dnf 59%

this is unbearable. evie is the cruelest kind of person and what seems to be an attempt at making these characters woke was disguising completely unacceptable behavior that truly had me questioning how she loved this guy- her “best friend”, mind you!!!! (and how he put up with her). i truly do not care to finish this book

Marisa Kanter hit the mark with this adorable romance with a marriage of convenience between childhood friends to lovers who slowly fall in love.

Treatment for Evie’s Chrohn’s disease is expensive and often struggles to make ends meet with a dancer’s salary and as an aspiring Foley artist. When her best friend since forever, Theo, an elementary school teacher, offers to marry her in exchange for health benefits, years worth of buried feelings start to resurface as they start to spend more time together as roommates and “husband and wife”. I enjoyed the flashback scenes highlighting how Evie and Theo’s friendship started and progressed. I loved their familiarity with each other and found the mundane moments they shared at home to be so light, cute, and refreshsing- it added a nice balance to the more serious topics of grief, mental health, and chronic illness. I also want to applaud the much needed representation of chronic illness and the broken healthcare system.

Overall, I really enjoyed this read as it cast such a unique twist to “friends with benefits”. I also loved the side characters and the humour (specifically, Theo’s students) and how caring Theo was!!! The way he loves Evie is so tender and pure <3

Thank you to NetGalley and Celadon Books for the ARC 💌

Marisa Kanter’s Friends with Benefits is a heartfelt, slow-burn friends-to-lovers romance that wraps timely issues—healthcare inequality, chronic illness, and financial precarity—into a charming, witty package. At the center are Evie Bloom and Theo Cohen, whose friendship pulses with history, chemistry, and the kind of everyday intimacy that makes you root for them from page one.

Evie is meticulous by necessity. Her career aspirations as a Foley artist require it, but so does managing her chronic illness. When a dream fellowship comes with no health insurance, it threatens to derail everything she’s worked for. Theo, on the other hand, is the epitome of stability, a caring elementary school teacher facing the harsh reality of LA’s housing crisis. Their solution—a marriage of convenience—seems pragmatic, even genius. But it quickly becomes clear that emotional logistics are never so tidy.

Kanter shines in her portrayal of Evie’s internal conflict: her desire for independence clashes with the vulnerability of needing help. Theo’s quiet longing and deep understanding of Evie add emotional weight without ever veering into melodrama. Their dynamic is tender, funny, and sometimes frustrating in the best way—like watching two people dance around a truth everyone else can see.

What elevates this novel is how thoughtfully it balances romance with real-life stakes. The plot might hinge on a classic rom-com trope, but the execution is grounded and honest. Kanter treats chronic illness with the respect it deserves and interrogates the very American problem of tying health and housing security to marriage without ever losing her narrative’s warmth.

Friends with Benefits is a love story, yes, but also a story about boundaries, survival, and the courage it takes to let someone in—even when it feels impossible. Funny, nuanced, and full of heart, it’s a smart, satisfying read that lingers long after the last page.

I am a huge romcom fan and I just finished a good one. Friends with Benefits by Marisa Kanter was so much fun.

Lots of great rep in this one, which I loved. Childhood friends-to-lovers and miscommunication tropes are front and center. I wasn’t a big fan of Evelyn—she pushed people away but wanted them to stay. Theo was the standout for me, especially with his teaching moments and Survivor love. The ending was solid once everyone got it together.

I received this book as a NetGalley ARC.

This was a cute read with a good friends-to-lovers story line. Overall was a good and fun read. The miscommunication and lack of communication is the part that brings it down for me. However, this book is elevating the standards for friendship to relationships all around. I want what these two characters have in regards to support and knowledge over their other half. I'm so happy I was able to receive an early read of this book!

I love friends to lovers romance books and when you add in a marriage of convenience, I knew I had to read this one. While I think this book is good, there are others within the genre that I liked more. I appreciate the Chron's rep as I live with someone with the disease and I know how much of a toll it can take physically and emotionally. Even with Evie's condition and my real life experience with her disease, I didn't really care for her character. On the opposite end, I thought Theo was sweet and charming. I didn't really feel the romantic connection between Evie and Theo and I'm not quite sure why, but for me it made the book just ok.

Thank you NetGalley and Celadon Books for access to the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Wow. This book was the best kind of surprise.

Full disclosure: I didn’t even read the plot synopsis before I began reading. Simply saw that it was recommended by a favorite author and decided to go in blind. I’m so glad that it did.

This book checked so many boxes for me: a protagonist with a super niche career (it’s always fun to learn about something new!), representation that doesn’t feel trite, and many of my favorite tropes. Most notably, this book has all the long-term pining and angst of friends-to-lovers wrapped in a marriage of convenience plot line. Oh, and miscommunication done well, in a way that feels realistic.

Even the fact that this book was written in the third person, present tense—something I normally loathe—didn’t detract from its charm. In fact, I read this one sitting. Was hooked from the very first page and lost a night of sleep over it.

Theo and Evie have romantic chemistry, yes, but beyond that, you get the sense of just how much they love each other as friends, which makes their mutual hesitance about a deeper relationship very believable. This book is about so many things, but ultimately it’s about learning how to trust someone, even when life has let you down over and over again. And, even more so, about learning to trust yourself to make the right decisions, even if they weren’t modeled for you.

Again, I’d like to shout out the representation in this book, both LGBTQ and chronic illness. Often, representation can feel very performative or “after-school special”, but here it felt like a natural extension of the characters. As someone who suffers from chronic pain and illness, I always appreciate it when it is well handled by an author.

4.5 stars out of 5, and I am looking forward to Marisa Kanter’s future work.

Thanks so much to NetGalley and Celadon Books for providing an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest and unbiased opinion.

This book was tough for me to get into. Right off the bat you know how the book is going to end. I wish I could’ve gotten into the writing/author but it was difficult.

This was a cute story but fell flat for me. I usually like the marriage of convenience trope but this felt just a little too cliche. I want to still try more from this author in the future though.

Evie and Theo have been the best of friends since they met at dance class as kids. Now as adults, Theo is an elementary teacher and Evie is trying to work as. Foley artist, doing sound for tv and film. When Theo needs a roommate to stay in his apartment, and Evie needs heath insurance to be able to take part in a Foley fellowship, they decide to solve both problems by getting married. While they think their arrangement of convenience won’t change anything, it obviously will.

I breezed through this book in a day. It’s pretty apparent from the description how things will end up, and I was interested to know how they would get from point A to point B. It’s a variation on a fake dating trope. Their shared interest of Survivor and how he also used it in his classroom is entertaining. Evie had moments where she annoyed me, because she’s one of those characters who can get in her own way, but I did like how her character was complex and shed a little light on what it could be like having an autoimmune disease to constantly manage.

⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Thank you to Celadon and NetGalley for the invitation to read this book.

It is definitely a testament to the quality of the writing that I like this book as much as I do, given how much I disliked how the two MCs behaved.

It's a tale as old as time. Boy meets girl. Boy's roommates move out and boy can't income qualify for his apartment. Girl can't leave her full-time gig because she needs the health insurance to combat her chronic illness. Boy and girl marry so that they can keep the apartment and the insurance.

Well, I guess it is a tale as old as (American) time. How bleak.

I'm sure I've read books where getting or keeping health insurance leads to a marriage of convenience, but I really think Kanter does well with this story line. Yes, it sucks that most Americans are hamstrung about what they can do because of our system of tying health insurance to full-time employment. It is actually a (depressing) but perfect set up for marriage of convenience.

(And for all those folks that think reading isn't political, get lost).

Beyond that, however, this is really a friends-to-lovers. Evie and Theo have known each other since they were young kids in her first dance class. They grew up together, as dance partners and platonic soulmates, while each carried a flame for the other. There are several near misses of the two of them getting together, but their lack of honest communication ends up getting in the way.

That is where my frustration ultimately lies. Almost all of the conflict could have been solved by just talking to each other! I know it is hard and both are dealing with issues that push them to retreat (Theo has a complicated relationship with his dad and is dealing with the grief of losing his mother, Evie is dealing with parental abandonment issues). But, seriously, just be honest!

But, at the end of the day, I'm a sucker for a book full of longing and this we get in excess, from both sides. For that, and the deft political story at the center, I found myself enjoying the book.

* Thank you to Celadon Books and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for my honest review! *

Friends with Benefits is a slow-burn, friends to lovers romance that had me swooning one second and yelling, “just kiss already!” the next. Evie and Theo have been best friends since childhood, and now, as adults, they end up in a marriage of convenience. Evie needs health insurance for her dream fellowship, and Theo needs help covering rent. What could possibly go wrong?

Set in a vibrant, queer-friendly Los Angeles, this one digs into the messiness of adult friendships, long-held feelings, and the lovely disaster that is the U.S. healthcare system. Evie’s experience living with Crohn’s disease adds a layer of realism and emotional weight, and the chronic illness rep is handled with care without ever feeling preachy or performative.

The chemistry between Evie and Theo is definitely there, though at times, the leap from platonic to romantic feels a little sudden. Their banter is fun and their shared pop culture obsessions give their dynamic a charming, lived-in vibe. But the miscommunication trope overstays its welcome, making me wish they'd just sit down and have an honest conversation.

That said, this is a heartfelt, funny, and very millennial romcom about love, boundaries, and how complicated it can be to fall for someone who already knows all your baggage. If you’re into friends to lovers, fake marriage hijinks, pop culture references, and thoughtful chronic illness rep, this one’s worth a spot on your TBR.

Thank you to NetGalley for the digital ARC in exchange for an honest review! 🦋

Friends with Benefits by Marisa Kanter is a sweet story about a young woman named Evie Bloom who is an aspiring Foley artist but is dealing with a chronic illness. Because of her illness she cannot take an internship with no health insurance to further her dreams. Her best friend Theo is a teacher who offers to marry her so she can pursue her dreams while on his healthcare plan. However, when he’s had a secret crush on her for years, what will happen when they’re in such close proximity?

I really enjoyed this story. I thought Evie and Theo’s friendship was sweet. I also loved learning about Foley artists. However, I would have liked to see more growth from the characters. It seemed like their inner strife was repetitive at times. With that being said, theirs was a sweet relationship that was fun to read.

Thank you to the publishers and to NetGalley for access to an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

I wanted to love this more than I did. I will say this: I love a friends to lovers story. I bought the chemistry between Evie and Theo and I was rooting for them for a bit of the story. A little more than half way through, Evie started to bother me, specifically in her treatment of Theo. Her character development surrounding her Crohn’s disease and her love of foley were amazing. I felt like I was learning more about the art of foley as I read and it was such a fun journey to go on with Evie. Theo’s love of teaching and commitment to creating a fun curriculum made him such a lovable character. These things eventually were overshadowed by Evie’s selfishness and complete inability to let Theo make his own decisions. It was redeemed a little bit at the end and I really enjoyed the ending, but a good chunk of the last half of the book had me questioning if I even wanted Evie and Theo together. Evie talks so much about how her mom fucked her up only to end up like her.

HOWEVER. I really did enjoy the way this was written and the jumping between timelines was really well done, in my opinion. Theo was a great character and I loved reading about him. He deserved to be treated better!! I’ll definitely give her other books a try as this was a good book, Evie just irritated me a bit.

Thank you to Netgalley, the author, and Celadon Books for the ARC!

A sweet quick read. I enjoyed the characters relationship and how they supported each other.

Thank you to netgalley for an advanced copy. My opinions are my own.

3, but let's say more of a 3.5!

Overall, I enjoyed this so much! I loved the history between Theo and Evie and while it gave "duh, you two have always loved each other" vibes, it wasn't so in-your-face that I got annoyed how they could have avoided it for this long. I loved how genuine their friendship really seemed and having some moments of past tension, and ups and downs really played well as opposed to the typical - "We're besties and always have been and we never fight and its all rainbows."

I think this is also a great look into the idea of marriage, versus "your person." Does marriage really change things? And if so, why? It also takes a look at nature vs. nurture and breaking trends you've made up.

Evie was chaotic, but honestly, I love how it matched Theo's thoughtfulness so well. And while I could have done with maybe one less Survivor reference, I did really enjoy this recurring bit keeping them together and playing such a big role in the story. Theo's students were also such a highlight for me! They were so fun and I loved seeing that paired with Evie's Foley job also portrayed as almost a yin and yang of sorts too. Both of their careers being a focus for them and a tie to people they love so dearly was truly heartwarming.

A few things that did bother me though was why Evie was so anti-marriage. There also were a few more things that seemed to just be forgotten. I just wanted a bit more, hence the 3.5 overall.

Friends with Benefits by Marisa Kanter is a very timely novel about Evie Bloom, who lives with Crohn's Disease, and her best friend Theo Cohen, who would do just about anything for Evie, including having her move in with him and marry her so she could participate in a fellowship that doesn't have benefits, which she desperately needs with her Crohn's. Their marriage is in name only...or is it? A fun book for the summer! Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for an ARC of this novel in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley for the advanced reader copy of Friends with Benefits by Marisa Kanter.

Evelyn and Theodore have been best friends since they first met. Theo needs someone to love with and she needs health insurance so she can quit her job and take a Fellowship in Foley art. So their solution is to get married and move in together.

They have both loved each other since 17 but never communicated at the right time. Can they figure out how to make it work???

What happens when two lifelong besties tie the knot… strictly for benefits? Evie and Theo have been inseparable since they were eight. Now at 28 years old, they’re navigating LA housing struggles, chronic illness, dream careers—and a very practical marriage of convenience. Totally platonic, totally fine and totally not about to stir up old, long-buried feelings… right?

This book had me swooning, smiling, and not-so-occasionally yelling at my Kindle. The yearning and tension are so real, and the flashbacks beautifully deepen Evie and Theo’s relationship. While the miscommunication lingered a bit too long for me, the heart of this story still shines through.

Read if you love:
💍 Friends to lovers
📦 Marriage of convenience
🩺 Chronic/invisible illness rep
🎞️ Behind-the-scenes Hollywood
💔 Complex family dynamics
💕 Slowwwww burn

My rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you NetGalley and Celadon Books for the eARC in exchange for my honest review!