1 star

I dnf'ed this book. I made it to about 30% and just didn't like it. I couldn't get behind the characters, the story was confusing and the writing was kind of all over the place and I just couldn't continue it.


Thank you to St. Martins press and Netgalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I received an advance review copy for free from Netgalley, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

A contemporary romance novel involving a country music singer now teacher and a music producer.

Lorelai Jones had a successful career in the country music business but ruins it all when she sings a protest song. After being shunned from the industry, she retreats and becomes a teacher for five years. But enough is enough, she wants back in so calls on her old friend for help.

Craig Boseman has been holding a torch for Lorelai for ages. Having been in love with her without her knowing, he helps her any way he can to get back into music - even if it means being in such close proximity.

This book has the friends to lovers trope.

Would I recommend this? Yes, it has a sweet and spicy romance between the main characters. Although, it is a slow build it is well worth the wait.

A cute friends to lovers contemporary romance set in the Nashville country music scene. I felt this book was stronger than the first in the series, but there were still some style choices that didn't work for me. Having said that, I liked that Erin Hahn incorporated gun control issues (surface level) into the story, and I did enjoy watching Lorelai and Craig take their relationship to the next level.

Budding country star Lorelai Jones lost her fiancé and her career when she protested gun violence at a concert. Years later, she sends a demo tape to Craig Boseman, a longtime friend and former band mate of her ex-fiancé, with whom she had a one-night stand just before she left Nashville. But now she’s ready to return, and Craig, who is now a producer, agrees.

But there are a few hurdles. One is Lorelai’s manager who thinks Lorelai needs to go on an apology tour, and Lorelai’s ex-fiancé who thinks she should tour with him. There’s also the fact that both Lorelai and Craig have secret crushes on each other, and Craig is pretty fed up with allowing Lorelai’s ex to take credit for songs he wrote.

Friends to lovers is one of my favorite tropes and I completely adored both Lorelai and Craig, along with most of the secondary characters. (Except those we were supposed to hate) And the underlying theme of social activism gave this romance added depth. #FriendsDontFallinLove #NetGalley

This romantic yet steamy books is so cute. Lorelei and Craig spend one night together before Lorelei disappears to start her new life. Five year later, they are reunited as Lorelei tries to reignite her country music career after one controversial performance derailed her career. We then find out that Craig has loved her all these years later. This friends to lovers story is heartwarming and passionate with just enough steam. My least favorite part was the miscommunication part of the story but it still leaves you rooting for them in the end. This is my first Erin Hahn book but I will definitely check out more books by this author.

I hadn't read any country music-based romance fiction before so this was a nice new experience for me. I liked it and the Nashville setting. The characters were likeable and their sweet/spicy relationship was fun to read. I'm thinking I'd like to go back and read the first book in this series now since this book alludes to the events that happened in it a few times.

Great read. A rockstar romance. Craig has wanted a chance with Lorelai for years, but then everything fell apart. Will this be their chance several years later?

Important things you need to know about the book:

Pace: The pacing of Friends Don’t Fall in Love was a nice medium pace. There was next to no lag, and the storyline flowed smoothly.

Trigger/Content Warning: There are a couple of trigger warnings in Friends Don’t Fall in Love. If any of these trigger you, I suggest not reading the book. They are:

School Shootings/Gun Violence: Lorelai’s backstory and main storyline heavily refer to school shootings. Lorelai is a 3rd-grade teacher and recounts monthly lockdown drills. Her career ended because of backlash that she got from singing Neil Young’s Ohio (lyrics here).
Chronic Illness: Lorelai had been diagnosed with Celiac Disease 6 months before the main storyline began. There is a scene when Lorelai flares up after eating non-gluten-free food.
Sexual Content: Friends Don’t Fall in Love is a very spicy romance with explicit scenes.

Language: There is mild to moderate swearing in Friends Don’t Fall in Love.

Setting: Friend’s Don’t Fall in Love is mainly set in Nashville, Tennessee. But there are a couple of chapters that are set in Michigan.

Representation: There is LGBTQ representation. Craig’s employee is gay and is married. Lorelai’s agent is a lesbian and is also married.

Tropes: Friends to Lovers, Unrequited Love, Opposites Attract

Age Range to read Friends Don’t Fall in Love: I would suggest 21 and over for this book. The sex scenes are very explicit and very spicy.

Plot Synopsis (as spoiler-free as I can get):

Lorelai Jones was an up-and-coming country star, and she had it all: a thriving career, dedicated fans, and a superstar fiancee. But that all went up in smoke after she sang a protest song. Her career was over, and her superstar fiancee dumped her over Instagram. Five years later, Lorelai decides that she wants to make a comeback. She contacts Craig, her best friend and ex-fiance’s former songwriter, and enlists his help.

Craig has been in love with Lorelai for years. Content just being in the friend zone, he will bend over backward for her. That includes producing a new record for her. But, as they work closely together, Lorelai realizes that her feelings for Craig aren’t ones of friendship. Deciding to act on those feelings, she and Craig enter a new, unexplored area of their relationship. Can Lorelai and Craig keep their feelings for each other to just the bedroom? Or will Lorelai lose her best friend for good?

Main Characters

Lorelai Jones: I liked her. She was spunky, and she wasn’t afraid to let people know what she was feeling. Before she hit it big, Lorelai was a 3rd-grade teacher, and doing lockdown drills affected her. So, when she sang that protest song (with permission from her manager), she did it from the viewpoint of a former teacher. She wasn’t expecting the backlash. I give her credit for trying to make it again in Nashville after agents refused to sign her. But, and I stress this, I was a little “are you serious” when it came to Craig’s feelings for her. How can you not know that man was head over heels for you? It wasn’t like he was hiding his feelings (spoiler: he wasn’t). I couldn’t believe it took her six years to admit she had feelings for him, too.

Craig “Huck” Boseman: I liked Craig. He was written as an ordinary guy. He wasn’t athletic, was quite nerdy, and was in touch with his feelings. I mean, he wrote erotic poetry!!! He is portrayed as a pushover at the beginning of the book. It didn’t stay that way (he eventually started establishing boundaries). My only quibble with him was his relationship with Lorelai. He had been friend-zoned after that night they had, and he was content to keep it that way. When they made that jump from friends to lovers, I was a little scared for him. He was a sensitive guy, and I was worried that Lorelai would steamroll over his feelings.

Secondary characters: The secondary characters did add extra depth and nuance to Friends Don’t Fall in Love. Some characters explained Lorelai’s music backstory. Others explained Craig’s backstory, and still others added depth to their feelings and storylines.

My review:

Friend’s Don’t Fall in Love was a well-written book that glued me to my Kindle. I enjoyed reading about Lorelai and Craig’s romantic relationship and friendship. I also enjoyed reading about Nashville and the country music industry. I also agreed with the point the author was making with Lorelai singing the protest song. This book will be going into my read-again pile.

The main storyline centers on Lorelai, her fall from fame, her work to get back into Nashville’s music scene, and her relationship with Craig. I thought it was well written. I was invested in Lorelai and wanted her to succeed. I wanted her to show all her critics the middle finger while she regained her status as an up-and-coming country star. I also wanted her relationship with Craig to work in the worst way.

The romance angle was perfect (chef’s kiss). I liked that the author chose to have Craig and Lorelai have a close friendship before they got involved. It made them getting romantically involved much more believable to me. I also liked that Lorelai was the one who had to come to terms with her feelings instead of Craig. It was refreshing to read.

As I stated a few times above, the sex scenes in Friends Don’t Fall in Love are spicy and explicit. The author does mention it on the book’s Goodreads page, but I read that after I finished the book. So, I was a little surprised at how raunchy it got.

The end of Friends Don’t Fall in Love was perfect in every way. The author wrapped everything up in a way that I loved and made me smile.

Many thanks to St. Martin’s Press, St. Martin’s Griffin, NetGalley, and Erin Hahn for allowing me to read and review this ARC of Friends Don’t Fall in Love. All opinions stated in this review are mine.

I usually love Erin Hahn's writing but I had kind of a hard time trying to get connected to the characters. As an adult book this one was spicier than she normally writes so I think it took me aback.

Hahn's first adult book "Built to Last" was a hit with me! I really enjoyed the story and had high hopes for this follow up. However, there were moments (lots of moments, really) during "Friends Don't Fall in Love" when I was just over the music industry talk. I appreciate a romance with some plot but there was so much business chatter that it took away from the love story.

I know a lot of folks will have issue with the miscommunication in this one, and while I usually am cool with the trope, I feel like that's all the book was from start to finish. However, while they lack verbal skills, they make up for it behind closed doors. "Friends Don't Fall in Love" packs a punch with very, very sexy scenes. Minus the first one -- which was just dumb enough for me to toss the damn book in the trash.

This book was a very good love story for any music lover. Told in dual points of view, you really get a sense what both characters feel and want.

A couple turn offs from this book:
- Lorelei did not need to curse that much. What is it with authors having their female main character say the f word in every sentence. There’s more ways to imply that they’re cool or a bad *ss than just cursing.
- the sensual poetry was really creepy. Gave me the ick. Especially that his sister read it… ew

Aside from those few things the book was solid. A VERY SLOW BURN. Characters not making their mind up, being very indecisive, but a very good depiction of the hardships and complications of friends trying to go from friends to lovers. My heart went out to them because I know what it’s like to be afraid to lose your best friend just because you like them. Good writing from that pov.

Thank you to Erin Hahn and NetGalley for the advanced copy!

I'm a friends to lovers girlie through and through, so it's no surprise that this was my JAM. (And that wasn't intentionally a music pun, I promise)

In each of Erin Hahn's books in this series, I become more interested in the side characters and seeing Lorelai blossom was precious. Also I'm a sucker for a nickname, especially one like HUCK. My heart!! Seeing all of the music politicking in Nashville was super interesting and I loved how each of the chapter titles was a country music song. These characters desperately needed to talk about their feelings YEEEEEEARS ago though, honestly.

Can't wait to see Maren get her match!

*Thank you to St Martin's Griffin and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest review*

Friends Don’t Fall in Love by Erin Hahn
Contemporary romance. Friends to lovers troupe and Second Chance.
Lorelai Jones had a thriving country music career until she included a protest song at a concert that killed her career. After teaching for several years, she decides to relaunch her singing career and reaches out to her former band mate and co-writer Craig.
Craig Boseman has been in love with Lorelai for years. Their one night of passion together destroyed their friendship so he left the band and created his own record label. When Lorelai calls on Craig with a request to re-start her career and asking that they work together again to write new songs, he can’t resist her.

Second chance and falling in love after a long friendship. Craig is skittish and doesn’t believe he can have the love of his life so there are ups and downs in the story as they move together and he then steps back. More than once. Additional story elements include her ex finance and assumptions.
🎧 Special addition is an actual recoding at the end of the book, of the song that Craig writes for Lorelai. The female narration on the audiobook has quite the southern twang.
I appreciate a friends to lovers story as long as there is communication and openness. This was lacking a bit of that but eventually came together in the end.

I received a copy of this from NetGalley.

Lorelai and Huck's story was so cute! That friends to lovers on books is starting to grow on me. And Huck, what a man 🥵 He can write erotic poetry, songs, plays guitar, and can go down and feast between your thighs like a pro. Yes please.

The miscommunication is the only thing I didn't like, no joke. Lorelai losing her career, leaving music behind, only to come back years later to give it another try with Huck by her side? Hell yeah. I loved the whole thing!

📚 Friends to Lovers
📚 Dual POV
📚 One Night Stand
📚 Miscommunication
📚 He Falls First
📚 Found Family
📚 Second Chance Romance

**Thank you to Erin Hahn, St. Martin's Press, and NetGalley for allowing me to receive an ARC of Friends Don't Fall in Love in exchange for an honest review!!"" I am quickly becoming a big fan of Erin Hahn's books! This is the second ARC I have received from her and I really enjoyed it. Surprisingly I almost consider this to be a slowburn romance. It's definitely a great friends to lovers story. I have been looking forward to Lorelai's story since Built to Last came out and I am so happy that this was such a fun read. I also thought Huck was very dreamy but it totally made sense why they waited so long to start a relationship. I am hoping that there will be another book in this series because I really do enjoy this series and I look forward to reading more from Erin Hahn.

This is my first read by Erin Hahn and she has made me a fan. The characters are lovely, the dialogue is fun and the love scenes are sweet and spicy. Can’t wait to see what the author has in store for the future. I’ll be there!

A huge thank you to St. Martin's Press for granting me access to this title. Erin Hahn's book built to last was a favorite of mine earlier this year and as soon as I saw Friends Don't Fall in Love I wanted it!

To be plain, I did think the title was Friends Donut Fall in Love and got excited it was a book about donuts, but let me be clear, it is not!

In fact, main character Lorelei Jones has celiacs and does no gluten! I know quite a few friends who have celiacs and to see this visibility represented in the book was a pleasant surprise! Including moments where Lorelei's rage towards those who incessantly "forget" she has a serious condition. I've watching this happen time and time again for friends and Lorelei's unleashing of their selfishness was golden. I digress.

While I am sure the text is great, I highly recommend the audiobook for this title! The book starts with music! That's right, there is a song to open the novel and I genuinely checked my phone twice to ensure I was listening to the right app. So fun to start a book with a song and it was catchy!

Lorelei's superstar career imploded five years ago which forced her to become a classroom teacher and embrace anonymity. However, fed up of hiding, Lorelei calls her one lifeline and her trajectory is once again catapulted in a new direction. Craig was her ex fiancé's bandmate, who has now turned into an indie record owner.

These two may have been friends once upon a time, but why then does it feel to Lorelei that there's so much more? Friends Don't Fall in Love is about how two friends try to walk the line of friendship while denying their undeniable attraction.

I am particularly fond of books about musicians, chefs, and folks in the tv/film industry. Don't ask me why, I don't think I can totally tell you why except that these books feel like a true escape from my day to day. Erin Hahn once again transported with Lorelei and Craig (aka Huck's) story! Definitely read it if you enjoyed Once More With Feeling.

I didn't realize that I had read the first book in this series, but the more I went on the more familiar things felt. This was just as good and I'm glad that I picked it up. I read this on the beach and it was the perfect beach read that was not too light, but had enough fun elements.

I struggled a little at the beginning of this book. It was difficult for me to get into it. One of the reasons was the long chapters were discouraging. On top of that, the flashbacks and basically the usage of time confused me for a while. Basically I didn’t understand what was going on until maybe 30% into the book. Was it a me thing or the book itself? I don’t know but yeah. There were also cringey moments and cringey words that was used, but easy to brush off. I’m not gonna lie, I was afraid this was going to be a Taylor Swift fanfic or inspired by Taylor, but I’m glad it wasn’t. Or at least it wasn’t obvious. I loved Lorelai and how unapologetic she is. I also loved Craig for believing in her and not caring what other people thinks. My favourite trope *is* friends to lovers and I did love Lorelai and Craig’s relationship. Maybe it’s just the pacing of the book that threw me off. I loved the epilogue, it was cute.

Thank you NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book is an absolute delight! I loved it from start to finish. It covers everything I want most in a romance novel: swoony moments, sexy times, humor, and heavy subjects.

This is part second chance, part friends to lovers. It takes place in the music industry, which was cool to see. Lorelai and Craig are wonderful, complex characters both separately and together. She is trying to get back into country music after being cancelled, and he is running his own studio.

Gun violence is a huge theme in the book, so be aware of that. It's also about found family and being true to yourself.

Highly recommend.