Book Review: The Charm Offensive by Alison Cochrun
This book was so, so CHARM-ing. See what I did there?
This book had me hooked throughout the entire plot and I absolutely did not want to put this LGBTQ contemporary romance down. I tend to love Bachelor-inspired shows (One to Watch, If The Shoe Fits) and this one is no different.
Bookshop.org Synopsis:
Dev Deshpande has always believed in fairy tales. So it's no wonder then that he's spent his career crafting them on the long-running reality dating show Ever After. As the most successful producer in the franchise's history, Dev always scripts the perfect love story for his contestants, even as his own love life crashes and burns. But then the show casts disgraced tech wunderkind Charlie Winshaw as its star.
Charlie is far from the romantic Prince Charming Ever After expects. He doesn't believe in true love, and only agreed to the show as a last-ditch effort to rehabilitate his image. In front of the cameras, he's a stiff, anxious mess with no idea how to date twenty women on national television. Behind the scenes, he's cold, awkward, and emotionally closed-off.
As Dev fights to get Charlie to connect with the contestants on a whirlwind, worldwide tour, they begin to open up to each other, and Charlie realizes he has better chemistry with Dev than with any of his female co-stars. But even reality TV has a script, and in order to find to happily ever after, they'll have to reconsider whose love story gets told.
Review:
When it comes to romance books, you can’t go wrong here. The Bachelor-inspired show, Ever After, has its cheesy moments with their quests and princess ceremonies, but really, isn’t everything in Bachelor Nation cheesy altogether?
Charlie, the show’s lead (and the main character), is on a “quest” to find his princess, only he doesn’t find himself drawn to any of the contestants. Actually, the show’s producers find him to be stand-offish, cold, awkward, and emotionally closed off. When it comes to love, Charlie knows nothing of it. All he’s ever known is tech and his work. Enter Dev, one of the show’s handlers. Dev, being the sweet hopeless romantic that he is, gets assigned to be Charlie’s handler—a deal of a lifetime. Charlie and Dev’s chemistry continues to develop throughout the book and takes you on a whirlwind. Dev has been a hopeless romantic all of his life, hence why he works behind the scenes of the biggest dating shows in the world, but he has yet to commit to a real relationship himself or thinks he deserves a real relationship.
Charlie and Dev are polar opposites. But as they grow closer and open up to each other, you come to love them as individual characters but together. Charlie and Dev complement together so well. Charlie, being the work-obsessed and love-prone type he is, surprisingly fits with the hopeless romantic Dev and opens up to him.
However, as Charlie and Dev grow closer, the show (Ever After) doesn’t stop and Charlie (and Dev, as it’s his job) must continue to put on a show.
Aside from the romance, I loved the conversations around mental health. Specifically, Charlie and his OCD. It wasn’t the focal point of the plot, but it also wasn’t glossed over. More importantly, it wasn’t glossed over as just a germaphobe—as what sometimes OCD can be thought of. Additionally, and perhaps even because of his OCD, Charlie struggled with depression and we, as the reader, got to experience that first hand with him. In addition to Charlie, we also saw Dev struggle with his emotions as well, but not as clearly. Dev struggled with depression, but we didn’t see it until the end, as he was able to hide his emotions more clearly.
Aside from Charlie and Dev, I looooved the other characters. They were so fun and such great, supportive characters!
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