Overall, this was a strong installment in this series, which made me feel nostalgic for my high school nerdy group that just so happened to be in the town that this series is obviously based on. I really wanted a bit more from the relationship dynamics and a lot of the blockers were because of logistics and not sorting out feelings or character development.

I expected some serious cheesy romance and I didn't get it. This is definitely a case of expectations unfulfilled giving me the doldrums. I didn't like the MC all that much, which always makes me struggle to enjoy a novel without something else to hope for. The premise and beginning of the novel with all of the cheese puns were the highlight. I was really hoping to love it as much as I love cheese.
Thank you to Montlake and NetGalley for the advanced copy. All thoughts in this review are my own.

3/5- Book #2 of Ponto Beach Reunion; Available on Kindle Unlimited (book and audiobook access included)

So this was a pretty cute best friend to lovers. Josh was the cutest cinnamon roll character, and so incredible for Tam. It was nice, and I enjoyed the couple's growth and dynamics. It had one of my favorite romance tropes of"lets get the sexual chemistry out of our system" and the spice was pretty good, but over all, it was simply a nice book, but nothing stand out about it IMO.

I am enjoying this character series and will definitely read the next book, because it better be Tam's twin brother, Vinny's turn!

Brief Plot: 5 years ago, Tam helped Josh through a life crisis. Now its time for him to return the favor when she breaks up with her partner after she catches him cheating, and worse, he threw away her FAVORITE kind of cheese! So Tam comes back to Ponto Beach, for Josh to help support her through a life revamp, and as he continues to support her, their friendship is tested: best friends, or is the underlying chemistry and sexual tension going to ruin everything good they have between the two of each other?

Thank you NetGalley, and Montlake Publishing, for an eARC copy of this book in exchange for my honest review!

Loved this book, surprisingly more steam to it then i was expecting but i am certainly not complaining.

I read this one as a standalone but definitely am going to read the first one in the series and look forward to the rest of the nerd herd group pairing up.

It was light, witty and a easy romance, just what i was in the mood for. Highly recommend to those who love romantic comedies.

I read an arc of this book in exchange for a review.

This was so cute! I mean friends to lovers is one of my favourite tropes add in the highschool element plus the cheese puns? This was a fantastic and fun read!
Thank you to netgalley and the publishers for providing me with an arc for an honest review!~

I adored Gouda Friends so very much. It's such a cute, steamy novel about estranged best friends who find themselves back to each other. Ponto Beach Reunion series is fabulous and I cannot wait for the next one in the series. This series is all about social media, likes, growth, and finding yourself when you don't think it's possible.

After Tam has the worst weekend ever (her job sucks, her boyfriend cheated on her, AND threw out her favorite cheese), she calls her estranged best friend, Josh. She gives him the key work "Goldfish" which for them means they are in trouble and need help. Josh instantly becomes worries and tells her to come down to Ponto Beach from New York, and Tam does it. Even though they havent seen each other in 5 years basically, Tam and Josh retake their friendship in the same way they were before.

Their friendship is literally the best. They are definitely each other's favorite person. They would do anything for each other, even hiding a body I bet. Tam and Josh are a package deal and if one goes, the other one soon follows. Now that they are together again and Tam is rooming with Josh at his place, lines are getting crossed. Especially because they haven't had sex in a long time, so that must be it why they are so horny for each other... SURE. They decide to have a one-night stand, or really, a one-time thing in New York where they won't ever talk about it and never do it again, but things don't happen the way they want to. Soon, these two would not be able to deny their growing attraction and love for each other.

Sometimes best friends to lovers romance really hits hard.

Gouda Friends is a great read. It's book two in the Ponto Beach Reunion series. Gouda Friends can be read as a standalone. I haven't read the first one, Love, Comment, Subscribe, but I'm planning on checking that one out after reading this one. Tam and Josh have been friends for a long time. They are there for each other when they need it. Josh is there for Tam when she breaks up with her cheating boyfriend. I loved Tam. She is a down-to-earth girl that loves cheese. Josh is a great guy. They are both great characters and made it easy to love them. These two have a great friendship, and as things started to get to be a little more with them, I kept hoping that neither one would mess it up. I liked this one, and you should one-click it.

I have to be honest, the friends-to-lovers trope is my least favorite trope and so I went into this with some trepidation, but... this is probably the first time this trope really worked for me. I was not mad at it at all. I was mad at the ridiculous people Tam let control her life, but the romance and chemistry absolutely worked and this read was just as charming at the first in the series.

So needless to say after reading both Ponto Beach Reunion books, I am a fan and definitely will be keeping my eye out for more releases about this "Nerd Herd" in the future. I am absolutely looking forward to the next in this series! These are fun reads with lots of chemistry and that is all I ask from my romances. Sometimes you just need an engaging couple to cheer for and I found that here.

Thank you to Montlake and Netgalley for the joyful read in exchange for an honest review.

Tam is overworked and her boyfriend of six years is a tool. She comes home unexpectedly one weekend to find him in bed with another woman and that, even worse, he's thrown out her special cheese. She turns to her best friend forever, Josh, who is back home in California. She goes out to visit, gets fired, and needs to figure out what to do with her life.

There are a lot of sweet moments in this book. Tam and Josh's friend group are a great bunch of ride or die folks who really pull together to support her (despite her ex-bf isolating her from them for years). Tam and Josh's connection is so so strong.

But I almost DNFed. There's a whole series of job shadow chapters for Tam that fell really flat. And there's a caricature of a woman who throws herself at Josh, who wasn't great. The writing style wasn't always the most fluid for me to read.

I persevered and made it to the end. It's a cute, light book, with a lot of cheese references. And I could really go for some nice cheese now.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I love puns and cheese so I needed this book!  I am a simple person 😂

Tam Doan is an executive assistant and is worked tirelessly by her horrible boss. She was supposed to be out staying at a hotel after working an event for 18 hours but instead she is sent home. Where she finds her boyfriend in bed with a woman. Deciding she needs to stress eat instead of flipping out she looks for her cheese and finds it gone. That's when she flips out. Which causes her to walk out with her packed suitcase with nowhere to go. Cheese is very important, also when it's more important than the guy it's probably time to leave anyway.

She calls her high school best friend Josh and gives their emergency word and he jumps to help instantly. Within hours she is on a flight from New York to California and staying with him for the weekend. Everything's fine! 

So many self discoveries and life lessons were learned along the way. Missed opportunities between friends who grew apart and lived so far away. Realizing you don't have to settle for that job that is easy to get to pay the bills. When you should aim higher and try for your dreams. I loved all the social media and business talk.  And of course talk of cheese!

Loved how they finally got back at douchey Brent total toxicity 101. It's a no from me.

The ending was a very sweet grand gesture that went both ways really. When you have been soulmate besties since elementary school there is no other way.

Read if you like:
🧀 Cheese puns and deep friend banter
❤ Slowburn, steamy friends to lovers (that they didn't see coming)
🧀 Great friend group

Thank you inkslingerpr and montlake for the gifted copy for my honest and voluntary review.

I enjoyed this book, it has a great friends to lovers dynamic. Even though is a romcom, the book touches some interesting but hard topics, so, please check your TW f you are reading this.
This is the first book that I read by the author and although the book is the second in a series, it can be read as a standalone.

This was so much fun! I loved reading this one! I love cheese and I love friendship. This was a great read and I highly recommend it!

I had to DNF this book about 20% in. It was just cringe-y and OMG enough about the cheese obsession. I was hopeful that this book was going to be good but it was a flop.

Tam Doan's boyfriend disappointed her in the worst way possible. One of the things he did was to discard her gourmet cheese. Of course, it was more than that and she needed her best friend from high school, Josh O'Malley. The long time friends had a code word, goldfish. When Josh needed Tam when he was at his lowest, she was there for him. Now she calls him, and of course he will do anything to help her.

Temporarily staying in Josh's guest room should give Tam some time to regroup. Going back home might be a problem, because she shared that apartment with her ex. However, she only plans on staying with Josh for a couple of weeks and she hopes to figure out her future. Never fear, Josh will help Tam any way he can.

Closer than close, that is all that was between them. Right? How about the fact that each of them start recognizing deeper feelings beginning to bloom? Would investigating said feelings push the bounds of friendship, especially if things didn't work out?

This endearing story, which could be a rom-com, has a lot of levity and emotion. I love how Tam had the time to work through her issues, all while slowly exploring growing feelings between her and Josh. I also appreciated Tam coming into her own after her bad experience with her ex. In fact, as the story progressed, the serious challenges between Tam and her ex were definitely concerning.

The Nerd Herd (also see the first book in the series, Love, Comment, Subscribe) are great and I am more than eager to read the next book in ths series.

Gouda Friends is an utterly adorable book! It's friends to lovers at its finest, full of pining, cheese puns, and the sweetest cinnamon roll MC ever. I adore Josh and Tam's relationship and their fierce devotion so much. His gentleness for her is beyond swoony and made my heart flutter. Tam is quirky and witty and so smart, I love her spirit. This is a great, full of all the warm fuzzy feelings book that will leave your heart full and happy.

What a cute and sweet book that made me hungry the entire time. I loved the friendship to romance between Josh and Tam who are sweet and perfect for each other. I did not read the first book in this series but did not feel like I missed out at all and now plan to go back and read that. I loved and related to Tam so much, I mean if my cheating ex threw away my gourmet cheese I would also go into crisis and call my BFF. This book is just so fun and romantic and a perfect quick read.

Thank you to Montlake and NetGalley for my ARC for my honest review

This took a few pages to get into this story but it turned out to be really good. Thanks to Netgalley and publisher for this e ARC

The Nerd Herd. I love it! When friends come back together to commiserate and fix their woes, funny things happen.

You should read this. Cathy Yardley gives us a sweet, fun book. It was a quick read that I'm sure you will enjoy!

The question isn’t “Who Moved My Cheese?” when Tam Doan trudges into the apartment she’s been sharing with her boyfriend for the past six years after a “terrible, horrible, no-go0d, very bad day” with a suitcase she never got to use for a business trip she got to arrange but not take with a company that has burned out her last nerve.

She expects to find her extra-special treat, her saved for emergencies gouda cheese shipped to New York City from her favorite premium cheese maker in Seattle in the back of the refrigerator. She does not expect to find her boyfriend of six years sleeping with his ex in their bed.

Howsomever, she finds the douchecanoe in the bed and no cheese in the fridge. And it’s the last of all the damn straws and her give-a-fuck is completely broken. She’s too tired, hangry AND pissed to notice whether her heart is broken as well.

All she’s certain of is that she’s outta there – for good. And that she feels free. Also broke, lonely and not sure where she’s going to spend the night because her ex has isolated her from all of her friends and she rightfully doesn’t trust their mutual friends – meaning his – as far as she can throw them. Or him.

So she calls her ride or die bestie from childhood, high school AND college, the one person who not merely promised to always be there for her but who has always delivered. She calls Josh O’Malley back home in Ponto Beach California (near San Diego) and uses their codeword for “Need help NOW!” And Josh delivers, as he always has and always will.

In this case a plane ticket from NYC to San Diego. She has the weekend off, he has a place she can stay. Along with 48 hours to help her figure out who moved her cheese in the metaphorical sense, help her figure out what her cheese actually IS these days, and give her the space and tools she needs to find it and get it back.

Just like she did for him when he sent the code five years ago. It’s not so much that he’s paying it back or forward, because their friendship is much deeper than that. It’s that he’s always been there for her, she’s always been there for him, and that’s the way it’s always going to be.

Even if part of the cheese that both of them still need to find is whether they can navigate their way into the relationship that everyone they grew up with has thought they had all along.

Escape Rating A: This friends into lovers with just a slight touch of fauxmance turned unexpected romance was a delight – and the inevitable cheesy lines and even cheesier jokes just added to the fun!

As funny as it is that Tam leaves her douchecanoe ex more over the cheese than the cheating, it’s not really about the cheese. Well, as it turns out, it kind of is about the cheese. In all the best ways all along the way of this delightful romance.

First, it’s about his lack of respect for Tam’s stuff, which is really just a symptom of his lack of respect for Tam’s whole entire self. It just takes the cheese to make her finally see it. Or finally admit it to herself. The relationship has been toxic all along, while Tam has made excuse after self-effacing, self-sabotaging excuse rather than admit that everything about her life in New York was a poor choice she backed into out of fear of failure.

Taking that impulsive, life-saving trip back to Ponto Beach is Tam’s chance at making a fresh start. All she has to do is find a new job and a place to live while ignoring her ex’s attempts to drag her back into his mess, along with the voices of her family telling her that she has to take any job in order to be safe and secure if never as successful as she should be. No pressure!

But what Tam NEEDS is to figure out what she really wants. It’s exactly what she did for Josh five years ago, when Josh hit rock bottom and she helped him find his own bliss. Now it’s his turn to help her – and he’s all in for it.

All they both have to do is find a way to preserve their life-saving and soul-deep friendship while moving it to the next level. A possibility that scares both of them more than half to death.

I picked up Gouda Friends because I loved the author’s Fandom Hearts series (start with Level Up and be prepared for a sweet, funny, geeky blast!). Gouda Friends feels like it takes everything I loved about that series and well, leveled it up. Josh and Tam – and their entire Nerd Herd – are geeky and nerdy in all the best ways, but now they are adults doing their best at adulting and still relying on the friends who have seen them through EVERYTHING in their lives.

One of the things I loved about this romance is just how huge a role friends and friendships play in their HEA. This is a romance with a GINORMOUS side of relationship fiction and the combination was just wonderful. It’s also terrific that as much as I loved the Nerd Herd, it’s not necessary to have read the first book in the series (Love, Comment, Subscribe) in order to get right into Gouda Friends. But now that I have read this one, I definitely want to read that. And the next book in this series, Ex-Appeal, hopefully later this year. There are plenty of Nerds in that Herd who still need to find their HEAs and I’m definitely here for it!

Friends-to-lovers is hands down my favourite trope! There's nothing more romantic than two people who know each other in and out and would do anything to make the other one happy.

Tam had a hell of a weekend at work and then caught her boyfriend cheating only to find out that he had thrown her super special, limited edition cheese. That's it! Can you, should you continue sacrificing your own happiness and your own dreams for someone who doesn't seem to know you at all ? goldfish, goldfish...Tam's secret word with which she calls for help of her best friend Josh in California. Somehow she finds herself on a plane going back to people who care about Tam finally standing up for heself and chasing her own bliss.

Josh and Tam were such sweet characters! I loved the way he kept putting her well-being and her freedom to choose for herself first. First, I thought it was going to be a slow-burn love story, but then sparks flew, the chemistry and tension were palpable and the fireworks went off to the joy of any reader who loves a hot, sizzling romance!

Whether your friends are super important to you and you see them on a daily basis or perhaps life has happened and you drifted apart a bit, you will relate to Tam and Josh's Herd of Nerds and will admire their awesome support.

If you love your romance to be a bit on a geeky side with a touch of spicy and lots of cheesy puns, you won't be able to put this down!