The Dating Playbook by Farrah Rochon

The Dating Playbook is a highly entertaining romantic comedy involving a personal trainer and her client fake-dating to keep his secret.  If you’re a fan of this genre, you will love this book.  It is the second book in the author’s The Boyfriend Project series, but can easily be read as a standalone.

Plot Summary

Taylor is a struggling personal trainer whose financial security isn’t what she wants it to be.  When the handsome former football player Jamar attends one of her pop-up fitness classes, he can’t believe his luck. He knows that Taylor has the training skills he needs to get him back into the game.  He presents her with an offer.  If Taylor agrees to train Jamar exclusively and bring him back to his full game potential, he will pay her extremely well. The only stipulation is that no one can find out she is training him.

Unfortunately, the two are caught on social media in a grocery store where Taylor is helping Jamar choose more nutritional foods.  They agree that the only way to play this relationship now is to pretend they are a couple.  Together they develop The Dating Playbook to authenticate their relationship while in public.  But rules are never really set in stone, are they?  Will Taylor and Jamar be able to stick to their original agreement, or will their arrangement lead to something more?

Book Review

I loved this book.  It is highly entertaining, full of romantic banter and a little steamy.  The characters are well developed and very likeable. The relationship between Taylor and Jamar is one based on mutual respect and admiration: a case of how each of them makes the other better.

The book also includes a good deal of discussion on learning disabilities and how they influence the decisions which we sometimes make. The importance of mental health is interspersed throughout the story.  I appreciated how the conversation on this topic helps to normalize the stigma often attached to discussions on this topic.

This story has a lot more depth than some other romantic comedy novels.  The author excels in providing a more in-depth history of her central characters than what you might otherwise find in this genre.  This in turn provides a greater sense of compassion in the reader as they cheer on this relationship.  All in all, a wonderful read.

Audiobook Review

I listened to the audiobook version of The Dating Playbook which was narrated by Rebecca Lee.  Her performance was enthusiastic, authentic and easy to listen to.  Audiobook lovers will enjoy her performance and I would not hesitate to recommend this version of the book.

What I Liked:

• The well-developed, interesting and charming characters
• The entertaining play on this fake dating romantic trope
• The meaningful discussion on mental health and learning disabilities.

I Recommend This Book To:

Those readers who enjoy a well-developed romantic comedy with interesting characters.

My Rating:

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Add The Dating Playbook to your Goodreads shelf

Acknowledgments:

Thank you to Forever Publishing, Hachette Audio and Netgalley for the ARC of the ebook and audiobook in exchange for the honest review provided here.  The book published today.

Similar Books I’ve Reviewed:

Accidentally Engaged by Farah Heron

The Ex Talk by Rachel Lynn Solomon

In Case You Missed It by Lindsey Kelk

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