The Boyfriend Algorithm

Book excerpt: Technology is easy. Relationships? Not so much. When introverted computer engineer Charlie Forrester developed a passive matchmaking model for her doctoral dissertation, she never expected it to go beyond theoretical. Now, with her dream job on the line, she has thirty days to prove her program’s accuracy. The only problem? She’s the test subject, and her stupid algorithm has chosen watchdog reporter Daniel Shawn, her childhood best friend-turned-nemesis, as her perfect partner. Notorious for his relentless pursuit of technology fraud, Daniel’s reputation tanked when he fell victim to an online matchmaking con. When he discovers evidence of a scam reboot, he’s convinced it’s the perfect story to redeem his career. Charlie has awkwardness down to a science, but a relationship with Daniel could mean more than simple humiliation. If he discovers her algorithm uses the same concepts as the sting that ruined him, he could destroy her professional credibility forever. But as Charlie gradually emerges from her techno-cave, she realizes that being outed as the “Love Programmer” might be less devastating than actual love. (The Boyfriend Algorithm is a retitled and slightly expanded edition of Lost in Geeklandia.)