Unfortunately for me this book was just not my cup of tea. I went into this with excitement after reading the blurb and i feel like the premise was great. The execution for me was just a miss. I'm really not a fan of miscommunication. The story line was very slow, there was a serious lack of chemistry between Hailey and Wes. I ended up dnfing this novel at 62%

A Guide to Being Just Friends is the third book in Sophie Sullivan’s Jansen Brothers series. Hailey Sharp has left LA and a cheating ex behind and is solely focused on building and growing her By the Cup salad shop, creating the life she wants. Now in San Verde, CA, near her cousin Piper and her family, Hailey is making friends and trying to make ends meet.

Taking a break on a very quiet afternoon, Hailey visits the coffee shop next door for a sweet pick me up. However, Hailey didn’t expect the pick up line that came her way with a misspelled name and a fellow’s no show date. When a few days later the same fellow and his two brothers come to the salad shop, the air is cleared and the story really begins.

Wes Jansen, eldest of the brothers, has recently relocated from New York as did his brothers, all of them determined to sever ties with their controlling father. Although each brother has the education and instinct to develop properties and businesses, they want to do so in the manner their beloved grandfather had professed and giving back to the community. As oldest, Wes protected his younger siblings from the horror of their parent’s relationship and demise. This history has convinced Wes that love and marriage are things he never wants. Friendship and companionship with a like minded person would be perfect. As Hailey has pretty much given up on love, their friendship develops as they put together their own guide for being just friends. What could go wrong?

This is such a lovely story told with such heart and laugh-out-loud humor that the reader will be entertained from beginning to end. The characters are well developed. The plot is not predictable. This is a delightful rom-com. I very much enjoyed this story and I do recommend it!

This book was super cute! If your looking for a friends-to-lover, slow-burn romance, go get this now!! Wes and Hailey's love story is so sweet and bolded by a cast of fun and unique characters. What I loved about this book is the journey's each of our romantic leads go on to grow, learn, and find success in their own lives while also receiving support and a number 1 cheerleader in their partner. While there are definitely some frustrating moments, the sweetness and pining makes up for it!
For sure check out this new friends-to-lovers release!

I received an Advanced Reader Copy of this book from Netgalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

I loved this book . The only reason I gave 4 stars (4.5) is because at the beginning the salad talk bored me. I genuinely could not put this down. I’m a huge fan of Sullivans writing.

I really enjoy friends to lovers stories, and I also enjoy slow burn stories and this one was great!
If you are looking for a light romance this might be a great book for you.
Thank you netgalley for the arc.

4/5 Stars

This was such a sweet story!

I absolutely loved Wes and Hailey's blossoming relationship as the story progressed. I thought that their meet cute was absolutely adorable and all the side characters made this such a joy to read.

I love reading a slow burn; however, I felt that the story dragged at times and it was hard for me to focus. I wasn't a huge fan of the third act breakup towards the end, but the banter and the love story between the two definitely made up for it.

Overall a good read with great banter and some super sweet moments.

Thank you to Netgalley, St. Martin's Griffin, and Sophie Sullivan for an eARC of this book for my honest review.

The last of the Jansen brothers series and a super funny rom-com story! Wes is such a complex character with his nerdy and analytical outside and his pure golden retriever soft inside. Hailey, the ray of sunshine, chatty, and sweet salad shop owner confuses him and it's the most adorable thing! Swoon worthy romance I recommend to everyone! As well as the previous 2 brother's books

When I got this advanced copy, I read the first in the series ("Ten Rules for Faking It") and I loved it. Naturally I expected to absolutely love this addition to the Jansen brothers tales, but it kinda fell flat.

Wes is and has been my favorite Jansen brother, but his story just didn't do it for me. The storytelling was choppy and a little too non-linear. The month-to-month time jumps were fine, but I felt like every time we jumped, it was a whole new story. I absolutely loved Hailey's relationships with everyone; they were all so fun to read about! I just couldn't seem to get over the randomness of it all. Although this could be simply me having terrible comprehension as I haven't seen many others report feeling this way.

Overall, I think it was a fun, light-hearted read. Wes is a hunk, a perfect balance of nerdy and moody, while Hailey is so girlboss and driven in a way that wasn't annoying or overdone. I would definitely still recommend this to people!

(Side-note: Everly and Chris' wedding in the epilogue absolutely wrecked me and I think I may have shed a tear or two. So sweet.)

Really enjoyed reading this book. It was so different from all the books I usually read.. And the characaters had so much chemistry.

Sophie Sullivan writes very sweet books, but I just didn’t enjoy this one as much as the other two in this series. It dragged on a little too long for me, but it was still a cute read.

A Guide to Being Just Friends is a slow burn, friends to lovers story. There were cute elements to the story and if you enjoy a clean romance, this may be for you. Unfortunately I had a hard time connecting with these characters and the miscommunications. The business aspect to me did not feel realistic based on my experiences.
Thank you St. Martin's Griffin for the copy through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

.It's a very cozy and cute read and for those who love smut, it's very light on it, like it can't really be considered YA because it mentions some less lighter steam but it's not totally adult! It could be considered like NA? I think so, at least.
All in all, I really enjoyed this book. It's the first book I finished in one sitting IN MONTHS! If that doesn't tell you something, then I don't know what does! Except maybe for the epilogue... 😍 That was the cutest thing!

After a very rocky relationship and messy break-up, Hailey has decided to finally put herself and her dreams first. She has recently opened up her own salad shop, By The Cup, and although it is a lot of work, she is incredibly excited to prove to the world that she can so this!

Wes, the oldest of his siblings, has also recently moved out to California to start a company with his two brothers. Having grown up with a manipulative and controlling father and a broken home, Wes has learned to plan out almost every aspect of his life in order to keep himself and the people he loves safe.

When Wes and Hailey meet by chance, they are an unlikely pair. Hailey's carefree and expressive nature is quite the opposite of Wes' reserved and measured demeanor. But they quickly become friends, despite and because of their differences. The closer they get, the more it becomes apparent that they will need to decide if they are just friends or if they are so much more than that.

I fell completely in love with this story! This has to be one of my new favorites! Wes and Hailey had such a fun and heartwarming dynamic. The character development was truly wonderful. I found myself completely immersed in this world, wanting to be friends with all of the main characters. And funny enough, I didn't realize that this is the last book in a series! (Now I know the next two books I will be purchasing. 😍)

I would definitely recommend reading this one! Thank you @netgalley and @authorsophiesullivan for the advanced egalley!

#aguidetobeingjustfriends #netgalley #romcom #romance #friendstolovers #sophiesullivan

I loved this book!!! I recommend it if you love friends-to-lovers!

The only thing that I disliked was the amount of cursing in it.

A slow burn that burned slowwwwwly, and never really peaked. This is why I tend to be picky about friends to lovers plots, and this was one that just didn't quite hit. The idea for the book was fun, and the characters were cute, but we never really got that spark which truly makes a romance-worthy swoony read.

A Guide to Being Just Friends is a sweet, slow-burn rom com.

While the salad shop itself, with all due respect, was as exciting as a salad, the interpersonal relationships made up for it. As an entrepreneur, I loved the gumption, heart and dedication that the FMC, Hailey endures. There is so much sacrifice and mental gymnastics involved and I have so much respect for both the writer and the character for pursuing this path.

Her relationship with Wes is really sweet and I love how much people showed up for her in moments of need or pure thoughtfulness. I LOVE a friends to lovers and multi-POV. I love when writers use storytelling to unpack and unravel real-life adversity/trauma/baggage, etc.

As far as the writing itself, there were moments where I considered DNFing as it didn't feel like it had as much depth as I would have wanted. I put it down several times with an eye roll. Despite the real-life adversity Hailey and other characters have faced, it had all the right ingredients, it just felt like it missed the mark for me personally. I do believe that many other readers will absolutely *love* this book.

I really wanted to love it, perhaps I am just not the right reader/audience for this book. It distilled down to the salad shop, having not read prior books in the series and some minutia.

A big thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the opportunity to read this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

A GUIDE TO JUST BEING FRIENDS by Sophie Sullivan

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the e-arc! This book is out now!

SUMMARY:
Hailey opened a new salad cup shop- fun twist on salads, which is sure to be popular in healthy California. However, progress is slower to start than she originally thought, but it doesn't deter Hailey. She meets the Jansen brothers and immediately connects with them and their surrounding friends and family. Eldest brother Wes Jansen and Hailey click immediately. Both are career goal oriented, and they swear to stay friends, setting boundaries but adding to each others lives in ways they never knew they were missing.

MY THOUGHTS:
I think that all romances should be like this! It was perfect length that I didn't get bored (like I do with a lot of romances!) and the pace was quick enough that I was in the story and never focused on the little % down at the bottom of my kindle.

The romance between Wes and Hailey was sweet and simple and definitely a slow burn. You just know they're going to fall in love, even though they're swearing it off. The guide they were creating (pretty minimal plot point) was cute too.

I read this one and HOW TO LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR, but I haven't read TEN RULES FOR FAKING IT yet. So while the brothers all pop up in the books, it's not necessary to read them as a series!

Absolutely loved this book. I was hooked start to finish. I cannot wait to read the other two that came before this. I was in love with the characters and couldn’t put it down.

📖 A GUIDE TO BEING JUST FRIENDS by Sophie Sullivan

⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️

♥️This is a cute and fun friends-to-lovers romance but a tad slow-paced for my taste. I liked the main characters Hailey and Wes, and especially liked their friendship (their banter was super cute). I love that Haliey opened her business! 🥗


Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press, and Sophie Sullivan for this ARC.💖

A Guide to Being Just Friends by Sophie Sullivan

I feel like I’ve been reading a lot of friends to lovers books lately! Is this the new “in trope” currently? I’m not complaining…I’ll read all the love tropes 😂 except miscommunication. Get out of here with that nonsense.

This was a cute book. I wasn’t wowed or sucked into it, but it was an easy read. It’s one of those middle of the road books. It didn’t disappoint, but it also won’t stick with me for very long.

I did love the way they met and the fact that Hailey never cared about how rich Wes was. I understand that Wes loves helping the people he cares about, but he also needed to respect that sometimes people want to do things on their own without his money…so that irritated me.

Overall, read it if you like light on the spice, friends to lovers, women business owners books ☺️

Thank you to @netgalley and @stmartinspress for the arc in exchange for my honest review! 💜