Georgia Stone crafted something unapologetically truthful with THE FRIENDSHIP FLING. She said I'm not going to dull the sharp edges Ava wears as armor to protect her heart. Not shaming Finn for his softness and vulnerability and desperation to be loved. And not rushing to smush Finn and Ava together until they absolutely can't resist risking their friendship for the electric attraction between them.

Local Ava is helping Finn with his list of touristy adventures before he leaves for a new job in a new country. These outings (that are absolutely not dates - smile and nod please) allow for an intimate friendship to develop. The beauty too is watching them strip away their armor or lowering their masks knowing the other will keep them safe. They learn from actions as well as words that they are loved for the totality of who they are.

We literally get to follow their friends to lovers story from moment one. You get to watch the hidden feelings develop in real time. The obliviousness of two idiots in love and their attempts to squash how down bad they are for each other. It's literary edging, and I'm not a single bit mad. Thank you, I'd like 400 more pages of it.

Highly recommend THE FRIENDSHIP FLING for expert banter, a masterful slow burn, and the most lovable of nerds.

Thank you Netgalley and Harper Perennial for the advance digital copy to read and review.

Thanks to NetGalley and Harper for providing a DRC of this review.

Fun, breezy friends-to-lovers romance that will be perfect for readers looking for their next summer grumpy/sunshine pairing.

Friends to lovers WINS AGAIN. Also, what a debut?? If Stone continues on this track she may be the next Emily Henry because omg this book made me so emotional in all of the best ways. I got this as an ARC from NetGalley and Harper Perennial and Paperbacks and I can’t express how grateful I am for it because I loved it so much!!

The Friendship Fling focuses on Ava, a barista who’s perfectly comfortable with her job, her city of London, her best friend Josie, and her brother Max. She’s the definition of a black cat, and isn’t willing to let anyone else into her perfectly curated life. Until Josie announces that she’s moving next year, and wants Ava to make a new friend. Luckily, Finn, a self-proclaimed nomad and golden retriever, is in London for the summer and needs a tour guide to complete his bucket list. Finn proposes a fling to Ava: she proves to Josie that she has a friend, he gets a personalized tour around London, and they part ways at the end of the summer. Of course, they realize quickly that summer may not be enough time for them as they gallivant around London.

This book had such good vibes. I read it on vacation, and it was wonderful because it had vacation/traveling vibes with the bucket list and was soooo cute but also bad because it had me so emotional I was crying on the beach. Which, to me, is a sign of really good character-building. Ava was so incredibly relatable and tender, with her black cat personality being hilarious but also a little heartbreaking when you learn more about why she is the way she is. Finn is her perfect match as the goofy, flirty, yet caring and protective “friend” who’s down bad for her. They truly complement each other and their banter and dynamic was so fun. The way they learned each other and took care of the other was so tender as well, you could just feel the intense but “quieter” love between them.

Their dynamics with the other background characters was also done fantastically. Ava and Josie are like the ideal best friends, and I really need a full book on Josie because she was so lovable. You could truly feel the history and love between Ava and Josie, as their interactions all felt so alive and natural. Same with Max, Ava’s brother, though that sometimes felt slightly clunkier. The scenes involving Finn with Max and Josie were also adorable and hilarious, and I need like a season-long TV show following the book, then for the rest of the show to be sitcom-style with all of these characters, because they were just so lovely.

The plot itself isn’t super complex or even unique, but I don’t think it needs to be with how well the characters are written. Don’t get me wrong, though, it worked well. It allows for great “hangouts” between Finn and Ava and makes the setting feel super vibrant and glowing, which just breathes life into the book.

I absolutely adored this book. I’m so looking forward to what Georgia Stone does next, because if this was any indication, she has a very bright future as a romance author.

I loved this book sm. I was obsessed with it from the start to finish. I loved everything about it. Ava and finn are the cutest couple ever!! I love how they complete each other. This book reminded me why I love black cat x golden retriever trope so much!!! I loved how we can see their relationship grow. The pace was perfect. Finn my sweet boy, I loved him so much. He is so precious and deserve all the love. and I loved ava's character too in all her grumpiness haha. She is such a good friend and sister. I felt for her. I had so much fun reading them complete the list.

This book is definitely one of my fav Read of this year!! Go read it rn

This is what I mean when I say I love black cat x golden retriever!!! I loved everything about this book. The characters, the summer in London setting, the plot, the BANTER!!!!!, the side characters, and the depth. The bucket list plot reminded me of Passion Project (my favorite) so I LOVED that. I absolutely LOVED(!!!!) both Ava and Finn and their relationship progression felt so REAL. They truly were strangers to the sweetest friends to lovers <3 I love a good slow burn and this gave me just that. The banter was also INSAAANE, I love nothing more than good banter, especially in this trope. Finn is truly a man down bad, a man obsessed, an angel golden retriever man. I LOVED HIM! And I loved Ava in all her prickliness, she made me laugh so much and I related a lot to her <3 her character growth was so good & Finn reminded me a lot of Charlie from Business Casual (another favorite) and he made my heart HURT. the side characters were fun and supportive and I cannot WAIT for a certain someone’s book!! I really did just love everything about this book. The best summer romance and easily a favorite of the year! Highly recommend adding to your tbr and picking up a copy of June 3!!!

A fun, bantery, slow burn romance with a black catxgolden retriever energy. I loved how this book felt more than just romance.

The Friendship Fling is a fun, slow burn summertime romance set in London with a full cast of supporting characters! Ava works at a coffee shop and gets roped into helping Finn, a new regular, complete his summer bucket list. Since Finn’s stay in London is only temporary, they mutually decide it’s best to stay just friends while they do this. Ava and Finn give off black cat and golden retriever energy, respectively, which was a fun dynamic that balanced out the more serious dynamic of them dealing with their emotional baggage.

For me the pacing was slow and the book was a little too long, but if slow burn is what you’re after this book is for you!

P.S. Loved the disability rep with Josie, Ava’s best friend and roommate. I don’t think I’ve read another book with a blind character and I think it was done well! I appreciated that Josie was a fully dimensional character with a career and relationship and was not defined by her disability.

Thank you to NetGalley & Harper Perennial for the eARC in exchange for an honest review!

I really wanted to like this book but the main character's friend absolutely drove me insane with how meddlesome she was and I just couldn't get past that. At a certain point I wanted to be like "if you're really her friend, let her do what she wants." It really bothered me and unfortunately put a damper on the whole book for me.

This was a good read with a long, slow burn for about 70% of the book that was very entertaining. Stone writes well, avoiding clichéd, worn-out phrases and descriptions and injecting her own style into everything.
Ava and Finn (but seriously, O'Callaghan? Could he at least have a surname that doesn't sound like it's from Finnegan's Rainbow?) spend a summer together, one strong-armed into making a new friend, the other wanting to fill his bucket list before he moves to his next big city. Both have issues, which the author covers in her thoughtful trigger-warning list. Unfortunately, this list is at the end of the book, not the beginning.
The first 2/3rds of the book read like a romance novel, while the last third veers off into mental health and therapy. It's a bit of a switch, but not a terrible way to finish out their story.
3.8

Sometimes you just need a good romantic novel, and Georgia Stone's latest delivers just that. When Ava Monroe, a barista in a busy London coffee shop meets Finn O'Callaghan for the first time, she has no idea what she's in for when she agrees to help him complete his London bucket list. His contract job only lasts a few months, and Ava who keeps herself closed off to the rest of the world with the exception of her best friend Josie (who tells her she needs to get out and enjoy life more) finds herself opening up bit by bit to Finn.

The book goes back and forth between Ava's and Finn's POV, giving us all an inside look into the very moment when they go from being just a 'friendship fling' to something deeper... if they can both just manage to get out of their own heads.

definitely enjoyed this one !!! the banter and wit is so sharp, the burn is sloooow, and the themes are deep. I found myself getting bored at points but could that just be my reading slump? very likely. overall a super fun read !!!

I received this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This was an engaging read! I enjoyed the plot and would read it again.

🌟Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
💧Drip-o-Meter: 💦💦
💗Something I Loved: The humor! This book was laugh out loud funny, full of sarcastic one liners from the surly curmudgeon FMC, Ava, cute (and often corny) comebacks from the golden retriever MMC, Finn, and absolutely irresistible banter and chemistry between the two. I won’t deny it… verbal sparring is my love language! These characters were everything I wanted and so much more… both of them hilarious (as established) and lovable (in their own ways), but also full of depth and with room for growth that makes them and their interactions feel not only believable, but entirely genuine. If you haven’t caught on yet, the thing I actually loved about this book was just them.
🫤Something I Would Have Changed: Nothing… this book truly worked for me in all of the ways.
🥰Favorite Moment: There were several, as per uzhe, but I think my favorite is a tie between chapter 15 (when Ava takes Finn to the boat bar — “Sure. Because of this bar.”) or chapter 29 (when Ava and Finn get stuck in a closet together and Finn confesses how he feels about her). What can I say…. I adore a #hefallsfirst #andharder moment!
🌶️Spiciest Scene: Chapter 32 was a nice little appetizer but the spiciest was definitely chapter 38. Full transparency… this is at almost 90% and is not overly graphic buuuuut I personally thought it was the “right” type of tasteful spice for this kind of book and that despite it being a very slow burn, the journey makes up for it because it’s such a damn fun ride.
📚Standalone vs. Series: I thought it was a standalone but I’ve now heard rumblings about it being the start of a new series so I don’t know for sure but god I can’t wait for more.
📖Would I Recommend: Absolutely. I adored this book and although the ending was lovely, I still didn’t want it to end. I laughed so much but also cried a little and swooned a lot and overall really loved watching these two become each other’s favorite person. I can’t wait for news on the next book and am so grateful to @georgiastonewrites, @netgalley, and @harperperennial for this ARC.
💬Tropes: Friendship of Convenience (to Lovers), Grumpy Sunshine, Summer Bucket List, Slow Burn, Workplace Romance (ish)

This book is the perfect, friends-to-lover summer romance. Georgia Stone is a personal friend but I fell in love with Ava and Finn back before I didn't know her at all, and I'm so glad to see them get their moment to shine in the sun!!!

Sigh.

Oh look, another cutesy cover book that sounds like it might be a rom com and then BAM! Surprise cancer plot!

This is a slow burn friends to lovers romance set in London between a barista who doesn't do relationships and a nomadic marketing consultant who doesn't know how to settle down in one place.

They both have big issues relating to their families and here's the thing. The book is well written and I think Finn's baggage is more interesting and complex. He has divorced parents who both abandoned him in different ways and Finn has never felt loved or wanted by his own family and doesn't understand the concept of home.

Ava, on the other hand, has a lot of guilt related to her twin brother who is a cancer survivor but gets diagnosed with cancer a second time in this book. It's a lot. I wish the author had made mention of this in her book description because I cannot express how little I like being hit with a surprise cancer side plot in a book. At least give us a heads up, I beg.

It's a very slow burn of a romance - in fact, the two meet on page and then become friends and for some of the early part of their friendship, Ava is going on dates and having one night stands. This may not be to everyone's liking, I actually didn't mind that part, this book is about Ava's growth and journey from a person who doesn't feel she deserves joy and love to someone who is more open to it. I just wish her twin brother's cancer dx was not the catalyst for her character development.

ARC from publisher, review is all mine.

I had a bit of a hard time sinking into this one. Lately I’ve been craving more of a show-don’t-tell style, so the writing just wasn’t quite clicking for me. I wanted to FEEL more emotions and tension. That said, Ava and Finn’s dynamic was super entertaining. I loved their banter and the way their friendship unfolded. It’s definitely a slow burn (like, really slow), but things picked up after the first 30%. Even though this wasn’t fully my vibe, I’m definitely curious to see what Georgia Stone writes next!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

All in all I really enjoyed this book. I liked the bucket list premise and the concept of the main characters marking items off the list together. The MMC and FMC just didn’t completely feel like they worked to me. I feel like I didn’t completely get to see their feelings for each other. While it was a slow burn, it didn’t have the angst I normally expect. I still found it a fun read though and read it pretty quickly.

This was such a cute debut. I adore a reverse grumpy sunshine and this one was funny and witty and just enjoyable throughout.

Grumpy x sunshine reluctant friends to lovers with an ever evolving bucket list that takes them all over London.

I wanted to love this so badly, especially because it's the author's debut and that's so exciting! Alas, this fell flat for me. Not even a sunshine, golden retriever MMC could keep me engaged.

This felt simultaneously rushed and slow. There were many things that dragged on, while major plot points were just breezed over in a couple paragraphs. I found myself repeatedly thinking, "show me, don't tell me" Also it's dual POV but the MMC only has like 5-8 chapters of 41?? And they barely added anything new to the story?? And we don't even see his huge third act moment happen from his POV or actually at all??

I did not love this book, but maybe you will! 2.5 stars rounding up to 3.

Thank you to NetGalley, Georgia Stone and Harper Perennial for the ARC!!

Super cute for a debut book! It was a nice change for grumpy sunshine to be a reverse trope. I do think the story was a bit too slow burn for my taste and definitely leaned too predictable, but all in all, it was a fun story. Rounding up to 4 for her first book.