Dear Alison Cochrun

I recently finished Alison Cochrun's The Charm Offensive (Atria Books, 2021), and I felt compelled to write a fan letter.

Dear Alison Cochrun,

I was lucky enough to find your book, The Charm Offensive, in one of my neighborhood's little free libraries. How it ended up there, I do not know, but I know I was meant to find it.

I live with anxiety and depression, and that means, among other things, that sometimes I put off doing stuff even if I will enjoy it. And so, I began The Charm Offensive, but somehow I couldn't manage to pick it up again for a while, even though I had been enjoying it thoroughly.

That was, until I did.

I committed to myself that I would read 25 pages a day and finish the book, but I ended up reading the remaining ~200 pages that night, work in the morning be damned. I just could not put it down. Even though I knew Dev and Charlie would find a happy ending (as the romance genre promises), I could not predict exactly how they'd get there or what it'd look like. Although I am not a queer man, I strongly identified with Dev and his perception of everyone wanting him to be "fun Dev" all the time. I have often feared that, at best, people will tolerate my "unfun Holly" side, and have rarely seen a future where a romantic partner not only tolerates that side but also embraces it and helps me navigate it.

I loved the path that Dev and Charlie each took over the course of the book to get to know themselves better, find the help and support they needed (including recognizing the supports they already had), and open up to one another (as well as other loved ones). It was so genuine and realistic in a way that sometimes romance novels falter in delivering.

When I picked up The Charm Offensive, I anticipated a fairy tale to whisk me away with a dash of poking fun or turning a critical eye on romance reality TV. What I did not anticipate was identifying so strongly with the story and feeling so seen.

I thank you for writing this book (as I thank whoever left it in the little free library).

Your fan,

Holly

(Prompt by me)

The Charm Offensive: A Novel by Alison Cochrun, Atria Books

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