55 pages • 1 hour read
Alexis HallBoyfriend Material
Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 2020A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Chapters 1-11Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Chapter 1 Summary
Content Warning: Boyfriend Material contains instances of explicit and implicit anti-gay bias. It also contains profanity and references child abandonment and emotional abuse.
Luc O’Donnell arrives late to an Alice in Wonderland themed party, delayed by not knowing what to wear. While searching for his friends, he meets and flirts with a man named Cam who recognizes him as rock star Jon Fleming’s son. Luc reveals his disdain for his father, who abandoned him when he was a toddler. Cam and Luc make out in the corner of the club until Luc learns that Cam is a writer. Luc becomes upset because people have used him for information in the past. Cam introduces a game where he kisses Luc for every question answered, which makes Luc worry that he is collecting information for an article. When Luc insinuates as much, Cam leaves, offended. Luc decides to go home but trips on his way out of the bar and is photographed.
Chapter 2 Summary
Luc wakes up to a notification on his phone warning him that an article has been published about him. It shows a picture of him having fallen outside the club wearing a set of bunny ears, which he admits is an improvement over his past behavior and the articles published about him then. He calls his mother Odile, a successful singer who had a tumultuous relationship with Jon. She shares gossip about Jon before she comforts him about having been spotted by the paparazzi. After turning down her offer for dinner, Luc faces his empty apartment and grapples with loneliness.
Chapter 3 Summary
Luc arrives at his job, where he pursues donations for a charity devoted to saving dung beetles. He intentionally tells bad jokes to his coworker Alex before Alex informs him that the charity’s lead scientist and organizer wants to meet with him. Luc helps create social media posts for the upcoming Beetle Drive, a fundraising dinner, and then logs into his computer to discover that a high number of donors have pulled out of the event.
Chapter 4 Summary
Luc meets with Dr. Amelia Fairclough, who says that she has spent her morning responding to emails about him. Donors have been pulling their funding because of the tabloid article about Luc, and it is speculated that their decision to do so is rooted in anti-gay bias. Dr. Fairclough instructs him to recalibrate his image, warning him that if the Beetle Drive is unsuccessful, he will lose his job. Her main suggestion is for him to find a suitable boyfriend that will clean up his image.
After the meeting, Luc cries in frustration, and Alex comforts him. Alex tries to think of ways to find Luc a suitable boyfriend, even going so far as to suggest himself and failing to understand why his long-term girlfriend might protest. Luc returns to his office, where he texts his close friends’ group chat and requests an emergency meeting.
Chapter 5 Summary
Luc arrives at his favorite pub and makes awkward small-talk with “friend-in-law” Tom. Tom and Luc dated briefly until Luc introduced him to his friend Bridget, and then the two of them started dating instead. Gradually, other members of his friend group arrive: a lesbian artist named Priya and two married men whose names are both James Royce-Royce.
Luc summarizes his problem and asks for their help finding a fake boyfriend. None of them are able to think of a viable person by the time the chronically late Bridget arrives. She immediately suggests a man named Oliver Blackwood, whom Luc has met on two occasions. The first time they met, Oliver insulted Luc, and the second time they met, Luc drunkenly tried to seduce him. Luc’s friends agree that Oliver fits Luc’s needs.
Chapter 6 Summary
Three days later, Luc arrives late for dinner with Oliver. After some initial awkwardness, Luc agrees to let Oliver order for him. They debate Oliver’s ethical vegetarianism and the fact that he ordered Luc fish, which Luc views as two contradictory ideas. Oliver claims that he does not want to impose his beliefs on others; Luc believes this is grounded in a sense of superiority. After repeatedly kicking each other under the table, they share a moment of genuine amusement and attraction.
Chapter 7 Summary
The two discuss Oliver’s job as a criminal defense barrister. Oliver, anticipating an argument, justifies his work. Luc tries to assure him that he is not a bad person by pointing out his own track record. Oliver asserts that he is only interested in the history that Luc is interested in sharing. The tender moment is disrupted when Oliver speaks fluent French; Luc does not understand him despite his mother being French. Luc tries to save the date by sharing his dessert. He believes he has blundered socially and inwardly despairs that he is “undatable” (54).
Chapter 8 Summary
Outside the restaurant, Luc kisses Oliver, who shoves him away and demands to know what Bridget has told him. Luc confesses the fake boyfriend scheme, highlighting how Oliver is a perfect “good gay” to attract donors (57). Luc tries to leave, but Oliver shocks him by agreeing to the plot in exchange for Luc pretending to be his boyfriend for his parents’ ruby wedding anniversary. Although surprised that Oliver would want his help, Luc agrees. They make brunch plans.
Chapter 9 Summary
At work, Luc continues unsuccessfully to tell Alex jokes before his phone rings with a call from Bridget. She asks about the date and is dismissive when Luc claims it was a disaster, insisting that they will fall in love with each other. Luc compares her obsession with fetishization before she ends the call with another work crisis. He drafts an email attempting to salvage donors and texts Oliver. Their text-based conversations are as awkward as their verbal ones.
Chapter 10 Summary
As Luc gets ready for brunch with Oliver, his mother calls with an emergency she will not describe over the phone. He cancels brunch via text and takes the train to his mother’s, ignoring a call from Oliver on the way. He is picked up from the station by his mother’s best friend, Judy, who also will not tell him what’s wrong. When he enters his mother’s house, he finds his father waiting.
Jon says he has cancer and that he has realized what is important. He wants the opportunity to get to know Luc before he dies, but Luc is resistant following nearly 30 years of neglect. Luc storms out of the house and takes the train, finally listening to Oliver’s voicemail. Oliver ends their faux relationship. Overwhelmed by the day, Luc cries.
Chapter 11 Summary
Luc travels to Oliver’s house and says he does not want to break up. Inside Oliver’s immaculate home, Luc apologizes for having stood Oliver up and promises to do better in the future if given a second chance. When Oliver is hesitant, Luc shares his father’s cancer diagnosis. Oliver tries to counsel him about regrets. They both apologize to each other for having been hurtful and then make French toast together.
Chapters 1-11 Analysis
The novel explores the tropes of romantic comedy, namely the “fake relationship” and the “enemies-to-lovers” tropes. They serve as the backbone of the plot, providing readers with a familiar script. This is meant to provide levity and to mitigate the discomfort when people discriminate against Luc’s sexual orientation.
Slander by paparazzi places Luc in a dangerous position: His identity as a gay man has been weaponized against him, having cost him one job in the past and threatening his current position. Although Hall uses humor to alleviate the tension of these initial scenes, the reality of Luc’s situation is harrowing. The novel’s cliches mitigate the tension, foreshadowing the inevitable pleasant ending, even while exploring the depiction of discrimination familiar to many LGBTQ+ readers.
From the onset, Luc struggles with low self-esteem, which is spurred by being made into a punchline by newspapers. In his first interaction in the novel, he lashes out against Cam, whom he senses will use him for a story. This is the first suggestion of Luc’s profound lack of trust, which becomes a central conflict as he and Oliver pursue their relationship. Luc’s insecurity stems from being hurt; his self-isolation is a defense mechanism as he tries to protect himself from being exposed, but it also serves to distance himself from meaningful romantic connection. Self-isolation feeds his negativity and destructive self-concept, creating an endless cycle that can only be broken by a major disruption to his habits—like the pursuit of a false relationship.
Luc is vulnerable, but the media portrays him as a superficial party boy. Through this contrast, Hall explores The Disconnect Between Public and Private Identities. In contrast to what the media depicts, Luc is a hurt, lonely person who struggles to find his place in the world. This clash between perception and reality contributes to Luc’s discontent, which is further complicated by his inability to defend himself from the public eye. He resorts to coupling with someone of a higher social status to heal his public image, reflecting his lack of control over his own life.
One of the people who has hurt Luc the most is his father. Jon’s abandonment of Luc and Odile stripped Luc of a father figure, while their biological relationship shoved him into the limelight. Jon’s return brings back the painful past Luc pretended to have overcome. Luc is faced with not only his father but also his father’s mortality and cancer diagnosis, requiring him to humanize a person who has been one of the predominant villains in his life. Jon’s lack of attention meant that Luc did not have the protections he should have had against paparazzi and malicious people. Luc’s instinct is to reject his father, an echo of the rejection he faced as a child, and he refrains from giving his father the comfort he requests. Jon remains prominent in his mind despite his efforts to dismiss him, showing that he is still deeply entrenched in their relationship—or lack thereof.
Oliver is Luc’s opposite in every way, from his well-kempt appearance to strict moral code. Oliver and Luc are foils, or characters who illuminate one another through contrasting qualities. Hall juxtaposes Luc and Oliver to provide the foundation for their future conflicts and reconciliation, underscoring how surface images are not true reflections of a person’s private self.
In the novel, Hall explores The Meaning of Success. Oliver meets traditional definitions of success in almost every way: He works as a lawyer, owns his own home, and seems invested in his personal health. However, the cracks in his public persona are sprinkled even throughout the first few chapters of the novel. His defensiveness about his work as a criminal attorney and lack of relationship success underscore deeper concerns mirrored in Luc’s inner monologue. It becomes clear that Luc and Oliver have much more in common with each other than initially believed, even before the two men realize it themselves.
