This was such a sweet, fun romantic story. A misunderstanding leads to a great friendship between Wes and Hailey. As each tries to find their footing in their careers, Wes in the family business and Hailey opening her own salad shop, they lean on one another for support. Of course, this connection begins to turn romantic but neither one wants to risk what they have as friends. The connection between the two is so nice and the hurdle they encounter in the relationship seemed very realistic. I also loved their family and friends as side characters. This was a great read and I will definitely look out for Sophie Sullivan's next work. Thanks to Sophie Sullivan, St. Martin's Press, and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Maybe this is me being a little picky, but I totally couldn't get over the cringe of the first few pages and had to stop reading midway through, I think there could potentially be a fun story here but the writing was terrible and the storytelling was clunky.

When they meet, neither Wes Jansen nor Hailey Sharp is looking for love. Wes has had a string of unsuccessful dates with app matches and doesn’t want romantic love anyway; he has a criteria checklist for what would make a good mate. Hailey is recently out of a bad relationship and is putting her all into making her salad shop a success. Naturally, they decide to be just friends, and they fall into a pattern of spending time together and helping each other. It should be easy to stay just friends, right?

Oh, feelings, they can be quite pesky and difficult to control after all.

This is a sweet friends-to-lovers story with an uptight MMC and sunshine FMC. I enjoyed watching their friendship grow and seeing how they support each other, seeing the family and found family aspects come together, and viewing the ingenuity in their gifts for each other. There is a fun supporting cast of characters, too.

This book is closed door / fade-to-black, but it doesn’t feel like the door is slammed in your face. You still feel the attraction and sizzle between Wes and Hailey. It would make a cute PG-13 romcom film.

For me, the book was perfectly pleasant but stretched a little long.

I received an advance copy of the book from St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley. All review opinions are my own.

While I loved the premise of the book and the similarities to when Harry Met Sally, this book did not have a lot of memorable moments for me. It was a very slow burn, taking well over half the book to build up to the characters finally realizing they should be more than friends. A quick third act breakup occurs, they get back together and boom the book has ended. I was quite disappointed with how abrupt the ending was, and in a sense I found the fight to be quite ridiculous and unnecessary. The story just didn't feel fluid. I really enjoyed the other two books in this series, but this one just didn't make the cut for me.

After a case of mistaken identity, two entrepreneurial new comers befriend one another other with the express interest of friendship over anything romantic. Together, they learn how to navigate post break up feelings, and owning their businesses. Hailey Sharp, fresh out of a relationship, tosses herself into her new salad business when her path crosses with Wesley Jansen. After several failed attempts at dating, Wesley is focused on his business ventures with his brothers.
This book tries to be a modern day, When Harry Met Sally. . ., without the connection of the characters. I found myself increasingly frustrated with the protagonists intentions not being made clear, the lack of communication, and the absence of growth from either character. Instead of confronting their emotions, they invest their sexual energy in creating a guide to just being friends.
I felt very little connection with the main characters.
TW: Parental mental abuse, domestic mental abuse

Thank you to NetGalley and Saint Martin's Press for this early arc in exchange for an honest review
. This was a fun and cute romcom it did start of a bit slow but it was definitely worth finishing even though the ending seemed a bit rushed. I’ll look forward to reading the authors other books!

2.5⭐️

This book was a slow-burn, friends to lovers romcom, following business owner Hailey Sharp and oldest Jansen brother Wesley, as they navigate (and struggle to maintain) their friendship.

I do enjoy friends to lovers, and Hailey and Jensen had decent chemistry! The evolution from their friendship into something more made sense, and it did give some of those warm feelings. While it was a cute story with a good idea, the execution unfortunately fell short for me.

The writing was a bit awkward, and there were some issues with the grammar that continuously distracted me away from the story. Hopefully this is cleaned up in the final version, but asides from that, I found a lot of the dialogue to be unrealistic and the monologues to drone on sometimes.

While I haven't read the first two books in the series, I did enjoy most of the side characters! The friendships Hailey made throughout the novel were endearing, and I wish I could have found out more about some of the characters.

Hailey was a strong and likeable main character, and Wes was deluded when it came to love, but still charming nevertheless. If you are into friends to lovers, slow burn, found family, and don't mind fade to black (the novel is suggestive but clean), then this is a cute and easy romance to pick up!

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for an eARC in exchange for an honest review:)

loved this book so much! I requested it not knowing it was part of a series but you definitely can read this as a stand-alone. Wes was such a cute character and I thought Hailey was really fun and an energetic character to read about. Overall loved this book and will definitely be reading the rest of the Jansen brothers series

The story seemed to be alright from what I read of it. As a general rule though, I don’t read books with language in them, so I stopped reading in the first few chapters. The description of the story sounded great, and I was excited to see how the story would progress and how the salad business would survive. Some of the best books revolve around food businesses.

“A Guide to Being Just Friends” by Sophie Sullivan
BFF that’s the goal
I loved this sweet clean contemporary romance-comedy. Two special folks (aren’t we, each and every one of us special folks?!?) with wounded hearts find healing and friendship, and maybe something they were not looking for. Come read this story and get together with some new friends. Happy Reading ! !
NOTE: This review expresses my honest opinion.
I received an ARC copy of this story from the publisher via NetGalley.

“it isn’t because you weren’t enough, hailey. it’s because I'm terrified you could become everything.”
rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

READ IF YOU LIKE: friends to lovers, rich mmc, banter, closed door romance

PRELUDE: thanks to netgalley and st martin’s press for the arc of this one - i was so excited to read!

LIKES: wes being so pure and cute and sweet and just a really GOOD guy, hailey’s fierce independence, the dress shopping, the relationship with wes and his brothers, hailey’s business was unique, the community outreach was deep, the friends to lovers bit didn’t seem overdone - it was well balanced between friendship and teetering on more, when they felt something they were usually honest about it and that was different than the normal friends to lovers romance which I REALLY enjoyed.

DISLIKES: hailey’s dynamic with her parents was really weird/sad and i wish it would have been expanded on a bit more because it felt a bit unexplained. as with almost all friends to lovers, there was a miscommunication aspect which is not my favorite. this was also a closed-door romance - heads up for all my fellow smut queens!!

IN CONCLUSION: definitely recommend this one for fans of friends to lovers romance with a splash of workplace talk, a lot of fun moments, and two idiots who don’t realize they’re basically already dating and hide their feelings from each other!!!!

OUT JANUARY 17!

This is the third book in the author’s Jansen Brother series but I read this book as a standalone. I do not feel I missed anything by reading this book first. This is my first book by this Canadian author but it certainly won’t be my last.

I love a story of a strong, independent female protagonist and Hailey Sharp is just that. She’s recently moved to live closer to her cousin after leaving behind an emotionally abusive relationship. She’s fulfilling her dream of opening up her own business – a salad shop she calls “By the Cup”. She’s sold her home to open the business and is desperate to see it succeed.

Wes Jansen runs a business with his two brothers each with their specialty. His brothers are both in loving relationships and would like to see their brother find someone of his own. In a bakery shop to meet someone from his dating app his brothers suggested, he mistakes Hailey for his date. This meet-cute moment shows a side of Wes that Hailey would rather forget.

When the two meet again in Hailey’s shop, things go much better and soon they are good friends. Neither wants to be in a romantic relationship and mutually they agree to “being just friends”. But sometimes the heart speaks louder than our brains. Could the two become something more?

I enjoyed this book. It is funny, engaging and flowed well. The backstories of each of the main characters were well-written and believable. I loved that both Hailey and Wes gave back to their community whenever possible. I also appreciated the wide circle of friends and family supporting this couple.

I recommend this book to those who enjoy romance.

I received a digitial reading copy of this book from the publisher but the thoughts and opinions expressed here are my own.

A Guide to Being Just Friends by Sophie Sullivan
Rom Com
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I requested this book on Netgalley because I loved the cover! However I didn’t notice this was book 3 so I didn’t read the first 2. You don’t need to read the first books but I do want to read them now!

This is the story of Hailey Sharp who left LA because of her breakup with her awful Ex. She wanted to start new and opened her own business By the Cup salad shop. She was focused solely on her business and herself and didn’t want any relationships. While in the neighboring bakery Hailey has a disastrous meet cute with Wes. Wes realizes his family has already met Hailey needs to apologize, and they realize they end up making great friends. Can they make it as friends only though?

This was a very cute story of their relationship. I loved the banter between Hailey and Wes and was smiling throughout their conversations together. I also enjoyed all the other characters in their bubble and now need to go back and read book 1 and 2! If you are a rom com fan, like closed door and slow burns this book is for you!

Can this book be any sweeter???!!! I loved Chris and Noah, and I knew I would adore Wes. Gorgeous brothers from NYC, who are amazing well rounded men, have major daddy issues but push through and fall in love with strong AF no nonsense women?!!! I knew this one wouldn’t disappoint.

Hailey is starting over in a new town, she has a cute little salad place, and she’s trying to get her life together after a HUGE breakup, and then some. Then she meets Wes, it was the funniest Meet-cute, and some mistaken identity stuff going on and POW, they became friends. This friends to lovers trope is pretty predictable, but I couldn’t help but love how the oldest of the Jansen brothers kept up with her. It was a slow burn, but the ending was totally worth it.

This is a perfect, heartwarming story about the road to love, and all of it's bumps and detours!
Haylet is a woman who has been burned badly by love. Wes is man who has been burned by life and circumstance.
They meet by chance and decide they're going to be friends, then friends with benefits. Problem is neither wants to fall in love. It works out well until they both start feeling much more than either of them ever expected. The L word panics them both, so what should they do?
This is a story that will be floating around in my head for quite a while
1

I wasn't aware this book was a series but I still feel like you can read this as a stand alone. I really enjoyed Hailey's story. Especially her experience opening a small business. I enjoyed learning about Wes and his brothers. I felt like the chemistry between Hailey and Wes was believable but some of their interactions seemed a bit far fetched or immature. It was hard for me to keep up with the characters through the first 50% of the book. Everyone just seemed so similar. I wish their had been a bit more character development in the brothers and the friends so I could distinguish better and they would be more memorable. Overall this was a cute and entertaining read.

A Guide to Being Just Friends is a cute, endearing love story of two people who find the friendship they've graved their whole life. It is truly a Harry met Sally modern take of this famous movie.

This story is told from each friends point-of-view as they skirt their feelings. Wes and Hailey's relationship is truly genuine, and witnessing them slowly fall in love is heartwarming. A Guide to Being Friend is the third in the Jansen Brothers series, and can be read as a stand alone.

I have throughly enjoyed reading all the novels in this series. Road trip to Get by the Cup salad shop!

Thank you St. Martin's Press for the complimentary copy of this romance novel.

4.25 stars

It’s not often that I complete a series, and this is the only series I’ve read pre-publication for each book. I loved Ten Rules for Faking It a couple years ago and now Sophie Sullivan has completed the series based on the Jansen brothers. My favorite type of series are those that can be read as stand-alones and bring in characters from prior books, not those that build on each other and must be read in order.

Read if you like:
Closed door romance
Slow burn romance
Friends-to-lovers
Dual POVs
A love interest who loves a good spreadsheet

Thank you St Martin’s Griffin for an ARC through NetGalley and MacMillan Audio for an ALC.

Thank you to NetGalley and Saint Martin's Press for allowing me to read the third, and final, Jansen Brothers novel.

I did not know that A Guide to Being Just Friends was the third novel in the trilogy. With that being said, the book still made sense without the knowledge of the first two books– but I think I would have appreciated this book more if I did read the first two before this one.

This book was “just okay” for me. It had a lot of potential with Hailey as a protagonist; Hailey is a salad shop owner that isn’t afraid of her sweet tooth. She loves romance novels and rom com movies. She’s an overall lighthearted character that has some growing to do but is lovable to most readers. Wes is the oldest of the Jansen brothers and the last to find love.

This novel had some really sweet moments that had me grinning, but overall the plot lacked depth; I found myself struggling to stay interested in the plot after the first 25% of the story.

Not only did the plot lack depth, the characters were very immature for their age. I felt like I was reading a high school love story when I was actually reading an adult love story. The repeated miscommunication between the two characters got old really fast; I wanted to shake them and tell them to get over themselves already! But not in a good slow burn romance kind of way… I felt like this book was actually too long and I found myself longing to get to the part where they had their happily ever after.

There were things I liked about this book though, and if you are someone that enjoys the friends to lovers/slow burn trope, you may love it! I love reading about a found family of characters that really love each other and have each other’s backs– that was very evident in this book. The minor characters were a great addition to the plot and I enjoyed reading about all of them. There was a lot that happened in this book that could have been expanded on to make the story even more interesting and would have added a lot of depth and character growth, but unfortunately I just read about Wes and Hailey’s miscommunication and fear of falling in love. By the time the friends became lovers, it felt inorganic and quickly thrown together. I felt jipped by the ending because, while my heart was happy, my head wasn’t convinced that they had grown enough as individuals to last as a couple long term.

I do love a sweet romance book! This was a nice experience and I enjoyed how it pulled together the couples from the other books in this companion series. Wes was extra annoying during the third act break up (to be fair Hailey was also pretty annoying at this point), but in general their banter was really good. I feel like the relationship developed in a realistic way and was rooting for them to both stop being dummies and get together already!

3.5 stars rounded up