THE BOYFRIEND LAUNCHER

Ahead of a date with her crush, a high school junior fake dates her childhood friend in hopes of identifying what “makes guys go from [her] to relationship goals.”

Dru Eason is dealing with a lot. Her soccer team made it to the playoffs, but there’s infighting. Her sister Moriah is close to having a wedding meltdown, and both her sisters act like Dru, the baby of the family, can’t do anything right. Excitingly, her crush, Kai Waller, actually likes her back—but she’s launched every boyfriend she’s ever had into a perfect relationship with another girl. So, when Kai asks her out, she panics and pretends her team has a no-dating pact through playoffs to buy herself some time to figure out how she’s ruining her relationships. She asks childhood friend Winston—whose brother is marrying Moriah—to be her fake boyfriend and help her identify where she’s going wrong. But Winston is way better at this boyfriend thing than Dru expected—and things quickly get complicated. This sweet romance centering on a majority Black cast will make any romance reader giddy. The writing is stellar—Garrett skillfully crafts realistic characters readers will want to root for—but the story shines most in its introspective moments, particularly explorations of Dru’s romantic and familial relationships. Unfortunately, the reflection that drives change comes too late, making the story drag in the middle and Dru’s growth feel slightly truncated.

A surefire goal for romance readers.