Father Material

London Calling #3

by Alexis Hall

First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes...what was that, exactly?

Luc and Oliver have been through it all: fake dating to save Luc's career, I-guess-this-is-actually-for-real dating when all of that blew up spectacularly, (briefly) breaking up over irreconcilable differences, (definitively) getting back together over perfectly reconcilable everything else, (almost) getting married, (finally) moving in together, and ultimately celebrating years of perfect domestic bliss.

But as all their very grown-up-now friends begin reaching new life milestones, advancing careers and having babies, Luc and Oliver decide it's time to open their hearts and lives to something new: a tiny, squirming, adorable bundle of furry joy named Spud.

And maybe now that hearts-and-lives are already open, there's room for someone else. Something more. Something that may require them to find in themselves a little father material.

Genres: Romance, LGBT, Queer, Contemporary, Fiction, Adult, M M Romance

Unknown Binding

Expected publication June 2, 2026

About the author

One of those intricate British queers.

Please note: I don’t read / reply to DMs. If you would like to get in touch, the best way is via email which you can find in the contact section on my website <3

Reviews

[Missa]

Unsure if I'll read this one. Husband Material left me so disappointed I actually started crying and I've never had that happen with a book before in my life.

Judging by how Husband Material ended I assume they'll decide to not have a baby while standing in the adoption centre or while the surrogate mother is giving birth or whatever and go home at the last minute.

I'll check spoilers when this book comes out but after HM I strongly suspect I won't be reading this one, which is a shame since BM was one of my most loved books ever.

[Maisha Farzana]

Please tell me it's a direct sequel of "Husband Material". Luc and Oliver needs a better hea...Even better if they're thinking about 'expanding' the family...😏

[Uly]

I just finished Husband Material (after reading Boyfriend Material over the weekend), and I am excited about Father Material...although trying to cage the excitement a wee bit given it's 2 years away!! Can't wait to catch up with Lucien and Oliver again. They are by far my favourite romance novel couple..and that's saying a lot seen as I've been on somewhat of a binge lately!

[Denise Smith]

After the terrible ending of Husband Material I am going to assume that these two MCs don't actually become fathers. I'll read the reviews before I decide to read this book. I don't want to be set up for disappointment again.

[WlauBlauization]

I dunno. I'm more excited about the unannounced fourth book in the series: Grandfather Material.

[Caleigh Evans]

father material???? shut up, take my money rn

THIS COVER? gorgeous

⋅˚₊‧ ଳ ‧₊˚ ⋅

boyfriend material: ★★★★
husband material: ★★★★
ten things that never happened: -

[Donte]

im rather torn on this. for one thing, i want more luc and oliver. but for another, the reason i want more of them is because they were barely in HM in the first place. the book focused so heavily on everyone else, and weddings 2 and 3 really didnt have to happen. i wish they hadn’t happened. i wish we had spent any time at all with the actual supposed main characters together and talking and not just fighting. why was there so much fighting?

book one felt low stakes and like gradual growth. book two nearly gave me my own very real panic attack by the time luc and oliver were conversing in their first date restaurant and possibly breaking up. again? because they never have conversations in that book.

the thing with this third book. is that i dont want them to be fathers. i think akin to the major plotline in the second book, queer couples do not have to do everything “normal” couples do, and it would kind of be nice for them to simply exist as themselves instead of trying to fit into the same structures as everyone around them, because what works for one couple does not work for every couple, queer or not. but if that is the moral and point they end up at in this third book, which i guess is what id hope for but at the same time would find that to be exceptionally repetitive, then i want it discussed in more than 11 pages—which is the amount of screentime oliver and luc actually spent communicating their feelings about marriage, in one final chapter and half a page from “we’re not getting married” to the end of the book.

i don’t usually read reviews for books, but i’m just going to have to for this one. i hope with all my heart that this book can sort of right the bad taste HM left in my mouth considering how much i adore BM, but i currently only see the options being they adopt kids when neither of them really should be a parent, or they dont and its treated rather the same as the entire second book. fingers crossed that something here surprises me, because i quoted BM as one of my favorite books of all time for quite a while, and it pains me to say it but the sequel kind of ruined that for me. i hate jumping to spoiling the end, but it’s the only way i may be able to read this third installment, and i’m frankly more than a little sad about it

[Elys]

FATHER MATERIAL? FATHER? MATERIAL?

AS IN LUCIEN , OLIVER, BABY? FATHER MATERIAL? MaTerIal?

[~treat-yo-shelves~]

FATHER MATERIAL??? AS IN FATHER??? AS IN DAD???
...wake me up when its 2024

[Rashi]

This is what exams do. This is a direct consequence of going off gr for a year and not reading books I enjoy. Never again. Never ever. Studying can take a backseat. Forever.

I haven't even read husband material yet and I'm realizing this exists!

[Book Riot Community]

Book Riot’s Most Anticipated Books of 2026:

Alexis Hall had been writing for years before Boyfriend Material came out in 2020, but Luc and Oliver’s fake dating story was his breakout. Like most romance authors, Hall usually takes on a new couple in every book, but he continued Luc and Oliver’s comedic, emotionally rich story in 2022’s Husband Material and is now completing the trilogy with the highly anticipated Father Material. Many, many romance readers have connected with the growth and bumps of this particular relationship, so I know I’m not alone in being ready—in a bittersweet way—to see how Hall brings us a final HEA for this opposites-decidedly-attract couple. —Trisha Brown

[Muddy]

god. im not really sure i wanna read this one. Can we all just pretend the second book didnt happen and theyre both actually married? And didnt leave all their guests alone in their wedding venue? How are they gonna be fathers (i assume? by the book name but who knows) if they dont even wanna get married i just dont get it but whatever

[gabs]

STOP I CANT WIATE SKDHIENDIDN

[Dorian McIntush]

FUCKING EXCUSE ME DATHER MATERIAL>>???!!!?!?!!?! HHUUUUH

[Joana]

please please please do not be one of those books that endorses surrogacy women's exploitation

new fear unlocked

Alexis Hall DON'T YOU DARE DISAPPOINT ME

[Sigrid A · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have been watching out for this book ever since Husband Material came out, and it did not disappoint. I was so glad to be back in the world of Luc, Oliver, Odile and Judy, and their excellent group of friends and obnoxious co-workers. In this installment, Luc and Oliver adopt a dog as a trial run at fatherhood before trying out fostering. Hall balances snark, self-deprecation, humor, and genuine emotion in a perfect way so that nothing ever feels too bleak, unserious, or sappy. I liked this installment a little more than Husband Material, and I'm very sad that this is likely to be the last in the series (or, at least, that's what I'm guessing). I highly recommend reading the whole series if you haven't already.

Thanks to Sourcebooks and Edelweiss for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 ⭐️ These boys 😭 I just adore them. What a beautiful ending to their story. Spud and Jaz were delightful. The growth that Luc and Oliver have developed over the years is a damn treat to see in action. I’ll miss London Calling ❤️💙

[NOTE: I didn’t read Husband Material because of the overwhelmingly negative reviews. If you read HM and didn’t like it, and are now hesitant to give Father Material a chance - don’t be! I could follow along with everything even without having read HM. If you loved Boyfriend Material, trust me, read this one.]

[Alicia]

I KNEW this would happen, I just knew there would be a third book and this would be the title. That was all I could think about while reading Husband Material, especially by the end. It just made so much sense that we would end up here, so I was SO sure, I JUST KNEW. Seeing the confirmation right here just makes me INSANELY happy! I can't have enough of Luc and Oliver.

[Chaya · Rating 5 out of 5]

AAAAASDHDHHEHDBDBEHSJSJEJ NEED ITTTT

[Apolinar Kevin · Rating 5 out of 5]

this book is realy good

[lulun]

realmente espero que, si se van a convertir en padres, el libro esté ambientado al menos 5 años después de husband material y los dos hayan solucionado toda su mierda y, por favor (!!!!!!), lleven a lucien con un psicólogo

[Tippy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book so much I can't even describe it. Luc and Oliver are the literal best couple and this was such a lovely addition to their story. I seriously could not stop laughing while reading. At this point you'd think I would know better than to read Alexis Hall books while at work because I always end up cackling like a loon. I know a lot of people hated the way Husband Material ended but I thought it was perfect for their characters and Father Material is a nearly flawless continuation of their relationship. They are not perfect people, they are both incredibly flawed, but they love each other so deeply and that is what makes them so amazing. Also, Tom is, and will probably always be, my favorite side character. He is still unapologetically bisexual and he's still not fucking here for your bi erasure. And I still need a prequel book of him dating Luc and then falling in love with Bridge, even just a short story would be fine, give me something. Anyway, this book, this series, is amazing and I'm looking forward to the spinoffs.

[Luis Johnson]

Pleaseeee let Joe Jameson do the audiobook! Is all I ask

[Danielle Hilliard · Rating 5 out of 5]

Actual review 4.5 stars

I read this off the back of a reread of Boyfriend Material which ended up being a bit of serendipity - I wanted a comfort read and then Father Material popped up on Netgalley.

First up, I absolutely loved this book. It had all the things I loved about Boyfriend Material but had even extra heart. I laughed so many times, I was a gooey mess with the feels and the epilogue made me cry but they were bitter-sweet tears of both the thing that happened at the end but that this is the last book we'll have with Luc and Oliver.

Thank you so much to Sourcebooks and Netgalley for the eARC and because I'm away from my family setting other family and I can't get the hug I want, I've left an honest review

[Jenn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hall's hilarious dialogue is front and center in his newest addition to the London Calling series and you won't be able to put this one down! Luc and Oliver have been through it in Boyfriend Material and the Husband Material. But you know, "first comes love, then comes marriage" so you know what's next! That's right, an adorable rescue dog that looks like a big potato! And maybe if they can get dog parenting down, they might be ready for more?

Oliver was SO INSUFFERABLE in this one! I mean, that was the point, but still! It made it hard to read at points. Still, this was a fun one and I enjoyed it.

[Emma Stevensby · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this one! The same very charming humor as the rest of the series, but we got a little more character development for both of them, particularly Oliver. If you felt disappointed in Husband Material for the ending, I don't think you'll feel the same way about this one. Their journey to parenthood is unsurprisingly not simple. The story of Luc and Oliver feels more resolved, though, although if there was another book about them, I'd still read it.

If you're deciding whether or not to read this one, I imagine you've already read the other two. If you liked them, I bet you'll like this one, too. Still charming and funny, still complicated protagonist and love interest who don't do everything right. If you felt let down by Husband Material, I'd give this one a shot. If you didn't like either of them, why are you still going?

Luc's mom is still my favorite character.

Thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Casablanca for early access!

[ChesLea]

I remember reading Husband Material and getting so excited when I saw that there was a third book, set to come out in October 2024. My thoughts were: "Wow! Two whole years from now? I'll be a sophomore!" And now it's supposed to come out in December of 2025? I don't want to wait until I'm a junior. I'm still extremely excited, but... 2025 :(

[Liron Goldstein · Rating 3 out of 5]

אני מחכה לזה כלכך ויודעת שאני עומדת לאהוב את זה
13.9.23😭😭

[TarieZvikoe · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked boyfriend and husband material ,but was hoping Luc to be more mature or he might put the baby in the washing machine 😅

[Mara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Can't wait🫶🏼