The Charm Offensive

Of course there has to be a queer romance that takes place on a Bachelor-type show with an MC who falls in love with his male producer instead of one of the female contestants. I'm surprised nobody has written this story before (I imagine there's plenty of fan-fiction over on AO3). I'm not a dating reality show fan, but The Charm Offensive was vastly enjoyable, even if it made me uncomfortable at times.Charlie is a handsome yet socially awkward tech millionaire who comes on Ever After to salvage his reputation after a mysterious parting of the ways with the company he co-founded. And Dev is the handler/producer who loves the fairy tale aspect of his show, even though he knows there is little chance that the contestants will have a real, long-term happily ever after. When Charlie turns out to be a disaster in front of the cameras, it's Dev's job to work closely with him and turn him into good reality TV material. But of course the more time they spend together, the more the two men start realizing they are in dangerous territory if they act on their attraction. Charlie signed a contract agreeing to become engaged to one of the contestants, and he needs to look good to salvage his career. And Dev would get fired from his dream job if anyone caught him kissing the prince.Alison Cochrun's writing style reminded me of Casey McQuiston's [b:Red, White & Royal Blue 41150487 Red, White & Royal Blue Casey McQuiston https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1566742512l/41150487.SY75.jpg 61657690], a combination of humor, intense emotions, and witty dialogue. Her characters have diverse ethnic backgrounds and are on varying places on the LGBTQIA+ spectrum, so there's lots of interesting queer representation. She also shines a light on how it feels to live with a mental illness like anxiety, depression or OCD, and thankfully this is not one of those ridiculous romances that pretends that love will cure all ills. I was a little uncomfortable about the fact that Charlie and Dev's burgeoning relationship happened at the expense of the female contestants (several of whom have interesting but minor arcs) but a late plot development cleverly allayed most of my concerns. I can't say this book made me want to catch up on past seasons of The Bachelor, but it did provide a nice swoon-worthy finale and a happily ever after that is much more believable in a romance novel than on TV. ARC received from Net Galley in exchange for objective review.