Hailey is relatively new to the area and determined to make her Salad shop business thrive.
Wes recently moved to California from New York for his family & just wants to partner with his brothers on investments. After a very bad “meet cute”, the two eventually become friends… and more…

Friends to Lovers trope can be one of my favorites because you get to see the relationship build. I absolutely adored the relationship between Hailey & Wes, both as friends and as lovers. I cried when they had their predictable break up (breakup was predictable, but what caused it was not) and I cried again when they got back together.

Definitely a 4 star read - I really enjoyed it and did not want to put it down.

Sophie Sullivan is a fantastic author, whose writing style hits me right in the feels. This is a third part to a series, but each book is a standalone. And doesn’t necessarily rely on the previous book. Just don’t read this one first. 😂

Now excuse me while I go read “How to Love Your Neighbor” so I can say that I’ve read the complete series. 😏

Thank you NetGalley and St Martin’s Press for this ARC for my honest review!

After a less than pleasant meeting, Hailey Sharp and Wes Jensen really don't expect to run into each other again. When life keeps throwing them into each others paths, they realize they actually click really well and easily become close friends. These two are determined to only stay friends. Hailey is busy building up her new salad shop, and Wes has enough trauma to deter him from ever wanting to love. The closer they get, the harder it is to follow the guide they've made up for themselves, and can't deny the feelings that are there.

SOPHIE SULLIVAN DID IT AGAIN!! She captured everything I love in a friends to lovers book. The slow burn was done so well, and you barely felt it because the friendship developed was perfection. Sullivan also brought back our favourite characters from the first two books as big parts of Hailey and Wes' story. I highly recommend reading Sullivan's other two books first to get a full feel for how important these characters and their stories come together.

When it came to romance, Wes and Hailey had so much healing to do within themselves. My sweet sweet, protective, and scared Wes had to really go through it in this book. His heart is so big, and I fell in love with him right away. I loved Hailey and her headstrong attitude. Watching her not only thrive with her business, but find a family in a new city had me crying happy tears for her.

I did not realize this was the third book in a series when I picked it up, but I enjoyed this one so much that I will definitely be reading the first two. The entire friend group in the book was so much fun that I want to go read their stories as well.

Wes and Hailey were such sweet and likable main characters, both fiercely independent and more than a little stubborn. I loved the premise of them building a friendship and truly getting to know each other without immediately jumping into a romantic relationship. The slow burn definitely created some good tension but also gave them a realistic and solid base for any future relationship that may happen. The stubbornness of both MCs was a little too much for me at some points, but I think that has more to do with my personality than with the characters themselves.

Overall, this was a perfect, easy-to-read rom-com. Sophie Sullivan is an excellent writer and did a great job bringing all of the characters to life!

𝔸 𝔾𝕦𝕚𝕕𝕖 𝕥𝕠 𝔹𝕖𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕁𝕦𝕤𝕥 𝔽𝕣𝕚𝕖𝕟𝕕𝕤 𝔹𝕠𝕠𝕜 ℝ𝕖𝕧𝕚𝕖𝕨

Have you read any of the other Jansen brothers books? This was my first!

It was not until I finished this eARC that I discovered that this is actually a book in a series! The book stood well on its own and I did not need the backstories to enjoy this book.

During an incredibly (awkward?) meet cute, Hailey and Wes think they will never run into one another again but what fun would that be?! It seems they are running into each other all over, so they put that awkwardness aside and become “just friends”

Wes starts to help Hailey with improvements on her new business, By the Cup, and as they spend more and more time together, they cannot ignore the feelings they are building.

This was a sloooooow burn (honestly a little too slow for me and I worried they were too far into the friend zone to make it work) but Sophie Sullivan was able to ease them into that friends to lovers niche.

I definitely want to read more of her books!

Thank you NetGally and St. Martin's Press for the advanced copy of this eARC for my honest review.

This one publishes January 16, 2023 🥗
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#jansenbrothers #aguidetobeingjustfriends #netgalley #honestreview #bookreview #earc #netgalleyreview #friendstolovers #

This was such a cute rom-com that had a semi-meet-cute 🥸, a slow-burn/friends-to-lovers scenario❤️‍🔥, and lots of characters from Sophie Sullivan’s other novels 📚

If you’ve been here since the start of my bookstagram you’ll remember that I’ve read her other novels about the Jansen brothers and LOVED them 😍

Wes and Hailey’s banter as best friends was so entertaining and adorable 😊🗣, I was rooting for them to get out of the ⚠️ friend zone ⚠️every step of the way.

⭐️ My favorite part of this novel was exploring how Wes and Hailey both came from homes that had their fair share of dysfunction growing up 💔 and seeing how they met each challenge as they figured out their Guide to Being Just Friends ❤️‍🩹 It was such a fun and heart-wrenching experience 🥹

📖: This book officially publishes on January 17, 2023! I can’t wait to hear what you all think of it 💕💕

Tropes:
✔️Slow Burn
✔️Strangers to Friends to Lovers

Hailey Sharp finds herself in a very awkward meet cute with Wes Jansen. Wes thinks Hailey is purposely ignoring him when in reality, she was just there on her break! Disastrous & embarrassing first impressions? YES! Wes later finds out that he was actually wrong, so he goes to Hailey to apologize for his behavior and ends up leaving with a new friend. Can their friendship turn to more? Possibly but Hailey doesn't want the distractions from her new business venture and Wes.. well, he just doesn't believe in love. Nothing can possibly go wrong. :)

First & Foremost let's start with the pros..

Pros:
I LOVED the friendships here. The girlies taking Hailey in and instantly becoming besties is something that we all wished happened in real life. #GirlsSupportingGirls!
Hella boss babes and look, I'm here for it and FULLY stan.

Do it for THE BANTER!
ok, the banter between the 3 brothers is just freaking cute. The way they got on each other is just hilarious but the way they were there, for one another other, is what I loved to see. Noah & Chris telling Wes to "wake the F up", is what siblings and family is all about, some tough love to see perspective.

Independent Woman!
Hailey's independence is something that I admired fully. It's still tricky trying to succeed without anyones help but it's harder acknowledging that help doesn't mean we've failed, it just means our support system wants to see us excel in whatever journey we choose to take.

Wes: "It isn't because you weren't enough, Hailey. It's because I'm terrified you could become everything."
(SWOON EMOJI HERE!)

Look, this is where things get a little tricky ok? I did NOT know that this was a part of a series, so let me first clear that up. This is the 3rd book in a series of 3 brothers. I did not know this until after the fact, and maybe I should've researched that before requesting this book BUT the cover and blurb got me so I requested it.
With that being said, this is some of my cons

Cons:
There was a jumble of characters that was hard to remember who was with who.
IT WAS A SLOW BURN....... ok, moving on.
The Guide. The premise of this book, was only mentioned a couple of times. 3 tops? It could've mentioned their rules in some form, or what they added to it as their friendship blossomed into a relationship.

Maybe I'd enjoy some other books from this author but this was not it for me. But you never know, you may love this.

*I was sent this copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review

The first 10% of the book was so promising. Awkward meet-cute. Promise of an adorable circle of friends. Hardworking MCs with an eccentric friendship. This was everything I had been looking for in a palate cleanser from my normal fantasy genre... Until it wasn't. It was so slow, I oftentimes found myself just skimming for the whitty banter I was promised in the first few pages. I found the "slow-burn" took on a new definition and was excruciatingly painful at best. I was really disappointed, as this was one of my newly anticipated reads.

When the book did center around the two MCs, it was great! Everything I hoped and dreamed! So for that, it gets 3⭐ but boy, was it a struggle to get there.

Thank you Netgalley!
I Loved. This. Book!
So many thoughts!
Wes-I think he’s my favorite brother! He’s nerdy and smart and a little awkward and totally blows their first meet. How could I not love him??
Hailey-I like how strong she is, yet vulnerable … and okay with that.

Their relationship is probably one of the the BEST friends to more tropes that I’ve read. Their love really was based on friendship and they were REAL friends, knowing each other’s not so great qualities and being friends anyway. It made it more believable and oh so much sweeter when they finally admitted how they felt.
Speaking of…that scene got me, when feelings were said aloud…
I’ll definitely be rereading this and the rest of the series. ☺️

This book was really sweet. I felt like the beginning was a little rough, but I’m glad I stuck with it. The characters were lovable, and the friendship turned romance is always a favorite trope of mine. This definitely makes me wish I had read the other books in the series, so it looks like I’ve got some reading to do!

this book is so cute and sweet it has me squealing and tearing up. i love everything about this. i love the slow burn, the friendship, the built up. it's everything that i want in a book.

the only criticism i have is sometimes the sentences in the paragraphs are not connected. some can be cut into two and some can be edited to flow better. but that's it.

i recommend this to anyone who wants a cute romcom book

Oh, how I loved this one. I did not originally realize it was the third in the series, but when I recognized certain characters, I realized I had also read the first two and loved them!

Wes was such a classically good guy and I adored his character. Hailey was a lot of fun as well - I liked that she owned a salad shop instead of a bakery like sooooo many RomCom heroines do (also kind of wished it really existed!). I felt like this tied up the Jansen brothers series well and was a lot of fun to read!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC!

This book was such a cute romance that contained great banter, a salad shop, and baristas who mess up names on coffee cups. What was great about this book was the tension and I appreciate how it could be read as a stand-alone or as part of the series. I loved all of the sweet moments between the large cast of characters, but especially those between Wes and Hailey. The descriptions of the salads were amazing and I wish “By The Cup” was a real store so I could visit and visualize all of the cute scenes that took place in the shop. Although I initially found the dialogue a little awkward, the plot soon swept me away. I look forward to reading any other books that Sophie Sullivan writes. In conclusion, I loved this book and I recommend it to anyone looking for a light, romantic read.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC in exchange for an honest review

Absolutely loved this book. Hailey and Wes had the best banter through out the whole book which made me obsessed with their relationship.

I think Sophie Sullivan is becoming one of my favorite writers! This book was so good, especially Chapter 32, it was so well written I felt like I held my breath the whole time! I liked the growth of Hailey and Wes, I loved their friendship and their support systems! Just what a great book!

This book was cute. It was a little predictable but that made it no less enjoyable to read. The characters were interesting and had depth not always included in rom com books. It makes me want to read Sullivan’s other books. It was a nice and relatively quick read.

Rating : 3 out of 5
Blurbs :
Hailey Sharp has a one-track mind. Get By the Cup salad shop off the ground. Do literally everything possible to make it a success. Repeat. With a head full of entrepreneurial ideas and a bad ex in her rearview, her one and only focus is living life the way she wants to. No distractions.

Wes Jansen never did understand the fuss about relationships. With a string of lackluster first dates and the pain from his parents’ angry divorce following him around, he’d much rather find someone who he likes, but won’t love. Companionship, not passion, is the name of the game.

When Hailey and Wes find each other in a disastrous meet cute that wasn’t even intended for them, they embarrassingly go their separate ways. But when Wes finds Hailey to apologize for his behavior, they strike a friendship. Because that’s all this can be. Hailey doesn’t want any distractions. Wes doesn’t want to fall in love.

What could possibly go wrong?

Thoughts : Everything goes wrong with this book. his is a friends-to-lovers romance book. This book is super safe because there're no graphic smut scene but the reader definitely know that there are smut scenes but the author just skip it. As a romance book, this book definitely slow. I really like the first chapter. It completely sucked me in. Sadly, this kind of romance book is not for me. The pacing is too slow and I don't really like and connect with the characters. They're great characters but to me, they're pretty bland. There's no funny moment (from what I remember) and it's slow and angsty that makes it even harder for me to finish. If you're a fan of clean and angsty romance book, then you'll probably enjoy this book. Unfortunately, I won't read the other books in Jansen Brother saga. The ending and the resolution for the conflicts are not good. It left me annoyed and dissatisfied. Thanks Netgalley and the publisher for the e-ARC!

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press for the ARC. These opinions expressed are my own.

DNF @24%. This is not for me. I don’t love the writing style. It felt choppy and forced. I kept waiting for it to hook me and it didn’t.

Wes, the oldest Jansen brother, tried to shield his brothers from their parents' fighting as a child and still feels like he needs to protect them from their father's ire as an adult. His childhood caused him to feel that companionship, not love, is the recipe for a successful partnership aka marriage. When he meets Hailey, the owner of By the Cup, and she is desperately in need of business advice, he forms a friendship with her and starts to help with her shop. However, what he feels for Hailey feels a lot like attraction, which is not something Wes was expecting or wanting.

I absolutely loved being back with the Jansen brothers! I loved being able to see more of the brothers' interactions than we did in the prior two books, and I enjoyed seeing the happy couples and the continuation of their love stories. This is absolutely readable as a stand-alone, but I think it is richest when read alongside Sophie's other two books about the Jansen brothers.

I think I officially love the friends to lovers trope. I loved watching Hailey and Wes' friendship develop throughout the story. I also really enjoyed how Hailey's store By the Cup was centric to the story development. I enjoyed the new recipes, new employees, and increased foot traffic that we got to see, and I celebrated Hailey's successes. I think that Wes' involvement with her store allowed their relationship to have an organic and sweet growth since they always had something to talk about and a common focus.

Overall this was such a sweet book and I will absolutely read it again. I think rom com lovers will enjoy it a lot.

Thank you to St Martins Griffin for an e-arc. All thoughts are my own!

I am not a huge romance reader, but this book was great. I absolutely loved it, I loved the friends to lovers storyline, the family vibes, and the dual POVs from both Wes and Hailey. Sophie Sullivan fans are in for a treat with this book. I definitely recommend this book to others. Thank you NetGalley and St. Martins Press for the ARC.

I wasn't expecting to like this book as much as I did. Got me smiling. It was just so, so cute.

First of all, I adored the Taylor Swift references. They got me every time. We love a Swiftie, Sophie Sullivan.

Next, Leo. I loved him. I want a book about Leo. I do wish he was a bit more fleshed out and we got to see more of him, but I did enjoy what we got.

I also really, really liked the dynamic the brothers had with each other. I haven't read the other books, but there is a strong likelihood of me going back to read them just because I really liked what we got of their relationship.

Okay, now for what I did NOT like.

Squishy Cat Industries. What kind of name is that?! Honestly, feel like we could have done 100x better than this. It just made me angry every time it came up in the story.

Hailey. I know, she's the main character. Most of the time she was likable. But she just kept pushing Wes away when he was being so sweet and caring and it just made me mad. I did like Wes though and he made up for it.

Overall, twas a great time.