Joni and Ren are life long friends, but this summer at the lake house for her sister's wedding it is all going to change.
Friends to lovers in one of my favorite troupes to read, and having this one set on the beach was even better! I enjoyed the flashbacks over the years, it really helped to build the foundation for their relationship. While sometimes it felt slow, I enjoyed this book.

This story was very sweet. Ren was such a good friend, I felt bad for him most of the book, SInce you are aware that he has always loved Joni. Joni just took a very long time to realize that she had more than friends feelings for Ren. Its nice to see the growth since it takes you back to the past and you see all the things that went on during their friendships. This to me felt more character lead than plot but there are things that do happen that help the story move along. This is a book that you would pick up if you like friends to lovers and fluffy reads. Its a good book to read as a palette cleanser.

The audio was very good. At times it was confusing since I didnt always catch when it was a flashback or present day shenans. There were times where the sentence was reread, but that just could be that it was the next like. In the ebook I did see words that werent together and that chapters would start in the middle of the page. But the book wasnt the final version so that didnt bother me.

Overall a sweet read and would recommend to romance readers who love fluff, friends to lovers.

I wanted to love this book because I love a good friends to lovers trope!!! Sad to say I didn’t love it but I also didn’t hate it. Though the title says “friends to lovers”, this felt more like…lovers to exes to lovers? It was pretty blatantly obvious that Joni and Ren were secretly in love with each other and the miscommunication that was the reason they cut each other off for 2.5yrs??!! Joni girl please!!! The alternating timeline also made it a bit confusing and the slow pace of the story overall made it a little hard to follow/stay intrigued.

🌱| What if your best friend was always your forever? Heartfelt. Emotional slow burn. Light and easy romance filled with the swoons.

➜Summer Romance
➜Childhood Friends to Lovers
➜Dual Timelines

Friends to Lovers by Sally Blakely has all the ingredients for a cozy, feel-good romance—two likable characters, a long-standing friendship, and the slow burn of something more developing over time. There are genuinely sweet and heartfelt moments, and the emotional connection between the Ren & Joni feels authentic.

However, one of the things that held the story back for me was the pacing. We don’t find out why Ren & Joni stopped speaking for 2.5 years until about 80% into the book, and that delay made the story feel a bit uneven. I kept waiting for that key piece of information to understand their dynamic better, and by the time it was revealed, it felt a little too late for the emotional payoff to fully land.

That said, the ending was satisfying, and fans of slow-burn, second-chance romance will likely still enjoy the journey. A solid read with heart—just one that I wish had delivered a bit more clarity earlier on.

Thank you NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for my ARC!

This was an easy summer read that didn't stand out in any particular way. Closed door romance and a predictable second chance trope that dragged on a bit too long for me. Thanks Harlequin Trade & NetGalley for the ARC!

Thank you SO much to NetGalley for sending me this ARC.

Friends to lovers mixed with some second-chance? I knew I couldn’t possibly dislike this. I can’t believe this was a debut! All around it was incredibly well written. The pacing was so well done, the relationships outside of our two main characters also so well done, I’m honestly at a loss for more words. Don’t even get me started on the playlist.
Joni and Ren, I hope you remain thriving ❤️

Friends to Lovers is not normally my favorite trope, but this was written so well and I loved it! I like how different the dual timeline was, following different years and different weddings. This story also had a little bit of miscommunication towards the end and I absolutely hate that trope and it just made me want to shake Joni (FMC) and tell her to just be HONEST. But I know that's hard when you think you're doing the right thing for someone else. Overall I had a really fun time with this story and the narrator for the audio was so talented! Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for my digital and audio ARC!!

This was such a good story! Just like it says, this is a classic childhood friends to lovers story. A second chance romance. Full of angst and flirting…so much obsessing!! I loved it.

We get the full scope of Ren and Joni’s relationship through flashbacks from present day. They bring us in to see how it began and how it all fell apart, and what happens when it all comes back 2.5 years later. It was honestly heartbreaking seeing it all fall apart in the past. But I really love how much depth that brought into the story telling.

Ren and Joni grew up best friends. Tied together with their families being best friends and owning a shared beach house. Their families are such a big part of their story. Overbearing mothers, meddling sisters and brothers and friends all mixed up together. All of them watching and waiting to see what’ll happen with these two.

This story also explore self worth tied with careers. How to handle expectations and having a life. Enjoying that life outside of work, knowing work isn’t the end all be all. It doesn’t have to consume everything.

This is the perfect beach read for the summer. Captured that vacation feeling so nostalgically. And it was so swoony!!! Would highly recommend.

A great summer read! In this forced proximity, dual-narrative debut you follow Joni and Ren as they navigate life from childhood best friends to strangers back to friendship then to love.

I would give this book 3 stars. Ren was such a good MMC, he was so attentive, sweet, and such a great friend, but I didn't care much for Joni's character. The story and the writing were good; I just couldn't get past not being a fan of Joni. Even knowing the ending and what happened, I just don't understand how you can cut someone off for 2+ years. Be a decent human and COMMUNICATE! I loved the ending so at least it ended on a high note.

*Friends to lovers
*Second chance

This book was so cute! It was a fun breather if your looking something in between serious reads and want to just have fun. I loved the chemistry between the characters!

THIS BOOK IS SO, SO GOOD. An instant 5-star read.

This did NOT feel like a debut, Blakely writes so vividly and seamlessly that I forgot I was reading for HOURS. Joni and Ren felt so authentically enamored with each other, even (maybe especially) when they were refusing to acknowledge it. Friends-to-lovers (the trope) is so underrated, and this book is a perfect example of how it can be done so, SO well.

Joni is the anxiety-ridden girl that lives inside so many of us, and her struggle never felt gratuitous or lazy. Could lots of suffering have been avoided by a couple of simple conversations? Maybe, but the willful miscommunication between idiots in love is my bread and butter.

10/10. No notes. Thank you to Harlequin Trade Publishing for the early copy - I will definitely buying a copy of this for my shelves.

Friends to Lovers was a lovely ride and I definitely recommend grabbing it asap! Loved jumping back and forth between present day and memories as Ren & Joni’s story unfolded. It was a bumpy ride for the friends, but ultimately, I fell in love with the story and all the characters!

Friends to Lovers is a sweet and heartwarming story about two lifelong best friends who slowly begin to realize that their bond runs deeper than just friendship. The story follows their emotional journey as they navigate the shift from being each other’s safe space to exploring the possibility of something more.

Blakely does a great job capturing the tension, fear, and excitement that comes with risking a friendship for love. The characters are lovable and their chemistry is undeniable, making the slow-burn romance feel authentic and rewarding. While some moments felt a little predictable, the emotional payoff was worth it. A comforting, feel-good read for fans of the friends-to-lovers trope.

Wowowowow. I did not expect to love this as much as I did. The book immediately draws you in and keeps you hooked from start to finish. I literally could not put it down. I love love love when Friends to Lovers is done right and this book does just that. You can feel the chemistry between the characters in an instant. And you can just tell how deeply they love each other and miss each other when they're apart. This is definitely a must read. Even if you don't like the traditional romance, I think you'll love this one.

Huge thanks to NetGalley, Harlequin Audio, and Sally Blakely for the chance to read and listen to Friends to Lovers early! I was gifted both the eARC and ALC, which made for the perfect immersive reading experience, and honestly, I didn’t want to put it down.

This was such a heartfelt, nostalgic friends-to-lovers romance. I loved Joni and Ren’s connection. Deep, complicated, and full of that "what if" tension that keeps you turning pages. Their wedding-season tradition was such a sweet setup, and watching it unravel and rebuild had me fully invested. The beachy, summer setting gave it all the cozy, romantic vibes, and the emotional depth really hit home.

Patti Murin’s narration was spot-on. She captured Joni’s heart and humor so well that it made the story even more relatable and real.

There were a couple of slower moments, but overall, this was a beautiful debut full of love, growth, and second chances. If you enjoy stories about rekindled connections, messy feelings, and the kind of love that feels like home, this one is definitely worth a read.

A lovely reminder that sometimes, love has been right there all along. 💛

This book has a serious case of "I feel like I have read this before", and the other book was way better. After looking at the reviews other readers thought it was a People We Meet On Vacation knockoff...and I have to agree. Sorry to the author, but I would say go read the other book instead.

Thanks to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for a e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

So. freaking. cute. I loved this book so much! Another reviewer described it as "if Happy Place" and "The People We Meet On Vacation" had a baby, it would be this book and I completely agree. Somehow Sally Blakely has captured all the fun and chemistry of an Emily Henry book, but made it her own. It doesn't feel derivative or like a copy at all, but if you liked either of those books at all, you'll almost certainly love this one, too.

I'm so impressed by this debut and can't wait for more by this author!

3.5 ⭐️

This was an enjoyable summer read. I loved the chemistry between Ren and Joni. I think this was a wonderful debut novel from Sally Blakely. The only thing that is not my favorite is the miscommunication trope. The whole book could have been solved with a simple convo. I’m also not a big fan of other woman drama (even though it was a very small portion of the book it still wasn’t for me).

Overall I think the book was really well done and I’d be excited to see what the author writes in the future!!

Thank you NetGalley and Sally Blakely for the ARC!