Up until the last 50 or so pages, I was right back in Boyfriend Material with characters I love and a story meant to make you feel happy; absolute 5/5, love Luc’s voice and excited to be a part of their journey!

But the end was…strange? I felt like the last part of the book and the ending were rushed and didn’t quite fall into place with everything else. I kept checking my page count and wondering how it would resolve itself and…it didn’t feel like it did, which was pretty disappointing.

All that to say, I love Alexis Hall’s books, particularly this series, would recommend this one but wish we could have had the HAE we read romance for. ( )

It was nice to be back with Luc and Oliver. They are complete messes but I love them so much. I really enjoyed this one a lot more than I did Boyfriend Material. I can't say why exactly but this one was so good. I will say that this is heavy with the miscommunication trope. I am not the biggest fan of it. Though I don't mind it when Alexis Hall does it for some reason. He does it several times throughout the book but they are usually figured out relatively quickly. Even though I am a hopeless romantic at heart I liked the ending a lot. It just fits the characters so much. I highly recommend this series and any Alexis Hall book. ( )

I had a love hate relationship with the first book, Boyfriend Material, in the end decided I really liked it. I was excited to jump in to book two of the London’s Calling series by Alexis Hall. However, Husband Material was a huge disappointment. I honestly can’t say I’d recommend it.

In the first book, the banter between Lucien and Oliver was slightly annoying but they ended up working out and Oliver grew on me as a character. In the second book, they were both so dislikeable it was hard to read. The whole book they were at odds with each other, both were very selfish, and seemed to have a quite dysfunctional relationship.

The odd layout of this book also was annoying. The first book was a start to end, clear storyline. This book was a series of events brought on by other characters (weddings and funerals). And Lucien and Oliver attended them.

This book also put the gay community in a really bad light. I can’t say as a member of the community that I support half of the drama Hall presents in it. And the ending was not good. It was just a huge let down. I will read Father Material when it comes out in hopes that Hall writes it more like the first one and sheds the couple in a brighter light.

★ I would recommend the first book, but not the sequel. ( )

I had a real stretch of books for a while that didn't just make me sad, they broke me and made me think humanity (or maybe sentience?) was a mistake, and this is the book I turned to to break that streak. This is the sequel to Boyfriend Material, which I absolutely loved, and I spent a lot of time while reading this one being reminded why and wanting to reread the first one again.

This is a bit unconventional as a romance novel, for many reasons but primarily because Luc and Oliver are together at the beginning of the novel and together at the end. (WHAT! THIS IS STILL A ROMANCE NOVEL, THIS IS NOT A SPOILER.) Luc & Oliver love each other, but they are both struggling with a number of issues, mostly due to some subpar parenting (to put it mildly), and in this second volume they work through many of those while also attending four weddings and funeral (yes, that is a deliberate reference.)

I loved that the partner who seems more together outwardly is actually the one with more to unpack here. I love that both of them have some fist-pumping moments of triumph along the way. I love that this book still managed to surprise me in the end. ( )

Now that they've been dating for two years what is the next step for Luc and Oliver?

Again, very funny and I would love to read more about their lives although I'm not particularly invested in them as a couple. ( )

I feel compelled to write a review for this one because my response is complicated.

The Four Weddings and a Funeral structure was cute, but distracted from the relationship development, which is what I wanted to read about. It's a structure that works well for an initial romance, rather than the development of a complex relationship between two people who both have big huge issues.

I don't know whether it says more about me, Alexis Hall, or what, that I found the most engaging and satisfying section of the book to be the funeral, and I think that might just be because it was the only section of the book where Luc actually focused on Oliver. So much of the rest of the book was very angsty, which, unless they're working through it, as Luc did in the first book, is not something I enjoy in my MCs in first person narratives.

The humour, the banter, the irreverence were all there. The secondary characters were fabulous - I adore the quirky wisdom of Luc's mom, the ott and more mature best-friending, the co-workers...

The thing is that through each wedding, Luc's pov grated even more, as did his absolute certainty that the vast majority of the conflict was "Oliver problems, not me problems," which felt deliberately delusional. It felt like all the character development took place in the last bit of the book, and it took place far too quickly for me to be convinced, especially since there seemed to be so little in the two years between the last book and this one.

What saved the book for me was the actual ending - it brought together what I felt were the themes that kind of popped up throughout the book but I couldn't really see through all the angst. And they are themes I absolutely love: Self-differentiation, self-exploration, authenticity...

And SPOILER now:

I just really really wish there had been more exploration of alternatives to weddings/marriage than the brief conversations with Pryia and her partners, the mother, and the very last couple of pages. I also wish there was more room for Lucien to face that the "Oliver problems, not me problems" were actually his own damned problems all along. If it had, this book could have been a brilliant satire about heteronormativity and convention. The entire discussion over the rainbow arch could have become a truly enlightening exploration on the conventions of the perfomance of queerness. Instead, it was an "OIiver problem" and got left at that, with only a glimpse that it could be more.

I do however, love that they walked out on their own wedding. Like, really really love it.

I was overjoyed to read a book that ends with a clear hea that doesn't require a formal commitment ceremony - this is something that is very counter-genre, and unlike many readers who freaked out about it, I am so very much here for the subversion.


So yeah... complicated response to this one. ( )

Ummmm

I have no words for where this one went.

( )

Husband Material is a loose, somewhat picaresque satire of the marriage parade that dominates our late twenties and early thirties, and what it means in the context of queer millennial relationships. Unlike the first novel, which (like its protagonist, Luc) is tightly wound from page one, this book takes a while to get going, the tension ratcheting up imperceptibly and incrementally until it explodes with one hell of a banger ending.

Is it as funny as Boyfriend Material? Probably not. Is it a touching, validating book about navigating this highly scripted time in our romantic lives? Fuck yes.

4 / 5 ⭐️‘s

“Husband Material” by Alexis Hall

“Oh, fu¢k me with a rusty coat hanger covered in sriracha sauce.”

This was another fun read. Luc and Oliver’s relationship is still messy as ever. The ending had me like… really? I love that they both were on the same page though.

I’ll be patiently awaiting the arrival of Father Material. ( )

I read Boyfriend Material a while ago and I was not sure I'd remember the characters or the events well for the sequel, but I just landed back in. I must say that the character development is amazing. All characters are great, but Luc and Oliver are just complete. It feels like I know them very well by now.
This romance book is rather unconventional. I just read another book where the main heroine loved romance books because they all stopped at the HEA unlike the reality where the life went on and there was no Happily-Ever-Afters. So this is the sequel AFTER their HEA, though I liked that the author prefers the term HFN, i.e. Happy For Now.
It's light-hearted and fun but also makes you think about very deep things: how our upbringing affects our lives, our perceptions of things, our choices; what makes us feel included and excluded; what really matters in a relationship. I also loved how it was a rip off of Four Weddings and a Funeral.
I just LOVED it. ( )

It came up in the questions and answers section at the end of the book that this was modeled on the movie Four Weddings and a Funeral. And since I’m one of the few people on the planet who hasn’t seen it, I probably missed a lot in this sequel to Boyfriend Material. I know I missed the humor that was a big part of the first book and the absurd situations Luc and Oliver kept falling into. Also, I missed Luc’s quirky coworkers and all jokes that fell flat when they over‑analyzed them. Maybe there’s a reason why rom‑coms are usually stand alones and this just proves the point. ( )

Amusing MM romance about two guys who feel the pressure to get married. Even though it's a sequel, it makes sense if you haven't read the first book. (Which i could have sword i had read and just forgotten the details...) ( )

⭐️⭐️0.5/5
No 🌶 (all fade to black) ( )

I was expecting great things from this novel, since I've seen it on lists time and again.

Disappointing. The narrator wasn't great to listen to either. Joe Jameson has a great voice but - like Elinor Tomlinson with Josie Silver's latest book - I didn't consistently like the way he read it ... his voices were good, but the way he read their parts... I just don't know why it wasn't perfect...

I also thought I'd read this author before too, but apparently not.

I think I'll start this one afresh in a couple of months, when I'll give it more focus and try to be tolerant of its silly side! I probably got about 1/3 through it and while I liked its humour, the caper like nature of the action is too much! ( )

https://www.instagram.com/p/Cld_zn2rfXq/

Alexis Hall - Husband Material: The first book was better, but the ending of this sequel is so very satisfying. #cursorybookreviews #cursoryreviews ( )

Husband Material by Alexis Hall
London Calling #2. M-M romance. You should read Boyfriend Material first to avoid spoilers. This is the same couple and takes place after the first book.
Luc and Oliver’s relationship has survived and the two are navigating life’s challenges. It’s wedding season and the two are in the middle of friends events and planning. Maybe it’s time for their own vows?

This books is definitely a continuation of the first although I admit I like Luc better in this book. Their antics and self doubt are still tripping them up but their feelings are verbalized and felt. I certainly understand the pressure of society and friends.
I didn’t expect the ending. I’m not in a position to fully understand either. I will say that it made me a bit sad at the world and our defined roles.

🎧 I listened to an audiobook version of the book narrated by Joe Jameson. The performance was fantastic with distinct voices for the two main characters and variations for the friends. It was clear which was speaking by the voice. Pace and timing were excellent and added to the humor and anxiety. I’m listened to the story at 1.5 which I felt was the best for a normal conversation. ( )

I was nervous about a sequel, but I loved it as much as the first one. It wasn't derivative; Luc and Oliver don't break up so we can re-live the first book. Their relationship progresses, and as a middle-aged-ish person, I loved it. ( )

Give Joe Jameson more audiobooks to narrate, thank you.

I loved this, but I love couple-in-trouble or just-in-the-grind-but-not-the-good-kind books. I am a fan of showing the work of the relationship, the "what are we even talking about?" fights where you've dug in so much you just a lil bit start to hate the other person for being wrong and making you wrong. I have seen that it wasn't popular. I don't know if my enjoyment was heightened by the fact this was 10-20 min at a time, and the whole book had a slice-of-life vignette feel (4 weddings and a funeral, after all) so it wasn't a binge read, which I don't know if would've worked. ( )

2.66 Read my mini review here. ( )

I love the narrator's voice, he was able to give distinct voices to many of the characters and when he spoke with an American accent it was pretty spot on. I did not read book 1 - Boyfriend Material and I would have enjoyed a small recap of what had happened in the previous book (i.e. Tom & Luc turning into Tom & Brig).
I found Luc & Oliver's indecisiveness throughout the book to be a little frustrating, if they were both honest about their wants and feelings they could have solved those problems sooner. I did like the decision made at the end of the book, that did feel right for these characters. I would read more Alexis Hall books in the future. ( )

i like this in tone and theme (working through levels of emotions, past mistakes, coming to terms with people's unsupportiveness and standing up for what you need, that there isn't one right way to be gay or to be in community). there is so much here to like and i do. but it was just too much. it felt over the top after about halfway through, so for me that means it was overly long. i do appreciate what he's saying here, though, so props for that.

and it's really worth mentioning that the audio reader joe jameson is amazing. he gave every character a distinct voice - i can think of 24 characters off the top of my head so i must be missing at least a few - and that's incredible. he really brought this to life. ( )

These two books have grown on me.
Husband material has a very simple plot but the writing is funny and the characters have genuine feelings. There are a lot of good books about falling in love and keeping your crush (see the first book) but not that many about what that means in the long run.
I really loved that this book is simply Luc and Oliver living their life as couple through other people's marriages/funerals, and the author has written their ups and downs in a lovely way. The arguments got a little repetitive, but I loved that it focused on the fact that omances don't end with "they lived happily ever after", there's work involved.

I read an ARC of this book, so some things may change in the published version. ( )

The long-awaited sequel to Boyfriend Material is a fabulous continuation of Luc and Oliver's story. Told from Luc's perspective, this book is a take-off and a homage to Four Weddings and a Funeral. There are some very funny scenes and some very sad ones, as one may expect when dealing with these types of social events. Mr. Hall does his usual deft job in dealing with sensitive subjects while Luc and Oliver negotiate their way along their relationship.
Romance readers expect HEAs in their books, and we got one here, though it was not what I expected. But I LOVED it! It was the twist this story needed, and I appreciate the author's risk-taking. I can't wait for the next book in the series, Father Material. ( )

https://tamaranth.blogspot.com/2022/08/2022100-husband-material-alexis-hall.html ( )

It was a sweet, charming and sometimes witty offering. I liked the characters of Luc and Oliver in Boyfriend Material so was really looking forward to seeing what they were up to in Husband Material and if a wedding was actually going to take place. I thought at first that Luc was going to propose to satisfy social pressures, but then I began to hope he would just bite the bullet and do it. It was a good enough read but it just didn't, for some reason that I can't define, produce the same feelings as the first book. It does confirm that Luc and Oliver have definitely found their "happily ever after" with one another and this story was the perfect way to send them off. ( )