This is a easy reading New Adult romance that has a friends to lovers trope and has characters that are all in college.

I haven’t been in college in a really long time and the main characters in this book were more my kids’ ages than mine but the story of complex feelings and trying to stay in a relationship just because you feel it’s the right thing to do is both ageless and timeless.

I thoroughly enjoyed Emily’s three roommates. They all had different personalities but were true friends to Emily. I also enjoyed Dylan and Zack’s youngest brother, Nick. He is a high school senior in this book and is only in a few chapters towards the end but he is full on sassy and I look forward to seeing more of him in the other books.

I liked the ending to this book because we have a conclusion but there are long range family dynamic issues that have yet to be resolved which would make since since those sort of wounds don’t heal quickly.

Emily and Dylan have been best friends since they can remember. Like peas and carrots, peanut butter and jelly, macaroni and cheese, and hot cocoa and marshmallows, they've been side by side since second grade. Even when Emily started dating Dylan's brother, Zach, five years ago, their bond remained strong.

Except that, Dylan has always secretly wanted more. Being Emily's best friend is better than nothing though, right? And his new relationship with Denise is ok, too.

As Zach heads into his senior year of college, busy with football practice, a demanding class schedule, games, and NFL aspirations, his relationship with Emily seems to fall by the wayside. Even when one or the other makes the 5-hour drive to see each other, Zach is partying, drinking in excess, and being hounded by media and fans. This is definitely not what Emily had in mind for her long-term, long-distance relationship, but maybe it's what comes with the territory of dating a great college football player?

Things all come to a head when Zach asks Dylan to hold onto an engagement ring he's purchased in anticipation of proposing. A punch to his heart and a huge wakeup call, Dylan begins to realize that his long-held hopes of Zach and Emily's relationship fizzling out could be history. And when Emily finds the ring in Dylan's backpack, even more drama ensues.

Will these two find their way to each other, or will Dylan forever end up in the friend zone as Emily's brother-in-law?

I inhaled this cute friends-to-lovers romcom in an afternoon, and not only did I enjoy the romance, but I also loved the supporting characters, including Emily's three roommates and Dylan's friend, Mike. My only hangup with this one was the supreme lack of communication between Emily, Zach, and Dylan. So many assumptions were made, and instead of talking to the other person, elaborate schemes and plans were put into place that just led to more drama and misunderstandings. Thankfully, Mike and Emily's roommates were there to talk some sense into both of them, and the HEA was exactly the comfort I was looking for!

Stalling for Time is book one in the Kiss & Tell series, so definitely stay tuned for my thoughts on the rest of this series!

2.5/5 I wanted to like this book...but I just didn't. This has one of my least favorite tropes: miscommunication. If people had just talked to each other, instead of creating deceitful and elaborate plans to get information, it may have been more enjoyable. We also have a bit of a love triangle (which can be a hit or miss trope) and I just didn't like or care about any of the characters in it.

This being said, I don't think this is a poorly written book or that these characters are irredeemable. The plot and characters just didn't resonate with me. Overall, it's a sweet romance with college students trying to figure things out and I think there are a lot of people out there who will love this story, it's just not for me.

Synopsis:



Zach and Emily have been dating since high school. Dylan is Emily’s best friend and Zach’s brother.



Emily finds an engagement and doesn’t think Dylan should be thinking about marriage when he barely knows his girlfriend. She sets out to find out if he really cares about her. In doing so she discovers more than she intends.

Review:



Emily was rather annoying. Her friends tried to tell her she needs to just tell Dylan she saw the ring. She insist on secrets and plotting to find out if he really cares for his girlfriend enough to marry her. This to me is not something you would do to your best friend. The secrets and set ups are ridiculous. Why can they not just talk to one another like adults.



The distance with her boyfriend but not wanting to just break things off with him and always having an excuse really annoyed me. I think the story line is actually probably pretty obscured enough to actually happen in real life. Seems that people are actually this ridiculous.



It is a pretty quick read if you want all the college student/high school drama it entails. I’m not sure what I was hoping for but this wasn’t it. I liked Dylan and Emily’s friendship. Dylan would be an excellent boyfriend since he is so attentive, supportive and caring.



This would probably be more appealing to a younger crowd. If you enjoy college student drama or are in that age demographic this might appeal to you.



This was given by NetGalley for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this book. It's a perfect young adult romance novel and I'm looking forward to seeing how to characters move on in the next book of the series ☺️

This book follows Zach and Emily's relationship, and Dylan's friendship with Emily, who is Zach's brother.

The novel is full of emotion and it's a really easy read. Some parts were a little repetitive for me but nothing to put me off reading more ☺️

This was a great start to a new ccontemporary romance series! I enjoyed the college setting and Christy Hayes' descriptions brought me right back to my college days. I enjoyed the friendship between Emily and Dylan, even when I yelled at them from my book pages. I also really enjoyed Emily's roommates and thought they helped round out the story really well. I am excited to continue this series and to connect with these characters. Thank you to Christy Hayes and Kate Rock Book Tours for the advanced copy! All opinions are my own!

Emily and Dylan are best friends, but Dylan has harboured feelings for her for as long as he can remember, that aren't strictly platonic. He missed out on telling her when she started dating his older brother, Zach - the star quarterback, five years ago.

We join the story as things are going awry between Emily and Zach, and (in what seems to be a last-ditch attempt to show his girlfriend he really does love her) Zach has the bright idea to propose. And who better to keep hold of the ring until he's ready than his brother, Dylan?

Dylan is understandably distraught that he might lose Emily, unable to face seeing them married. But when Emily accidentally finds the ring she jumps to the wrong conclusion. What follows is a comedy of errors until finally, faced with the truth, Emily and Dylan must face their feelings for one another and decide whether to risk upsetting the people they both care most about, in the name of true love.

This was an enjoyable read and I particularly loved the comedy around the housemates and how they discover who the ring is actually for. I do feel that Zach and Emily seemed ill-suited from the start, so the fact that they managed to maintain a five-year relationship seems a stretch, but this didn't detract from my overall enjoyment.

Overall Rating: ❤❤❤❤
Heat Rating: 🔥
Emotional Rating: 😂🥰

*Thank you to Netgalley for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily*

Review also posted to Amazon UK and awaiting verification

Ah, one of my favorite tropes - friends to lovers! Although Dylan and Emily have been BFFs since second grade, he has secretly been in love with her the entire time. But things get tricky once Emily starts dating his brother, especially when he asks Dylan to help plan a surprise proposal. While keeping the engagement ring safe, Emily finds it and panics. She thinks Dylan is about to propose to his boring girlfriend. She’s determined to not let this happen and does everything in her power to show him that they don’t belong together. But in doing so, their true feelings come to surface. ⁣⁣⠀
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This is a fast and fun read that kept me laughing. Although the ending is predictable, it was so fun watching Dylan and Emily realize their feelings for each other. The friends-to-lovers trope is always an entertaining storyline. There’s something so comforting and familiar with falling in love with a friend, especially when they are truly perfect for each other like Dylan and Emily. ⁣⁣⠀
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This is a perfect book to read this summer by the pool! ⁣⁣⠀

Kiss and Tell Series by Christy Hayes
Publication Date: April 12, 2021 (Books 1, 2 & 3)

Stalling for Time - Book 1
Description from NetGalley...
“When Emily finds an engagement ring in her best friend Dylan’s backpack, she panics and tries to stop him from marrying a girl he barely knows. When his brother asks for help planning a surprise proposal, Dylan knows it’s time to bury his feelings and finally let Emily go. When Emily accidentally puts them in a compromising position, will Dylan reveal his long-buried feelings, or will Emily realize she’s dating the wrong brother?”
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The End Run - Book 2
Description from NetGalley...
“Tutoring college athletes at Southeastern State University is more than a job for Jenna Peterson; it’s a way to pay it forward after long-ago tragedy struck too close to home. Golden boy, Zach Chamberlain, isn’t the first jock Jenna Peterson’s tutored with cover-boy good looks, and he won’t be the last. When Zach’s storybook life begins to unravel, Jenna discovers he’s more than just a gifted athlete with a pretty face. A sprig of mistletoe and a searing kiss pits the playmaker against the rule maker. When secrets are revealed and the game is on the line, will they follow the game plan, improvise, or make an end run around their hearts?”
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Kiss & Make-up - Book 3
Description from NetGalley...
“Forgive and forget is easier said than done…Spending Easter weekend at their parents’ lake house is torture for Zach and Dylan Chamberlain. Girlfriends Jenna and Emily devise a plan to mend Zach and Dylan’s relationship once and for all. Will their risky plan backfire, driving the brothers further apart? Or will everyone finally kiss and make up?”
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Thank you to @netgalley and #cahllc for a digital copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.
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My thoughts...
All three were quick reads, and were helpful when in between books. Book 1 was okay. This was a friends to lovers trope but I didn’t connect with any of the characters. And, I found Emily’s character extremely annoying, especially the whole jumping into conclusion thing - it got old. Book 2 was enemies to lovers trope, kinda. It was much better than book 1 because Zach’s character developed here from book 1 and Jenna was quite likable. And book 3 was okay. It would have been better if there were less Emily and Dylan, because I just didn’t like their drama and constant misunderstandings of each other.

Well, that was a cute, quick read. The main character is a little problematic. Asking your friends to flirt with your bestie just to see if he would cheat on his girlfriend who you don't want him to marry? Jumping to conclusions in the first place when you find the ring? Cheating on your boyfriend with said best friend just because you can't ignore your feelings that you didn't seem to have the week before? Yeah... Big nope from me. And okay, the boyfriend she cheated on was a total emotional abusive, toxic, gaslighting, asshat of a guy, but still, cheating is never okay even if you were planning to break up with him.

The writing style really bugged me. It felt like I was stepping into a scene and then the next and the nest without any real buildup. It was just going from one conversation to another, without the chance to really get to know the character whose head you're in. There's barely any inner dialogue which makes both point of views incredibly uninteresting.

The only reason I didn't DNF this book is because it was such a small book that I figured I wouldn't lose that much time finishing it.

Emily Dilbert and Zach Chamberlain are in a romantic relationship but Emily is not sure if it can be taken forward anymore. Zach's brother, Dylan is Emily's best friend. All is going well for them until Zach plans a surprise proposal for Emily. He gives the ring to Dylan to hide it until the time he proposes. Emily finds the ring in Dylan's backpack and thinks he is going to propose Denise, Dylan's supposed girlfriend.
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Emily freaks out and is confused about her feelings towards Zach and Dylan. Amidst lot of confusion and innocent plotting 😈 the things seem to settle between the characters or something else is cooking !!
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This is the first book in the series of 5 books and I am looking forward to read the next one.
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The book is an easy breezy and fun read. I loved the characters specially Emily & Dylan. The friendship between Emily and her roommates and their fun conversations were very refreshing.
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If you are looking for a light, fun and quick read, you should definitely pick this series !!

While I enjoyed the writing style of this story I could not stand Emily. The fact she pursued her boyfriend’s brother made my skin crawl and her friends were just as bad. I found her selfish and I actually think Zach is better off without her. Dylan definitely deserves better too.

Stalling For Time is a sweet, super clean contemporary YA/NA friends-to-lovers romance and the first book in the Kiss & Tell series.
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Have y'all ever had a friend that always comes to you for advice and then does the exact opposite? Emily is that friend. Which of course leads to a lot of absurdity, miscommunication and angst throughout the book that had me feeling a very strong urge to throttle everyone involved.
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Oh to be young and dumb.
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While I liked Dylan and can tolerate Emily when she has her act together, the real stand outs for me were her BFFs/roomies. They are supportive, quirky (in the 90s teen movie "awkward but super hot" way) and just a great group of friends. I hope we get their stories later in the series!

**spoilers**

This was a sweet and fluffy romance story that was definitely more of a drama than a comedy, but thankfully the drama wasn't the kind that was unrealistic or over-the-top and was mixed with plenty of romance and flirtation!

I liked the twist on the friends-to-lovers trope that this had with the whole she's dating his brother situation, although I did feel that the writing was a little amateurish at times so it didn't make for the smoothest of reads.

The ending was cute but definitely bittersweet and it took a heck of a lot of miscommunication and drama to get there - but that's all part of the fun!

The main issue that I did have with this book was that both sides of the original couple cheated yet nobody seemed to bat an eyelid at it! That didn't sit right with me because there was just no backlash and gaaah talk about the WORST way to start a new relationship. But other than that, I enjoyed this cute and sassy story and I read it in a matter of hours.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read and review this book.

I received this ARC in exchange for an honest review and I honestly couldn't get past the first chapter. Nothing made me want to keep reading. None of the characters, especially Emily, were particularly likeable. I believe that if you can't empathize with the main character or care about them in any way, good or bad, it isn't worth the effort. Really sad I couldn't get into it because I requested all 3 books in the series with the hopes of following it through

What a cute story! I loved the interactions between Dylan and Emily. Dylan is so in love with Emily, and yet...Emily is dating Zach, Dylan's brother. It made for an interesting plot and I loved the direction the story went in! Emily's plans to try to stop Dylan from "proposing" to his girlfriend were hilarious and created such wonderful moments in the story.

Overall, I thought this was an adorable book, and I'm excited to start the next one!!

STALLING FOR TIME is the first book in Christy Hayes' "Kiss & Tell" series. College sophomore, Emily Dilbert has been best friends with Dylan Chamberlain since they were in the second grade. They know the other so well they finish each other's sentences. The thing is she's been dating Dylan's brother, college football star, Zach Chamberlain for the last five years. Yes, Dylan's brother. Emily's kind of sick of Zach's self-centered attitude and is trying to find the best time to break up with him. Emily and Dylan both know in their own ways, that they care more than a little bit about the other, but they've never discussed or acted upon it. But when Zach gives Dylan a ring to hold that he plans to give to Emily, everything goes to hell.

Emily accidentally finds the engagement ring in Dylan's backpack. Thinking he's going to propose to his sort-of girlfriend, Denise and feels she has to stop that. Emily proceeds to turn her life and that of her roommates, Kayla, Reagan and Shelby into a soap opera starring Emily. Everyone proceeds to make lots of assumptions and you know what that means. It's all about trying not to hurt the other, but honesty is no where to be found and eventually, everything comes to a head.

We can only imagine what happens next.

So after I read the second book first I decided to request book one and three as well.. And let me tell you. I was not disappointed.

I loved this one so much more than the second one (it's my fault, I should have read them in order!)
Emily has been dating zach for five years, but lately she's been doubting their relationship.
When she finds an engagement ring in Dylan's (her best friend and her boyfriend's brother) bag. She comes up with a plan to make him realize it's a mistake. But things don't always go according to plan.

I want to marry Dylan... God I loved these characters so much! Although I don't like some of their choices, I find that they were much more mature than Zach and Jenna.
This book was cheesy but I was so in for it. The romance was so freaking cute with just the right amount of drama.

It's an easy read and you just fly through it (I didn't want to put it down honestly).
I really really really liked it.

I got an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was a super cute book where Emily is best friends with her boyfriend of 5 years brother. When she finds a ring in her best friend's bag she starts to get jealous and struggles with her feelings for her friend. This was a quick read and kept me wanting to keep reading. I thought it Dylan and Emily had more of a connection than Emily and Zach. I also really enjoyed getting to know Emily's friends. I am glad this is a series, but I'm not sure I really care to find out who Zach ends up with. He was a jerk in this book, and I just want more Emily and Dylan.

Pretty straight forward friends to lovers trope even with whole brother love triangle it just didn't pull me in like other books have. Characters were pretty surface level with no depth and at times unlikable. This is a middle of the road contemporary read.