I am an absolute sucker for a friends-to-lovers, unrequited love story. They are my absolute kryptonite.

I was thoroughly excited when I got the chance to read "Bar Hopping for Singles" and did enjoy most of Annie and Ox's journey.

I love Ox. Thoroughly and absolutely. A man so resolute in his love and feelings for Annie? Ugh, gimme all of that and more. She was The One for him and he never wavered. He reminded me of a big protective bear-ox man... is that a thing? Soft, sweet but will also protect you at all costs - even to his own detriment.

This was definitely a slow burn but open-door when they finally got there. My biggest pet peeve was the hiding things and keeping secrets. I know it's part of the plot but sometimes I wish people would just talk more.... Say the things!! Do the stuff!

Thanks to the author and Netgalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

This is a good book the two main characters are Annie and Henry. They have known each other all their lives. When Annie graduated from college she moved to Los Angeles, that is where Henry was working. Annie wanted to be an actress. They started dating. They each had trust issues but together they worked them out and fell in love.

Annie is a thirty-year-old bartender-actress with slim career prospects, who works with one of her best friends named River. She lives near her other best friend Ox near downtown LA. She asks her friend Ox if he's dating anyone and he thinks for a moment she's asking for herself. Annie doesn't know that Ox is secretly in love with her.
I loved how great their friendship was and it made me understand why he was afraid to tell her he loved her. I loved their happy ending and how the story played out. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced copy.

Bar Hopping for Singles was a really fun read with my favorite trope friends to lovers and lots of pining. I really loved Ox and his adoration of Annie. Watching the friendship bloom was so sweet and I was rooting for them the whole time. I am such a huge fan of the friend group and their dynamics. I would love to be a part of that group. I had 3rd act breakups, but this one was resolved quickly and I appreciated that. The epilogue was so sweet and I cannot wait to see what else happens to these characters.

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC. This is now available on Kindle Unlimited.

hooked and hooked some more. Loved all of this and couldn't put it down. I was like oh my. I need to know more. Read it. Can't wait for the next book in the series.

Bar Hopping for Singles is a slow burn, unrequited love, friends-to-lovers story about Annie and Ox. Annie and Ox have been friends since childhood and grew up together. Ox has always been in love with Annie. Now, along with their other childhood friend, River, they live in LA. Annie and River work at a bar together and Ox hangs out with them there often. Annie is also an aspiring actress.

I love a friends-to-lovers romance but this story fell short for me. The characters were likable enough. But the conflict in the story (because there’s always a conflict in a romance) frustrated me. The two just needed to have a simple conversation.

Overall, 3/5

If you love a slow-burn, friends-to-lovers romance, check this one out!
I enjoyed getting to know Annie and Ox, and thought the bar scene setting was a lot of fun (plus, I learned a lot about what it’s like working in a bar)!
I especially loved the sweet epilogue, and look forward to the next book in the series!

“Bar Hopping for Singles” is my first book by Tess Shepherd and I know it’s not my last. This story has reignited my love for “friendship to lovers” as we see Annie and Ox’s romantic feelings come into fruition.

Annie and Ox have been friends since they were kids. While Annie is in her comfort zone as a bartender, she seems content in her single hood after being hurt by an ex who cheated on her. Ox played a pivotal role in damage control when that happened and his protective instincts with Annie continues.

One day they create a “bar hopping for singles” game where they each set each other up with a stranger in hopes that this will lead to a successful hook up or a relationship.
However, the plan backfires and they look at each other for that very hope.

I enjoyed watching Ox and Annie’s road to their HEA. Ox has it had bad for Annie forever and what holds him back will make you swoon for him even more. Through all of Annie’s life’s struggles, Ox is there - accepting and loving and embracing her. The things he says and does just tugs at my heartstrings.

This is a fun love story where all the side characters are a hoot and the bromance moments get you laughing out loud, but more so, it’s a beautiful friends to lovers story that will give you all the feels.

Thanks to the author and Netgalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

This may be my favorite @author_tess.shepherd book yet!! I devoured this in two sittings and anxiously waited to get home to finish this.

Read this if you enjoy:
👫dual pov
💕friends to lovers
🤪 pogo jumping
🔥slow burn, open door romance

This also had a fun new cover very different than your typical Tess books, but I still love it! Thank you so much for my early copy in exchange for a honest review! I cannot wait to read River’s story next!

Thank you to Tess Shepherd, Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA), Members' Titles and NetGalley for an ARC of Bar Hopping for Singles in exchange for an honest review.

Love, love, love this book! What a beautifully written story. Absolutely adored swoony Ox. He is truly a yummy perfection.

5 stars!!

Annie and Ox have been friends since they were in grade school. One night at a bar, they decide to start a game they created named “Bar Hopping for Singles.” They will go out together and try to set each other up with other singles. Ox loves spending time with her so he obliges. But, Ox has no desire to meet other girls, he loves Annie. He’s hiding a big secret about his job.

I loved their history together and understood why Ox (Henry) was so scared to tell her he’d been in love with her for years. Finally, when reading a scene and helping Annie prepare for an audition, they kiss, but it turns steamy and the chemistry is sizzling. Annie realizes that there’s something there. They’ve always been magnetic.

I swooned so hard for Henry. He was so good with Annie, so honest and understanding. He would do anything to make her happy. Annie struggled with her insecurities after her ex fiancé cheated on her. The epilogue was perfection and I’m so happy they got their hea!

Tess delivered a beautiful, friends to lovers story that was endearing, sweet, spicy and I am excited for River’s story!

This is the first book I've read by Tess Shepherd so thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and author for an early read. Overall, I liked the story a lot. I liked Ox, especially (the reason for his nickname is hilarious- his real name is Henry and the names are used interchangeably). I liked Annie too. I loved their friendship. I though, didn't feel their romance- I didn't feel as much chemistry between the characters. That said, the world is fun, I learned a lot about how bartenders work, and I really overall enjoyed the characters as a whole. A good first read into this author's works!

Synopsis: When Annie moves to LA to become an actress she has no idea what she will come across. Taking a job as a bartender to help make a living, her and her best friends since she was in diapers create a game to help them all go from single to taken. But with a quick turn of events they learn a lot more about each other than they had originally planned.

Thoughts: I LOVED THIS BOOK! I know I say that for all of Tess Shepherd’s literally when I receive her books I drop everything else and read hers next because I know I won't be disappointed. This was the perfect mix of friend zoning someone and not giving up on true love. I loved the fun game that the friends created to play and the different relationships. One of my favorite things about Tess Shepherd’s books is her development of characters without creating confusion and opening it up for you wanting to know more about the different couples. I highly recommend this book!

Bar Hopping for Singles is the story of Annie and Ox, also known as Henry, and the progression of their relationship from friends to lovers and all the mishaps along the way.

Let me preface this by saying romance, and by that I mean novels where the primary focus is on the love story and not merely an aspect of it, is not one of my primary genres, but I liked the title of this book so I thought I'd give it a shot. And it was pretty much what I expected - entertaining, not mind-blowing, but a solid rom-com with few real stakes, which seems to be conventional for a genre romance from my understanding.

I know some people probably liked the shift between POVs; I understand why it was done - to deepen the characterization between Annie and Ox and make them seem realer - but I sometimes wondered if they were too self-aware. It can partially be explained by them not being in their early or even mid-20s and having both been in relationships before, but the focus on their interiority and their somewhat detached analysis of their own motives and feelings seemed to veer a little too much towards them telling us what was going on and not allowing them to demonstrate it organically instead.

That being said, it wasn't a bad book! It was entertaining and engaging and I did want to know what happened next. Annie's mom gets extra brownie points for being completely over the top and I love her. River is a hot mess and I'm interested to see just what the hell went down between him and Rachel, which I imagine is going to be the enemies-to-loves B-side to Annie and Ox's friends-to-lovers A-side. I'm down for it. Give this book a shot!

Thank you to Netgalley for providing me a free copy in exchange for an honest review!

I love the friends to lovers trope, and this book didn’t disappoint. Our main characters had several hang ups to get over but it was such a nice way they dealt with these things, and it was also good that the only drama was their hang ups and not some loitering villain as some books write in. I enjoyed this story, though I did wish the sex scenes weren’t so explicit as I could recommend it due to this