Passion Project by London Sperry
Contemporary Romance
April 8, 2025, by Penguin Books

Review by Melanie

Let me be very upfront before I get into the real bones of this book that this book may not be for everyone. It is, as some would term it, a Sad Girl Romance ™. (I don’t know who coined that phrase, it certainly wasn’t me). It is also a CAPITAL S Slow Burn romance – there is an open door sex scene but the first kiss doesn’t even occur until 70% in so again, if all that is not your jam, then this book is not for you. It’s a single POV first person book (again, I know a lot of people have opinions and are very particular about that, I’m just not one of them). I just want to be clear that even though SPOILER ALERT, I’m giving this book an A, it is very much a “your mileage may vary” type of book and I understand that under current times, a book that deals heavily with grief and depression may not be everyone’s cup of tea. Frankly, I’m shocked it was mine and I don’t mean for that to come out as a backhanded compliment. I’ve just been really leaning into fun and frothy romances lately and did not expect a romance with such heavy themes to grip me the way it did. 

The Sad Girl in this book is Bennet Taylor, named by her mom for her favorite Jane Austen heroine. To call her a Sad Girl is really underselling it because there are some major on page depictions of depression. Bennet is living and working as a temp in NYC, fulfilling her late boyfriend’s dream of moving to NYC. Unfortunately, Sam never got the chance to live out his dream so Bennet is essentially living his dream for him even though she herself has no real passion, not for the city or for her dead end jobs or really even her very existence. 

Enter Henry Adams, waiter/bartender by day (and night) and also a photographer. When Bennet’s friend and roommate sets her up with Henry, she stands him up for their first date only to run into him at the restaurant he works at in the most awkward way possible. One thing leads to another and Henry offers to be her friend and help her find her passion, leading to various fun adventures, one of which cemented the fact that I am indeed very afraid of heights. (Seriously, props to the author for vividly describing one of their planned activities with such specificity that just reading about it actually made me a little dizzy and I was like “NOPE, NOT DOING THAT EVER”). 

Bennet makes it very clear to Henry that she is not looking nor is she ready to date. She is still grieving her first love who passed away a couple of years ago. She is deep in mourning and unable to allow anyone into her life. She has alienated herself from her closest friends, including her roommate, from her parents, has dropped out of college, and finds herself lost and scared that everyone else in her life is just leaving her behind.

Henry, despite his charming affability, also has some baggage of his own, related to his father who has dementia. While Bennet seems perfectly content to wrap herself in her grief and sadness, Henry puts on a facade of delightful exuberance, covering up the inner angst hiding beneath. 

The depictions of grief and depression in this book aren’t sugar coated and there’s a particular line about grief that resonated so strongly with me for very personal reasons. In comparing her grief over Sam to Henry’s grief over his father, Bennet has this very astute realization:

“I realize just how different our experiences of grief are. Sam was gone in a second. Before I knew it, he was a memory. But losing someone slowly must be like having the person and the memory of them alive at the same time.” 

As the weeks turn to months, the two grow closer and closer despite Bennet’s assertions that she’s not ready, could maybe never be ready to love another as she loved Sam. Adding to the complications are the fact that her alienated best friend Andy, is also Sam’s sister, and things between Bennet and Henry (and Andy) come to an emotional head when Bennet and Henry head to California for Andy’s wedding. 

For the longest time Bennet feels unworthy of love, maybe even of life, and part of the reason she pushes everyone away is a form of punishment she’s inflicting on herself. While this is very much a romance, it’s also about Bennet’s emotional journey, about the discoveries she makes, by herself and with Henry, about how resilient and strong she is, about the importance of opening up and surrounding herself with the ones who love her. 

This is a book that made me feel and ache and there were parts of it that made me think about my own grief journey. This isn’t a book I can just blanket recommend to all because of the heavy themes but for me, personally, it absolutely worked. 

Grade: A

Content Notes: themes of grief and loss, on page depression, mention of father suffering from dementia, mention of therapy