i got about 25% into this book and i couldnt continue it. i felt like the fmc was annoying and the mmc was very uninteresting. maybe it wouldve been better if i had read the other books in the series? first book by this author as well

I liked this book much better as an audiobook than a paper book. The characters really did come to life with these 2 narrators was so much better! I really liked this book.

1. I wish the salad shop in this book was a real place. They sound DELICIOUS.
2. I was rooting for the main characters the whole time, especially Hailey.
This book has some mature content. The story is full of characters that are likable. A lesson in real friends for Hailey who hadn't had that experience. I'm sure you can tell from the title that this isn't going to be a book where people end up actually just being friends, so sorry if that is a spoiler. Sometimes I wanted to shake the characters and say "Just tell each other you like each other!" The title of this book is what got me interested in it and I was pleasantly surprised by how quick I got into the story and was finding time to listen. Thanks NetGalley for the ARC!

Witty, quick read that will leave your with a smile on your face. I enjoyed the character development and real life scenarios

I really enjoyed the pacing of this book. The narrator was easy to listen to and I really liked the chemistry between Hailey and Wes.

Sophie Sullivan did a great job creating characters who are likeable and relatable while still having a lot to learn about themselves. There’s witty dialogue, and most importantly a great friendship to build one.

This was a thoroughly enjoyable and cozy read.

A Guide to Being Just Friends by Sophie Sullivan is a CLASSIC friends to lovers. Hailey and Wes have a meet cute gone wrong that eventually leads to a friendship. This was a slow burn that really errs on the side of sweet.

This is a dual narration by Stephanie Willing and Timothy Andrés Pabon - both were fantastic and the dual perspectives helped move the story along.

Thank you to Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for the ALC. A Guide to Being Just Friends is out now!

🥗🥗🥗🥗🥗
Read this one then you’ll get why I rated with salads not stars.
This is by far my favorite of the Jansen brother brooks. Hailey and Wesley’s story is sweet with a perfect throw to when Harry Met Sally. I absolutely love their meet cute. And I actually like Chris and Noah even more from this book! This is the perfect feel-good pick!

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for this advance copy of the audiobook: A GUIDE TO BEING JUST FRIENDS by Sophie Sullivan, narrated by Stephanie Willing and Timothy Andrés Pabon. I absolutely loved this audiobook! Great story, great narrators made for very enjoyable listening sessions! I just hope it becomes a movie… 🤞😉

This was my first Sophie Sullivan book and I can’t wait to find the first two books in this series of the Jansen Brothers. Although this is the third book, I was able to enjoy this one as a stand alone.

I loved the setting of this book in a new salad restaurant owned by the main character. It’s winter here right now but all I want to eat is one of her delicious salads…

I loved this friends to lovers romcom! The narrators did an excellent job and there were many times their tone made the lines more dynamic, whether they were funny or serious lines.

New entrepreneur of a salad shop has recently departed from actor boyfriend (who treated her like dirt) crosses paths with super rich guy and they decide to "just be friends".

A Guide to Being Just Friends is a sweet little romance. I listened to the audio; well done alternating between a female and male narrator (I love that!). Timothy Andres Pabon was the male POV and Stephanie Willing was the female POV.

Thank you to NetGalley ... for once again introducing me to a "new to me author". And for the opportunity to review the advance read listen copy of the audiobook in exchange for an honest review. And thank you to Sophie Sullivan the author and Macmillan Audio the publisher.

Evidently this is the third book in the Jansen Brothers series. I had not read the first two books in the series and don't feel like I was missing anything and didn't realize it was the third in a series until writing this review.

Also ... there were some delicious sounding salads and the female protagonist (Hailey) loves chocolate and there are some pretty yummy sounding desserts as well.

3/5 Stars

Thanks NetGalley for giving me an audio version of this book in exchange for an honest review!

So I did enjoy this audiobook, but it was so... clueless at points? Like, I love a good sappy romance that makes me laugh at the characters because of their dumb mistakes but this one was just so bad in that way, ha. There were points that the male main character was seriously so clueless that you could expect those same words to come out of a 5 year olds mouth. And I should know, I've had a 5 year old. I also didn't love that they female MC expected her love interest to make ALL of the changes in the relationship, it was very one sided for most of the book. Women aren't gods, stop making them act like they think they are!
I would not have finished this book were it a print copy, but thanks to it being audio, I was able to finish it.
I wanted to add, the female narrator was AWESOME. Her voice was perfect for this character and I felt the emotion in her reading. Highly recommend more people hire her haha.
Overall, it was interesting enough to keep listening to and its my guilty pleasure to read not great books so give it a try!

Loved this book! Listened on audiobook and the multiple narrators made it easy to follow along. Though it was the 3rd book in the series it was fine as a stand alone with each book following a different brother. I can’t wait to go back and read the other two! Perfect rom com with the right amount or love, drama, and predictability.

This is the third (and I am guessing final?) book of the Jansen brothers series. You do not have to read the first two to enjoy this one, but you should to get the back story on Noah and Chris’s girls.

I loved getting to know Wes and Hailey. I loved Hailey’s salad shop business, and wished I had a local restaurant like that here. This is a slow burn friends to lovers, which is always fun. I felt like Hailey didn’t have to be so stubborn about accepting help from others, specifically Wes. And when the real conflict happened….I felt like Wes did a 180 in the wrong direction that almost felt out of character. But I absolutely loved the ending, getting to see how all three brothers ended up.

I consumed this as an audiobook, and truly enjoyed both the male and female narrator. It added to the fun of the book for me.

Bottom Line: Read it!

**I received an audio copy of A Guide to Being Just Friends from Netgalley in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are of my own.**

I listened to this audiobook and it was not my cup of tea. I do think I needed to have read the first two to be invested in the world, so that's on me for not making that connection before requesting. I think this was cute and fun and if you have read the first two you should definitely give this a go!

Ah the “just friends” trope. I don’t always like this particular storyline but I did enjoy the way this one was handled. It was done with minimal miscommunication- it’s more like denial on both parts which is easier for me to deal with. I actually find it pretty funny.

There’s plenty of drama in this book but it’s well balanced so it doesn’t feel heavy at all. We deal with lots of feelings and I felt the characters really did have a handle on themselves. I found myself relating to the main female character and how she responds to the elaborate gifts the main male character buys without much of a thought. It’s the differences in their financial status that really resonate with me and it was definitely realistic.

I really enjoyed the dual POV and the dual narrators to go along with it. Having both a male and female voice to voice the characters POVs really added to the experience for the book.

Thanks to NetGalley for the audio copy!

*3.5 Stars On My Instagram Account*

"I thought there was nothing more terrifying than falling in love with you...(but)... that's nothing compared to how scared I am that you won't forgive me.'

How scary it is to be vulnerable is the essential theme of the third book (can be a standalone)in the romantic comedy Jansen Brothers series, A Guide To Being Just Friends by RomCom author Sophie Sullivan.

Wes and Hailey have a somewhat meet cute in a coffee shop due to a misspelling of her name on the cup. They have a second meet cute when she delivers salads from her shop to his office. Eventually they give each other a chance and SLOWLY become best friends.

Hailey doesn't want a relationship because her ex fiance was a jerk. Wes doesn't believe in love after the contentious divorce of his parents. But just like the song, "As Time Goes By," feelings change and emotions evolve that basically scare them both to death and cause unnecessary problems.

There are some very funny moments like Hailey talking text to her phone telling her cousin to bring pretzel sticks to their girls night and it translates to a very different kind of pretzel that rhymes with sticks.

The always reliable narrators Stephanie Willing and Timothy Andres Pabon are both equally passionate, funny and emotional. I was a bit frustrated with Hailey being angry whenever Wes wanted to help her whether it was financially with her business (he's very wealthy) physically (trying to protect her from her aggressive ex boyfriend) or emotionally (buying a diamond bracelet). I get she wanted to make it on her own but friends help friends and her ire at him was a bit over the top. For the record my birthday's coming up and I won't be angry if I get a diamond bracelet!

Still I got what I wanted which was a cute fun romance.

I received a free copy of this audiobook from MacMillan Audio via #NetGalley
for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own.

This book is a fabulous example of the friends to lovers troupe that is all the rage in romance novels. This book has so much pull in the "will they, won't they" with a fair share of misunderstandings that makes you want to yell at the characters (in a good way) to get them to understand what you, as the reader, already know.

This book was easy to read, light enough to be entertaining, but not so heavy or draggy that you don't want to continue reading it. It was easy to get into, and easy to like and root for all the characters that were in front of you. I loved the unique concept, and the ease of listening to the narrator made this book a dream to listen to in my car, to and from work.

True romance lovers will swoon for this book, and I absolutely loved it too!

Sophie Sullivan's "A Guide to Being Just Friends" is a contemporary romance about Jansen brother #3, Wes, and his newly found bestie, Hailey. After becoming friends after what could have been an amazing meet-cute, Hailey and Wes list their guide to being the greatest friends without the complications of romance and falling in love. During their friendship, Wes continues his business endeavours with his two wealthy brothers, including working at a recreation center that builds up young people in the community. His world slowly intertwines with that of Hailey as she works hard to grow her start up salad business. Thanks to Wes' know-how and connections, Hailey's small business not only skyrockets, but her social circle deeply widens.

I enjoyed the beautiful process of what makes a sweet friendship grow between two people. As Hailey and Wes overcome personal challenges, insecurities, and career changes, they are there for each other. Watching them slowly become intimate was lovely.

I enjoyed this audiobook with narrators Stephanie Willing and Timothy Pabon. The dual POV and their portrayal of Hailey and Wes was spot on. I had the audiobook played at 2 and it was just the right speed to follow along and feel like you're in the midst of all the Jansen family drama. Their narration drew you in and it was almost like you, too, felt Hailey and Wes' pining for each other.

I recommend this audiobook if you like a slow burn closed door contemporary romance with themes like friends to lovers and found family.

It’s true that I don’t always love a friends-to-lovers romance but this one definitely proved me wrong! From the very start of this book I knew I was going to love the story of Hailey and Wes because the authors made me love the characters so much from their great qualities to their flaws. One of the BEST friends-to-lovers romances I’ve ever read that also gives you found family and a strong independent female MC who has a major sweet tooth (much like myself)! Also their meet cute was adorable and gave me initial enemies-to-lovers vibes but of course I was proven wrong…

Thanks to St Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the eARC!

A Guide to Being Just Friends is the third book in Sophie Sullivan’s Jansen Brothers series. Hailey Sharp has left LA and a cheating ex behind and is solely focused on building and growing her By the Cup salad shop, creating the life she wants. Now in San Verde, CA, near her cousin Piper and her family, Hailey is making friends and trying to make ends meet.

Taking a break on a very quiet afternoon, Hailey visits the coffee shop next door for a sweet pick me up. However, Hailey didn’t expect the pick up line that came her way with a misspelled name and a fellow’s no show date. When a few days later the same fellow and his two brothers come to the salad shop, the air is cleared and the story really begins.

Wes Jansen, eldest of the brothers, has recently relocated from New York as did his brothers, all of them determined to sever ties with their controlling father. Although each brother has the education and instinct to develop properties and businesses, they want to do so in the manner their beloved grandfather had professed and giving back to the community. As oldest, Wes protected his younger siblings from the horror of their parent’s relationship and demise. This history has convinced Wes that love and marriage are things he never wants. Friendship and companionship with a like minded person would be perfect. As Hailey has pretty much given up on love, their friendship develops as they put together their own guide for being just friends. What could go wrong?

This is such a lovely story told with such heart and laugh-out-loud humor that the reader will be entertained from beginning to end. The characters are well developed. The plot is not predictable. This is a delightful rom-com. I very much enjoyed this story and I do recommend it!