Hailey and Wes decide to embark on a friend's for life venture but neither one figures fallng in love will be the outcome. Wes' parents had a tumultuous relationship and as the oldest he protected his younger siblings from the worst of it. It has skewed his vision of love and marriage.

Hailey arrived in town after a bad relationship. She starts over with her unique vision of salads in a cup. A series of events threatens her livelihood but she can handle it and Wes wants to help
They both have to learn how to support each other . When Wes runs scared can they repair the relationship and trust their hearts to move forward?

A great ending to a successful series. Although I received a free ARC eBook. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Hailey Sharp is ready to take a fresh new spin on life. She has left her low-life ex, moved to a new city, and started her very own business. By the cup, her cute and unique salad shop is the main thing on her main. She wants to see it succeed, and prove to others she can do it herself with no helping hands.

Wes Jansen is tired of dating apps, he doesn’t understand the appeal of dates and love. He may not like the guy, but his father taught him to be a businessman first and that love isn’t worth the time and effort. Life is a game that has to be planned out methodically and work comes before passion.

When Hayden… I mean Hailey crosses paths with Wes in the local coffee shop, plans may need to be rewritten.

I have very mixed feelings about this book. Overall, it was an enjoyable read with a nice plot and storyline but the execution fell flat in my opinion. At first, I was ready to give this book a four-star rating or above, but as I mulled it over I realized there were lots of holes in the details. Certain moments did not flow very well and conversations seemed choppy. This book did not feel rushed or jam-packed, it felt unfinished and left me with so many questions.

**Potential Spoilers Incoming**

There are so many names to remember in this book, even if you have read the first two in the series, there are lots of new names that you have to remember the whole time. On that note, some characters never show up again or they're missing for a large chunk of the book and then randomly come back.

The community center either needed to be discussed more and added to or it should not have been talked about so much. We were expected to be invested in the relationship, in the brother's businesses, in By the Cup, and in everyone's personal lives but then all of those points never really felt completed other than the romance between Wes and Hailey.

The detail that made me realize how incomplete this book felt to me was after the speed dating. It would have been so cute if we saw Wes interact with Haley and try to lightly flirt with her “as friends”, and also him joking around with Fiona when he got to her table. Sophie Sullivan made a point to write that the women sit down and the men/partners go around but we only got to see a few matches that did not add a ton to the storyline. The dinner after speed dating could have been where they discussed how awkward things were and how they are all tired of dating. Also, I really wish we got to the conflicts earlier so we could have seen how Wes evolved and changed his mind over time.

I know there is more that I currently cannot think of, I remember quite a few times realizing all the little gaps along the way. Overall, certain aspects of this novel did not feel planned out well. Too many details in some places, and missing information in others.

When Hailey moved away from Los Angeles to San Verde and opened a small restaurant making salads she brought with her her past heartbreaks and traumas. While the location is perfect for success as well as the rest of the businesses on the strip she doesn’t have any money for marketing yet, so she’s counting on repeat business and locals finding her. When she makes friends with the owner of the dessert place next door, Hailey doesn’t want any distractions. Wes doesn’t want to fall in love. So friendship it is.

They learn to love and both work through their past heartbreaks. Wes and Hailey are skittish and unprepared for the impact of the other on their lives. While they both made some questionable decisions I did feel somewhat disappointed in Wes throughout the book. But it wasn't just him that I had issues with, Hailey needed a wake-up call too. Ultimately they make things right but it’s a bumpy road in the last third of the book.

Hailey Sharp is determined to leave her ex in the rear view mirror and get her salad shop, By the Cup, up and running. Wes Jansen doesn’t see the point of relationships after a string of first date flops, he’d rather find someone he likes but leave love out of the equation. When Wes and Hailey meet in a meet cute gone horribly wrong, that wasn’t intended for them at all, they go their separate ways. But after Wes later finds Hailey to apologize, they strike up a friendship.

SO CUTE! I started this book not realizing it was part of a series, I’ve actually read book two already, but it can be read as a standalone. I loved watching Hailey and Wes become such great friends first! This one is a slow burn but the book has so many fun characters and other storylines that I didn’t feel like I was standing around waiting for something to happen. It’s also a closed door romance but the tension and build up was so good! Thank you St. Martin’s Press and Sophie Sullivan for my gifted copy!

I love that even though this is the third book in the series you can jump right into it as a stand-alone. I loved Wes and Hailey and I always love a callback to the previous relationships from the first two books. You couldn't help but root for Wes and Hailey throughout the whole book.

I struggled get into this book. I unfortunately did not realize this was book 3 in a series as it was nowhere in the information provided on Netgalley. I would not have requested to read it had I known. While its a separate book in a series it is in my opinion still best read by those who have read the first two books and understand the secondary characters better. I am choosing to not post a review on Goodreads as I do not think it would be a fair rating.

This third instalment in the Jansen brothers series was a lovely way to wrap up. I liked the characters and loved the weaving in of the couples from the previous books, like an extended epilogue. I loved Hailey's story, following her heart in her business, as well as convincing Noah that it was ok to listen to his heart too.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Publishing Group for this ARC!

This is my first Sophie Sullivan novel and I was not disappointed. This was such a cute friends to lovers trope with the right amount of angst, flirting, denying feelings, and chasing dreams all while actually falling in love. I have not read the other two books that are in this series, but I didn’t feel lost reading this one so it works as a stand alone. I finished this in two days and it was a perfect light hearted read with some heavy conversations around communication and telling people exactly how you feel. Hailey and Wes are perfect for each other and I think the other characters around them are solid friends/ family and positive influences for them. This was a really great read!

I will share my link to my Instagram review on 1/31.

I’ll admit this; I didn’t read the blurb when I accepted the invite from St. Martin’s Press. I saw the title and the cover (in the widget email they sent) and made my decision from that. To be clear, I rarely accept books based on the title and/or cover. So, I was a little hesitant when I saw it next on my reading schedule. But, once I realized what series this book was a part of, I was excited to read it.

A Guide to Being Just Friends is the 3rd (and final) book in the Jansen Brothers series. While readers can read this as a standalone, I recommend reading the first two books before picking this one up. I recommend this so you, as a reader, can understand some of the relationships discussed in this book.

There are some trigger warnings that I want to warn you about in this book. Hailey (the main character) is fresh out of an emotionally and verbally abusive relationship. In one scene, her ex tries (and stress tries) to verbally abuse and manhandle her, but Wes stops it. Wes’s parents are divorced, and Hailey’s family is dysfunctional (her parents love each other and ignore her). If any of these triggers you, I recommend not reading this book.

A Guide to Being Just Friends is a medium to fast-paced book that takes place entirely in San Verde, California. The pacing of the book fluctuates during it.

As mentioned above, A Guide to Being Just Friends is Wes and Hailey’s love story. Hailey has just opened a restaurant that only serves salad (By the Cup) and is focused only on getting it off the ground and making money. She has no room for a relationship or wants one after what her ex-boyfriend has done to her. Wes couldn’t agree more with her. He is still dealing with the wounds of his parent’s divorce and has been on several not-so-great first dates. All he wants is companionship. So meeting Hailey and developing feelings for her was not part of his master plan (the same goes for Hailey). While being in a relationship is not in the cards for either of them, they will settle for being just friends. But their feelings grow, and being just friends is starting to sound not so great. Will Hailey and Wes wake up and see that the person they want the most is standing in front of them? Or will they forever be just friends?

I like going into a book and knowing at least one of the characters. For me (and I don’t know about you), it made connecting with the other main characters easier. I also liked seeing a different side of that character than what was portrayed in other books.

Hailey: I liked her. She was super focused on getting her business off the ground and wouldn’t let anything or anyone distract her. She was also one of the sweetest people in the book and didn’t deserve the treatment she got from her parents, ex-boyfriend, and Ana. I also liked that she overcame all the self-doubt and self-esteem issues that her ex gave her. Of course, since this is a romance, I wanted to shake her when it came to Wes. But I understood why she was holding herself back.
Wes—I was talking about him in the above paragraph. I liked seeing little glimpses of him in the previous two books. I did have a view of him from what I read. So it was nice for that view to be expanded and for how he acted explained. Wes had a lot on his plate, a lot of pressure from his father and Ana (the CEO of a company he’s trying to buy). Plus, he had awful luck on the relationship front. The blind dates the author showed were horrible. I did like his character growth, though. By the end of the book, he wasn’t afraid to do what was right for him (and yes, that involved Ana and her meddling ways!!)
The secondary characters were interesting. They should be since they were all previous characters in the other two books. A couple of new characters were introduced (Hailey’s cousin and her group of friends), and I hope the author decides to create another series in this world. I would love to see some of those people get their HEAs!!

A Guide to Being Just Friends fits perfectly into the romance genre. I liked that this romance took months to ignite and just as long to get off the ground. I love those types of romances. They seem more genuine, and (because I am a weirdo) I can picture them lasting in real life.

There is sex in A Guide to Being Just Friends. But it isn’t graphic. The author sets the mood, starts the sexual encounter, and ends the chapter. The next chapter is the following day with a satisfied hero and heroine. I am a fan of smut and graphic sex scenes, but sometimes it is nice to let my imagination do what it does best. And it did its best in this book. Also, there were only a couple of sex scenes.

The main storyline is Wes and Hailey’s romance. As I said, the author made this into a slow-burn romance, and I liked it. She also made it as realistic as possible. Hailey and Wes went through what I considered the usual ebb and flow until everything exploded. There was only one thing that I disagreed with: Ana. She was a vindictive, nasty person. What she did to Hailey (and let’s not forget what she tried to do) was pretty low.

Several secondary storylines enriched the main storyline. The secondary storyline that stands out to me the most was the landlord raising the rent on the apartments and shops where Hailey had her business. I loved how the author kept me wondering what would happen there and then melded it into the main storyline. It was perfect!!

The end of A Guide to Being Just Friends made me an emotional mess. I cried during the big reveal scene. I was mad because of what Hailey assumed was happening between Ana and Wes. I was happy because that assumption wasn’t true. And the epilogue. It was freaking perfect!!! I couldn’t have asked for a better epilogue than that.

I would recommend A Guide to Being Just Friends to anyone over 21. There is language, mild violence, and very mild sex scenes. Also, see my content warning above.

I want to thank St. Martin’s Press, St. Martin’s Griffin, NetGalley, and Sophie Sullivan for allowing me to read and review A Guide to Being Just Friends. All opinions stated in this review are mine.

I received this book as an advanced reader’s copy. While I appreciate a good “friends to lovers romance,” I was not a fan of this book. The plot was pretty trivial and the drama was insipid and overdramatized at best. Normally, when I receive an ARC that is apart of a series I usually want to read the books I missed out in. But this one did not make me want to read any more of the brothers’ stories unfortunately. I don’t think this story is worth the time. It was just too much fighting and denial in a 300+ page book.

I really enjoyed "A Guide to Being Just Friends." Sophie Sullivan has a talent for crafting relatable and lovable characters that are easy to root for. The romantic plot is well-executed and will have readers swooning over the chemistry between the main characters. The comedic elements are well-timed and add a perfect touch of levity to the story. The pacing is brisk and keeps the story moving along at a fun and enjoyable pace. Overall, this is a delightful and entertaining book that is perfect for anyone looking for a feel-good romance.

This was a good read, but I wanted more undeniable chemistry between the main characters. It was sweet but i wasn't attached to them and their story, I felt like there could have been more pining, more scenes of burning chemistry to make it stand out, because it didn't stand out to me.

This was my first book by Sophie Sullivan. It was a sweet, not spicy, romance with an enjoyable cast of characters. I would classify it as a slow burn because it takes these friends a good while to figure things out! I also liked the family interactions between the brothers in the book and the new friendships that are made along the way.

This was my first book by Sophie Sulliva and I had no idea it was part of a series! I was drawn to the adorable cover and the title, as a sucker for the friends to lovers trope. I didn't have expectations going into this romcom and I'm glad for that. While it was a short and sweet read, the characters and plot lacked depth and chemistry. I didn't feel like the characters were all that three dimensional. Considering I didn't know of Wes's character beforehand from the other books in the series, I did feel like he was the one I got to know the best. The last thing I want to experience in a romance novel is repetitiveness; between the characters dialogue and the plot. What I kept getting was a lot of the same, for example Hailey and her salads. Her salad business got very old, very quickly. As well as her stubborn determination to push away help when it was offered with good intentions. I understood, she didn't want help because she said so every other chapter. Romances are all about the connection. If the reader doesn't fall for the couple, it's a bust. I didn't root for Wes and Haily as a couple. I honestly preferred them as friends. I didn't buy their romantic connection because they were simply lacking connection. I think that attributes to how the characters were written as individuals. Overall this was an easy read, however it was an incredibly slow one. I thought it was cute, but unfortunately fell flat for me.

I didn't know that this book is part of a series, but thankfully this is also a standalone. I've recently gotten into romance books, and this was one I really enjoyed. The only reason I did not give this 5 stars was because the story dragged in some points and the characters also got annoying at points. That didn't ruin the book for me though! I really loved the slow-burn (even if it lagged at bit at points) and the friends to lovers tropes. In contemporary romance books, friends to lovers is definitely one of my more preferred tropes. I really loved that Wes and Hailey had to work through their past heartbreaks to be with one another. Love isn't always pretty and I hate when books don't show the hard side of things. The author definitely didn't hesitate to show that in this story though. Overall, I give this book 4.25 starts and would recommend it to my friends!

Wes Jensen has recently moved from New York to LA to continue working with his brothers Chris and Noah. Hailey has just moved a few hours south of LA after a bad breakup and has opened up her own fast-casual salad restaurant to appeal to the health conscious lunch crowd.

Hailey, however, like us all has a vice and her vice is chocolate, so one day she pops into the bakery next door to her restaurant and she is approached by a man (Wes) who is certain that she’s his online date, Hayden, standing him up (due to the incorrect name written on her coffee cup). Hailey explains that no she isn’t his date and she’s very sorry, though Wes doesn’t quite believe her until she later makes a lunch delivery of her salads during a business meeting he is in.

Wes then makes his way to Hailey’s restaurant and apologizes and as part of that apology begins to work on her restaurant’s website. Then begins a very, very slow burn. To the point I’d recommend this book to someone who identifies as demi-sexual, as although the characters are not necessarily demi they spend the marjoity of the book getting to know one another as friends. This actually worked quite well for this novel and it really made the reader understand just why they fell for each other and to be rooting for them.

However, this book kept creating more issues in the back half of the novel that didn’t really need to be there, particularly the much dreaded “second act” (though this was truly closer to the ending of the book) break-up that was just so unnecessary and I believe should’ve been cut for either another fun scene of Wes and Hailey or a conflict not as detrimental to their relationship.

Though I really rather enjoyed this book, some of the writing choices towards the end leave me with the rating for this one of 3.5 stars.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the E-ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Fun third book in the series! I read the first and second, and wish I’d known about the first, first. In this installment, Hailey and Wes have a terrible meet cute, where there is immediate disdain. However, it turns out they have mutual friends, so the two find a way to at first tolerate one another, and then become friends. Staying in the Friend Zone most of the time, the two navigate their changing feelings for one another while also coming to some realizations about themselves.

As a contemporary romance, the reader will enjoy both the romantic storyline as well as the underlying family dynamics and interpersonal relationships.

(I received a copy of this book through Net Galley and have written an objective review.)

Firstly, I didn't realize that this book was in a series so you def can read it as a standalone. (Although I will be going back and reading the first two!) I loved this little small town, slow burn, friends to lovers story!!! It def gave off When Harry Met Sally vibes- which I love and know plenty of others who do! I love how sweet Hailey is- very sunshiney but I did wish she had been able to accept help sometimes!!!! Also Wes was such a realistic version of what modern guys are like! I loved that they both had trauma to work through so it wasn't just a normal romance. (Also this book had me craving salads so that is kinda cool since most people don't do that! lol) A quick note is that this is a closed door romance for people who look for that!!


Special thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for sharing this advanced copy with me in exchange for my honest opinions.

Thank you NetGalley and publisher for this ARC publication for an honest review.

A Guide to Being Just Friends
by Sophie Sullivan
Pub Date: 17 Jan 2023

I have loved the Hansen brothers series! This is book three with the eldest brother, Wes.

Wes is serious, smart/nerdy and not looking for love. Hailey is a cup of sunshine who runs a salad shop called "Get by the Cup." (I want this to be a real place!)

Our main couple has a special connection however they insist on a friendship route even as their hearts are feeling something more. Wes and Hailey were so cute together and I enjoyed watching their relationship grow. What I didn't enjoy was after they quit denying their romantic feelings, Wes (who is supposed to be a brilliant man!) was not only an idiot, but cruel in his declaration of never going to love/marry Hailey or anyone! Sigh. I know there has to be some drama before the happily ever after, but...I still found myself shaking my head NOOOOOOOOO!
Everything turns out to be okay in the end and we get a chance to see past characters all come together in this book. My one wish though is that the brothers had a final showdown with their father and that he could have tried to make amends with his children. The parental relationship (or lack of) was so disheartening throughout this series. I wonder if the sister will get a book, too?

4 stars

Awww! This was a cute quick rom com read. Now mind you, this is the 3 rd book in a series BUT it reads as a standalone. Reading the first two book s will just familiarize you with some of the characters in the book.
That being said, this story is adorable and quick to read.

thank you so much to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC