a guide to being just friends delivered the exact, cheesy in a good way, friends to lovers i was hoping for. hailey just moved to san verde after a devastating break up to start her own salad restaurant. within days, she runs into wes who accuses her of bailing on their first date when in reality he’s looking for someone else. wes’ apology stems into the friendship both hailey and wes need. the challenge is keeping it from becoming their everything and more. this book was sweet and fun to read, but i found myself frustrated with the main characters a little more than i like!

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review this book. I thought it was really cute and it drew me to the characters right away. However, I did not like the amount of characters she focused on as there were too many to remember. I also thought the book might get spicy but it never really did. That being said, it was still a great story and quick writing.

I really enjoyed this book. It didn’t go zero to one hundred like so many books in this trope do. They both had feelings but didn’t just throw caution to the wind within two weeks. This is an easy read for some happily ever after joy!

Cute ending, but a verrrrrry slow burning romance. I didn’t realize this was part of a series, but you don’t have to read the other books for this one to make sense. Loved the brother’s personalities especially towards the end when they were helping Wes!

- Acquaintances to loves
- Small town romance
- So many saladsss!

I really liked Hailey! Her getting out of a toxic relationship and starting over somewhere new, following her passion! Plus her and Wes developing their friendship was also adorable. However, I felt like many of the characters weren’t adding to the story. Maybe I should have read the other two books prior to this one. Overall, story left a little more to be desired.

3.5/5 Stars! Thank you, NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!

I did not know that this was the third book in a series until I came to write this review. It can absolutely be read as a stand alone, but it might have been more enjoyably if I had read the first two books in the series.

That being said, I did enjoy this book! The tension and chemistry between Wes and Hailey was perfect. But once they finally give into the tension (75% in give or take, holy slowburn) I feel like their chemistry tapers off. I didn’t like the reasons they had issues in their relationship, though I am glad it was resolved quickly.

This was also a clean romance, which I wasn’t expecting but I can absolutely appreciate it anyway.

I like this authors writing style, and I will definitely look into reading the other books in this series and more of her work!

With amazing banter, excellent chemistry, and a coffee shop meet-cute which gets off on the wrong foot, this slow-burn friends-to-lovers story has everything you need in a romance. I loved how it didn’t shy away from forcing the two leads to confront their individual weaknesses, realize their mistakes, and ultimately heal their relationship, which made for wonderfully-written character growth.
Although I haven’t read the first two books in this series, this book worked very well as a standalone (even though I’m sure I would have been more attached to the characters had I read them beforehand).
Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for giving me the opportunity to read this ARC!!

First i want to say how much i liked the characters in this book. I loved Hailey and her determination and how independent she was. Wes was the perfect person for her. Unfortunately this book did not captivate me or keep me on the edge of my seat. It took me a lot longer than normal to finish this book. Normally im finished within a day or 2 tops. This one i had to force myself to read. Not to say other people wont absolutely love it but the writing style to me was kind of blah and everything was too predictable for my liking.

Enemies to friends to friends who can’t be more to lovers, the perfect scenario!

Wes and Hailey meet in an unfortunate instance and somehow manage to establish the perfect friendship full of rules to keep them strictly friends.

I really enjoyed this plot line and was hooked at the beginning. I got a little lost in the middle but I still was enjoying it.

One of my major let downs was that I just didn’t feel the chemistry between Wes and Hailey. it felt like they were just friends and you never saw their desire for each other. Even once they got together anything romantic was glossed over it didn’t seem sincere.
I was also a bit frustrated with the reasoning for the third act breakup as it seemed throughout that Wes was looking for a girlfriend and love. honestly his admission really surprised me.

I didn’t know this was a series! but it was just as good as a stand-alone, I liked the authors storytelling overall but wish I liked the main characters together more!

Thank you netgalley and St. Martin’s press for this ARC w

A Guide to Being Just Friends is a slow-burn romance that really dives into seeing a friendship develop over time so that the romantic feelings actually feel organic as opposed to rushed. Hailey Sharp is a new business owner who is quite proud and determined to go about this business adventure on her own. Wes Jansen is a kindhearted wealthy business man who often oversteps when trying to help others. Hailey and Wes have an awkward meet-cute that shapes how they immediately friend-zone each other. I really enjoyed seeing their friendship develop because you could feel the undercurrent of attraction in each of their interactions. Hailey can be frustrating at time, she's often proud and refuses to gracefully accept assistance even if there is no ulterior motive. Wes constantly oversteps in his effort to help others without realizing that he should be using words to communicate instead of actions. Their fights were merited, they both needed to work on actually listening to each other, their makeups seemed a bit too easy and rushed but it did allow for character growth. Would recommend to anyone who enjoys a quick, clean read.

I start this review saying that I read this book thanks to NetGalley and I didn’t know it was the third on a series even if I read it as a standalone but even if I haven’t read the other two I really love it.

This was a cute and so romantic friends to lovers, Hailey is new in town, opening a salad shop after a bad break up, she meet Wes and both fall into a easy friendship and nothing more, but things are not simple when feeling are involve.

I love Hailey, she’s smart, knows what she wants and work hard for her dreams. Wes is very practical and smart but very practical for my Taste xD even If i love him sometimes I want to scream at him lol.

His brothers are awesome and theirs girlfriends and the epilogue was sweet as hell. If you love slow burn this is the book for you.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review

A Guide To Being Just Friends is a fabulous contemporary romance by Sophie Sullivan. Ms. Sullivan has crafted a well-written book and filled it with a cast of characters that makes this book a fun read. Hailey and Wesley's first meeting was a case of mistaken identity. The hilarity just continued from there. Their story is packed with drama, laugh-out-loud humor and sizzle. I enjoyed reading this book and look forward to my next book by Sophie Sullivan. This is a complete book, not a cliffhanger.

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

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I thought the characters were likeable and aside from some minor plot holes and certain things that were mentioned but never panned out, I would highly recommend this book as a breezy read.
Pros:
Hailey and Wes were very likeable main characters. I liked that this book was dual POV since it would've been lacking without Wes' perspective to offset Hailey.
I like the friends-to-lovers trope and I thought it was done really well. Wes and Hailey's friendship was awesome and I think it grew and changed organically.
I liked the input from the brothers. I thought their relationships were super cute and I didn't realize they had their own books (according to Goodreads these books aren't part of a series).
I liked how much Wes wanted to support Hailey and how much she wanted to supported him. It was so nice to see them be so kind to one another.

Cons:
There were multiple things that were mentioned in this book and then never panned out. For example, Wes mentioned all these issues with his father and it seemed like a major part of the plot with the brothers but then it was never resolved by the time the book ended. There was another thing with Tara that was quickly mentioned at the beginning and I thought that would lead to some sort of rivalry and issue with Hailey and Tara but then it was never brought up again. It wasn't bad enough to make me strongly dislike the book, but it was enough that it seemed like the author kind of forgot she mentioned these things.
I thought Hailey's stubbornness to get help from anyone, including Wes, got a bit annoying. I understand the whole only child independence thing, but it was written that it was like a pathological thing with Hailey and it got old really fast. At a certain point when you are actively making things worse or harder for yourself then you can accept help from others.
I was not entirely clear even by the end of the book what exactly Wes and his brothers' company did. Were they venture capitalists?
I also felt like there was little resolution in terms of Wes not feeling like he could do anything fun professionally. He had such a strict view and outlook of how a professional life needs to be and it felt like there was barely any resolution there.

Overall, I really liked this book and I would recommend it. I would warn people that even though this is a romance it's a closed-door/fade-to-black romance and it does take a while before anything remotely romantic happens with the main characters. Despite this, I enjoyed this book and found it to be fun and lighthearted.

Sophie Sullivan is back with another tooth-achingly sweet romance book about two California newbies who become fast friends, but then find themselves wanting more. A Guide to Being Just Friends kicks off with perhaps the most awkward meet-no-so-cute of all time when Wes mistakes Hailey for his very late coffee shop date. Due to a barista mix-up and a low-quality dating profile, these two have a heated exchange before parting their ways. When they later reconnect, Wes uses his business-savvy skills to help Hailey develop her new salad shop and earns her trust and friendship. This book is fun and flirty, packed with lots of cameos from the first two books in the series, supportive best friends, and a belly laugh or two. If you are looking for a binge-able romance book that will leave you with a smile on your face be sure to check this one out. Perfect for fans of Sarah Adams or Carina Taylor! This book can be read as a stand-alone but it works better as part of the series in my opinion! Thanks to the publisher for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review!

Thank you for the ARC of this book! A Guide to Being Just Friends was a light, funny, heartwarming story about finding yourself before finding a partner. I loved hearing Hailey’s journey, and while it felt redundant and a little painful at times, her story felt genuine and really believable. This was the perfect light hearted read I was looking for.

The story follows Hailey Sharp, who had just moved to start a new life opening a salad shop. One day she has an unpleasant meeting with Wes Jansen, when he mistakes her for someone else. Soon after that they get to know each other more and develop a friendship that later leads to something more complicated.

This book has one of my favorite tropes, friends to lovers so I was very excited to read it. When I first requested the book I didn't realize that it was set in the world with 2 other books by Sophie Sullivan, all following the Jansen brothers. I loved reading this book so much and I can't wait to read the others. This book doesn't have to be read with the others and it can act as a stand alone. But we do get some insight on the other brothers and their relationships so if you want the full experience I would read them all. I will!

The only thing that I would suggest, was to actually be able to read about Hailey's dates with Seth. I really wanted to experience her going on the dates and seeing her realize how she actually started to care about Wes a lot more. I feel like the plot of the story follows Hailey more, but the romance aspect of the story seems to follow Wes a lot more.

This was a great read and I will be reading the other books!!! I would recommend this to anyone that might want to read a friends to lovers trope

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

A Guide to Being Just Friends by Sophie Sullivan is a beautiful friends-lovers-romance. It’s the story of Hailey and Wes.
 
Hailey recently experienced a break-up and now just wants to focus on herself and slow down. Therefore, she moves to the small town of San Verde and opens a salad shop called By the Cup.  I loved to see a female entrepreneur and everything that comes with owning and running a business. Hailey is such a kind- and good-hearted person and I adore her.
 
Wes works in the field of computer science, and he is very successful. He also works together with his brothers, and I loved to see them again as I also really liked the author’s previous books. Relationship wise Wes likes practical and non-complicated ones and love isn’t that important for him.
 
Hailey and Wes’s first meeting was not a meet cute, but from then on it gets a lot better and they form a true connection. I loved to see them building a friendship and to see them falling in love later was everything. This romance is just so cute, comforting, and heartfelt and that’s exactly how I love friends-to-lovers stories.
 
Overall, A Guide to Being Just Friends is my new favorite Sophie Sullivan novel and it’s friends-to-lovers perfection. 4,5 stars.
 
(ARC kindly provided in exchange for a review.)

This book has: a slow-burn, strangers to friends to lovers, and an adorable blushing hero.

Wes and Hailey have the opposite of a meet cute when he mistakes her for his date at a cafe. Hailey has recently moved to town to start a salad business and Wes is a successful businessman who runs a company with his two brothers. Hailey is recovering from a bad breakup and Wes is taking a break from dating and so the two agree to be just friends and not cross that line with one another.

I really enjoyed seeing the genuine friendship blossom between the two main characters. Wes and Hailey fit into each others worlds so well and I loved their weekly grocery shopping dates. I did find the pacing of this book to be a little slow. The leads didn’t get together until around halfway through the book and all of the subsequent problems happened in the last 40%. I found the conflicts tedious at times but the open communication and vulnerability displayed during the resolutions made up for it.

Overall, this is a cute, low angst rom com that is perfect for fans on the strangers to friends to lovers trope.

3 stars

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Griffin for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Sophie Sullivan has done the damn thing again with another great book.
A Guide to Being Just Friends by Sophie is a well written, beautifull, enjoyable read.
This was a book that I just had to finish as soon as I started it, and it doesn't disappoint either.
I loved her previous book, so I had very high expectations. This novel exceeded them plus more.
A fantastic contemporary romance by Sophie Sullivan. She has created a well-written book and brought it to life with a warm, enjoyable, lovable cast of characters who stole my heat and had me rooting for them throughout the whole thing.
Hailey and Wes, you are going to love their characters!
The character development throughout the story is wonderful, and thought-provoking.
No one can do it quite like Sophie. She is a master at storytelling and I will read anything this girl writes.
Once you start reading, you won’t be able to put it down! The perfect romance story.
Another 5 star book for Ms. Sullivan! It's just what my heart needed!

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

St. Martin Press,
Thank You for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!
Seriously I can't thank you enough!

🌟🌟🌟

A cute little RomCom that’s a quick read and super light!!

I was in the mood for something super light, funny, & quick to get me out of a reading funk and this did exactly that!!

If you’re looking for a super complex, deep, and perplexing plot, then this isn’t the one for you. But if a RomCom is what you’re in the mood for, then this is great!!

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4885691371