“Loving you … it's like my heart exists outside my body”

Many thanks to NetGalley and Harlequin Audio for the advanced audio copy. All opinions expressed are honest and my own.

Always each other’s plus-ones, but never each other’s read dates, two childhood best friends have one last summer wedding to fall in love in the dual-narrative debut.

What I enjoyed the most about this book is the emotional maturity of the characters. The slow-burn had you wanting more, and wasn’t over played. It fell into the “beach reads” vibe for me. Definitely had an Emily Henry feel to it, which makes sense with the cover art. I gave it a solid 3.5 stars.

🌟 3.5/5

Such a beautiful story of Ren and Joni. I love how their friendships evolved and when they both realized that their feelings have changed for each others. I liked that even through the chaos, Ren was calm and when he needed to step up he did in the end. This was such a beautiful read and I enjoyed every minute.

3.5 ⭐️ rounded up
Friends to Lovers is a heartfelt, slow-burn romance about childhood best friends navigating second chances and unspoken feelings. I loved the Oregon coast setting and the emotional intimacy between Joni and Ren, but overall it just didn’t completely pull me in. Sweet story, just not a new favorite.
I like the friends-to-lovers trope but the miscommunication with this story drove me crazy. (It’s a me thing.) I got a little bored with the story to be honest.
Ren was such a sweet MMC. 💞

Overall I enjoyed this book and would recommend if you like:
🩵 Childhood Best Friends to Lovers
💙 Forced Proximity
🩵 Second Chance
💙 Slow Burn

I would absolutely read more work by this author.
Thank you NetGalley and Harlequin Audio for this eARC in exchange for my honest review.

I listened to this on audio and followed along the ebook. The narrator does a fantastic job!

Well this was filled with all of the sweetness! What a great book. I just loved the characters in this one and just ate it up.

This is for the Emily Henry fans out there! It had some predictability to it but Joni and Ren outweighed that by tons!

I also loved the narrator in this. Patti has narrated a bunch of books I’ve listened to like Katherine Center and few Christina Lauren books!

A cute read! Thank you NetGalley and Harlequin Audio for the gifted copy to review.

Thank you to @netgalley and Harlequin Trade for a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. Also thank you to Harlequin Audio for a free audio copy.

★★★★☆

Friends to Lovers is a heartfelt, sun-soaked debut that delivers all the emotional payoff you want from a best-friends-to-lovers romance—and the audiobook version, narrated by the always-excellent Patti Murin, makes it even more special.

Joni and Ren’s relationship is the heart of this story. Their tradition of being each other’s plus-ones for wedding season is sweet and nostalgic, but when old feelings resurface during one final summer together, the emotional tension is palpable. Blakely does a beautiful job capturing the ache of missed chances and the vulnerability of finally confronting what’s been unspoken for years.

Patti Murin’s narration brings so much warmth and nuance to both characters. She captures Joni’s inner conflict and Ren’s quiet longing with such authenticity that you feel every beat of their journey. The dual narrative structure works well, and the setting—beach days, family weddings, and late-night confessions—adds a dreamy, romantic backdrop.

If you love slow-burn romance with emotional depth and a touch of summer nostalgia, this audiobook is a must-listen. Sally Blakely is definitely an author to watch, and Patti Murin once again proves why she’s one of my favorite narrators.

#books #bookishlife #booklover #readingisfun #iowabookstagrammers #iowabookstagram #netgalley #harlequintrade #harlequinaudio #friendstolovers #sallyblakely #pattimurin

First thing’s first: thank you Netgalley for the ALC of this book!

Friends To Lovers by Sally Blakely was just so so well done. Joni and Ren’s love story was multi-timeline perfection. Childhood best friends who come from families who are best friends and always vacation together?? Sign me up. Plus friends to lovers is one of my very favorite tropes so I was already ready to eat this one up. What I wasn’t expecting was a book with such lovely substance and a cast of characters that I’ll be thinking about for a long time to come.

I loved getting to know these characters and I adored the way the book was written. We worked backward from the conflict and saw their relationship building back up from the breakup through current events and events of the past. This was a surprisingly emotional read and I really, really enjoyed it. I wanted more of this book as soon as I finished it!!

4.5⭐️

RECAP:Joni and Ren have been best friends since childhood, keeping their bond strong by being each other’s wedding season plus-ones every year—even after Joni moves across the country. But when a line is crossed, their once-unbreakable friendship falls apart. Now, back at their families’ shared summer home for her sister’s wedding, Joni is determined to make the week perfect, even if it means pretending things with Ren are fine. As old memories resurface and quiet moments turn tender, Joni begins to wonder what her life means without him—and whether their story is truly over, or just waiting for a second chance.

REVIEW: This is like a combo of People We Meet on Vacation and Happy Place - although I didn't enjoy it as much as I do EmHen's books, I still think this would be a nice read for a beach day. As the name suggests, it's (surprise, surprise) the friends to lovers trope, with a dash of second chance romance. It did move along pretty steadily, but overall, I think it could have been a little bit of a shorter book.

“I think I’m always going to be waiting for just five minutes of you loving me like I love you.” God. That one got me.

Friends to Lovers by Sally Blakely was an instant five star read for me!

Joni and Ren have been best friends since childhood, bound together by years of memories and an unspoken something more. Now, as they wade through adulthood and the endless stream of weddings that come with it, they make a pact to always be each other’s plus one. No awkward setups, no pressure, no feelings (lol).

The story flips between past and present weddings, slowly piecing together their friendship and the tension that’s been quietly simmering beneath it for years. When they reunite for Joni’s sister’s wedding at their old family vacation home, everything they’ve been avoiding rises to the surface. They haven't seen each other for 2 and a half years and now have to pretend they've been buddy buddy in front of their families and friends.

This book was like if Happy Place, People We Meet on Vacation, and The Summer I Turned Pretty had a threesome and conceived a love child.

I loved every second of Joni and Ren’s slow burn love story. The chemistry is perfect. The secondary characters we also amazing.

This is a perfect summer beach read and it's one I know I'll pick up again and again to help with a reading slump.

Thank you so much to Sally Blakely, Harlequin, and NetGalley for an ALC!

Thank you Netgalley for my audiobook copy of Friends To Lovers by Sally Blakely in exchange for my honest review. This is Blakely's debut novel, but you'd never think that!
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This is a perfect summer read for you to round out the summer of 2025 with! Joni and Ben are childhood best friends and have committed to being eachother's plus ones for big events...until they're not friends anymore...but no one knows it. So...when Joni's sister is getting married and they're expected to be around eachother like they're best friends that talk all the time, what will happen?
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This story alternates between the past and present and little bits of what happened between them in the past get dropped just enough that you can't put the book down because you need to know what happened. It isn't as if it was some huge blowout fight because they still seem ok...so, what is it? The writing was absolutely superb!
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This is a great second chance romance that truly is a friends to lovers tale and will have you rooting for Ben and Joni the entire time. Definitely check this one out, 4 stars from me!

The premise of being eachothers' plus ones isn't new... and friends to lovers isn't really my favourite trope... but regardless, I ended up enjoying this story WAY more than I expected to!
The story was told with dual timelines (and listening to the audiobook there was a couple times I wasn't sure if I was in the past or present.. but that was my fault with multitasking! Lol).
The two main characters grew on me and I loved the cast of side characters as well. I wish there had been more yearning between the the main characters though.
Overall it was a fun story and the narrator really brought it to life.

Thank you to Net Galley and Harlequin Audio for an advanced audiobook copy in exchange for an honest review.

FRIENDS TO LOVERS, By Sally Blakely

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
🎙️🎙️🎙️🎙️🎙️/5

I LOVED THIS BOOK!!!! To the point where I went to see what else I could read by Sally Blakely and was devastated that this is her DEBUT! Well done, Sally👏🏻❤️ immediately followed on social media so I can keep up with what her next project is.

The story follows estranged best friends, Joni and Ren, as they see each other for the first time after 2.5 years.

This is slow burn, and so worth it. 100% recommend. Off to buy a physical copy now because it needs to be on my shelf.

#dualtimeline #friendstolovers #familyfriends #secrets #plusone

I am self-imposing a ban on reading romances with the friends-to-lovers trope because this book made me freaking cry. Sometimes it seems like this kind of relationship wouldn't feel as high stakes, but there's so many layers of history, connection, and yearning between Joni and Ren, who are truly best friends. Ren is down bad and Joni's anxious attachment style and self sabotage were a little too relatable, but it caused all the angst you want in a summer romance!

"I'd rather be alone than with someone else." PERIODDD. 😌

I had multiple ways to read this book, but I highly recommend the audio. Patti Murrin is really that girl for narrating romance! Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher Harlequin for the eARC and ALC.

Friends to Lovers is a sweet story of two best friends who have always be the other's date to weddings, but never really each other's date. It explores the friendship of Joni and Ren who have grown up together and have moved apart and have decided that no matter what they would do their best to ensure they never leave the other's lives be it phone calls on a regular basis to keep up or plus ones to weddings.

Joni and Ren love each other, but they must also face the fact that their love is more than platonic and what that means for their futures.

Thank you Netgalley and to Harlequin Trade Publishing | Canary Street Press as well as the author for providing me with this audio ARC, in exchange for my honest review.

This was a cute book, but FMC was annoying imo. Ren, the MMC, was amazing, sweet, great friend, willing to do anything for Joni. Joni, the FMC though...ehhhh. I just found her annoying. Especially how she just left without explaining why and cut him off for 2.5 years. Couldn't just tell him? Couldn't have open communication? And then she tells him she wants him to wait?? after all this waiting he's already done??? UGHHH!
Anyways....it was a good read just annoyed me. Cute ending though.

Friends to Lovers

This is the sweetest childhood friends to lovers story that follows Joni and Ren. This slow burn is full of angst, second chances, and family. The summer backdrop makes this the perfect beach read. If you are looking for a story with emotion depth, witty banter, and growth this book is for you.

Patti Murin did an amazing job narrating Friends to Lovers. I loved her tone and deliverance; I thoroughly enjoyed this audiobook.

Friends to Lovers follows Joni and Ren over the years as they go to several wedding as each other's plus ones, until they end up at Joni's sister's wedding after a falling out left them not speaking for two years. The lifelong friends have one weekend to either make up as friends, cross the line into something more, or continue on not speaking.

I'm not really sure what to say about this one except that is was so incredibly mid. There was nothing wrong with the book, but I found it kind of a chore to get through. I think the book struggled with having the main characters have so much history and chemistry that we barely even felt. I know we got glimpses into the past of them, but it was not sufficient for me to really feel invested in their relationship at all.

I enjoyed the family dynamic and cast of characters, but I was underwhelmed by how little amount of time we spent on Joni's relationship with her mother and the resolution that came from it.

Overall, pick it up if you want a quick summer romance, but it didn't land for me.

Thanks to Harlequin and NetGalley for this advanced listener's copy!

Sally Blakely's debut romance was the perfect summer read! Split between then and now chapters, the intrigue of why Joni and Ren fell out drove me through the pages, and their slow build from "friends" to lovers had a satisfying payoff. With a wonderfully diverse supporting cast and beautiful backdrop, I can see this one being a new favorite for many readers who ache for Emily Henry's atmospheric writing.

A romance Emily Henry would be proud of!

I was actually blown away by this book and was not expecting it to be that good. The title said "Friends to Lovers" so I wasn't really expecting it to be second-chance (not my favorite trope), but I still really enjoyed it. This was such a high quality, summer, romance read. You could have told me Emily Henry wrote this book and I would have believed you. I also love the workaholic-discovers-work-isn't-everything trope. I wish more people would have the awakening that Joni has. Work should no be your life. You can enjoy work, you can make life choices for work, but don't throw away everything you care about for a job. It's just a job and it wont love you back.

This was marketed as The Summer I Turned Pretty for adults, but there's no "Jeremiah".

I could listen to Patti Murin's voice FOREVER! She did such a good job, as always!

Tropes
friends to more than friends to no longer friends to lovers (this should be the real title)
second chance romance
forced proximity
summer vacation wedding
slow burn (mostly off page/ jumping timelines)
he falls first

Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin Publishing for the opportunity to listen and read the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

A blast of a romantic debut!

I really appreciated that all of the characters were easily likable—lovable even. I felt a strong connection to Stevie in particular, and I realllly wished we got her book before she found her HEA! I’d love to see more of her in the future, even if it’s just as a side character.

The music taste was so good! I loved how it wasn’t TikTokified music; it was real music. Also, these aesthetics are going to be so fun to make into a bookstagram post in the future! I’m really looking forward to it.

Ren and Joni… my gosh, the way these two love each other shattered my heart in the best way. She is literally ALL HE SEES in a crowded room full of people; his eyes always find hers, and it’s so dang adorable I could cry of pure agony that I don’t have this kind of love. I eat up a good friends-to-lovers; I truly think it’s the most beautiful trope. Having someone who knows you inside and out and yet chooses to love you anyway—it’s unconditional.

I didn’t completely connect with the story like I wish I did, but I can’t quite tell you why because I don’t even really know myself… But that’s the only reason this is getting a little bit of a lower rating.

The audiobook narrator was perfect for this story! She inflicted a lot of emotion in her voice as she delivered every single line with ease; I felt even more pulled into the story. She made it feel like a movie!

Audiobook: 4.3 ★
Book itself: 3.3 ★

𝙏𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙠 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙩𝙤 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙥𝙪𝙗𝙡𝙞𝙨𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙉𝙚𝙩𝙂𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙮 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝘼𝙍𝘾 & 𝙖𝙪𝙙𝙞𝙤𝙗𝙤𝙤𝙠!

Joni and Ren’s story is so sweet. This was a perfect summer read full of heartfelt love, an “it’s always been you” and main characters that make you feel all warm and fuzzy inside. A lovely poolside, cozy romance. Even though time and life events separate the two I love how they come together to be each other’s wedding date!

The narrator for the audiobook was wonderful and I felt so immersed in the plot with her!

Thank you NetGalley for an ARC and ALC in exchange for an honest review.

Rating: 4.5⭐️/5