This was such a great romance. I really fell for and enjoyed the characters, the premise, and the complicated relationships. I thought Sally Blakely did a great job of creating a dynamic push-pull between the characters and building tension. This was a perfect summer read, lots of beachy vibes, summer weddings, and sweet emotions. Super fun read for romance lovers!

I really enjoyed this audiobook. The readers did an amazing job and made it very enjoyable. Definitely would read this another one of Sally Blakely’s books!

Friends to lovers follows Joni and Ren, childhood best friends who many years ago agreed to be each other’s plus ones to weddings. After lines are crossed when Joni realizes she has feelings for Ren, they have a falling out and don’t speak for 2 years. That’s until they’re forced to face each other at their families shared beach house for Joni’s sister’s wedding, and Joni is set on making this week perfect, even if that means she has to pretend Ren and her are still best friends.

I loved this so much. Summer vibes, forced proximity, second chance deliciousness and YEARNING. It gave me all the Emily Henry and Jenny Han summer beach read vibes and was a really fun read. An incredible debut, I’m really excited to see where Sally Blakely takes us next! A definite must read if you’re looking for a fun summer friends to lovers romance.

Thank you to Harlequin Audio for the ALC in exchange for my honest opinions.

4.5⭐️ An absolute solid friends to lovers story. There is some time jumping that is a bit confusing at times but worth it for the back story. That’s 100% a me thing especially reading audiobooks. My absolute favorite was the sleep talking. So cute and funny.

5⭐️ Narration was wonderful by Patti Murin. There were some big personalities in this story and no one got lost in it all. Always appreciate that ability.

Joni has arrived early to the family’s summer home for her sister’s wedding. What she doesn’t expect is Ren to also be early. Too bad they haven’t really talked. Having both families so close for so many years, they were once inseparable. Always being each other’s plus one to weddings. But one wedding, things went a little further in their friendship. Now Joni and Ren will have to face the past and admit some hard truths to themselves and their family.

Thank you to @netgalley, @harlequinbooks, and the author for the advanced listener copy.

Thank you NetGalley and harlequin audio for the ALC
3.5/5 ⭐️

Tropes:
🩷Friends to lovers
🩷He falls first
🩷Second chance
🩷Forced proximity

I love a good friends to lovers romance!
This book was pretty good! The tension between the two characters was really good!
I feel like it could have been shorter but overall it was a decent read!

Unfortunately, this was a DNF for me. I got about 50% on before finally accepting that this book wasn't giving what I need from a friend's to lovers story. Here's the thing: friends to lovers is one of my favorite tropes but it only works when you see how good they are as friend because that makes you then root for the characters to take the next step towards a romantic relationship because you already see how compatible they are. I was missing all of that in this book. I know Wren and Jonie are best friends but I only know this because it's told to me not because I actually see it in the story. This is a pet peeve for me because it usually means the story lacks depth and its a lot of tell me but don't show me - basically, I'm not convinced about anything happening on the page. The story idea was interesting and sounded like something I would like but ultimately it fell flat because it didn't resonate at an emotional level.

This was a cute little rom com!! If you didn’t guess from the title this is indeed about two mc’s who are friends to lovers! I really enjoyed the then and now timeline so we could really get a feel for the friendship the two mc’s had with each other, the fall out that caused them to stop talking for 2 and a half years, and the things that brought them back together and the moments that made them fall in love. Such a cute story!!

This is a sweet, summery read about love and friendship. I love that the setting is in a shared family beach house. It gives all the homey vibes that you want with an easy read. While I enjoyed reading the story, I do wish they dove deeper into the emotional side of certain issues. Still, it's an enjoyable read and perfect for fans of second-chance romance.

My favorite part of second-chance/friends-to-lovers romances is the YEARNING and Friends to Lovers delivered!

Joni and Ren have years of history together (some parts more secret than others) and I loved that this story was set up as a dual POV that bounced between the past and present.

The narrator is engaging and I found this to be a perfect summertime listen – it was well paced, fun, and romantic.

This is a stunning slow-burn friends to lovers story with yearning, friendship and second-chance romance. Told through dual-timeline, the reader gets to experience Joni and Ren falling in love and coming back together. The audiobook was fantastic and it made it so much fun to listen to the story!

I absolutely loved the playlist at the end this… 100/10. I literally love anything friends to lovers, so I had a great feeling about this book! The friend group/ family vibes was giving Gilmore girls meets friends and I was here for it.

I genuinely believe that friends to lovers is the greatest trope - the pining, the longing, the will they/won't they of it all - I love it all!

This book, clearly based on the title, gives all of those things and more! I really enjoyed the single POV but multiple timeline combination, and the dangling carrot of what happened between Joni + Ren really added to the tension of their relationship.

If you enjoyed People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry, you will love this too!

Thank you to the author + Harlequin for my advance copy!

Two childhood best friends are always each others plus-ones but never each other’s real dates. If you love the friends to lovers trope, this was done really well. Joni and Ren had quite the journey, and the dual timeline was a fun way to follow along. Perfect for the summer, makes me want to plan some beach days in Oregon!

The narrator did a great job reading this emotional summer romance! My only hang up was listening to the dual timeline was a little confusing over audio.

Thank you NetGalley and Harlequin Audio for this ARC Copy! 3.5 Stars

As far as a cute summer romance to read on the beach goes, this is a good one to pick up. If you are looking for something deep and emotional where you are invested in the characters and their relationship, then this may not be for you. As far as romance books go, it's always going to be possible that you really just don't like the couple together, you don't understand their relationship, and you don't see the point. This was one of those for me. Their friendship/relationship didn't really make sense to me, and I just can't wrap my head around the miscommunication that takes place in this story. The writing was enjoyable, and I will definitely read more books from this author, but this one really just wasn't for me.

If you love Emily Henry, specifically “happy place” and “people we meet on vacation,” you’ll probably want to read this. Something happened that caused a rift between childhood friends. They’re thrown together again since they’re always each others +1s at weddings.

Writing is a little clunky, but overall was enjoyable. The audiobook narrator was super engaging. Overall, this was just okay for me and I got pretty bored after the ~60% mark. 3.5 stars.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for my advanced audio copy!

This was a sweet summer read! Friends to lovers isn’t always my favorite trope, but it actually worked pretty well in this one. I loved that so much of the story revolved around weddings, including the flashbacks. The connection between Joni and Ren was great and I appreciated the added tension that they dated and broke up years ago, but no one else knows it. That was a great little twist on your typical beach read. Definitely EmHen vibes on this one! Maybe not quite as memorable, but I enjoyed it. Big bonus points that it was narrated by Patti Murin, who narrates most of Katherine Center’s books!

This is a lovely, smooth romance. Filled with indecision, stress, and anxiety, lol. I loved this read. This is a perfect beach read! I listened to the audio book version and the narrator was spectacular! Highly recommend for anyone looking for a quick romance.

I received a copy of this audiobook from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

This was such a cute and fun read! I’ll admit, the title does kind of spoil the plot (you know exactly where it’s headed), but let’s be honest—most romances are predictable in the best way. Unless you're on the Titanic or stuck in a love triangle, the couple usually ends up together. 😂

What made this story stand out was the dual narrative. Sally Blakely made a great call giving us both perspectives—it made the friendship breakup and slow-burn romance that much more impactful. I’m a total sucker for friends-to-lovers stories, and this one definitely scratched that itch (and made me feel a little extra single along the way). 🥲

The Oregon beach house setting gave it such a warm, breezy summer vibe. Even though I haven’t read The Summer I Turned Pretty or People We Meet on Vacation, I get why the comparisons were made—it’s all about the nostalgia and sun-soaked tension.

I don’t have many complaints—the writing was strong, the pacing was solid, and the audiobook (narrated by Patti Murin!) was such a treat. The only reason this wasn’t a full 5-star for me? I just didn’t totally fall head over heels for Ren and Joni as a couple. They were cute, for sure, but if they hadn’t ended up together, I wouldn’t have been heartbroken. Maybe it’s just me, but their chemistry felt more “awww” than “OMG I need them to kiss now!”

Still, I’d definitely recommend this to anyone looking for a light, romantic summer read with just the right amount of drama and charm. It wasn’t my favorite, but it was definitely good—and sometimes, that’s exactly what you want.

🌲 Book Review🌲

Title: Friends To Lovers
Author: @sally.blakely

Thank you so much for this ARC & ALC @netgalley and @harlequinbooks

The book:

Friends To Lovers follows Joni and REN whom are childhood best friends. When Joni moves to the East Coast and leaves Ren behind in Portald, Oregon they make a pact to stay in touch and be each others weddings plus one’s. This all changes when their friendship has a fallout. After years of silence they both reunite for Joni’s sister’s wedding. Even though things are awkward they pretend to be friends and ignore what happened between them. This is until they realize that old connection between them still exists and brings them to face unresolved feelings.

What I thought:

I loved that this story was told in dual timelines as it brings a better understanding of Joni’s and Ren’s friendship. I absolutely adored their characters! This was a sweet, flirty, and heartfelt slow burn love story. My soul was crushed when their friendship took a downfall due to miscommunication really, but, the ending was heart rewarding.

If you love a summer romance, second chances and friends to lovers trope this is the book for you!

As much as I loved this book…it felt a little too similar to People We Meet on Vacation. We have a MMC who chose to stay in his home town and a FMC who chose to move to NYC to pursue her job. They always travel together, hook up on a trip, things fall apart, and then a wedding forces them back together. All the while, the FMC is struggling with the job she swore was her dream but is now crushing her. And the MMC goes back to the ex when they have their falling out, moves in with her, and almost marries her but just can’t because of the FMC. I knew it would be a trope-heavy book based on the title, I just didn’t expect to read the same story in a different font. I like the characters and the premise a lot, I just wish it had been a little more unique. I read both the ebook and listened to the audiobook. The narration is okay, but not great. Overall, I had a good time reading this book and flew through it. I received an advanced copy of this book as part of the Hive influencer program. Thank you, Harlequin for the chance to read and review this story!