I loved how real and funny this book felt, with smart writing, strong characters, and a summer story full of heart. It’s about growing up, taking risks, and finding joy in unexpected places.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Audre and Bash Are Just Friends is another brilliant novel by Tia Williams - set in the same universe as Seven Days in June.

The young adult story follows Audre, who ends up having to spend the summer with her mother, step-dad and newborn sibling after her dad cancels their summer plans. Disappointed with the cancellation, and feeling rejected, she decides she wants to spend her time trying new things to help her understand other people and their minds in order to write the self-help book she so desperately wants to write. Thus, she enlists the help of fellow schoolmate, Bash.

Audre is very wise for her age and seems to take on everyone else’s problems as well as her own. It’s no surprise she wants to go into the field of psychology as the novel starts with her charging classmates for therapy sessions. Mental health issues are a huge part of this story which I think is an important topic to discuss and be aware of at any age. The author tackles this well and shows what various levels of mental health issues that teenagers could be dealing with. Audre is very likeable and would be relatable to a lot of teenage and young adult women.

It was fun seeing her break free from her strict rules she’d set for herself and start to enjoy her life and what the world has to offer. I also liked her relationship with Bash. They have a cute dynamic and great chemistry. The fact their relationship develops slowly out of a friendship felt natural and true-to-life.

Bash’s story is one we discover as the plot goes on. He is seen by a lot of people at school as a “bad boy” but we soon discover all is not what it seems. There are some heavier topics in this novel which makes the story that much more important and intriguing.

I loved seeing Audre’s mother, Eva, again and the dynamic of their family with the new sibling and step-dad. It’s a great way to get a glimpse into the other character’s Tia Williams has written in the past. It’s also interesting to see how Audre deals with the new dynamic and the strains it has put on her relationship with her mother. A lot of the time she feels left out. Again, I think was done well as a lot of teenagers would feel similarly if they had a new sibling at that age. I wish we got more closure for these feelings but perhaps it would have been unrealistic to close the book with everything tied into a neat little bow.

You can easily read this as a standalone without reading the author’s adult novel - Seven Days in June. If you’re a fan of the friends to lovers trope in romance books then this would be the perfect read. This is a beautiful story of friendship, self-discovery and acceptance.

This book. This. Freaking. Book!

Seven Days in June is one of my favourite books so I was excited to read a YA book by the same author. Imagine my surprise when the main character Audre turns out to be THE Audre, Eva Mercy's daughter! I was shook and my excitement skyrocketed! I'm glad I didn't put two and two together, I was so happily surprised!

I equally loved this book as I did SDIJ. The characters, experiences and emotions all felt so real. It may be a new adult/young adult novel but it's still relatable for the reader. It was an emotional rollercoaster getting to know Audre & Bash and see how their summer plays out. I didn't want to stop reading but also wanted to put it down as I couldn't take what might happen next.

This book is funny and fresh, it's gut-wrenching and tugs at your heart, it's real and honest. Getting to see the lives of Eva & Shane was such an added bonus. I would've enjoyed it if they weren't involved but it elevated that much more for me!

Tia Williams, you've done it again!

Ms Tia!!!!! May your pen never run out of ink!!!

Tia Williams is one of those authors that whatever she writes I will read because I know that the world that she is about to transport me to will leave my heart full with so much love and joy. What I truly loved about this book is that even though it was a story of Audrey and Bash, the parrells between their relationship and Shane and Eva's almost made this story feel like a Gen Z retelling - it's literally 7 days but without all the trauma. A great read for all ages/lovers of Tia Williams.

The cutest YA book to get you out of a reading slump. As the relationship between Audre and Bash grows you cant help but root for them. Audre's frustrations with her mother and finding out about her childhood was a nice addition to the growth of Audre.

This was really cute, the characters were adorable but I did struggle with it being 3rd person which I personally find harder to get into.

A book I love so much that I don’t know how to review it.

I really, really loved Seven Days in June. It’s one of my favourites and a book I’ll always recommend. So, it was super exciting to hear about this sequel and to dive back in to the world, this time from the perspective of a more grown up Audre.

As I’ve already said, I loved it. I love Audre. I loved seeing her relationship with Shane and her mum now that she’s older, and the growing pains there. All the ways Audre felt as if she didn’t fit. It was strange to see Eva in this different light. But I loved it. It was painful and heartbreaking and frustrating at times, but you could always feel the love this family had for each other and all the ways they’re trying to be better than what came before them. But things can be rough, and I love that Williams never shies away from showing these dynamics.

I loved Bash, and how with his character we were made to confront that not all we see on the surface is the truth. Audre and him complimented each other well, and they were so adorable together. I loved their romance. It had me crying and giggling and just falling in love right alongside them!

Loved it.

This was a perfectly pitched YA enemies to lovers romance which was sweet, funny and hopeful. I really love this author and can’t wait to read more from her

Swoony, sharp, and impossible to resist 💘💭. Audre & Bash Are Just Friends delivers sparkling chemistry, witty banter, and emotional depth in a friends-to-lovers romance that feels authentic and fresh. Tia Williams crafts complex characters and a love story full of yearning and humour. I adored the slow-burn tension and heartfelt exploration of love, boundaries, and vulnerability. A must-read for fans of modern romance with real heart.

I loved seven days in June, and I loved this. But you don’t have to have read seven days to enjoy this. I love Audre and Bash, so cute!

⭐⭐⭐⭐✨

One of my favorite YA reads of the last few years. In this novel we follow Audre and Bash as they meet and form a precious bond that starts as an almost reluctant one when Audre asks him to help her fulfill a list in order to be able to publish the book she deems necessary in order to get into her dream college.
That would be the main plotline, but we also explore some deeper topics within the characters, which include the weight of high expectations, pressure, mental health issues, not fitting in, and not-so-perfect familial relationships. This novel was full of charismatic characters, humor, and lots and lots of heart and introspection. I was also surprised to see that we don't follow the two main characters exclusively, as we are able to get a sneak peek into another plotline regarding some side characters.

Having read from Tia Williams shortly before this (in preparation for this release, specifically) caused a mini disconnect because of the way things go between the mother-daughter relationship (which could be explained because of the shift in perspective between Seven Days in June and Audre & Bash Are Just Friends and the time that has passed between both novels), but it still felt like it lacked cohesion even within the book with the conversations Audre and Eva.

Overall a very recommended read, especially for these summer months!

Thanks to NetGalley and Quercus Books for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Dear Tia Williams,

I’ve been meaning to read a Tia Williams book for some time now and was happy to get the chance to read Audre & Bash are Just Friends. It’s a YA contemporary set in Brooklyn over a summer. Audre is the daughter of Eva Mercy. (I didn’t know this until the author’s acknowledgements at the end of the book, but Eva and Shane (her partner) are the protagonists in Seven Days in June – the book which first put Tia Williams on my radar.) Four years have passed since the events of Seven Days in June. Shane and Eva are engaged and have a daughter “baby Alice” (to whom Audre refers as “the goblin”) and Audre is now 16 years old and busy planning her future.

Part of Audre’s plan is to get into Stanford and study psychology. She’s been providing “therapy” to her peers for money for some time. Audre plans to write a book about life advice for teens as part of her application to Stanford, believing that she needs something more than her excellent grades to stand out enough to be accepted.

Audre is feeling very displaced, particularly since the birth of baby Alice. Eva is caught up in Shane and the baby and Audre feels she is the a satellite and not really a part of the family. It doesn’t help that the apartment where they live needs to be renovated to create a space for both girls and the project has been delayed. So what was Audre’s bedroom is now a construction zone (and she will eventually get back only half of it) and Audre is sleeping on the couch in the living room. A 16-year-old girl needs her privacy!!

Audre has just graduated for the year and was Class President, giving the end of year speech. And her mother didn’t go.

Usually Audre spends summers in California with her dad but that plan is ruined when her dad announces that he and his new partner, Athena, are expecting a child and his partner’s mother is staying with them as Athena has terrible morning sickness. So there’s no room for Audre in “Dadifornia” this summer. She’s stuck in Brooklyn and the internship with a mental health clinic she was going to have is now also toast given it’s over there and she’s stuck in Brooklyn. Her whole plan is a bust and she’s feeling very resentful of all the adults in her life and their infant/unborn children.

Audre’s best friend, Reshma, plans to be in Argentina with her wealthy musician parents and that leaves Audre at loose ends. Reshma, much more adventurous and social than Audre, writes her a list of things to achieve over the summer to get some real life experience under her belt. It’s all well and good to offer therapy to people but it needs to be based on some kind of life experience right?? Audre enlists the aid of Bash Henry, a boy who goes to a neighbouring school, having transferred there from California under mysterious circumstances a few months before. Bash is a bit of a enigma. Everyone loves him; he throws the best parties, girls and guys alike swoon over him but he’s intensely private. He’s cool and friendly and after one conversation with him, more than one girl is convinced they’re soulmates. There are so many rumours about Bash – what is true and what is not. But, Bash does seem know know how to have fun – so she asks him to be her “funsultant” for the summer.

And so Bash and Audre become friends. Each finds the other very magnetic and attractive but for their own reasons neither thinks there could be anything between them. Until that changes.

Bash’s own history is revealed over the course of the book. He’s been very let down by the adults in his life and, until he moved to New York, he lived a strictly regimented life with zero colouring outside the lines allowed. His entire life changed in just seven minutes. Since then, he’s taken to timing what else can happen in that timeframe.

Seven minutes, he thought, grabbing his towel and wiping the sand off his skin. That’s all the time it took for Dad to get rid of me.
That’s where his mind went when he was still. Ever since Milton said that he was no longer his son, he’d been obsessed with timing things, with figuring out what could be done in seven minutes. He timed everything. He’d discovered that he could whip up an edible pan of chicken stir-fry in seven minutes. He could bike half of the Park Slope loop in seven minutes. He could tolerate four highball shots in seven minutes.
And, because there were a zillion clocks in Just Because, and he watched them obsessively—he knew that it had taken seven minutes to say yes to Audre.

When he came to the big apple, he decided things were going to be different. He was going to say “yes” to everything. He’s technically living with his mother but she’s rarely home. They barely know each other; she gave up custody of him when he was a baby and he was raised by his strict and demanding father. There’s a lot of resentment in Bash toward his mother over it. His mother is white and has generational wealth. She spends her time acting as a tone deaf white saviour for at-risk teens of colour, all the while having largely ignored her own son for his entire life. Bash sees the irony. She does not.

Audre inspires feelings in Bash he’s never felt before and for the first time, he considers hanging around in New York rather than leaving the first chance he gets. He will turn 18 in August and the plan at the start of summer was to move to another state near a beach (Bash loves to surf) and be an apprentice tattoo artist. But then there’s Audre…

Audre has a fraught relationship with her mother. Eva is incredibly strict about curfews and social activities (especially with boys) for reasons which Audre doesn’t understand. It’s another of the ways that Audre lacks life experience and over the summer, Audre and her mother come into conflict multiple times as Audre tries to spread her wings and Eva tries to hold her back, hold her away from risk.

I found Audre very relateable and sympathetic and I liked her very much but Bash stole my heart. As I’ve gotten older kindness has become a major source of attraction for me (in all the ways one can be attracted). I want to spend time with kind people. And Bash, above all, is kind.

…I don’t believe in being mean.” He shrugged and thought about this for a moment, fingering his thin, silver necklace. “Meanness is too easy. People think being mean makes them seem edgy or unique. Kindness is more radical.”

Bash is compassionate and generous and he pays attention. Audre has experienced a couple of panic attacks and hasn’t been able to talk to anyone about them, including her mother. After Bash witnesses Audre having a panic attack, he waits patiently, without judgement or pity but with genuine empathy and concern, and provides useful, practical help. When he hears that Audre’s mother didn’t hear her speech at the end of the school year, this is his response:

“…I really want to hear your speech. You need someone to be proud of you. I’ll be proud.”

Audre & Bash are Just Friends is also very funny. One of the challenges Reshma sets for Audre is buying a dildo and the scene was hilarious in the best way. Here is some of it:

“Do we have a dildo-buying strategy?” asked Audre. “You tell me,” said Bash. “I’ve never done this before.” “So, how are you helping, exactly?”
“I’m here as your enthusiastic cosigner.”
“This challenge is dumb. What am I supposed to learn from buying a dildo?”
“Okay, you gotta stop saying the word dildo.”
“Why?”
Why? thought Bash. Is she really asking me that? How do I even answer?

…

“If we’re gonna do this,” she said, “you have to relax. ‘Dildo’ is just a word. Be mature.”
“I think you’re overestimating my maturity.”
“Bash, come on.”
“I’m kidding. I’m kidding.” He turned his Raiders cap to the back and neutralized his expression. “I’m ready. Let’s go. What’s the move?”
“I guess we just wing it. Go with God?”

My arc had a couple of errors in (it’s an arc so, fair) but I was curious whether the mythical item was a Smurf lunchbox or a Smurf phone. Perhaps someone who gets a finished copy can tell me?

Reshma has her own sort-of story arc and I liked the messy complicated friendship she had with Audre. It reminded me in many ways of my school BFF and myself.

The end of the book unraveled a little for me. The resolution felt rushed and a bit convenient. And I thought Bash’s backstory needed more attention than the story gave it. But overall, the book was very good; eminently readable, with a delightful teen romance. And you know what? Even though Bash and Audre are 18 and 16 respectively when the book ends, I think they could actually go the distance.

“I’ve noticed something,” said Bash, carefully. “You like pointing out the competitions you’ve won.”
Audre flinched, immediately embarrassed. “I . . . I guess I want to seem impressive.”
“But you’re impressive without winning. You’re impressive just standing there, trying to figure out why you’re in Target buying a sex toy with a guy you didn’t know two weeks ago.” Audre smiled bashfully, casting her eyes downward. “Thank you.”

Grade: B

Regards,
Kaetrin

I really loved this Audre and bash,s banter was everything.
This is my new favourite author.
She writes gold .
Really sweet , funny reads .

I wasn't a fan of this book at all. I didn't understand the characters or their motivations. I didn't care enough about them to feel it was worthwhile continuing to try and understand them. I didn't really understand what the purpose of this book was either, I didn't understand what the plot was meant to be about. It just wasn't a book that ended up interesting me ultimately. I am sad that I didn't end up enjoying this as much as I thought that I would. This is just how it works out sometimes though.
•
Thank you to NetGalley for sending me an ARC copy of this book.

What to expect:
- Audre, the teenage FMC in Seven Days in June, getting her starring role!
- a YA romance (flustered awkwardness included).
- the classic good girl feeling pressure to be perfect, who needs to loosen up.
- the mysterious surfer boy at school that she hires to be her *fun consultant* for the summer.
- friends to lovers
- a big focus on Audre's relationship with her mum and complicated family dynamics.
- a balance between humorous and heartfelt moments, as Williams tackles topics like race, gender, sexuality, and mental health.

If you're looking for a YA romance with emotional depth and relatable messiness, definitely check it out!

i really enjoyed audre & bash are just friends — it was chaotic, teenage fun but still tackled serious issues and of course had the perfect amount of summer romance and teen angst.

Audre, class president, model student and the girl everyone goes to for advice is writing a s3lf help book to promote her chances of getting to Stanford.
Bash is the cool kid, everyone's crush, the fun guy.
Audre decides that she needs so e life experiences to make her book authentic so hires Bash to be her funbassador and help her experience life away from her normal.
Bash agrees because he has nothing else to do that summer. Soon they are secretly both liking each other waaayyy to much but trying to hide how they feel.
Mix in dysfunctional families on both sides and the story hums along nicely.
Just right for summer chillout time.

writing a second gen book can be quite tough because you either have to

a) alienate your new audience by not re-introducing the main character & all the backstories

or b) potentially bore your loyal audience by writing something so different


this book perfectly weaves the old with the new, allowing audre and her story to shine in their own right

Audre was such a great character in Seven Days in June that when I learned that she was getting a book of her own I was so excited to read it and this book did not disappoint. Audre remains such a fun and interesting character and getting to see the world through her eyes was such a great time. The way that her and Bash navigated their relationship from strangers to friends to a relationship was so sweet and tender. This book packed the emotional punch that Williams' books always have and the ending was so sweet.

A warm hearted, joyous read that I was captivated by and completely fell in love with. Highly recommended.