Wasn’t my favourite, I loved the concept but didn’t love the miscommunication. On the plus side it was a quick read under 300 pages.

Thank you St Martins Press and Netgalley for this eARC!

The biggest concern to this one was forcing the 3rd act breakup. It didn't feel right for these two characters.

I picked this one up because it's pride month and I liked the only other Meryl Wilsner book I've read (Cleat Cute). This one was a little bit of a let down though. I liked the characters a lot, though I was a fan of Ginny more so than Elsie. Ginny gives strong, silent, supportive type and I really liked their character. I do think that they let their feelings for Elsie cloud their judgements at times and that was frustrating, but they did figure it out at some point which I appreciated. Elsie for me was just too in her head and too ambivalent for me. I understand in some ways how life can end up happening to you instead of something you do, but I think she took a little too long to accept her feelings for Ginny and make the move necessary. For best friends to lovers, I feel like there needs to be a little bit of a build up, but that did not happen here. These two went from zero to 1000 out of nowhere and it felt really jarring; they also went back the opposite way just as quick and it just didn't work for me as a reader. I did really enjoy their personal journeys and how they both grew as people because of each other, but the romance wasn't one that I connected with well and I felt like the resolution happened too fast. Not sure how much changed in the final version but for me, this book was just okay. I'm not sure if I'll try more Wilsner (some of the tropes in their other books aren't for me) but right now, I'm still open to it.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher, St. Martin’s Press, for the opportunity to read this book.

I rated this book four out of five stars, and I enjoyed it. Meryl Wilsner is an author whom I have read in the past, and I am working on reading their other books as well. This one was fun, flirty, and had some great moments with those honeymoon vacay vibes!

When Elsie realizes that she does not belong with her fiancé anymore, after he fully plans their wedding and honeymoon without consulting her, she breaks it off and her fiancé pushes her to still go on her honeymoon and to take her best friend Ginny.

Ginny has been in love with Elsie for all of her adult life, but has stood by and been her best friend, supporting her throughout the years. However, when she joins Elsie on her honeymoon instead of Elsie’s fiancé, things drastically change, and events occur that cannot be undone.

Friends to lovers is not typically one of my favorite “tropes,” but this one was done very well. This story brought me a lot of emotion and a lot of heat with that spice!

DNF for me but this was 100% a me issue and not the book. The writing style didn't work for me and while the premise of the book was right up my alley (best friends to lovers? yes please!). something was just missing that made it 100% believable and made the book feel clunky and not the immersive experience i was hoping for. Will be keeping reviews off of socials as this was not an author issue.

Thank you to Meryl Wilsner, St. Martin's press and NetGalley for the opportunity to review this book!

Wow was this hot. I loved this book so much I had to run out & get a copy to share with a friend.

I didn’t care for the miscommunication however. These two are best friends, even though their relationship has shifted to something new they shouldn’t have been afraid to talk to each other.

I was really excited to dive into My Best Friend's Honeymoon, but unfortunately, I ended up DNF'ing it. I made multiple attempts to listen to this audiobook and to read the e-arc since its release, but I just couldn't get into it. It just wasn’t the right fit for me at the time. I thought I might give it a try later on, but it just hasn't pulled me in.

Thank you to NetGalley St. Martin's Press and Macmillan Audio for the opportunity to read in exchange for my honest review.

Pride Month 2025 #5

🍦 🍓 The Ripped Bodice's 9th Annual Summer Romance Bingo 🕶️ 🏄🏼

/ It Was Supposed To Be A Summer Fling

I'm sad. I think this is the first Meryl book I haven't loved, and it's one that represents their own identity. Shame on me. I hate it here.

I was going to say friends to lovers is hit or miss, but truly any trope is hit or miss. Elsie has been engaged to Derek for some time. He decides it's a good idea to spring a surprise wedding on her. She hates surprises. I, too, hate surprises. This is my worse nightmare.

(True story. A former friend wanted to surprise visit me after I moved. Our mutual friend had to tell her that was a terrible idea, that I hated surprises, and that I would absolutely not be down. Same friend tried to buy me Kendra Scott. I may be a basic bitch, but I'm not southern white girl basic. Disgusting. Anyway.)

Ginny, not short for anything, though Elsie likes to call them Ginevra, Virginia, and other things for funsies, is Elsie's best friend. And has been in love with Elsie since basically when they met. But don't tell Elsie that. Even if everyone else knows.

So Derek's idea blows up in his face. In an act very reminiscent of me, Elsie, who doesn't make any decisions until she's pissed, breaks up with Derek. Meanwhile, he has planned an all inclusive nonrefundable honeymoon. He's nice, if dumb. He tells her to take Ginny and have fun. She does.

They do. Each other. Not right away. But because Elsie has trouble asking for what she wants, even though she loves doing anything for others, Ginny lets her ask for anything she wants this week. And Elsie does. And it gets raunchy. Because sleeping with your best friend is a great idea. I mean, I'm rolling my eyes, but it worked out for them.

📖 Thank you to Goodreads and St. Martin's Griffin

📱 Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Griffin

Elsie has been engaged for a long time. However, she seems so uninterested in planning a wedding. Long story short, the wedding was canceled but the wedding and honeymoon was already planned. Elsie then takes her bestfriend,Ginny, to the honeymoon. Ginny has always been inlove with Elsie. What happens when they go to the carribean for Elsie’s honeymoon?

If you’re looking for an easy read with A LOT of spice this is for you! I would say though that the romance got lost in the spice. I really didn’t feel the chemistry of the two main characters. With that being said, its still good and a great spicy vacation read!

✨ The Vibes ✨
Spicy friends-to-lovers with great representation

📖 Read if…
✨ You’re looking for a f/nb romance
✨ Friends-to-lovers is your favorite trope
✨ You want a book with vacation vibes

On paper, My Best Friend’s Honeymoon feels like an early 2000s rom com (minus the elements of those movies that haven’t aged well). It’s a friends-to-lovers story with a touch of forced proximity, a lot of pining, and some stellar representation, which was honestly one of the highlights of the book for me. In my opinion, Meryl Wilsner does a great job of finding ways to incorporate the energy and tension of a slow burn, even when the burn isn’t that slow, and I truly love that about their writing. Those vibes shine through, and made me enjoy the book, even though I didn’t love it.

What put me off from this story was unfortunately the friendship dynamic. I’m typically a fan of the friends-to-lovers trope, but the friendship between Elsie and Ginny felt a bit toxic. Some of Elsie’s actions read as though she was only there for Ginny when she needed something, and that she didn’t really care about Ginny’s own feelings or experiences. With that as the foundation, it made it hard to root for them as a couple because I wanted to tell Ginny to run for the hills. The spice level was also a challenge as the number of spicy scenes came at cost, with more time spent on those moments, rather than developing Elsie, Ginny, and the relationship between them.

Overall, I think I’d still recommend this book because I thought it had some cute moments and great representation, but I don’t think it’s one I will revisit in the future.

My Best Friend’s Honeymoon is out now. Thanks to St. Martin’s Griffin and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Nobody is doing traditionally published sapphic romance like Meryl Wilsner right now. Representation matters, and we've got a non-binary fat protagonist and a bisexual femme having an unproblematic romance with no threat of homophobia. The biggest family dilemma is the gruff dad having a hard time passing along the torch of the family business. That's what I like to see. The spice level is definitely high on this one so I won't be recommending to the WordSmarts newsletter audience, but I'm in support of more of this representation in the publishing industry.

This is a good pick if you're looking for a fun, sexy, queer beach read. I would suggest the plot is maybe a little thin, but I definitely didn't mind that.

Elsie finally breaks off her engagement after avoiding the inevitable for too long. I did like that her fiance wasn't a bad guy, just totally clueless. Elsie's best friend Ginny is there with anything she needs, like always, and this time it means coming along for Elsie's honeymoon. You'll never guess what happens next!! (Except you'll totally guess what happens next- it's vacation sex, but it's what you're here for anyway, right?)

I really loved Cleat Cute. I liked this one a lot, but not quite as much. It's probably now my second favorite book by Meryl Wilsner.

I am really sad to say that this book was entirely not for me. The communication issues both in the book and in the backstory were rough and it felt terrible that Elsie had apparently strong someone along for years. Then everything between her and Ginny happens too quickly, it's 0 to 100, trying things they've apparently never done before with anyone else. I don't know. It all just felt very rushed and at the end I didn't really care for any of the characters.

Not for me personally, I liked the characters and the concept, but felt like the way the plot was written ended up being very toxic and that the two FMC were not very compatible outside of the bedroom. In the end, it just felt like one character would have to bend or give up parts of themselves to make the relationship work.

I wish there were more books with fat nonbinary lesbian main characters because reading about Ginny was healing for me. The chemistry with Elsie was wonderful, and I can't resist friends-to-lovers (it's my favorite trope). I did end up putting the book down for a few weeks when the conflict started. The conflict kind of soured me on one of the characters a little, but I'm really glad I went back to it.

Thank you to Netgalley, Meryl Wilsner and St. Martin's Press for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I always love Meryl Wilsner’s books but sadly this one was hard for me to get through. It was simply too spicy for me! I wish there had been a bit more plot and less spice. But to each their own!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for this ARC. I had high hopes for this book but execution wasn’t there. While I like spice in a romcom, this felt more like porn with very little plot in between. It just seemed unrealistic that two best friends would secretly fall in love with each other, have nonstop sex, but then have all these communication issues!!

This story was one that I ended up skipping rather than reading. I was intrigued when reading but then researched those who read it and it seemed it was something that might not interest me. With it being due soon I did not read this book

My Best Friend's Honeymoon follows Elsie as she breaks off her engagement with her long-term boyfriend, and finds herself in possession of non-refundable honeymoon tickets. She decides to invite her best friend, Ginny, who just so happens to be in love with Elsie.

While overall I enjoyed this romance, and think others would love it, I struggled with the pacing of the plot. The main characters are, understandably, worried that their new sexual relationship would ruin their close friendship. I felt as though there was a quick jump between friends to lovers, and not enough communication between the MC's. I will say, I love how Wilsner writes lovable queer characters and is able to give them the happy endings they deserve.