4.25/5 stars

This is second in the Adelaide Springs contemporary romance series (first was Brynn and Sebastian Hate Each Other), and both are winners.

Laila and Cole have grown up together and have been best friends forever. They honestly cannot envision their lives without the other. But when chef Cole's restaurant (his late grandfather's actually) is not left to him, he begins to look seriously at a prestigious job offer in New York City. The only problem? Laila has family obligations in Adelaide Springs and is hesitant to move cross country with her bestie. And to complicate things even more, a romantic dream leads Cole to begin envisioning his best friend as possibly something more in his life.

These two characters are very cute, both individually and together (as both besties and romantic interests), but I did feel that in some of their interactions/dialogue that they did not seem like 39-year-olds. So, while they were fun and endearing and just plain lovable, it was a bit disconcerting at times to remember that they were actually older adults, not 20-somethings. And one other thing that I felt might have been overdone a bit was the closeness of these two at times. While yes, I liked hearing their shared stories/history together, I felt that was a bit repetitive at times.

Turner likes to use lots of pop culture references in her books (especially rom coms) which I love as I'm a big fan of old school romantic comedies. So, if you're not into lots of movie references, you might be a bit lost at times, but for me they provided some nostalgic and fun flashbacks.

One of the things that I loved most about this story was the honest conversations between Laila and Cole. So many romance books spend tons of time and space focusing on miscommunications, forgoing honesty, and just plain lying about feelings between their mains. As these two started out as friends, that was a big caveat in their relationship...honesty and communication...about anything and everything. That was so refreshing for me to see them inching toward taking their friendship further with honest (sometimes) painful talks. Loved that so much!

Loved the humor, the emotion, the just plain goodness of these characters and this story, and I'm looking forward to Turner's next outing.

My sincere thanks to the author, NetGalley and Thomas Nelson for providing the free early arc of Cole and Laila Are Just Friends for review. The opinions are strictly my own.

I really enjoyed this book. I loved both Cole and Laila. But they also frustrated the heck out of me.

They've been best friends for their entire lives. They are now 39 and they live in a tiny town. Cole was raised almost exclusively by his grumpy, man of little words, grandfather. Cole took on the bar/cafe that his grandfather had founded and improved it. In fact, he poured all of his talents and work life into it. Cole also supported his grandfather after the old man had a stroke and needed more care than Cole could provide. So when the grandfather died and left Cole only the house, Cole was devastated.

He'd been offered a job by a famous chef in NYC. He really wanted to take it, especially after being hurt and embarrassed by his grandfather. But Cole couldn't see his life without Laila and she wasn't leaving the town she loved. Besides, they were friends, only friends.

Each of these characters loved the other, But did they see a romantic relationship. She might have, but he considered them best friends. They took an opportunity to explore NYC before he started work, and stayed in the penthouse apartment of friends. Maybe Cole and Laila almost started to see a future together until fate dealt them another surprise.

Well written and I enjoyed the characters. But Cole and Laila, at age 39, were so unsure of what they really wanted and afraid to make a change in their relationship. So as a reader, I wanted to give them a kick in the pants to get them moving in the right direction. Still, I would recommend this book because it's complex and interesting.

It started off very strong and I got hooked. Unfortunately, it was lost halfway through the book and how their romance developed was not what I expected. I love the friend-to-love troupe, but this was poorly executed.

This book had me hooked from the blurb and didn't lose me until well after I finished. I absolutely adore Cole and Laila. When Harry Met Sally and Gilmore Girls are two of my favorite pieces of media, and the comparison was spot on. Additionally, Cole being a chef does a lot for my deep love of food romance, even if it wasn't the main point of the plot. Lifelong friends to lovers isn't always my go to, as the transition can feel pretty awkward sometimes. Bethany did a great job with the build of chemistry and their relationship. I did also read Brynn and Sebastian Hate Each Other, so I loved seeing them pop in. And finally, Bethany's affinity for pop culture really speaks to me. I really liked this!

Really not what I was looking for in a friend's to lovers rom com. Definitely had some depth but was kind of lost with the actual romance because I felt like their whole friendship was flaky and not well thought out. I just couldn't connect well with them. But someone who really likes friends to lovers will probably enjoy this one way more than I did. Wish I liked it more but to me it was just middle of the road.

So, I would have read Brynn and Sebastian first if I had realized these books are part of a series. That said, once I realized it I just decided to keep reading cause I wasn’t sure how easy it would be to Brynn and Sebastian’s book lol

Ok, so, that’s my way of saying if you have both books you should read that book first. But if you don’t, don’t let it hold you back. This book is Cole and Laila’s story.

Cole and Laila have been friends for decades. They are almost 40. They’re each other’s most important person. You wouldn’t say they are “just friends” because it downplays their importance to each other.
You could say they have never had romantic feelings for each other.

Then Cole’s whole life is thrown into a tailspin. It leaves him reevaluating everything that had been a given for him.

He always thought it was a given that he’d take over the restaurant his grandfather owned when he died.
He thought it was a given that he’d stay in his small town in Colorado.
He thought he’d always be right next door to Laila.

But then he learns that his grandfather did not just leave him the restaurant.
Cole is broken hearted.
He feels that this meant his grandfather didn’t really see him as family because he was adopted.

And then Cole decides to consider a job offer at a restaurant in NYC.
He takes Laila along.

Cole sees moving as his only option while Laila wants him to stay in Colorado. Both of them feel that they will never feel at home without the other one nearby.

And this is probably what leads to them questioning whether they might have romantic feelings for each other.

I enjoyed watching them awkwardly trying to evaluate their feelings for each other. Taking a leap from friends to being a couple would be a colossal change.

I enjoyed this book and these characters.

I got to read an early ebook edition from NetGalley. Thank you!

I’ve really loved others by this author (plot twist was fantastic) but I struggled to get into this one. I found the pacing and writing style a bit off. One conversation would last an entire chapter because of all the memories and descriptions interrupting it. So I was struggling to connect with the story line or the characters. I ended up putting it down for now, might try again a different time!

This is pretty run of the mill RomCom. If you like:
-friends for a LONG time (I am talking DECADES) to "lovers"--just some kissing and petting, really
-a small town
-best friends
-a NY interlude
-pretend dating
-an incredibly slow burn romance
-dual POV
you will enjoy this book. Honestly, it was cute in parts. A bit slow in the beginning to establish why these two need to shake things up and leave their small town, but then they finally realize they might have feelings for each other. Is it realistic that they had no idea? No, but what about RomComs are super realistic?

Thank you NetGalley for the digital ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Man.. I wanted to love this book. Not only is the cover gorgeous but childhood friends to lovers is one of my favorite tropes so as soon as I read the summary I was so excited to dive in. Unfortunately, Cole and Laila Are Just Friends did not live up to my expectations. I liked Cole and Laila as main characters. I thought they were funny and quirky and the chemistry was clear... Which is why the fact that they are almost 40 and just now realizing they were in love with each other felt so wildly unrealistic. Cole really spent over 30 years as her best friend and NEVER thought about her as anything other than a friend but one saucy dream changes everything???? And Laila felt like she was just waiting for him without realizing it????

Another small problem was the shift in POV between Cole and Laila. I don't really understand why it went from first pov (Laila) to third (Cole). I think if it had stuck with one or the other the story would've felt more cohesive for me.

Lastly, I fully understand why it ended the way that it did but after spending 75% of the book thinking Cole was going to make one decision and suddenly everything works out and they don't have to leave each other? I don't know. It bugged me.

All in all this was NOT A BAD BOOK. I enjoyed it. It was an easy to follow romcom with very likable characters. While I didn't fully connect with some points of the story, I would still recommend it.

Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas Nelson Fiction for the ARC!

Thank you SO MUCH to Thomas Nelson for the gifted early copy of this book!

Wow this was such a fun breath of fresh air for me!

I really liked both main characters Cole and Laila from start to finish! Their relationship was realistic (except for not knowing they were in love with each other ;)) and it was clear to the reader how deep their connection was and how much they meant to each other.

I loved the side plots and they kept me from ever being bored and helped things flow so well! I was also pleasantly surprised by how well all of the mini plots tied together in the end.

I didn't read Turner's previous book BRYNN AND SEBASTIAN HATE EACH OTHER yet but still appreciated the name dropping in this one! I will definitely have to go back and read it now!

I would recommend this for readers of

- Melissa Ferguson
- Courtney Walsh
- Nicole Deese

Read this if you like

- Milo Ventimiglia (trust me)
- New York City
- Cooking
- Closed Door Romance
- Friends to Lovers

This will be available for purchase on June 4th!

Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas Nelson for the eARC.

I did enjoy this sweet story, but it was a sequel and while I felt that it could stand alone, there were parts of the relationships I just didn't fully understand.

A fun and enriching escape of a rom-com, the story of two friends and the will-they/won't-they vibe that we know will turn out just right (because of this fitting into its genre), but the fun is getting there. I liked the characters and the split-view narration, although Laila felt a bit more authentic than Cole. Thoroughly enjoyable.

Man do I feel bad about this but this book just wasn’t for me. I enjoyed it enough to finish it. I just don’t think I ever got over my frustration in the beginning of feeling like I had no idea what these characters looked like.

The main characters are 39. I’ve never read a romance with older characters. This book was filled with tons and I mean TONS of references to things I have no idea about.

There was no spice which made me feel like the slow burn was for not. I didn’t get any satisfying “FINALLY” feeling.

Overall, it was okay. I would recommend if you enjoy slow burn friends to lovers.

This was a cute story about two friends that had been best friends for 30+ years realizing they were in love.

It was very descriptive and had a lot of pop culture movie and tv references. Overall it was cute but it felt like the story could have been shorter. It follows a very similar plot line to that of People we meet on vacation.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and Thomas Nelson fiction for the advanced reader copy.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

What can I say, Cole and Laila are just friends..

I started this book, with thoughts in mind, we met Laila and her bestfriend since .. forever Cole, who live in a small town Adelaide Springs where everyone knows everyone and most things about each other. But do Cole and Laila know how they really feel for each other? We learn about what makes them, them and how their friendship has grown to what it is.

As the book continues we get clues that they may feel like more than just friends with each other. As I read more I found myself laughing, smiling and saying “oh Cole’ ‘typical Laila’ and enjoying the story. Cole and Laila are fun. I enjoyed reading a simple romcom. It was a refreshing change from reading something with lots of spice.


Thanks Netgalley for the chance to read this book!

Thanks to net galley and the publisher for a copy of this book for my honest review.

Cole and Laila are just friends and have never thought about being anything else. And that was the hardest part of this book to believe. They were so close, so touchy feely, so protective that it was hard to believe that they never had a crush on each other. Never had THOSE kinds of feelings. I just didn't buy it. So I wasn't sure if was going to enjoy this book in the beginning. But once they started their journey in New York, I started to really get into it. I LOVED the romcom in New York references. I loved their relationship and I loved the atmosphere. I was just missing that profession of "I have always loved you..."

It is totally squeaky clean, which is ok with me.... mostly. I could use a little steam, but mostly, I need a little bit of cussing.lol

In the end I am a complete sucker for a friends-to-lovers trope.

A perfectly sweet, friends to lovers, dual POV romcom featuring older MCs about to turn 40 and realizing maybe their years' long friendship could be something more.

I loved that we get cameos of Brynn and Sebastian in this book and the when the story moves to NYC there are soooo many great pop culture moments and an amazing You've got mail tribute!! Great on audio and perfect for fans of authors like Jenny Proctor.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital and audio copy in exchange for my honest review! The cover is GORGEOUS on top of everything else and I am OBSESSED!

A little sweet, a little silly…unfortunately forgettable. Not bad or anything, something about it just wasn’t right for me.

I received an advanced copy from netgalley in exchange for a review and opinions are my own.

2,5 💫 | Okay, first of all: if you say you didn't pick up this book because of the GORGEOUS cover you are totally lying. As soon as I saw the illustrated cover and the title (!!!) I knew I had to read this. Let's just say, my expectations for this book were gigantic.
Unfortunately - and I'm so sad to report - this book wasn't for me. I spend a month trying to read but the book just didn't keep my attention.
The idea of this book is amazing, but I just didn't connect with the characters. It is completely insane to me how, in 30 years of friendship, they never got together. Come on, Cole and Laila were perfect for each other, everyone and their mothers could tell it.
Another thing that made it a difficult read for me was the povs. Laila's is a first person and Cole's is a third person pov. This completely messed my reading experience.
All things considered, if you like childhood (more like an all their lives) friends to lovers, and characters in their thirties figuring life out, this book is definitely for you 🤍
I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
Thank you to Thomas Nelson Fiction and Netgalley for the ARC!

I loved that the characters were close to my age range but I struggled to related to them. it just seemed far fetched and a little unrealistic. Even so, I am sure there will be a ton of people who will love this book. That said, this book was very well written and I am so appreciative for the advanced reader copy!