*I received this book free from Gallery Books via NetGalley.*

Millie and her four single guy friends are kind of like a geek squad. Scientific minds, zero game. Which is why they decide they need dates for a special upcoming event and decide to try a dating app. Of course before everyone's profiles go live Millie and Reid cross that invisible best friend line and have a night both will never forget making it a little difficult to go back to the way it was before. Although they both give it a try, they keep finding themselves unable to keep their hands (and bodies) to themselves.

"I really, really want sex tonight," she admits. "Specifically, I'd like sex with you, but if you're weirded out by this, then it's cool if you leave and I dive into the drawer of sin in my bedroom."

When Reid gets a match on the dating app who seems sweet and beautiful it drives Millie a little green with jealousy so when her second profile matches up with him she can't help, but respond. Although her intentions are pure at the beginning she realizes that she likes being open with Reid like this. She can be herself without feeling likes she's oversharing her emotions. Problem is she's falling for him and he doesn't even know it's her, which leaves him confused because he wants them both.

Even best friends can't always survive deceit, but add in a broken heart on top of it and nothing will ever be the same.

My Favorite Half-Night Stand is endearing with sprinkles of humor. I loved the comradery between the friends. They all had such unique personalities that their friendship actually held the book together. The were the glue while Millie and Reid figured out their stuff. Can't beat a book with several wonderful characters!

My Favorite Half Night stand was completely adorable. The characters in this book were all great. I loved the dynamic and their friendships. Millie, hands down, stole the show. Her personality is infectious, she’s funny, and brilliant. I truly loved everything about her. I really enjoyed Reid as well he’s the type of guy you would definitely want to take home to your parents.

Millie and Reid seemed perfect for each other from the beginning, but what kind of book would it be if there wasn’t a little fork in the road. This was a light, fun, read about friends to lovers and I completely devoured it. I truly enjoyed it.

Christina Lauren delights readers with a modern day tale of dating and disasters in My Favorite Half-Night Stand!

Millie Morris, a professor at UC Santa Barbara, along with her four best guy friends attempt to navigate the online dating world in order to have a plus one for the University's upcoming gala. Things get complicated though after a half-night stand with her best friend and fellow university professor, Reid Campbell. Deciding to keep their relationship strictly platonic despite that one hot night, they set up their profiles and wait for their results. The guys are instantly bombarded with matches, but Millie's results are meager. Wanting to shake things up, she secretly makes a second profile under an alter ego, adding to it what she was too afraid to say as herself. And what do you know, Reid comes up as her match. Not wanting to out herself but curious to see where it might lead, Millie begins an online relationship with Reid as Catherine, while their relationship in real life also deepens. When Reid begins to fall in love with both Millie and Catherine, Millie must learn to expose both parts of herself before Reid finds out her secret and she looses him as both a friend, and a lover.

My Favorite Half-Night Stand was a cute and fun story that tugged on my heartstrings. The author duo weaves an ingenious story-line full of raw wit and fresh insight into today's online dating world. With an entertaining cast of characters, there wasn't a dull moment to be had. Millie was an endearing leading lady who is a criminologist with a bit of a lady serial-killer obsession. She's emotionally closed off, but tries to hide that fact with a wicked sense of humor. While she could be frustrating at times because of this, and the conflicts that it caused in her life, I think we can find a little piece of Millie in all of us. Her authenticity shined bright from the pages. The story is told is dual point of views, so readers also get insight into Reid's persona as well. Loyal and charming, he really is an all-around nice guy who just happens to he incredibly hot as well. He shouldn't have any problem getting a date himself but tends to focus more on his work life than any personal one. Reid irked me a little towards the end of the story, but I enjoyed his character overall. His family was fun as well. These two had a pulse-pounding chemistry and when they finally gave into it, it left me tingling in all of the right places.

This romantic comedy had a little bit of everything. Secrets, betrayals, misunderstandings, forgiveness, reveals, love, and friendship. The flow of the plot was great, and how the chat's between Chris, Ed, Alex, Millie, and Reid were depicted was a brilliant touch. My Favorite Half-Night Stand was a thrilling friends-to-lovers novel that I loved every moment of, and I dare you not to love a Christina Lauren book!

4.5 laugh out loud Stars!! Loved it!

My Favorite Half-Night Stand by Christina Lauren is another fabulous friends to lovers RomCom with a quirky cast of characters that are warmly endearing, zany and laugh out loud funny! These are characters I would hang out with.

Millie and Reid stole my heart. Their friendship is such an important relationship, despite Millie being a bit closed off when it comes to sharing details about herself. Yet she knows him and all the guys so well. But things change between them one night. They say it won’t be weird. They say it won’t be awkward. They say it won’t change things. We know that’s so untrue! So begins the dance!

The push/pull is intense. The banter is witty, sarcastic and fun. I especially love the group chats and texts. So funny, relevant and relatable! Enter the online dating app, personal profiles, along with an accidental secret profile and hilarity ensues along with enough angst to have me a bit anxious at the outcome when it all comes to light.

Authors Christina Lauren never disappoint. My Favorite Half-Night Stand (a term I love) is a wonderful addition to their amazing collection. It is funny, sexy, sweet with just enough angst and surprises that will keep you laughing and turning pages to the end. Definitely recommend. Although it is a stand-alone, I’m hoping some of the other characters end up getting their own book.

Another hilarious, sexy, sweet and fun read by the dynamic duo - Christina Lauren. These two never fail in delivering a best-selling romance book! My Favorite Half-Night Stand is about best friends, who find that their one soulmate is the one person in their little group - staring right at you in the face. It just takes time to figure that out.

Christina Lauren is the amazingly witty writing duo that will capture your heart with each new book they write. They’ve been favorites of mine since the beautiful bastard series released and I just know that when I pick up a Christina Lauren novel, I’m sure to get lost and in love.

My Favorite Half-Night Stand is a new and exciting twist on online dating. It’s filled with humor, sexiness, and most of all, thought-provoking situations where you just have to stop and ask yourself is this okay? or what if I were in these characters’ shoes?

Millie was the only girl in her group and she was okay with that. She fit and their relationships worked. I loved her unique personality and how she seemed strong yet vulnerable all at once. She was relatable, and I connected with her immediately. Christina Lauren did an amazing job of showing us how hard it was for Millie to open up emotionally and let her guard down. I think any woman can relate to that.

Reid is the type of guy you can’t help but fall head over heels for. He’s witty, down-to-earth, and sexy as hell. Together Millie and Reid fit…as friends and, come to find out, as more when a celebratory drink leads to a hot rendezvous for them.

Yes, you heard me the two friends share a night of hot, hot passion but later decided to keep their friendship platonic. So with a huge gala event for work coming up the group of friends do what any single person in the 21st century would do….they try online dating. It goes okay for the guys, but for Millie it’s nothing but d*ck pics and creeps. This pushes Millie to create a second profile that is the real her, not the person she has built herself up to be.

From here the book progresses at a good pace and we see the dynamic of Millie and Reid’s relationship easily. Even with Millie’s newest profile the chemistry between the two main characters is always there along with the heavy dose of friendship that seems genuine and real.

Overall, this is a great read and I finished it all in one day. Christina Lauren never ceases to amaze me with her down-to-earth characters and well written plots. I loved every second of My Favorite Half-Night Stand.

***Thanks so much to Gallery Books and Netgalley for the arc***

FINAL DECISION: This was okay. Not great but not terrible. I enjoyed a once through reading, but never really connected with the heroine, and the hero was way too accommodating of her.

THE STORY: Millie Morris is one of the guys, the only woman hanging out with a group of male friends. But one night, she and her "best friend" Reid Campbell end up having sex. Millie doesn't want to ruin her friendship so she insists that the two date. Along with their friends Millie and Reid sign up for an online dating service. But when Millie doesn't like her profile, she decides to sign up for a new one under a different name and is surprised when she and Reid are matched. So while Millie and Reid are dancing around one another in real life, Millie's alter ego and Reid are hitting it off online.

OPINION: This book was okay, but all the interesting parts in the blurb really felt like insignificant to the actual story. First, there is little with Millie's interest in serial killers. She might have been interested in polar bears and it would have made no difference to the story. It's only a tiny part of this book even though it was part of what peaked my interest in this book. Second, I didn't find the online connection as compelling as I expected. There didn't seem much to it and the two only communicated for a short period. I have read other stories with online dating and this one didn't work as well.

I really loved Reid and honestly, I spent most of the book thinking that he was much too good for Millie. She didn't feel closed up, she felt like a jerk for most of the book. Unfortunately, while that gets resolved, her dogged determination to not share even basic facts -- her middle name? -- with her "friends" made her seemed like she needs a whole lot of therapy rather than a relationship.

On the plus side, I really enjoyed the relationship between all the friends. That felt fun and lighthearted. I thought that the complications that arise as Millie and Reid's relationship developed were funny and I enjoyed seeing the difficulties that arose. I also really liked the good parts of Millie and Reid's relationship as the two moved from friends to lovers. Their interactions in real life made me smile.

Overall the book was okay, but not as good as I wanted it to be. Readers who just want a fun romcom would probably enjoy this more.

WORTH MENTIONING: I wish that the other friends hadn't had their stories resolved, it might have been an interesting series.

CONNECTED BOOKS: MY FAVORITE HALF-NIGHT STAND is a standalone.

STAR RATING: I give this book 3 stars.

NOTE: I received an ARC of this book via Netgalley in helping to prepare this review. I was not required to write a review or to write a positive review. All opinions contained herein are my own.

I really loved this book. It had a great group of friends, realistic conversations between these friends, and I felt like I was a part of the group. And the best part, some of them were nerds! I love when books show that yes, nerds too can find love.

I always end up developing a crush on Christina Lauren’s male characters and this book was no different. Reid was such a sweetheart!

Likewise, this author’s female leads are always women who I’d be friends with in real life; smart, independent women. Millie could definitely be described like this and she was a joy to read.

Overall, this book was entertaining, witty, romantic, and I was very happy with it!

i really enjoyed this one! i had high expectations after josh & hazel, but i've just come to expect good things from this author duo. i had a hard time relating to millie sometimes, though i absolutely loved her thoughts about her dad - that sounds heartless, but so many times in books characters are all selfless or have no issues with family (unless they are hardcore no relationship issues) and it was nice to see realistic thoughts and feelings about a loved one who needs help. not sure if that even makes sense. anywho, the characters really shine in this one, i loved all of them and their relationships/friendships. it was a very sweet book and i definitely recommend. can't wait for their next one!

What a super-cute story!! Millie and her buddies join a dating site to find dates for an important work function. She's not impressed with her profile so creates an "alter-ego" profile. What could possibly go wrong? This book takes a hilarious look at online dating and how who you get to know online might not match with the person once you meet IRL. SHOCKING! It's a sweet and sexy friends-to-friends with benefits-to-lovers story. Reid is sweet and sensitive while Millie is sweet but incredibly closed off. The supporting characters and the banter between friends create a real, loving, hilarious backdrop. Fun read!!

This was a friends to lovers romance with a group of friends, four of whom are guys and then there is Millie. Millie is an extreme introvert, one of the guys. She and Reid, one of the fivesome of best friends actually have an attraction to each other but are not consciously aware that it exists. I loved their journey to finding each other but also to finding out who each was individually and what they wanted in their lives. This was such an enjoyable read and i am certain it will be a hit with those who like Rom Cons. Christina Lauren write such wonderful stories and i am so glad i found her as an author.

Final Score - 5 Stars!

This book blew me away with it's own unique brand of cheekiness, wacky, sensual, LOL moments I had such a difficult time putting it down, but alas a girl needs sleep - and sadly this girl needed some!

Millie and Reid ... I'm not sure who I was frustrated more with! I wanted to bash them against the other's head quite frankly speaking. I could see the writing on the wall that these two "got" each other in a way no one else would. Their emotional journey towards that is what solidified their endearing qualities to me. I totally ship and heart Millie and Reid.

I loved the slow, in depth build up of getting to know these characters, flaws and all. I do hope that Ed and/or Alex gets their own book. I would love that!

This is a definite must read if you love reading about the ups and downs of the dating scene & trying to find the one - as well as the comedy of trial and error that takes place along the way. Christina Lauren has written a gem that leaves in you both laughter and tears but with good feelings afterward that will surely have you running to tell your closest girlfriends about.

As a criminology professor with a particular interest in female serial killers, Millie Morris’ dating life is in dire need of resuscitation. To be honest she’s more than happy spending countless hours towards research for her book deal, but an upcoming black tie gala at the university forces her to dissect her dating life.

Her first thought (and most easy option) is to ask one of her four best friends who also happen to be her co-workers. Like her they are all career driven professors, and more interested in reading the latest educational journal than trawling through dating apps. But not ones to shy away from a challenge they come up with an alcohol fuelled plan to create dating profiles and secure genuine potential love interests to take as their plus ones to the gala.

Although they are all firm friends Millie has always had the closest relationship with Reid. When she allows herself to, she can admit to the underlying sexual tension that escapes through the layers and layers of denial. It’s been a long time coming *wags eyebrows* but they eventually give into the low-key raging attraction between them. It’s the most intense experience she’s ever had, but thought of ruining her friendship with Reid is greater than the unknown of exploring things further, so they mutually agree to keep things platonic.

Maybe it’s because she’s the only female in the gang but Millie gets roped into creating an honest but interesting profiles for each of them. Officially she resents doing it, but unofficially it’s kinda fun. A by-product when it comes to her own profile is it starts to expose just how little she offers personally/emotionally in both her friends and relationships.

What starts as a simple idea quickly escalates into hilarious escapades and dating disasters. What should be a distraction from her attraction to Reid only serves to heighten it, and results in some actions that are far from friendly.

I absolutely adored the supporting cast and I’m secretly hoping this will develop into a series.

This year has seen me become a huge fan of Christina Lauren. They have pretty much monopolized my favourite reads shelf this year, and with this swipe right romance I image the same will be said by many others.

3.5-3.75 stars. This was a pretty good book. My favorite half-night stand is Reid and Millie's book. Millie and Reid are friends and colleagues, both professors at a university. They are part of a friend group with 3 other male professors that spend all their time together, with Millie being just another one of the guys. They are all single, so the friends decide to join an online dating website to find dates to a faculty party. One night, while drunk, Millie makes a move on Reid and they have a "half-night stand", where they hook up, but don't spend the night together. They both agree it was a one-time thing, and it came out of nowhere seemingly, as they had never thought of each other romantically before. They both enter the world of online dating, and Millie begins mistakenly "catfishing" Reid. Things get really complicated between them, fast. But they manage to work it all out between them and fall for each other.

As someone who didn't love the last few Christina Lauren books, I did feel this book was an improvement. I do think it's worth reading. It is a good story, has emotion and complicated characters with depth, as well as good writing. It is not a bad book at all. For me, though, what's missing was chemistry. I wanted to feel more of a spark between Reid and Millie. I also wanted to see them actually together in a relationship before the epilogue. I did like Reid and Millie. They're likable, easy to identify with characters. I do think that when the big conflict came to light, Reid was a bit rougher on Millie than I wanted. I felt pretty bad for her. I thought if he loved her and understood why she was the way she was, he should be a little more understanding. Still, I did enjoy the book. It had some serious moments, some emotional ones, and some lighter, funny ones.

Overall, I do think this is a book worth reading. I just didn't totally fall in love with it. Still, you should read it for yourself and see what you think. In the meantime, I will just keep holding out hope that Christina Lauren will write another sexy couple with good chemistry that I can really truly love. I need another Will and Hannah.

My Favorite Half-Night Stand tells the story of moving beyond the friend zone.

Reid, Chris, Alex, Ed and Millie are best friends and colleagues. They are all scientists and teachers at University of California Santa Barbara. When their college schedules a black tie dinner with President Obama, they worry about finding dates. They decide to use IRL, an online dating site to find some.

Millie’s real IRL profile attracts just douches and dick pics. Millie decides to create another profile for “Cat”. When she is matched with Reid, she becomes unexpectedly honest behind the anonymous profile and they hit it off. In the meantime, Reid and Millie have a somewhat drunken night of hot sex. They try to return to just being friends afterwards. But why is Millie jealous of Reid’s IRL girl Daisy? And why is Reid asking Millie about the mysterious Guy who she met on IRL? He doesn’t even realize Guy is actually him.

It is easy to see parallels between this story and Pride and Prejudice. In the latter book, British rules of politeness prevent the speaking of one’s mind. In My Favorite Half-Night Stand, it is nerdy shyness and introversion that prevents Reid and Millie from talking about their feelings. Overall, this a great book for a cold winter evening when you just want to settle in your book nook with some undemanding chick lit. 4 stars!

Thanks to Gallery Books and NetGalley for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

Millie Morris is just one of the guys- literally. She’s 1 of 5 friends who work as professors at UC Santa Barbara and meet for meals, video games and hanging out.\
Millie is emotionally distance and private.
Even her best friend of the group, Reid only know surface facts about her – even after their friendship ends up with some half-night benefits.

All 5 friends decide to join an online dating service to find a date for a university gala.
When Millie’s 1st profile attempt only attracts the creeps, she decides to create a second one using her middle name with an artsy photo that hides her face.
The dating app. matches her second profile with Reid and their “anonymous” pen paling allows her to open up to him about her personal life, fears, and regrets.
Reid begins to fall for her

Millie throws out some subtle hints via direct message assuming Reid will figure out it’s her, but when he doesn’t and their online chatting also allows her to gain a better understanding of her friend, she lets it go on too long to confess.

Any other info. Is a spoiler and it’s more fun to read it for yourself.
The story is told from both Millie and Reid’s POV with the friend’s group chat conversation interspersed.

With the writing duo’s sense of humor, unique take on romance and smart witty banter, My Favorite Half-Night Stand is a page-turner just like their previous books.
If you never got around to reading Josh and Hazel’s Guide to Not Dating, read that one too.

4.5

Millie has always felt most comfortable as "one of the guys". A professor at UC Santa Barbara specializing in female serial killers she, along with her four best guy friends - Chris, Alex, Ed, and Reid - are pretty much perpetually single. As a unit, they've been fine with this. But when their school's annual gala pretty much requires them to bring dates, they all agree to sign up with a dating app in hopes of changing their social status.

However, after they've made this agreement, Millie and Reid spend one half-night together. Afterwards, they tell themselves that, for friendship's sake, it cannot go any farther. They then both proceed with the dating app, Millie unsuccessfully and Reid not-so-unsuccessfully. When Millie modifies her dating profile, she winds up being paired with Reid. The problem is: Millie used a fake name Catherine. Now that "Catherine" and Reid are messaging back and forth, Millie finds she can open up to him in a way she can't when they're face-to-face. But as the charade deepens ever further, and Reid begins falling for Catherine and Millie separately, Millie risks losing Reid entirely.

Lately, Christina Lauren have been hitting it out of the park with their romantic comedies and My Favorite Half-Night Stand can be added to that list.

The downward spiral that Millie finds herself in is at times both hilarious and heartrending. After the death of her mother at a young impressionable age, Millie taught herself to close off, never revealing too much of herself or her feelings. The freedom she feels when she creates the Catherine persona is wonderful, but you also know it's not the right thing to do. Especially when your best guy friend, could-potentially-turn-into-more-than-just-a-friend is caught in the middle.

The book is extremely quick-paced as we draw to the natural conclusion of how Millie comes clean to Reid and what it means for their relationship in the end. I found it full of sweetness.

I loved the group dynamic between the four guys and Millie. In her quest to figure out how to get Catherine out of the picture, we see Millie leaning on the guys for help, thereby revealing more of her feelings to them than she ever has before, and acknowledging that it's ok to talk to people about your feelings. This group is wonderful and the various hints and glimpses we get of everyone makes me hope that Ed and Alex and Chris will also get their own books (please!!).

I felt like Half-Night was a twisted version of You Got Mail that justifiably deals with the fact of one person hoodwinking their friend (or someone they want as a friend) or more.

I felt like Christina Lauren dealt with the situation very well. I think it's safe to say and agree to the fact that Millie should have been forthright with Reid from the beginning, but I also found the way the situation continued to spiral out of control very plausible.

If you've enjoyed other books by Christina Lauren, I can't see where this one would disappoint. It'll keep your eyes glued to the page as you make it to the inevitable conclusion.

"I want to rub Purell on my brain. Trying to be cool about banging your best friend is a lot harder than I would have anticipated."


While a funny and modern take on the friends-to-lovers trope, this book felt a bit rushed to me and it is definitely not the first book I would recommend from this dynamic writing duo.

What I loved: Millie is smart and accomplished and very, very funny. I loved the scenes between Millie and Reid, one of her very best friends. They spend a very hot few hours together one night (the "half-night stand" of the title) but decide to go back to being just best friends.

Despite their mutual attraction for each other, Millie and Reid decide to create online dating profiles to secure dates to a university black-tie formal (which never even occurred, or if it did, I completely missed it).

“So,” she says out of the quiet, “in the interest of returning to Best Friendship, we should probably find other dates for commencement.”

“Looks like it.”

Millie actually creates a fake dating profile and lo and behold, Reid is a match! He thinks she is a woman named "Catherine". Their correspondence was very witty and I really liked the story but somehow the resolution felt rushed and a little forced. I thought there would be more the conclusion. With that said, I loved the clever plot, and I can always count on the authors to deliver on the witty dialogue.

"Basically, I need Reid out of my space. Not because I want him out of my space, exactly, but because I’m feeling the same way I felt the night of his tenure party—like it might not be such a terrible idea to invite Reid into my bed, and I’m thinking these things while he’s reading a message from another woman. Who is actually me . . . Hello, twenty-first-century predicaments."

This is a cute, modern story that you might like if you want a fast-paced, sexy romance with a happy ending. Reading is totally subjective so definitely give this one a try if you're a fan of Christina Lauren!

Christina Lauren is one of my favorite authors when I need, what I like to call, a pallet cleanse. You know, when you've been reading something that's super heavy and you're ready for some light and fluffy? Or you've immersed yourself in a fantasy world and you need a nice dose of reality before you dig into a new one? YEAH! That's when I start looking for one of their books (or something similar). This one came at the perfect time for me.

As someone with quite a few single friends, the synopsis for this one really appealed to me. Online dating both intrigues and terrifies me. Haven't you ever seen Catfish?!? MY FAVORITE HALF-NIGHT STAND is the story of Millie Morris and her 4 male best-friends (and co-workers). By the end of the third chapter I was pretty sure I knew where this story was going. But you know what? Sometimes predictable doesn't mean bad. Especially when it comes to CL books. I feel like they still keep things fresh and interesting. The dynamics of this crew of friends was really the glue of this story. I enjoyed watching everything unfold.

If you're like me and just need a quick, lighthearted and fun read, then I definitely recommend picking this one up. It's got humor, comradery, and a wonderful friends to lovers story with an ending that will leave you grinning from ear to ear!

**Complimentary copy provided through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

From the text conversations to the confusion over dating apps and all of the adorable banter in between, I freaking loved this book! It was cute and fresh and just had me wishing I was a part of this group of friends who looked out for one another, nosed in each others business, and created their own family with bonds stronger than blood.

With Obama coming to speak at a university function, Millie and her four male colleagues and best friends need to find dates. But with options being slim, this geeky chic group decide to head online to find love. Millie has trouble with opening up to people, but when she creates a profile as an alter-ego of her true self, she is matched with Reid, one of her best friends.

In real life, Millie and Reid begin a “friends with benefits” relationship. The physical connection between this pair is great, but emotionally Millie is still closed off. Ironically, “online Millie” has no problem opening up to Reid. The problem? Reid is unaware of who he is talking with and falling for online, just as he falls deeper in love with Millie IRL.

Told from dual points of view, I had trouble putting this story down. It was unique and modern and full of characters I just adored. I did have a few moments where I wanted to smack the Millie and found myself almost yelling at my kindle, but beside those feelings of angst, I thoroughly enjoyed myself and this fun, heartfelt story.

4.5 stars