My Favorite Half-Night Stand was a funny, relatable novel that I couldn't put down.

Millie's four best friends - her only friends - are guys: Ed, Alex, Reid, and Chris. All five are single and spend most of their free time together. And all five need dates to a work gala. To find the right date they all sign up for In Real Life, a matchmaking dating site, and soon the guys are getting promising matches. Not Millie, though. All she's getting are dick pics. The guys say it's because she doesn't open up on her site, which is no surprise, since she's also extremely private with them. Just to see if they're right, Millie starts a new profile. A private one under the name of Catherine. And soon she's matched with the perfect guy...too bad it's Reid. She sends him a jokey message, knowing he'll soon realize it's her and they can laugh about it. Only Reid not only doesn't pick up on her hints, he's interested in Catherine and the other girl he's been matched with, Daisy. Maybe it's jealousy, maybe it's her competitive streak, but Millie decides to make Reid fall for Catherine. Or her. But really Catherine.

My Favorite Half-Night Stand is a quick, enjoyable read. The characters are quirky and unique when it would have been very easy to make them caricatures or underdeveloped secondary props. Millie is a complex, emotional character with flaws and hang ups. Reid is less complex - mostly because he wears his heart on his sleeve, but he's likable and a good foil for Millie's closed book mentality. The novel is told from Millie and Reid's points-of-view in alternating chapters, increasing readers' emotional investment in their lives. The plot is very well paced and the writing is excellent.

It's rare that I stay up late to finish a book, but I couldn't put My Favorite Half-Night Stand down. I highly recommend this one to fans of Penny Reid, Molly Harper, Victoria Dahl, and romances that make you laugh out loud.

I received a copy of this story from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

First of all, I love reading these kinds of stories! There's a fine line between cute/endearing and annoying/eye-roll-inducing and it's so easy to veer towards the latter. Fortunately, Christina Lauren did an amazing job of avoiding the saccharine, unrealistic characterizations that plague this genre.

Millie is delightful! She's flawed and weird and amazing and I identified with her more than I was comfortable (and way more than I expected). The whole cast of guys were individual and meshed really well together. Reid sounds too sexy and sweet for his own good.

I think what I most appreciated was the depth lurking throughout the story. It carries more weight than just a beach read and I enjoyed that a lot.

I'd recommend this to anyone who:
- has lots of platonic relationships of the opposite sex (maybe it'll be eye-opening?)
- is looking for more substance from their vacation reading
- enjoys contemporary romance

Before this book, I didn’t even know a half-night stand, aka a post-coital exit to avoid the awkward morning-after "walk of shame" completely, was a thing. I did know quite a bit about online dating, having done it myself briefly, having a ton of single friends in their 20’s and 30’s suffering through it currently and looked into related business ventures. But this book is about more than hooking up and finding more than just a hook-up online.

This book is mostly about Millie Morris and her tight knit group of hilarious fellow academic guy friends, which includes the bestest friend she has ever had, Reid Campbell, which she has the sex with after a wild night of playing Monopoly. The book is written from both their point of views.

In true Christina Lauren fashion – this is the third stand-alone book I’ve read by this dynamic duo – Millie is a complex character. She’s at the near top of her career as a criminology professor, budding author and expert on female serial-killers but has pretty much remained at emotional rock bottom since losing her mother at a young age. She’s one of the guys, hilarious, self-deprecating with a touch of confidence, smart, laid back and so easy to be friends with. She’s also emotionally stunted, cagey even with those she loves most, and her own worst enemy when comes to love. I mean I was simultaneously cursing her out, done with her and rooting for her. The heifer is Jim on The Office level hilarious while edging on female douchebag in terms of internal emotional intelligence and self-awareness (though she has high external emotional intelligence). She’s also young-old, she’s 29 and has the technology savvy of my mother. These factors actually made for a great read and interesting plot and character development.

At the center of Millie’s story is Reid, the hot neuroscience associate professor, who doesn’t want to ruin the relationship with his best-friend or break up the band by making it awkward. Reid is a monogamous, smart guy with high emotional EQ and the chemistry with Millie (unbeknownst to them) is amazing. I mean their progression to a night of being more than friends feels completely authentic.

Major supporting characters aka other dudes in the formerly strictly platonic best friend circle include:
Ed - the neuroscience post doc with a frat boy stance of beer and video games and a Zach Galifianakis reflection in the mirror.
Alex – the Ecuadorian and field playing professor of biochemistry
Chris – the tall, dark and handsome chemist with a great heart.

The interaction between these five keeps pace with the funniest moments on New Girl or The Office. I actually and literally spent the first few chapters cackling. I had to put the book down a few times to simmer on some of the sentences and paragraphs – they were damb funny. On the flip side the character develop is very strong, the plot progression actually a bit surprising in its consistency and depth.

The only thing I didn’t buy into was the why of the whole online dating competition/fiasco which provides a great sub-plot to the entire story: Barack Obama is giving the commencement address and keynoting the Deans’ Banquet which is black tie with the optional plus one with all the additional fanfare of having such a big name. Which means they can’t blow if off or go together. My love for the Obamas is not enough for me to contemplate Tinder to find a date and avoid the plus-one wilderness. This was the one part of the book that was foggy and underwhelming – it felt like an arbitrary plot device.

With that said. I enjoyed this book. It’s commentary on dating, mental and emotional health, being a single professional woman in the age of online dating and dick pics is priceless. It was funny, fluid and well executed. I would recommended it to anyone looking for a great contemporary romance read.

Post Scriptum: I’m a devoted science fiction, fantasy and historical fiction reader, but 2018 has been the year of contemporary romance novels. I’m embarrassed to admit that I don’t like to tell people when I’m reading a romance novel when asked “what are you reading now?” I worry that they’ll picture me as some Fabio obsessed thirst bucket who reads what she’ll won’t allow herself to experience. I cringe just thinking about those books with bare chested Dukes and corset chicks with their accompanying historically scandalous décolletage. This year has been a year of getting beyond my own literary bias. And Christina Lauren’s books has been a huge part of that.

Post Post Scriptum: If you are anything like me, you might have had a fleeting thought along the lines: “hey, Reid is totally the name of the male love interest in cliché chick li, hard pass.” Still give the book a chance for no other reason than this quote:

“There are some who might say Reid is an especially pretentious name.”
With a hand to my chest, I feign insult. “No one says that.”
Millie reaches out, curling her hand around the forearm of a passing student. “Sorry. Quick question. Is ‘Reid’ a douchey name?”
The guy doesn’t even hesitate or bother to look at me. “Totally.”

There are so many things I love about these two authors, one of them being how real their characters feel. I adored Millie and Reid's characters. Their struggle with online dating is so relatable and I could feel their frustration and worries going through the process of finding the right person. The other thing that I really liked about the novel was the amazing friendship in between the five friends. It was so beautifully written that I wish I was one of their friends. It is beautifully interwoven in between the main romance. I also hope that the authors are planning to write Ed, Alex and Chris's stories. This story is sexy, charming and really emotional. I would highly recommend this book.

* I received this ARC from NetGalley and the publisher for an honest review*

I was caught up in this book and didn’t want to stop reading it. I had to keep reading to find out how everything would unfold. There were a few moments that I was annoyed by Millie, but the annoyance was balanced out with her quirkiness. Overall it was an excellent book!

This is not a book for the faint of heart when it comes to language or for those that are offended by sex. :-)
I honestly didn't know what I was getting in to when I started this book. I had recently heard a lot of great things about the authors so I thought I would give it a try and I am so glad that I did.

I loved the themes of friendship. The friendship between these five individuals was so heart-warming. I enjoyed seeing the inner workings of a group of "misfits".

I definitely will be watching reading more books by Christina Lauren in the future.

I am Millie! This was a huge eye-opener for me. I mean I knew some of this about me, but I didn't realize how bad I was (although different reasons for it). Kind of crazy to have a romance book make you realize how stuck you are, but this one did it. I really enjoyed this, even though you knew what a disaster everyone was headed for as you are reading. Reid was an amazing hero! There is plenty of angst in this book to keep you going through to the end. I don't want to spoil it, but read it! I received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I received a free, advance copy of this book from the publisher. This is my unbiased and voluntary review.

This is a new author for me, I was pleasantly impressed with the book. I took a chance on requesting it based off the title and description and am so happy that I had the opportunity to read and review it.

Friends to lovers is one of my favorite stories and Reid and Millie have a relationship that was meant to be. All of their friends saw it, it just took them a while to get with the program!

It was a phenomenal year for Christina Lauren romance novels. We were treated to not one, not two, but three delightfully addictive love stories from the writing duo and I thoroughly enjoyed them all. If I had to rank them in order by favorite, My Favorite Half Night Stand would hold strong in the third spot... but that's like ranking candy in the grocery store. Even my third favorite candy is still delicious and special and unlike anything else on the shelf. 

At first I thought Reid and Millie's story was shaping up to be pretty similar to Josh and Hazel's. Two friends who are so oblivious to their own chemistry help each other seek out romantic opportunities with other people... this time using dating apps. But I soon realized this story would be nothing like Josh and Hazel's sweet and sexy rom com. Millie is a character like no other Christina Lauren character before. At times I struggled with relating to her until I realized she actually represented some of the things I dislike most about myself. She's emotionally detached. She avoids making herself vulnerable by keeping herself closed off. She's often unable to open up with even the people closest to her. I might not have always liked her or agreed with her behavior, but I completely understood her and her story. 

While there were definitely aspects of this book that held me at arms length as opposed to fully enveloping me the way Love and Other Words and Josh and Hazel's Guide to Not Dating did, I honestly couldn't put this book down. It took a bit to really feel invested in these characters but it happened and when it did, I was hooked. My Favorite Half Night Stand just serves up a different experience that I anticipated. I was pulled in by it's jagged edges rather than with the melty, comforting sensation I can typically expect. This one's a bit edgier, I think. It hurt more than I thought it would which is also why I enjoyed it so much. 

This story is funny and sweet and refreshing. It's sexy and emotional and packed with humor, heartache and drama. This magnetic group of friends had me laughing out loud, had me secretly desperate for more about each of them. Reid and Millie's friendship was both frustrating and perfect and I absolutely loved them and their dynamic despite how complicated it became. But what I probably loved most was how achy and sore my heart was by the end of the book. I measure any good book by those painful heart pangs I feel as I endure the conflict and difficulties within the story and the drama packed quite an unexpected punch on these pages. It hurt so good and I really enjoyed the book even more because of it. 

The vibe of My Favorite Half Night Stand was a different one and I appreciated that. The age of the characters, their career paths, the dynamic in their tight knit group, the bit of angst that peppers the story, and a heroine that makes it often difficult to relate to her all felt different and fresh and it all culminated into a delicious little story that I could not look away from. My third favorite Christina Lauren romance of the year is still a favorite regardless of where it ranks and I hope readers enjoy it as much as I did. I thoroughly enjoyed this book, with its complicated romance and all its fun quirks, and I really can't wait to see what this writing pair has in store for us in the new year!

Sigh... always so damn good. They just know how to write a love story.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I absolutely love the humor of Christina Lauren. They have amazing way of creating characters that are fun and so real to life that you wish you were part of the group. This new release is a perfect example of how a friends to lovers book should be written.

The story is a lot of fun. Millie is the only girl in the group and the guys tend to treat her like a guy. Except for one. Sparks are flying soon; they just can’t help themselves.

Then the brilliant idea came about post on a dating app so each had a date to go to a banquet. Millie’s intro was a little plain. So she created a secondary profile and who should she be connected with but her man she is crushing on.

As the story wove in and out of the friends, secret relationships, and almost lies, the authors kept me heavily attached to the story with their inventive situations, sexy hook ups, and heartbreaking lessons to learn. My heart took a beating on this one.

I never tire of the amazing stories by Christina Lauren. They are completely unique in the industry; bringing us delightful contemporary romance that not only celebrate friendships and love, but they tend to teach us a lesson or two.

My Favorite Half-Night Stand is a little emotional and a lot addictive. The story is definitely one I think you will fall in love with. I know I did.

I really really liked this book, but I just had a major problem with how one character reacted to finding out something at the end (I don't want to give away anything!). I felt like it was totally unjustified and I also didn't like how the other character just took it and thought they deserved that treatment. It just felt like an over the top reaction to me. I did love the story other than that. The romance was so cute!

Witty, sexy, and so fun to read! It was crazy and awesome all rolled into one with the perfect amount of emotion mixed in. So fantastic! I never wanted it to end!

Reid and Millie were the best, I loved these two and their friendship. The bond they had was priceless. I love the tension and chemistry between them and this unique situation they’ve gotten themselves in. Reid and Millie had this underlying chemistry between them, I loved seeing that, feeling that, and watching it all play out. It was sweet, flirty, and playful. Throw in a dating app, a bit of tension and angst, and of course, Millie's persona of Catherine and things get out of hand. But it was fun and so entertaining, I couldn’t stop smiling.

I loved learning about both Reid and Millie. I loved watching her open up and grow and I really felt for her. I loved Reid and totally understood what he was going through and what he was thinking. I loved all the emotion that started to come out in the midst of this great humor as feelings really come into play. The ending just about killed me but I love how it all played out.

All the friends together were amazing! This little family they’ve created full of ribbing and camaraderie. It was so entertaining. I can't even tell you how many times I laughed. I really enjoyed the group dynamic and friendships, everyone had such distinct personalities and brought a lot to the story and made it fun to read. The story had a great flow, I loved that it was told from dual POV’s and how the texts and emails were set up, it made it engaging and exciting to read.

Hilarious, sexy fun for the win! I'm not sure what I loved more, Reid and Millie or the group dynamic of the four friends. It was all so wonderful and I loved everything it made me feel!

Christina Lauren is a new author for me, so each book is like some new discovery, just waiting to be explored. I was lucky enough to read an early copy of this with my friend and blog mate, and we both just loved it to pieces. I recently read her book Josh and Hazel’s Guide to Not Dating, and while I really related to the main character and loved the book to pieces, it didn’t jump to immediate everlasting love, for me. What it did do, however, is awaken a new kind of hunger for this author and the addicting type of writing she (they) can accomplish. And, because of this hunger, I found an absolute and total winner in this fun little read.

I absolutely fell head over heels for Reid, the guy in this one, whereas in her other book, it was Hazel that hooked me and kept me going. The chemistry between Reid and Millie just flew off the charts, and I adored how they were best friends first and explored their, ahem, needs after. But what happens when pushed to find dates for an event through a dating app, even though the heat is through the roof between these two, secretly?



I can willingly admit that I needed more drama in Josh and Hazel-and perhaps that makes me a monster that I can’t just enjoy a happy book with just a light smidge of angst instead of a full out oh-my-gosh-when-is-he-going-to-find-outi’mgoingtodie. I just love that feeling. I mean, obviously I hate that in real life, so why do I love it so in books? Well, it came full force here and I LOVED how it wasn’t just brushed under the rug. I loved Reid. I loved his pure heart. I loved everything about how he slowly fell for Millie…even as he fell for a girl online he hadn’t met…that was, in fact, Millie, too.



A tangled web they weave, slowly falling for one another, but in different ways that could alter their friendship forever. Reid isn’t all innocent, talking to other women on the app as well as falling for his best friend, but I’d say he’s a lot less at fault-but that’s for you to decide.

With an awesome group of friends surrounding them (I loved them all!), you can’t help but to love this story with its quick wit and friendly humor. But Ed, as a secondary character, really stood out to me as the most-sincere, loyal, and just an all around sweet and tender-hearted guy looking for love. I found that he made my heart beat with all the most wonderful feels, right beneath Reid and Millie.


Honestly, this review has been really hard to write, because I don’t want to say too much and ruin the whole plot-but I also wanted to stress just how much I love this angst, this drama, this I’m-falling-for-my-friend deep and emotional roller-coaster. I just…I loved it, and I loved how deeply I fell for it. But, to be fair, I am OBSESSED with online romance/'I don’t know who it is but the other person does' romances. I’m actually a rabid fan of them and it’s been forever since I read a good one…so what an amazing, surprising new favorite for me.

I can’t wait to purchase this for my bookshelf when it comes out and I think many fans of this author duo will really like it. To those who haven’t read anything by her yet? It’s definitely a fun one and I highly recommend it-though, I may be biased because this trope duo is a favorite of mine 😊.

Ugh, this book. I wanted to enjoy a nice, light, chick-lit type book and the description sounded ok. Plus, score, I received an ARC from Netgalley. I somewhat enjoyed Love and Other Words by these authors earlier in the year so I thought this would be pretty good. Only it wasn't.

It started out promising. Millie is best friends with four guys and they are all academia types. Sounds fun. We learn that Millie is better friends with Reid out of all the guys and within the first few pages they start a friends with benefits situation. Ok, fine. But then the whole thing goes off the rails. These people are in their late 20s and early 30s in 2018 and they act like they are still in college, but it's 20 years ago when the internet is new. They decide as a group to try online dating and act like it's something no one does. Then, Millie catfishes Reid with a fake profile. Granted, she starts a new profile because the guys are giving her crap about her real one. Before she can tell them, surprise, she's matched with Reid on the fake account!

Now, here's where I can't relate to Millie. Instead of coming right out and saying - ha! We matched by 98% on this thing, maybe we should try giving a real relationship a try - Millie sends a cute response with a slight inside joke thinking Reid will catch on. He doesn't. Again, at any time she could reveal herself. Instead she continues the charade and continues the FWB situation. Even when Reid figures out the fake account is Millie he doesn't confront her. He just gets mad and leaves. Then the books spends time with him sulking and not speaking to most of his friends and ignoring Millie. While I totally understood his anger, his reaction just seemed childish.

Overall, this would have been fun if it wasn't 2018. I would have loved this book back in the late 90s when I was a young 20something and the internet was still new, along with online dating. But in 2018 this just didn't feel right. Not to mention I just can't relate to the whole game playing dating nonsense. It was never my style. To read characters with professional careers act like immature kids was just too much.

I thoroughly enjoyed my first read by Christina Lauren. My Favorite Half-Night Stand is a friends to lovers romance between Millie and Reid who belong to a group of nerdy colleagues and friends.

None of the friends have had any success at love, so they decide to try online dating. Throughout the process, Millie and Reid realize they have deeper feelings for each other than friendship, but while their feelings for each other continue to grow, Millie struggles to open up and be completely honest and truthful with Reid.

I personally loved the camaraderie and friendship between all the characters. It was fun and witty and snarky. All the good things. The moments between Millie and Reid were both sweet and sexy, and as always, I'm a sucker for friendship that turns into more, so I enjoyed seeing how Millie and Reid's relationship evolved.

I will be on the lookout for more works by Christina Lauren.

***I voluntarily read and reviewed an Advance Reader Copy provided by the publisher via NetGalley.***

I got hooked from the first part, because in college and many years later, my group of friends were all guys. No matter what we did or where we went me and sometimes my sister were the only girls in the group. Another thing I can relate to her with was not speaking about what was going on at home. Whatever was going on at home or with my family was never spoken about. If they did not need to know they didn’t know and they did not need to know. It’s always been like that all growing up. I didn’t have a tragedy like Millie but all families deal with there own things differently and ours was not spoke about it.

Christina Lauren did an amazing job with all the details, describing people and who they are, the texts, the conversations. It was very well written.

I don’t want to spoil it for you but I would definitely read this book, I have already recommended it to my sister and a couple friends when it releases. When they say that what you’ve been looking for is right in-front if you the whole time, is an understatement. They had to sleep together, date others and online date to figure out that they are meant for each other!

Look around you and make sure you notice everything and everyone, because you might not know that what you want or need is staring right back at you!

** I received this ARC for my honest review. **

My first book by these authors. While it seems chick lit is a dying genre lately with all the new adult books out there, I'm always ecstatic to find a nice read that can still be called chick lit.

3.5.

Millie has been part of a group for a while now, since her breakup with her boyfriend and boss, and it's becoming evident how they've been enabling each other's lack of effort in finding themselves partners. Things go out of control when after too many drinks, she sleeps with her best friend Reid. They need to meet new people and what's better than the internet? The idea seems fun enough until Millie finds out her best match is none other than Reid and starts mailing him under a pseudonym.

This was a fun read but it didn't go by that fast. I'm not sure what the problem was, but I didn't seem to make much progress on the book. I guess the story wasn't enticing enough even if these writers' style is a breathe of fresh air. You basically guess the whole plot from the summary, and I think it lacked cute scenes to compensate for predictability.

On the other hand, we had wonderful characters. I loved that group of friends, and online chat logs are always a good addition. I also appreciated how much we learn about Millie and her flaws, it made the character very real. A good bonus for the end, how she overcomes her issues. It's a pity I can't spoil you, but it was a very realistic solution.

This wasn't the most memorable chick lit I've read but it made me see Christina Lauren isn't/aren't just about the hype. I'll surely watch out for their future releases!


Honest review based on an ARC provided by Netgalley. Many thanks to the publisher for this opportunity.

This has been the CL year for me, I devoured and loved Love and Other Words as well as Josh and Hazel so I was sorely disappointed that My Favorite Half-Night Stand was just kind of meh for me.

Overall I just didn’t buy into the cliché. Email to lovers is quickly becoming my favorite trope. I’ve actually read quite a few this year and when done well I am ALL IN however with Reid and Millie I didn’t buy Reid’s emails at all. No man writes 6+ paragraphs pouring their heart out to a stranger. In all of my books by CL and I have read MANY this is the first time the male POV did not feel authentic. My husband replies with single, limited characters via text. Getting an entire paragraph would be like pulling teeth but pages, nah not happening.

There were other nuances that weren’t fleshed out, we’re told rather than experienced. And parts seemed far too familiar with other books I have read from their backlog. With that said CL will continue to be an auto buy author for me, you can’t win them all, even if this was a flop for me it will def not deter me from reading future CL books.

Christina Lauren does it again with this friends with benefits to more than friends hit! Millie and Reid are faculty colleague at UCSB who regular hang out with their group of other male friends. When Obama is coming to town for a faculty function they all make a pact to find a date using a dating app. But things start to get confusing when Millie and Reid hook up for a half-night stand! With secrets and mishaps, Millie and Reid must figure out what and who they really want. One of my favorite Christina Lauren books to date! Bravo!

Oh, how I LOVED this book. I completely devoured it in one weekend. I smiled and giggled the entire time. Millie was an amazing and relatable character. Reid was the dream guy. And the other three guys...well, I absolutely can't wait for their stories! (Hint: I'm really hoping they each get their own book!) HIGHLY recommend this title.