Husband Material: London Calling, Book 2

(This is quite long. Oops.)This was an amazing sequel to Boyfriend Material. I didn't read anything going into it - didn't read the blurb or any reviews, so I was surprised by all the weddings lol. Anyway, I was also really surprised by the relatively low ratings and poor reviews. After reading several of them, it seems like some people are disappointed by the "plot twist" at the end of the book. I wanted to argue against some of the things that were mentioned.First, not in regards to the plot twist, I wanted to talk about how some people felt like Luc and Oliver were arguing too much/not having enough lovey fuzzy moments for a two-year-old relationship. I totally see it. I love sweet and caring moments in romances and usually wish for there to be much more. I didn't have that thought this time though. I will say that the first argument (non-argument) in the book where Luc has to cancel (for very understandable reasons) was rather upsetting for me, but I found the rest of the book to be much better. I think maybe 90% of the arguments and non-arguments in this book are about the wedding or funeral, which means we're seeing a temporary rough time in their relationship, not how their relationship is on a regular basis. It doesn't mean they haven't grown since the first book, like one reviewer said. In fact, I noticed many moments throughout the book that show how much growth they've both had, how they acted differently than they would have in the first book, and it made me happy to see. I also did see many lovely couple moments between Oliver and Luc, some big and many small, that for me were enough to show me they were quite happy together and in a great relationship.Another thing before talking about the big plot twist (which I'm saving for the end because it'll have spoilers) is people saying the ending feels abrupt. Again I agree. But I'm on a Alexis Hall reading spree and have just finished Paris Daillencourt and Boyfriend Material, and they both have similarly abrupt endings. To me, they're great, and I couldn't think of a better ending. I do end up feeling rather bereft after I finish the book though. They're great books, which already makes it hard to move on from, and the sudden ending makes it worse. But it's such a movie-like, artistic ending. Hall doesn't do the gentle wind-down that many romance authors do, where after the climax, you're slowly glided down and are gently set on the ground by means of an epilogue and/or seeing how the characters live after the big moment and how the dust settles. Alexis Hall's style seems to be that you're sent soaring into sky as everything becomes bright and whites out in one glorious moment. You don't see the aftermath for a gentle landing (or see any of those nice cozy fuzzy couple moments) but to me this matches with the author's style. He's a great author in that you don't see anything superfluous. Every scene and moment has its purpose, whether it's major plot and character stuff or a funny or sweet moment. I wouldn't have been mad at a nice extra scene at the end (quite the contrary), but this was a beautiful, perfect ending to me.Finally, the "plot twist." Stop reading now if you don't want spoilers. Or keep reading if you like spoilers so you can enjoy the book more and read without fear.I understand why a lot of people had a hard time with this. What I'm surprised at is that some people were surprised. They decide not to get married. Looking back, it's clear it was always leading up to this. From the first unplanned proposal to the real proposal, and Oliver's reaction to the proposals, it's clear in hindsight that neither of them were super into the idea. Those first few proposal/wedding-related scenes, I thought it was just the author showing maybe a more realistic, chill proposal between people who already felt settled and that they were never going to leave each other, so they didn't have huge emotional reactions. Then when Luc's mother suggested marriage might not be for them, I immediately saw that was the direction the book was probably heading, and honestly, by the time they had their bachelor parties, I was surprised they hadn't had that conversation and called it off by then. At every point in the book when they talk about the wedding or do something for the wedding, they don't have any of the joy or excitement they should have. None of those moments are shown as particularly magical either. They're just kind of clomping along and doing what is expected. So for me, I don't think it was a big plot twist.As for people being upset that they don't get married, I get it. And Hall could've written a totally(ish) different book, where they go to different weddings (and a funeral) and in between they happily and excitedly get engaged and plan a wedding and get married, maybe with a few fights and twists along the way. And he's a great author, so it would've been great, I'm sure. But the whole point of this story, I think, is that although they're an amazing couple who love each other and fully feel they want to be together forever, they figure out that for some reason, marriage-marriage just doesn't feel right to their relationship. To be honest, it's a bit hard for me to empathize with them. BUT!This is a Thing. I've encountered in other places (books? online?) some LGBTQ+ people who, whether or not are in a serious, monogamous relationship, just don't feel like marriage is for them. It feels too much like a... straight institution. An institution that wasn't made for them, and to this day doesn't fully accept them. Queer people have their own history and culture, in which traditionally "marriage" was simply a lifelong, private commitment. For some people, marriage-marriage just feels too straight. It has too many straight cooties attached to it and it gives them the ick. I'll say now that I'm queer, but I only have medium license to talk about this because I'm not super well-informed about people who feel this way. I just mean to say that some reviewers seemed to feel that this is a big radical statement about heteronormativity, which I suppose it is, but it wasn't as radical an idea as they seemed to think. The author is a gay man (or queer? unsure exactly how he identifies), and if you've read his other books, it's clear he's very knowledgeable about the queer community and various subsets of the community, including the people who feel icky about marriage. This is an author writing authentically about his community.So I understand the shock and disappointment of the ending, especially if this was your first time hearing about queer people who feel uncomfy about Marriage. But what makes this story beautiful is that they love each other so much. The author shows the reader that several times throughout the book. And the book ends very happily for Oliver and Luc. The last scene is such a beautiful, joyous moment! It's just not how the average reader would expect it. I think the author does a great job carrying various themes throughout the book, and I loved the conversations about Oliver's relationship with his community and what it means to be a "good gay." And while there were a number of arguments and non-arguments between Oliver and Luc, I didn't feel like it was too much. Or at least, there were so many sweet and funny moments, and all of those arguments ended in a lovely way.It's not the most cozy, comforting book, but it's a very entertaining read, and the conflicts and unhappy parts are meaningful and well balanced with the funny and lovely parts.Maybe on the second read, when one knows what to expect (or if you've somehow managed to actually read this whole review), people will absorb more of the good bits and not be as weighed down by the bad.Lovely book, very entertaining and funny, great read, very meaningful and interesting. Great sequel. 5/5And 5 gold stars to you for reading this whole review. My god.

This was just as funny, quirky, and filled with fun banter as book one. I laughed out loud several times. The audio was fantastic and I highly recommend you listen to this. Now, the reason I dropped a star is because it was so dramatic. The fighting was too much, the drama that happens near the end (and also at the end) sort of soured this experience for me personally. And then it felt like we were missing something, with the abrupt way it finished. I think it needed an epilogue.Still, overall I did enjoy this and while this one won't go into my reread pile, it was still worth checking out.

This is a modern, queer retelling of Four Weddings and a Funeral. The wit and humor are fabulous through the first three of five parts of the story. That all falls out the window in the final 2/5ths of the novel.It moves to serious subjects told seriously — and instead of a retelling it becomes an original story. A wonderful idea but executed poorly. All of the humor, grace and frankly the fun of engaging with the two lead characters falls completely by the wayside. The protagonists become neurotic, whiney, repetitive and, frankly, unlikable. Forward motion in the narrative grinds to a halt and it becomes a real slog to finish.It’s apparent that the author had something to say about how different life and relationships of the 2020s are to those of 1990s and I applaud him on taking a chance. For me, however, it proved to be a big miss.When I read that the next book in this series would focus on a new couple, I was disappointed. Now, having read Husband Material, I suspect that it is for the best.

The structural premise of this book, four weddings and a funeral, is spelled out in the blurb. Between that setup, genre expectations over how a second story about an established relationship will play out, and the title itself, we go in with a pretty good idea of how this book will go. But Luc is nothing if not predictably and unpredictable, and Hall manages plenty of delightful surprises along the way.I’m a sucker for weddings, so I was looking forward to all four even before I knew who they were for (though three are fairly evident, set up by characters introduced in the previous book). And the drama hits the fan from the very first one, in which Luc is the maid of honor for his best friend Bridge. Events from the bachelorette party to the ceremony itself are over the top and entertaining, and Hall incorporates much about these characters and the narrative style that I loved from the previous book without anything feeling stale or repetitive.Even while I felt a tiny bit bad for the travails Bridge and Tom experience in the final leadup to their big day, I also kind of hoped that we would enjoy this amount of ridiculous drama for every wedding in the book. Hall has a gift for throwing absurd yet completely realistic problems (AND solutions) at his characters. These external issues could have easily distracted from the heart of the story, but Hall also keeps the true focus on Luc, Oliver, and their connection throughout. After all, some of the truest tests of a relationship are vacationing together and attending other people’s weddings. These events provide some final closure for Luc regarding issues from the first book while also revealing potential new conflicts.One of the biggest problems Hall faced when writing this story is how to make the reader fear for the future of Luc and Oliver’s happily ever after since dragging them out of the sunset and returning them to real life for a sequel. A narrative about the wedding preparation killing the marriage before it begins is cliché enough that I doubted Hall would take that route, and I was pleased to be proven right. This is where the funeral comes in. I won’t spoil who it is for, but it is not for any of the characters I initially assumed. Derailing so many thematic beginnings with a solid ending brought depth to this novel and allowed Oliver to also confront actual character issues originally presented near the end of book 1 as more of a supporting plot element. My only significant quibble about this book is how we are limited to Luc’s narrative here. I also adore Oliver enough that I would have appreciated much of his character development from his point of view instead of filtered through Luc’s personality and biases.Every romance novel is at its core a story about a relationship. However, not many romance stories actually interrogate the point and true function of that relationship. Hall layers the multiple weddings in this book into an ongoing commentary between the heroes about the need for and meaning behind the various styles of pageantry, which is in turn a necessary discussion between any couple about what they want from their own “special day”—and want and need from their own relationship. In an amazing final twist, Luc and Oliver finally settle on their answers to both questions. In the style I’ve come to expect from this series and these characters, it is unexpectedly expected. And absolutely perfect.

This was a really good book. Loved the characters and character development and just their relationship in general. Definately a good read.

o que aconteceu neste livro? e que final pavoroso

I loved boyfriend material, after the first time I read it it quickly became my favorite read of the year, so when I found out there was a sequel coming out I immediately added to to my wishlist to buy it as soon as it dropped. Husband material was so worth the wait, I loved it just as much as BM and read it in 3 days because I just couldn’t put it down

Wow. Wow, wow, wow.I knew going into this book that I was going to love it. It was my most anticipated read of 2022 and with good reason, it was outstanding. Everything I loved about book one, Boyfriend Material, was very much still at play in this book. We had the fantastic characters of Luc and Oliver, still being very much Luc and Oliver. We had the same group of diverse and entertaining side characters and a few new ones, too. And this book really is a romcom, it's packed full of heartwarming romance, but it's also genuinely laugh out loud funny. I was wheezing with laughter at some parts!What I really liked about this book was that it was able to continue the relationship I was SO invested in, without a) majorly changing the characters' personalities or behaviour or b) simply blowing up the relationship. Alexis did a really, really good job of bringing drama to the story without falling back on the old trick of 'throwing a spanner in the works to break up the main couple only to get them back together again.' Creating drama in a second book without undoing all the progress of the first book can be tricky to do, but Alexis does it perfectly.There is massive character development in Husband Material as well, without too much fundamental change to the characters we know and love. Luc is still Luc - sarcastic, chaotic, mess and a little vulnerable. Oliver is still Oliver - exasperated, highly-strung, compassionate and emotionally messy. Yet, we see major character development in both. Lucien is learning to do better with loving himself and communicating and handling love and commitment. Oliver is unpacking years of parental trauma, insecurity and identity. And it works, it really works. We see how each of the characters is subtly changed by the other and how they bring out the best in each other.I also loved the pacing and format of this book. The 4 weddings and a funeral homage really worked and set a nice tone for the book.I know there are mixed feelings about the ending, but I adored it. I called it early on in the book, and I think it was the perfect ending for these characters. All through the book Alexis, through his characters, gives thought-provoking and meaningful moments of reflection on society, marriage, heteronormativty and the different ways of expressing very validity of ways of love and identity.So yes, the ending was not only a perfect summing up of all those points, but most importantly, it made absolutely perfect sense for Luc and Oliver and the journey we went on with them.As always, Alexis' writing style was flawless and I was and am incredibly invested in these characters and their stories. I swooned at the romance and 'awww''d, I teared up at the sad parts and the really romantic and emotional parts, and I laughed out loud and wheezed my way through the hilarious parts. It was a rollercoaster of emotions in the best way!And as with Boyfriend Material, I listened to the audiobook version of this book, because Alexis' fantastic writing combined with Joe Jameson's flawless narration was is a winning combo. Seriously, if you haven't yet, I would seriously recommend these books on audio. Joe Jameson brings the characters to life in a way that I've yet to find in another audiobook narrator. You'll fall in love with these characters all over again!I can't wait for the next book in the series next year and for the next chapter of Luc and Oliver's story the year after that. 5 stars doesn't seem like enough, I wish I could give it 10 or 20!

It was a great read. It wasn't as good as the first part, it just didn't move me the same way, but it was amazing nonetheless. Just as the first part it was hillarious and explored human nature and needs in an extraordinary way. It also surprised me in a lot of different ways. I was laughing, I was crying, I was feeling it all the way through. I can wholeheartedly recommend this book to all, that need a little humor and bitter-sweetness (with the focus on sweetness) in their lifes. ❤

Fácil de ler. História agradável