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!

♡ Thank you for the free ARC, The Hive | Harlequin Trade Publishing | Canary Street Press and NetGalley. Thank you for the free audiobook, Harlequin Audio and NetGalley.

If you are looking for a breezy beach read with a satisfying childhood friends-to-lovers arc, this is a great pick. It is sweet, nostalgic, and full of those moments that make you root for the long game. The story leans into familiar tropes in a comforting way, with plenty of emotional payoff. The book has been compared to a couple of popular EmHen reads, so if you gravitate toward that kind of romantic storytelling, you will likely enjoy this one, too.

☊ Listening to this story via audiobook was lovely. Narrator Patti Murin did a wonderful job.

Friends to Lovers isn’t usually my favorite trope. I prefer enemies to lovers if I’m being honest. But this book actually made me enjoy the friends to lovers trope. It was so good. If you want a second chance romance with childhood friends then I recommend this. I enjoyed the dual timelines as well. The timeline in the past I thought was unique since it followed their times as being each others plus ones at weddings. I always love a romance that takes place around a wedding week/weekend.

Thank Netgalley for this ALC!!! I am usually a sucker for a great friends to lovers trope, unfortunately this one fell a little flat for me. I did enjoy the past and present timelines, that was very well done. I also really enjoyed Ren, I thought his character was great. Unfortunately, I think where it lost me was Joni’s character. She was possessive as well as naïve, and for them to be such close friend their lack of communication was hard to grasp. I did love the family dynamics, and the side characters were so well done! I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who loves, friends to lovers, slow burn, and forced proximity.

𝘼𝙧𝙚 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙖 𝙛𝙖𝙣 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙛𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙣𝙙𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙨 𝙩𝙧𝙤𝙥𝙚?

Sally Blakely captured the essence and heart of this trope with her debut! It has the warmth of friendship with the tug and tension of becoming lovers and the fear of losing a cherished friendship.

Joni and Ren have been best friends forever; in fact, their families are close, sharing summers along the sparkling PNW coast. But after college, Joni takes a job in New York, and although they promise always to be each other's plus one at weddings, things begin to shift between them.

This romance was like a breath of fresh air. The characters were not only kind, genuine, and funny, but also incredibly relatable. I adored Joni and Ren; they were an easy couple to root for. Yes, there was some miscommunication, but I felt it didn’t distract from the story.

Told from Joni’s POV and in bouncing timelines, we get glimpses of their early friendship, an understanding that something went wrong, and then we feel their angst of knowing they both want something so much more, and not necessarily in that order. But it all comes together seamlessly, keeping you engaged and eager for more. Along the way, there’s tons of fun with family vacations, wedding planning, beach parties, and even a game of capture the flag.

I can’t wait to see what this author writes next!

🎧 Patti Murin’s narration is bright and fresh; it was so easy to love these characters because of it. She does an excellent job with Joni and Ren, making it feel as if they are friends sharing their story with you.

Thank you @htpbooks and @harpercollins for the gifted ebook via #NetGalley. Thank you @harlequinaudio for the gifted audiobook via NetGalley.

I was not a fan of this story. It was a little too close to People We Meet on Vacation and I found myself comparing it to that story the whole time.

Joni and Ren are childhood besties who are still trying to find a way to keep their relationship alive while living on opposite coasts as adults. They decide to be each others plus ones for various weddings that they go to in order to catch up every year and take a trip together.

I feel like the story got dragged out longer than it needed to, especially knowing how it was going to end. Wanting to know what blow-up happened between Ren and Joni is what kept me listening to the story. I did not enjoy how ridiculous Joni acted when she and Ren both had significant others and she wanted to totally usurp all of his attention every second they were together at the wedding...including sleeping in the same bed...it was a weird flex. Sadly this one was a miss for me. I did enjoy the narration by Patty Murin.

Thank you NetGalley and Harlequin Audio for my audiobook of this story.

Thank you Harlequin Audio and Netgalley for an ALC of Friends to Lovers 🩵

This trope is becoming one of my favorites because the best foundation for love is always going to be friendship!

Joni and Ren have been friends since childhood and have been there for each other through every stage of life since. This book is filled with memories, laughter, longing and honest truths as they both try to figure out who they want to be how to make their way back to each other after they crossed a line 2 years ago.

I loved that it wasn’t just about them wanting each other. They also wanted to iron their lives out and make sure they weren’t making reckless decisions. Even though that cause them to be pulled away from each other at times, they always found their way back.