Eli Francis is overworked, underappreciated, and stuck at the bottom rung of his dream job. When a blind date with awkwardly adorable Peter Park crashes and burns, Eli thinks he’s hit a new low—until his boss suggests turning Peter into the perfect boyfriend for a juicy article. Eli reluctantly agrees… secretly planning to write a deeper piece about Peter’s queer coming-of-age instead. But as their fake dates start to feel more real, Eli must decide what he’s really after: a promotion or a chance at love?
Romance fans, rejoice! The Build-A-Boyfriend-Project is here to soothe your souls and give your 2000 rom-com loving hearts the queer do-over it desires!
Fans of the fake dating trope are sure to love the set-up and overall progression of messy Eli helping awkward Peter become the perfect boyfriend. From the disastrous first date that had me cringing (in a good way) to the whole scheme playing out, this is a revival of How To Lose a Guy in Ten Days for sure.
There are cute do-over dates, Eli’s struggle to make Peter someone who is not glued to his phone and work in general in favour of actually holding hands with the guy he is on a date with to cute practice kisses and more.
Peter was by far my favourite character—who wouldn’t fall in love with a hot nerd who is as adorable as he is awkward? Come for the fake dating, stay for Peter Park and his wholesome cinnamon roll vibes.
Eli meanwhile was very relatable—he’s a bit of a mess, stuck in his job, working with his ex who never appreciated him and a boss who doesn’t see just how valuable Eli is to the company. The dread of never achieving your goals is ever-present and definitely set the scene for why Eli ends up causing the mess he does.
Beyond that, there is also a lot of discussion of what it means to be stereotyped in the world or the struggles of navigating the dating space when you’re trans. Deaver here truly shines as Eli and Peter both get their moments of sharing their struggles and feeling more accepted for having told someone who understands and can relate to it.
One point I did really enjoy was the way Deaver calls into question the validity of current news publications, especially those online. In an age of Buzzfeed clickbaits and fake news, it was lovely to see Eli stand up for what he believes in and follow his heart in how much he believes that real, true, emotional stories such as Peter’s queer coming-of-age can still make an impact and will offer community to the right readers and even encourage them to share their own stories—if only you give them the space for it.
Overall, it’s a fun take on a classic, but admittedly, the book sometimes didn’t quite seem to know how serious it was supposed to take itself. On the one hand, there were fun moments but they always got paired with lectures about the current state of the world, which, yes, I absolutely want more of in books because we are all living in the same dystopia at the moment, but the timing always felt like you were scolded for laughing at the very things the book just told you was funny.
Also, what I will say is that the predictability of the plot as well as the fake dating fell a bit flat due to the whole setup of Eli’s character and his morals. On the one hand, Eli constantly berates bad online journalism and how nothing has integrity anymore (and more so how his boss is after the clicks instead of the honest truth) and how important honesty is but then goes and basically lies to everyone in his life.
It just didn’t track that Eli is super honest and woke about everything from work to relationships to telling Peter what it means to date someone and cherish them, even to a point where he tells others whenever something is not correct behaviour but then doesn’t just simply tell Peter up front that he’s basically two-timing him and his boss to get the most out of this article thing. Peter, good soul that he is, would have understood his motivations and probably even helped him advance in his career. Yes, Eli is messy and his motivation here is clear, but because of how he is presented, that just didn’t feel like something he would do.
Therefore, the inevitable third-act break-up and the abrupt, rushed happy ending could have done with a bit more work. However, if you suspend your disbelief, that surely won’t be a hindrance to your enjoyment of a genuinely great read. This is sure to make you want to rewatch some old favourites and bask in the glory of the fake-dating-to-real-lovers trope.
Overall, The Build-A-Boyfriend-Project is a fun mix of classic 2000 romcoms and 2020 Netflix remakes of them. If that’s your jam, then you’re in for one hell of a treat!
The Build-A-Boyfriend-Project is available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org, and other good book retailers, like your local bookstore, as of August 5th 2025.
Will you be picking up The Build-A-Boyfriend-Project? Tell us in the comments below!
Synopsis
Bestselling and award-winning author Mason Deaver’s adult romance debut follows a journalist in a dead-end job who agrees to teach his disastrous blind date how to be a better boyfriend. Readers will delight in this sweet and steamy queer romance with trans representation!
Eli Francis is stuck. Stuck in an assistant position at the online magazine Vent when he should be a writer. Stuck with a boss who dangles a promotion but would rather he just fetch the coffee. Stuck working alongside the ex who has had no trouble moving up at work…or moving on.
When Eli’s roommates push him to date so he can get over his ex once and for all, they set him up with Peter Park. Tall, handsome, and unbelievably awkward. The date is a complete disaster, and further proof to Eli that love isn’t for him. But when his boss overhears Eli recounting the catastrophic night, he suggests teaching Peter to be a better boyfriend through a series of simulated dates so he can write an article about it.
But Eli has other ideas…Eli plays along, pretending to write the article, while secretly interviewing Peter about growing up queer in the South and coming-of-age dating wise in adulthood. Eli hopes writing this sort of piece will finally get him the promotion he deserves. And in exchange, he will teach Peter how to be a better boyfriend.
But the more time Eli spends with Peter, the closer they become, and the lines between what’s real and what’s fake begin to blur. Before long Eli is forced to face his greatest fears to become the writer he wants to be and secure the love he’s always needed.
Love the title! Sounds like a modern version of Mr. Deeds Goes to Town.