This book was a fun, feel-good rom com read. No crazy detailed sex parts so you could definitely recommend this one to your Grandma. I saw a lot of reviews didn’t like Hailey’s character. She is trying to be independent & do things on her own so she refuses help when Wes wants to help. I feel this is a realistic depiction of people who have trouble asking for help/need to relying on others. She makes changes as well as Wes and I think they work well together. Highly recommend for an easy happy romantic read.

Mein Leseerlebnis

Der Liebesroman konnte mich teils überzeugen, teils war mein Leseerlebnis aber auch etwas frustrierend, lasst mich erklären warum.

Gut gefallen hat mir der lockere, einnehmende Schreibstil der Autorin. Dieser hat es mir leicht gemacht in die Geschichte einzutauchen und ihre Charaktere als echte Personen zu sehen. Auch fand ich den Verlauf der Geschichte vom ersten Treffen zur Freundschaft zum Paar sein ansprechend.

Probleme hatte ich dagegen mit dem letzten Drittel des Romans. In diesem Teil der Geschichte hat die Autorin gleich drei Entwicklungen eingebaut, die Unruhe in die Beziehung der Hauptcharaktere brachten. Eine davon in abgeschwächter Form hätte in meinen Augen gereicht und auch Sinn gemacht, so war es mir zu viel. Der Großteil des Romans verläuft ruhig und fast schon gemächlich, dazu passte das Ende nicht.

Ich fand es zudem schade, dass Hailey auf beruflicher Ebene teils als inkompetent dargestellt wurde, um bestimmte Entwicklungen im Roman zu beschleunigen. Sie scheint vom Marketing für ihre Salatbar keine Ahnung zu haben, hat aber genau das studiert und in dem Bereich auch zuvor gearbeitet. Dass sie für ihren Laden eine gute Website braucht und dass etwas wie Visitenkarten sowie Flyer zur Werbung wichtig sind, schien sie nicht im Blick zu haben. Das machte für mich keinen Sinn, vor allem da es sich wirklich um fundamentale Sachen handelte.

An diesem Punkt hätte die Autorin es sich nicht so leicht machen sollen, um Wes eine Möglichkeit zu geben, Hailey zu helfen (er setzt als Entschuldigung für etwas ihre Website auf).

Blicke ich auf mein Leseerlebnis zurück, so habe ich den Roman größtenteils gerne gelesen. Das volle Potential der Geschichte wurde von der Autorin aber nicht ausgeschöpft. 🖤🖤🖤

Für wen?

Wer ruhige Liebesromane mag, in denen aus Fremden zunächst gute Freunde und dann ein Paar wird, sollte sich das Buch näher anschauen.

I really enjoyed this book.. I liked the fact the the main character was a women who was so motivated to survive in her own in a huge new city. I loved the idea of her salad company. I have never heard of that before. Usually it’s all unhealthy foods so this was a nice surprise. Very well written

I didn't realize this was the third book in a trilogy, so I found the sheer number of characters and all of their relationships very confusing, not to mention all of the business dealings and landlords.

This was such a cute one! A great slow-burn romance with the friends to lovers trope. I loved the relationship the Jenson brothers had and their respective partners. I read this in a day and enjoyed breezing through it.

I received an Advanced Free copy of this book, for my honest review. Thanks to Netgalley and St. MARTIN’s Press.

The Jansen brothers series has a special place in my heart. Each story made me fall in love with all the characters, and then having them in all the books and seeing how they were doing was the best. I honestly think this is my favorite book. I love friends to lovers, and Chris and Everlyn's story was phenomenal, but for some reason, Hayley and Wes's story was my favorite. I think this because I can really related to Hayley trying to do everything by herself and not asking for help, thinking that she would own them.

And West, my sweet idiot boy. I love him so much. And that prologue kills me. I love it. Now I need a story about Ari. Thanks, I know it’s the story of the Jansen brother, but she deserves her own story.

Hailey is on her own, well she has her cousin and her salad shop she's trying to get off the ground, but no social life and definitely no love life to speak of. What she does have is a blossoming business, a persistent stubbornness, and an undying love for the baked goods at the shop next door.

Wes is rich, handsome, and successful - so why does he keep getting stood up for his app-set dates? After witnessing his parents' ugly divorce he vows he will never fall in love, settle down and start a family. So when he meets Hailey and they decide they both need a friend, it is the perfect match. Until those friendship feelings start becoming more.

I LOVE friends to lovers romance tropes - they are my absolute favorite! Hailey and Wes were such sweet characters and their story flowed at a decent and logical pace. Their rise and fall and HEA was predictable (one of the fun parts of romance) but it never grabbed me and sucked me in. What I love most about friends to lovers, and one of the reasons I picked up this book, was the delicious romantic and sexual tension as the friends fight their "will they or won't they" feelings. There was just a little tease of this in this story and I felt like that could be ramped up a bit so the eventual "to lovers" part was more powerful. This is a closed door romance so the spice level is super low, but you do get a delightful "touch her and die" vibe from Wes which is nice to see. This is the third book that follows the brothers falling in love, however, it is the first one I read and I didn't feel as much of a pull to the other characters as I would if I read the other two first. Overall this story was cute and you definitely find yourself cheering for the characters themselves to be successful which was the most interesting part, the romance took a backburner.

* I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley. Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for this book. All thoughts are my own.

This was quite possibly my favorite book of the Jansen brothers series. I really liked Wes as a character, and Hailey was ok too. Some scenes feel a little rushed and it’s hard to see some of the character development, but overall it was super cute!

3.5 ⭐️

✨friends to lovers
✨ slow burn
✨ dual POV
✨found family
✨closed door romance
✨release date: January 17, 2023

Just finished this ARC and I was really hoping to love it, but it fell a bit short for me. To start, I did enjoy it, and it definitely had elements that I liked. Always a fan of friends to lovers. It also had a super cute found family aspect that I really enjoyed. I liked the friendship between Hailey and Wes as the story went on, and always love a strong, independent woman. That being said…it’s definitely a slowwwww burn, and it made it hard for me to get through the book quickly.
This is the 3rd in a series, but can definitely be read as a standalone as well.

Overall, a cute read, but a bit too slow for me

Thank you so much @netgalley and @stmartinspress for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!!

A Guide to Being Just Friends

Read if you like:
➖friends to lovers
➖found family
➖slow burn
➖character focused stories

I REALLY liked Wes and Hailey! Probably one of my favourite friends to lovers relationships that I’ve read about! Their friendship was adorable and while the slow burn was worth it…I was so impatient to see them finally admit their feelings toward one another!

While I absolutely loved the three brothers, I did find that they were a bit unrealistic. Do boys really sit around and tell eachother how madly in love they are? Or psychoanalyse each others emotions so often? I’m doubtful. It was pretty clear these boys were written by women for women😂 Having said that, I did love their banter and would totally read a spin off for each brother.

The found family trope is one of my absolute favorites and this story did not disappoint!! Hailey quickly becomes part of a supportive and fun group of friends that are interconnected in various ways. They were so fun to read about!

I would totally recommend this book as a cute romance read! Thank you to St Martins Press, NetGalley and the author, Sophie Sullivan for the ARC!

Very cute read. Enjoyed nerdy Wes and Hailey’s dynamic. Light and fluff all around. Definitely would pick up another.

First off, thank you NetGalley, St. Martins Press and Sophie Sullivan for allowing me to read this ARC!

I absolutely adored this book, and loved Hailey and Wes, and all of the supporting characters. Hailey and Wes were a match made in heaven from their first awkward run in to the last time they appeared on the page. I loved them. Hailey is such a strong FMC and I could feel her emotions, and it just made her so relatable. Wes was her perfect match, and I knew their guide to just being friends was not going to work and it was an amazing journey watch them go from friends to lovers.

My only hiccup is the formatting for when the characters are texting each other. It felt a little awkward reading, but that’s such a small feat in such a great book.

I mostly enjoyed this book. I will admit that I enjoyed book 1 in this series the most, and I DNF book 2. This was definitely better than book 2, but I did not enjoy the two fight scenes. I think one as the main drama would have been better, and the other could have been something minor. I also think the author struggled with what POV she wanted to write this in. At the beginning, Hailey’s character had a lot of internal first-person thoughts. It seemed like the author was trying out both first and third person and forgot to go back.


I did like how this trilogy focused on a cast of brothers as the repeat characters and focus; usually the three MC are women. This was an interesting twist that worked well.

I received an advance copy. all thoughts are my own.

After a breakup, Hailey Sharp picks up her life and moves to a new city for a fresh start! She follows her dreams and opens a salad shop, By The Cup, in a trendy part of town. Wes Jansen also recently moved for a fresh start. Wes is a workaholic and afraid of love. Wes mistakes Hailey for his date at a cafe and the two become friends.

Cute story and a light rom com read! Overall the story was slower than my liking. I did enjoy following along on the growth of Hailey’s salad shop and found myself more interested in her entrepreneurial journey than her relationship with Wes. Their relationship picks up halfway through the book, but overall I found myself wanting more.

Thank you, NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Just My Type releases January 17th, 2023. I recommend adding this slow burn, friends to lovers rom com to your TBR if you are looking for a light and easy read.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

This was so cute!! I loved seeing Hailey and Wes' friendship blossom and grow to something more. It was so sweet, especially given that these two wanted nothing to do with being in a relationship. It is a slow-burn romance, so you will be fine if you are brave enough.

However, this is a 3rd in the series, so I had a hard time following through with the other characters' backstories. I also wish we had more of Hailey's backstory about her family. They were mentioned but that was it.
Also, the title. I wished the guide was shown to readers, it would've been a lot more interesting in my opinion.

Overall, this was still a very cute read.

Thank you Netgalley, St Martin's Press and Sophie Sullivan for this arc!

I’m always glad when romance stories build around personal connection rather than focusing on physical attraction (niche taste, I know) and I know when I pick up one of Sullivan’s stories, I’ll get to meet characters who develop a relationship through mutual support and admiration alongside their flutters and stolen glances. Having read the first two books in this series, it was fun to see how Sullivan rounded out the story of all 3 brothers and their lady-loves. While the first book centered on the radio station and the second on neighbouring houses undergoing renovations, this one pans out, taking us in and out of settings old and new, while presenting us with a large cast of characters from all parts of the town. Readers who’ve read books 1 & 2 will get to see their favourite places and follow their favourite characters as more events unfold, while also falling in love with a new central pairing. This time we get a friends-to-lovers tale (a trope I remain a sucker for) as our leads fall fast but barricade their feelings behind lots of walls, desperate not to risk a friendship they both value. Sullivan warmly embraces several much-beloved rom-com references as the duo watches films together and takes a few tips from the on-screen characters. The titular guide is only referenced in the story, so we don’t get to know what it contains, though I’m sure readers will be clamouring for a copy. I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s already on the author’s promo plans. :) Though the story stands on its own, a fair amount of the content is dedicated to following the characters from the other books, so I’d suggest reading them first rather than starting here. Overall, a great fit for readers who enjoy closed-door romance with big casts, easy-to-root-for characters, and a joyful embracing of popular romance tropes.

*ARC Review*

A Guide to Being Just Friends started as a really sweet rom com that ended with a bad taste in my mouth. This story follows Hailey Sharp, an entrepreneur who just opened a Salad shop in a bustling downtown area. What started as a team of one eventually grew into a salad empire in the city. I loved Hailey and thought she was strong and confident. She was great at explaining her emotions and did not want to be anything but herself.

At the beginning, Hailey has an awkward interaction with Wes, who thinks she is his blind date (when she isn't). They go their separate ways just to interact later. They begin a love story with plenty of drama. I enjoyed Wes as he was helping Hailey grow her business, but towards the end of the book I found him to be controlling. While there was a happy ending at the end, I felt these to characters were not good for each other. Wes was diminishing Hailey's shine for a majority of the book. I feel he did not deserve her.

The beginning of this story was good, but it went downhill over time. On the bright side I desperately want a "By The Cup" salad.

Overall, I thought this was a sweet, pleasant read that was true to the “friends to lovers” rom-com genre.

I didn’t find the dialogue to be quite as witty/ bantery as say, an Emily Henry, book. I also was annoyed by Wes’s over the top stubbornness and resistance to love. To me, it didn’t seem like a realistic “objection” but rather a means to an to delay the happily ever after ending.

That being said, it was an easy/ cute read that will please rom com lovers!

Thanks to NetGalley for this advance copy!

A Guide to Being Just Friends is a cute, romantic and feel-good story by Sophie Sullivan.

It's a slow burn rom-com with plenty of fun banter and and charming characters.

I didn't realize when I had picked this up that it was the third book in the series about the Jansen brothers but I didn't feel like I missed much by not reading the previous books but I will definitely be reading them next.

What I loved most about this story is the realness, nothing seemed out of the ordinary and over the top. Wes and Hailey were both so relatable and easy to connect with and their character developments and how they worked through their issues and conflicts was believable. Their family and friends were also enjoyable. It was all around just a fun and charming read, it took me out of my book slump and I felt giddy reading it.

Highly recommend picking up this lighthearted, laugh out loud funny rom-com about "just friends" becoming more.

Thank you NetGalley, St. Martins Press and the author for the opportunity to read this ARC.

I have a lot of mixed feelings about this book. I completely loved the mistaken identity meet-cute they had (he accused her of being his blind date and trying to bail once she got a look at him in the coffee shop) but this didn’t seem to fit with Wes’s personality the remainder of the book. He was a little up tight but still a nice guy. Despite getting off on the wrong foot Wes and Hailey become friends and then eventually this becomes a friends to lovers story. I also was under the false impression that this was a slow burn romance. I often felt like there was no real connection between these two beyond friendship. When they finally kissed I felt like it came out of no where. Then about 80% of the way through I realized I had been tricked into yet another closed door romance 😑 Even though I liked the characters and it had some funny moments this was the last straw. I skimmed the last 20% and just read the epilogue. Not a horrible book but definitely not for me.