system here)
POV & Tense: Dual POV, first person, present tense
Genre: MM Contemporary Romance
Tropes/Themes: Fake Dating, Opposites Attract, Sex Positivity, Body Positivity, Fashion, Horticulture, Dating App, Found Family, inspired by Pretty Woman, Class Disparity, Fish out of Water, Background Polyamory
Location: Set in New York City and New York State
Synopsis:
After losing his thriving plant business in a litigious divorce, Teddy Hughes licks his wounds, swallows his pride, and prepares to leave New York City for good. But a chance encounter with a gorgeous business mogul changes everything. Cole Vivien, the designer suit-wearing founder of VERSTL, a sex-positive app forging temporary connections between clientele and sex workers, needs a date for his sister’s wedding and to woo a “traditional-minded” investor. Teddy will do nicely. It’s all business. No feelings, no problems.
My Review:
There is so much to love about The Boyfriend Subscription. This book brings all the feels and is now one of my go-to comfort reads. Above all else, this is a book about connection—something we all crave and need. I loved the sex- and body-positivity, the side characters were all well-fleshed out and had me invested in their stories, and I adored the main pairing. Teddy and Cole fit together like two pieces of a puzzle.
Connection
Connection is vital to our existence. The need to see and be seen. It’s what keeps us moving forward even when our heart gets smashed to pieces. Teddy captured my heart straight away in the opening scene, saying goodbye to his beloved plant business. (His ex-husband, Murray, is forever on my shit list. Any man or woman who makes the main character feel small or insignificant can go directly to “Ex Jail” for crimes of the heart.) Teddy’s kind, open heart drew me in, but I especially loved that he isn’t flawless. He has a bit of a temper (he’s a ginger, it goes with the territory (I know this well)) which sometimes gets him into trouble.
Cole is incredibly buttoned up, which serves him well in the business world. He refuses to let down his guard and be vulnerable—no relationships, no letting anyone get close. But he too is craving connection, even if he doesn’t know it yet. When he and Teddy meet, it’s a life-altering event. Teddy breaks down his barriers, wriggles in deep, and takes root in Cole’s heart. These two clearly belong together, even if they can’t see it right away. Cole has one main rule: no kissing—and you just know this rule is meant to be broken and that it’s going to be glorious when it happens.
We stay like that, suspended in the center of the elevator, neither of us breathing, until it stops at the top floor and the doors open directly into the fucking penthouse. The grandeur of it takes my breath, holds it captive. I can’t help but feel like I’m suddenly in the middle of my own BDSM-flavored fairy tale.
Sex and Body Positivity
Another thing I loved about The Boyfriend Subscription is the sex positivity and body positivity. While both Cole and Teddy are attractive and find each other attractive, normal features such as body hair, softly rounded tummies, and ‘grapefruit calves’ are refreshingly paid homage to. Teddy especially has overcome body image issues and is proud of how he looks—and Cole very much approves. I also really loved sex work being shown in a positive light with sex workers being referred to as “entrepreneurs” rather than the usual slurs that have been used in the past (and are used frequently in the Pretty Woman movie, which was filmed in 1990).
Last night, the foreplay wasn’t planned. Sex, for me, has become something staged to a degree that removes spontaneity. Do I even remember what it’s like to get lost in a moment? To forget about time and schedules and camera angles and editing and what my subscribers want, and instead focus on what I and my partner need?
Found Family
I am such a lush for found family and there is a delicious amount of that. In the Pretty Woman movie, the character Kit is Julia Roberts’ fellow entrepreneur roommate. In The Boyfriend Subscription, Kit is a strong, confident Black woman who runs a successful art gallery (love this!) and is Teddy’s childhood friend from New Orleans. She’s brash and sassy and I adore her. I became deeply invested in the throuple relationship she was tiptoeing around and couldn’t wait to see how that all worked out.
Another movie-esque character is Cole’s right-hand man Jason, assumedly named for Jason Alexander who plays Richard Gere’s business partner “Philip Stuckey” in the movie. While in the movie Stuckey is a giant asshat, I wasn’t sure if book Jason would be a good guy or follow suit. No spoilers—you’ll have to read the book.
Cole’s sister, Mallory, and former actress mother, Brigitte, are fabulous and I adore them to pieces. Seriously, please adopt me now. They both care deeply for Cole and want what’s best for him—and both seem to innately know that Teddy is what’s best.
The line between fact and fiction can blur easily when you’re in someone else’s dreams. I’m not even sure there is a line anymore.
Family Drama
In the movie Pretty Woman, we get hints at Richard Gere’s character’s drama with his father, but we don’t see it up close. In Steven Salvatore’s book, he dives deep into the conflict between Cole and his father, and the result is richly satisfying. The nature of Cole’s relationship with his father fuels everything: his need to branch out on his own and be his own man, the way he cares for his employees, and the way he carries himself in love (constantly keeping himself on guard). This entire arc was fantastic (but I won’t say anything more about it, because spoilers).
The Boyfriend Subscription by Steven Salvatore
Final Thoughts:
The Boyfriend Subscription was everything I wanted it to be and more. I’m so glad I preordered the ebook, and I think I need a physical copy for my shelves. This book has taken me on a journey and made me feel so many things. This was my first book by Steven Salvatore, but it won’t be my last. I hope he writes more adult fiction, but I will also check out his backlist of young adult books.
Author Stalking (but not in a creepy way):
Steven Salvatore is the author of many queer young adult contemporary novels. The Boyfriend Subscription is his first adult contemporary romance.
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