Whitle I liked the store line, I wish more of the slow-burn would’ve taken place during the actual story... As a whole, this made for a fun, relaxing read, though.

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for giving me free access to the advanced copy of this book to read.

Read as a Stand Alone - this book was SUPER sweet and full of cheese. In both the literal and figurative sense. Best friends turned lovers and will they won't they just commit questions. I enjoyed Tam's character and her commitment to herself and her friendship preservation goals. Her personal growth to acknowledge she made mistakes, finding a career path that would be engaging and fulfilling. Josh was a lovable "oh why isn't he my best friend boyfriend" character. Feminist through and through, Josh's insecurities really humbled him as a man. I would definitely read more stories of this group of friends but hope that someone gets a little deeper than these two did. I also wish that the characters were a little older than 28, they all came across like they were middle aged and panicking over the lack of their lives when in fact they have at least two decades before they need to do that.

What can I say this book had me hooked and loved it all from beginning to end. It was a good read and I am so hooked on Cathy's books. This had it all. Gave me the feels.

Content warning: There. Are. So. Many. Cheese. Puns. In. This. Book!

Seriously. I'd love to see what Cathy Yardley's browser history looked like for this one. Tam really loves cheese. Be prepared ;)

Tam and Josh's story is a friends-to-lovers one--one of my favorite tropes!--and it's so good. I love that they're both such good friends (since elementary school!) and know each other so well that it's not even the traditional "we're going to ruin our friendship" worries that end up tearing them apart, it's that they each know exactly what mistakes were made in the other's previous relationships and they're determined that they won't be repeated here. Josh especially had a front row seat to all the sacrifices Tam had made for previous boyfriends, and was determined that this time it would be different--even if he had to make himself miserable in the meantime, it would be worth it for Tam.

Gah! So freaking sweet...and it leads to an absolutely beautiful grand gesture (from both of them, there's shades of The Gift of the Magi here, just not quite so definitively sacrificial in the end) and epilogue that still has me smiling. And hungry, for some reason ;)

Gouda Friends is the second book in Ms Yardley's Ponto Beach Reunion series, but it absolutely could be read as a standalone. I'm willing to bet you'll fall in love with this group of friends too, though, and will likely binge book 1 ( Love, Comment, Subscribe ) in plenty of time to be waiting for book 3 along with me.

Dare we hope it will be Emily and Vingh's? ;)

Rating: 4 1/2 stars / A

I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book

A five-star read that I couldn't put down! This is the second in the series, I haven't read the first one but I didn't feel like it spoilt my reading and I'll now go read that one! Tam is the type of person who would do anything for her friends and I'm glad she has Josh who would do the same for her - they are a perfect balance! After finding her boyfriend cheating, to discovering he threw out her favorite cheese Tam has a rough start and Josh is the perfect friend to put her on the right path once again. I loved following Tam's journey to realizing that she deserves better than her ex and her awful job and that Josh may be the answer to all her dreams!

Didn't love it, didn't hate it. A nice friends to lovers romance but didn't set my heart on fire for either of the MCs

⭐️⭐️⭐️

𝙏𝙬𝙤 𝙝𝙞𝙜𝙝 𝙨𝙘𝙝𝙤𝙤𝙡 𝘽𝙁𝙁𝙨 𝙧𝙚𝙪𝙣𝙞𝙩𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙚𝙣𝙙𝙚𝙖𝙫𝙤𝙧 𝙩𝙤 𝙛𝙞𝙭 𝙚𝙖𝙘𝙝 𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧’𝙨 𝙡𝙞𝙫𝙚𝙨 𝙞𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙜𝙚𝙚𝙠𝙮 𝙧𝙤𝙢𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙚.

This was a fun and entertaining friend-to-lovers romance. Normally I tend to avoid this trope in the romance genre, but I decided to give this one a go.

I enjoyed the whole book throwing in cheese jokes, but I do feel like at times it was over the top. Some may say “too cheesy” 😉

I feel like there wasn’t too much with the characters and their backstories as they were childhood friends. I would’ve loved a bit more development regarding the romance. They practically already knew each other so there weren’t any discoveries that added more to the story.

There definitely was a ton of banter between our two characters, Tam and Josh. There were some steamy scenes that I personally wasn’t the biggest fan of.

Overall, I did enjoy this book and would recommend it to the right audience. The cheese puns were a bit too much for me at times and I would’ve loved seeing some sort of conflict with the characters. Longtime friendships in books aren’t something I would gravitate to, but this was still a great read!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for my review copies!

Book 2 in the Pronto Beach Reunion series was just as good as book 1!

I love all the fun food (even though I don't eat cheese) and humor in this series.

Tam and Josh are best friends and years ago Tam stepped up for Josh. Now that Tam is in a tight spot, she really needs Josh to step up.

While they are sharing this connection they develop real feelings, not best friend feelings but they can't get over their past until one day when everything just works out.

There are a few steamy scenes to make this more than a one time only book!

I hope there are more to this series, we could go on forever!!

I loved seeing more of the Nerd Herd! I loved Tam and Josh! They are just so cute! Friends to lovers is a favorite trope of mine. This was a steamy one too. I too love cheese so all the references were so fun. It sure made me hungry. I cannot wait to read more from this author. Thank you to NetGalley and Montlake for an ebook arc in exchange for my honest review.

Rating: 3.5 stars
I am OBSESSED with Cathy Yardley's Fandom Hearts series, so I was interested to read this new Ponto Beach Reunion series. This is the second book in the series but can be read as a stand-alone. (That being said, I'm definitely going back to read the first book!). While on the surface this is a really light-hearted, fluffy rom-com (with plenty of cheese puns!), there are some more serious elements at play as well which give the storyline depth without dragging it down.

I have been dying to return back to the Nerd Herd since I finished the first book in the series, Love, Comment, Subscribe last year, and Gouda Friends quickly became one of my most anticipated reads of this year. Even more so that it centres around my other love: cheese. Whilst it is the second book in the series, it can be read entirely as a standalone, and as someone who has read both there’s nothing integral to this storyline from the previous that you will feel like you’re missing out on if you do decide to only read this one.

To be completely transparent I was left feeling a little disappointed finishing this book. But, I think this is partly to me hyping it so much whilst it also being one of my least favourite tropes. Cathy Yardley handled the friends to lovers really well, Tam and Josh’s friendship is one that is adorable and purely wholesome to read about. Their connection with each other is great and one that feels natural. They just make sense.

This is the perfect read for when you want to a light and fluffy romance, and is an all round feel good book. One thing I especially love is just how much diversity is in this thing! Tam’s family is Vietnamese, LGTBQ+ representation (M/M couple), to name just a few. It’s so refreshing to see so much diversity in one single book, especially when we even see it reflected in the food of Josh’s ghost kitchens. Have your phone ready because this book will make you crave so many meals!

The other thing that I love, love, love, about Cathy Yardley is that her humour is on point. She not only understands, she delivers the assignment. There’s a certain scene where Tam is trying out graphic design and branding with Aidan, and a client is dead set on a certain name… I was a millisecond from spurting coffee all over my laptop. (Note: do not read that scene with any form of liquid in your mouth, you may choke or worse – get it over your electronic devices)

There is a little bit of spice and sexual content, but if this is something that you’re weary of then they’re small enough scenes to quickly skip through. They’re not overly detailed but they are there. Once again, to be completely honest I feel that the smutty scenes were actually the weakest part of the book. Often with a lot of random similes that felt like they came out of nowhere and sentences that made me cringe a little.

Overall though, this is a really fun read. Don’t let my review discourage you in anyway. As I’ve said before friends to lovers is my least favourite trope and I felt that is a big part of why I didn’t click with this book as much as the first. Saying that, I still had fun being back with the Nerd Herd and can’t wait to see more of what goes down in Ponto Beach next!

They kept doing the same thing, over and over, because it was familiar.

After reading Cathy Yardley's "Love, Comment, Subscribe", I knew I wanted to read more from the Ponto Beach Reunion series. Not only were the main characters fun and interesting, but the side characters were also. It made me want to know more about the friend group, especially since it is a group of high school friends later in life.

When I saw "Gouda Friends", I knew I wanted to read it when I had the chance to do so. I'm going to admit that between "Love, Comment, Subscribe" and "Gouda Friends", I liked "Love, Comment, Subscribe" a little bit more. I also enjoyed "Gouda Friends", but the other was more to my taste. Between childhood friends to lovers and enemies to lovers, I preferred enemies to lovers. I find the banter and angst entertaining and make it more enjoyable to read.

Tam and Josh were childhood friends. Although they grew apart, they know they can always depend on one another. Even apart, they somehow always find a way back to each other. After Tam dumped her boyfriend, Josh was the first person she ran to. Cheese was the catalyst and the turning point in her life. From the title to everything else, cheese is integral to "Gouda Friends". The puns and jokes were entertaining.

When you can resonate and relate to any characters of something you are reading, it makes the reading experience even better. There were bits and pieces from Tam and Josh I can relate to. I saw myself in them. Even when I get frustrated, I can still understand. I enjoyed "Gouda Friends" overall. And I know I will read something from Cathy Yardley when I want something entertaining to read.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️✨ (4.25)

Thank you, NetGalley and Cathy Yardley, for a copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

This book is a true testament to the fact that timing is everything. People in your life mean different things to you depending on where you are in your journey, and sometimes good things take time. Just like cheese. Good cheese takes time, too.

I really enjoyed this book and the friendships and growth that we follow. It is about empowerment and vulnerability and all the wisdom that comes from knowing your worth and growing up. Also cheese.

I just finished an ARC of this book. I really enjoyed it. I thought it was a really great friends to lovers romcom. I enjoyed the journey of the MC as we followed her leaving a crumby job and horrible relationship and starting over. It was a really fun read. Also, I want cheese... all the fancy cheese after reading this. If you are a cheese fan and a romcom fan make sure you have yummy cheese on hand when you read this book.

After her life falls apart, Tam calls Josh, her BFF, and utters the word goldfish. Although a long time has passed since they have been close, Josh does everything in his power to help Tam rebuild her life, just like she did for him in the past. When Tam arrives back home, Josh also offers her to stay in his house for a few weeks until she fixes her life. Feelings come to the surface amid all that fixing, and the friends have to face their high-tension chemistry.

Written by Cathy Yardley, Gouda Friends is a romance novel with a best friends-to-lovers trope and some steamy sex scenes. I highly recommend it to fans of rom-coms and gourmet cheese. Gouda Friends is the second book of the Ponto Beach Reunion book series, but it can be read as a standalone novel. Even though I have not read the first book, I got the hand of the story without issues.

Tam and Josh’s oblivious pinning and chemistry were my favorite parts of the story. Yardley did an excellent job getting the reader immersed in the relationship between these longtime best friends. I also enjoyed their geeky personalities and their group of friends aptly called the Nerd Herd.

I loved the concept of having a best friend who would love and help you no matter what and how much time has passed. Those are rare connections, so I enjoyed reading the book.

I received an ARC of Gouda Friends by Cathy Yardley from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

In all honesty, the cover of Gouda Friends is what caught my attention. I’m loving all of the illustrated covers and this one definitely jumped out at me. And I’m glad it did, because this book was so much fun. I love friends to lovers romances and Cathy Yardley definitely did this trope right. Also, be aware food is talked about a lot in this book. It definitely made me hungry, haha.

Tam wasn’t having a good day. First not getting the weekend away at work as planned and then coming home to find her boyfriend in bed with his ex. To make matters worse he threw away her gourmet comfort cheese. You just don’t do that! So when she calls her best friend and heads back to California things in her life start to change. I really like Tam. She was a fun character, but just didn’t realize how amazing she was. Or that what she loves matters at well. After always being drilled she needed to do her best and be successful she doesn’t know how to take time and figure out what she wants. I loved watching Tam trying to figure things out. She’s a strong person it just took her awhile to realize it.

Josh is definitely a new member of my book boyfriend list. He was so sweet. Tam and Josh didn’t have easy childhoods and I loved how they had each other for support and protection. The genuine love and protectiveness he felt for her was really heartwarming. Josh is also a hard worker (maybe a bit too much so) and I loved reading about his work and how he was trying to develop more restaurants.

We all know that when you’re that close more feelings can develop. Things definitely got steamy between them and that got confusing when taking their friendship into consideration. I did love how they both started realizing there was more and how it felt realistic. It didn’t just jump to oh we love each other and all is well. It showed us both of their doubts and fears. They left a smile on my face.

Add in a lot of funny moments and some amazing side characters. The Nerd Herd is the best and I would love to keep reading about them. I really hope we get to see more of them in future books. If you’re looking for a fast and fun romance I definitely suggest picking up Gouda Friends.

I love puns and cheese and this book definitely delivered on both parts! Tam reaction to the cheese was justified at the beginning and I loved her growth. Josh being the most supportive person and just wanting her to be happy was heart warming. You can tell from the beginning that both of them just want to best for each other, even if it hurts them personally. I also love the Nerd Herd!

Gouda Friends
By Cathy Yardley

A romance based on the love of cheese! Well this book certainly had my heart coz if there is anything I love more than anything is cheese. But more than that, this was such an endearing story with an amazing cast of characters, in a slow burn romance that I really enjoyed reading. I love the story of friendship when things can't get any worse, and having that friend to be able to rely on was so heartwarming for me. After reading this book, I need to have my very own nerd herd posse. Great writing, fresh topics, and really overall fun read.

"No matter how much his business meant to him, she was his girl, and he wasn't going to let her drift away again." When Tam has a disaster weekend that makes her question everything, she reaches out to her best friend, Josh, who comes to her rescue by inviting her to come visit for the weekend. As the weekend morphs into moving back home, Josh determines to help Tam figure out a future that will bring her joy, and the steps to take to find it. What neither of them realize is that as they partner together they will be faced with choices about their relationship and are faced with the question of whether what will bring them the most happiness is each other.
This is a steamy romance of friends to more. One of my favorite things about this story is the friendships that are depicted. I love "the Herd," Tam and Josh's friends from high school that have stayed friends and come to each other's aid and are pretty much a family. I also thought Tam and Josh's friendship was well depicted and one of the things that stood out to me was how much they cared for each other- they were both most interested in helping the other be happy.
If you are a fan of steamy romances, I would definitely recommend you checking this one out! It was well written and was a fun read!
I voluntarily reviewed a copy of this book. All opinions are my own.