“Warmly funny and gorgeously sexy.”—New York Times Book ReviewA LibraryReads PickHouse Rules: Do your own dishes Knock before entering the bathroom Never look up your roommate online The Wheatons are infamous among the east coast elite for their lack of impulse control, except for their daughter Clara. She’s the consummate socialite: over-achieving, well-mannered, predictable. But every Wheaton … the consummate socialite: over-achieving, well-mannered, predictable. But every Wheaton has their weakness. When Clara’s childhood crush invites her to move cross-country, the offer is too tempting to resist. Unfortunately, it’s also too good to be true.
After a bait-and-switch, Clara finds herself sharing a lease with a charming stranger. Josh might be a bit too perceptive—not to mention handsome—for comfort, but there’s a good chance he and Clara could have survived sharing a summer sublet if she hadn’t looked him up on the Internet…
Once she learns how Josh has made a name for himself, Clara realizes living with him might make her the Wheaton’s most scandalous story yet. His professional prowess inspires her to take tackling the stigma against female desire into her own hands. They may not agree on much, but Josh and Clara both believe women deserve better sex. What they decide to do about it will change both of their lives, and if they’re lucky, they’ll help everyone else get lucky too.
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3.5 ‘Shameless’ Stars!
ARC provided by the the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
Rosie Danan’s debut novel The Roommate definitely caught my attention with its adorable cover and enchanting blurb. I thoroughly enjoy forced proximity books and this got even better when I realized the protagonists were strangers forced to be roommates. Danan’s debut was sweet, full of sexual tension and entertaining and I am glad I decided to give it a go!
So, as I said, The Roommate is Rosie’s first novel and it tells the story of Clara Wheaton and Josh Darling. Clara comes from a wealthy family, she is a socialite and, all of a sudden she has just decided to move in with her best friend / longtime crush. Problem? Emmett has no idea about her feelings and he is leaving on tour with his band. Enter Josh. Her new roommate. A complete stranger who now Clara has to spend the summer with and share the space. Things get even crazier when Clara discovers Josh’s job and she gets involved in it.
Josh was absolutely the bomb. He was a big tangle of hormones trying to lure her to an untimely end. A bomb masked by cheesy jokes and kind eyes. One that could blow up her whole life if triggered at the wrong moment.
The premise of this story is what got me all excited. Roommates, strangers, their backgrounds and sexual tension? Oh yeah, I loved what this novel promised. Did I get what I expected? Yes. And no. I enjoyed the story as a whole and the back and forth between Clara and Josh. Their strange friendship / relationship was exciting and I definitely enjoyed their interactions. I did expect more though. It took me a while to get into the story and the writing style. It felt slow at the start and the actual romance did not develop until the third half of the book. I found that the spark between the couple was missing until that part and that is what messed it up for me. The last half of the book is what gripped me, it was entertaining and I enjoyed how Rosie developed the romance between Josh and Clara.
“My love for you isn’t an addiction. Being with you doesn’t provide some warped sense of validation for my life. You were never a fling I had to get out of my system. Our love feels like… freedom. The kind people give their lives for.”
Therefore, I am rating The Roommate with 3.5 STARS. It gave me a pleasing reading experience but I just was expecting a bit more. It was a good read and I liked the storyline and the crew of characters introduced. I loved Clara and Josh as couple, their strange connection (being from so very opposite backgrounds) and how their chemistry and emotions developed towards the end. A charming and sweet debut novel that I am sure many romance lovers will enjoy!
Clara Wheaton, yes, part of THE Connecticut Wheaton’s, has always been the good girl and never gets into trouble or does the wrong thing. So when Clara’s lifelong friend and secret crush, Everett Bloom, invites her to move to Los Angeles and move in with him, she throws caution to the wind and moves. Imagine Clara’s surprise when upon her arrival Everett tells her he is leaving for the summer to tour with his band but she will have a roommate…….Josh ” Connors” Darling.
As Clara and Josh get to know each other, they begin an interesting friendship. When Clara realizes what Josh does for a living, that is when things get really entertaining! After a while Clara realizes that she and Josh can help each other out with problems that they both have that could be beneficial to both of them. Clara also contacts her Aunt Jill, the black sheep of the family, and is offered a job helping out on a political campaign. Just when it looks like everything in her new life is starting to work out, it all comes crashing down. It will take a huge leap of faith, and a lot of internal processing for Clara to go after the life she really wants.
I really enjoyed this story, and especially the characters. Clara was so prim and proper and it was fun watching her bloom. Josh was just a hoot. I can’t imagine what his life is really like. Overall this was a fun and entertaining story to read.
The Roommate by Rosie Danan deserves all the hype. It’s one of my favorite romances I’ve read this year. It’s funny, swoony, and extremely sex-positive. It doesn’t villainize sex-workers.
Clara Wheaton, East Coast trust fund baby from a conservative family, moves to LA, after an invitation from her long time friend and childhood crush, Everrett. She hopes they finally can take their relationship to the next level. Once she arrives in LA, Clara finds out that Everett doesn’t plan to stick around in the City of Angels, and she ends up sharing a house with Josh, who is subletting a room from Everett, and who happens to be a famous adult performer (a.k.a a porn star). Sparks fly between Clara and Josh, but they are total opposites. Josh is sex on legs, and Clara has never experienced an orgasm with a man. Not to mention, Clara’s scandal-averse family will never accept Josh, and Clara is not planning to disappoint her mother or embarrass her family name.
I loved this book, and I adored Clara and Josh together. Also, it was interesting to learn about the adult entertainment industry, with its problems, and the stigma attached to it. I highly recommend this book, especially to those who love opposites attract trope and fans of The Kiss Quotient.
3.5 stars -Smart PHD graduate society girl moves cross country to get a relationship with her chosen man only to be dumped with a male porn star for a roommate. The odd couple plus. She’s conservative prude, he’s an unabashed endowed porn star. She doesn’t know who is for a while she just goes with the flow while making plans to get to her man again. Yes the same man who already dumped her, not that they ever had any relationship. It’s all on her, and felt obsessive. So, they live together, she is a tight rope he’s an easy flow type of guy.
I enjoyed the story but didn’t feel any strong connection between these two. His background her background, it just was too removed from each other. The story was very fresh, very new, I didn’t even care that the two main characters didn’t mesh for me I enjoyed the story.
I received a copy from the publisher for an honest review
THE ROOMMATE is charming and refreshing and totally what I needed in these stressful times.
I see everyone labeling this as a rom-com, but I wouldn’t. (Though, it should be noted, that I’m not really a rom-com kind of person.) Instead THE ROOMMATE is the kind of high-chemistry and low-angst read that sizzles without stressing you out.
There’s a healthy bit about our own perceptions of self and how they can get in the way, but also plenty of high-heat-level action.