This was a really fun, sexy romance starring former teacher turned country music star Lorelai and former bass player turned music exec Craig. Friends to lovers is my jam and Lorelai and Craig’s friendship is so sweet.
Lorelai’s a strong fmc who isn’t afraid to ruffle some feathers and I love that about her. She stands up for what she believes in, even when it threatens her career and I think the way Erin Hahn portrayed the reality of that kind of situation was stellar. Kind of a side note but Lorelai has celiac disease which I honestly didn’t know much about before reading this.
Craig is the definition of why musicians are hot. He’s sensitive, passionate, kind, caring all while being protective, assertive and not overly masculine.
I love Erin Hahn’s writing and how it was so easy for me to picture the setting and the characters.
Also, I want to note that with Lorelai being a former teacher, gun violence, specially in schools is talked about. When topics like this are part of fiction, they come off as kind of preachy and performative, which I honestly don’t even mind if it gets the conversation going. This really didn’t feel like it though, and I found it really refreshing.

Read this if you:
•like country music
•are familiar with the Dixie Chicks controversy that led to them being cancelled
•like Kelsea Ballerini (re her CMT performance & standing up about gun control)
•motorcycles (iykyk 👀)
•strong confident FMC willing to risk her career for standing up for her beliefs

I really enjoyed Built to Last so I was so excited for this one. I honestly didn’t expect this book to be everything I love! Country music, kick ass FMC, swoony guy, standing up for beliefs and spice! This book has SO MANY important topics and shed slight on the hypocrisy of country music and their conservative archaic beliefs. Not to mention only wanting female country singers to be a pretty face and not to speak their mind. This book is a MUST read!

Thank you NetGalley for eARC in exchange for an honest review!

This is Erin Hahn’s follow-up to her adult debut last year, and I think it’s even stronger than the first. Like the majority of traditional rom-coms, most of the book could have been completely avoided if the two MCs simply communicated with each other, but where’s the fun in that? I loved the Nashville vibe, the song lyrics, the side characters Arlo, Jefferson and Annie, and I loved revisiting with the Michigan crew. Looking forward to Maren’s book next!

I received a copy of this book from the publisher.

Lorelei was a popular country singer when she crashed and burned Dixie Chicks style. Years later, she is staging her comeback with the help of good friend and one time lover, Craig. I really liked these two characters and their story. I love Nashville so it was fun to read a story set there. Overall, this is a solid and charming contemporary love story.

Digital ARC received from the publisher through NetGalley.

(3.5 stars!)
A cute story that everyone is sure to love and sing along to!

Lorelai Jones was a famous young country singer until one controversial song derailed her career, engagement, and life, but 5 years later, she's back in Nashville and reclaim her spot of fame and her best friend and producer, Craig, is along to help. However, when old feelings come up, this duet might turn sour...

I enjoyed this quick and spicy read! It had a lot of heart.
I enjoyed both Lorelai and Craig as individual characters and dual POVs helped me understand and grow to love them both. Their miscommunication was VERY frustrating as the love and sparks between them was obvious.
I did find that there were a few too many characters to keep track of and the reaction to Lorelai's "protest song" a bit dramatic and hard to believe, but I overall enjoyed the premise and found it unique and refreshing.

I can definitely see readers falling in love with these two and their music!

Thank you to St.Martin's Press and NetGalley for my free eARC in exchange for my honest review.

A cute small town country romance that will make your heart full. This book was a fun and spicy romance about country music stars. There is some drama with previous relationships, as well as, life as a music star. The challenges of being a star with "controversial" views on certain topics brought a whole new story line into this book. It was fun, romantic, spicy and comical. It does reference a lot of country songs, so be sure to brush up on those before reading.

At first, I didn’t think I was going to like this as much as Built To Last because of the pacing, but in the end, I might have liked this one more. I’m enjoying that Erin Hahn writes love stories for people who aren’t right out of college and who have had some time to figure themselves out. It’s refreshing.

What didn’t work for me

The beginning: It started off really slow, which was surprising because I already really liked Lorelai from Built To Last. I think it might have been the flashbacks or the constant need to go back and drive home what had happened in the past…but it really dragged on.

Lorelai’s “mistake”: Call this a bit of a spoiler, but I really don’t think the country music world would have shunned Lorelai that much for what she did. Is the audience generally pretty right-wing? Yes. But there are people of all kinds who listen to country music—and on the heels of a tragic school shooting, people would have agreed with her.

What I liked

The “music”: Not only did Hahn basically give us a playlist for listening to this book (or being immersed into the world) by naming every chapter after a country song, but without even giving us the music, the lyrics written in the book felt like they were real songs. It felt a little bit like Daisy Jones and the Six in that regard.

The supporting characters: Sure, I already knew Shelby and Cameron from the first book, but they weren’t even my favourites here. Craig’s coworker and his husband kept making me chuckle, Craig’s sister seemed really cool and we got to know Marin a bit more this time around—I really hope there’s another book coming that focuses on her. There was some foreshadowing.

3.5 STARS

Thank you to NetGalley and St Martin's Press for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review

I adored Erin's previous book. Just adored it. Unfortunately, FRIENDS DON'T FALL IN LOVE is a DNF for me. I didn't even make it to half of the book and that was disappointing.

When I read a romance, I'm there for the story between the female and male main characters. Just that. I am there to escape the world around us.

I knew that wasn't going to happen in FRIENDS DON'T FALL IN LOVE on page two when school shootings were brought up.

This is an important topic. But that's a topic I purposely read about on news sites or in nonfiction books - not romance books. At this point, in our current world, when I read political elements in romance stories it feels FORCED.

The two leads were also too ... perfect. I did not have any sort of investment in their lives and if they were friends of mine I'd never be able to relate to them because of their perfection.

I rate FRIENDS DON'T FALL IN LOVE one out of five stars.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for an e-copy of FRIENDS DON'T FALL IN LOVE to review.

The cutest country romance. I felt like I was watching a Hallmark movie set in Nashville. If you like Emily Henry, definitely read this when it comes out this year! Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

"Because I'm beginning to realize, whenever I've needed him, he's always been there."

I adore Erin Hahn's novels, and after reading Built to Last, I was super hyped for this one! (Plus the Annie / Jefferson cameo teased on Hahn's socials?!)

Friends Don't Fall in Love is centered around Lorelai and Craig, two friends who may have been pining for each other for a little over half a decade. I loved Lorelai and Craig's friendship and interactions!

There's a ton of country music references (& new song lyrics!) throughout, which I enjoyed. It reminded me of Hahn's You'd Be Mine.

While I did enjoy FDFIL overall, I do think that my familiarity with Hahn's work helped, as FDFIL was difficult to get in to. There's some time jumps at the beginning and use of a trope that I don't love: mutual pining + miscommunication. It caused some annoyance here and there.

I also liked how this tackled some negative aspects of country music (think 2003 the Chicks).

However, if you enjoyed Built to Last and You'd Be Mine, you'll probably love this book. I'm so thankful that I had the opportunity to read this!

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this arc.

This is a friends to lovers and also a bit of miscommunication troupe. Not sure if anyone enjoys reading miscommunication story’s between two characters who are in a relationship or trying to be in one, but I don’t- that’s one thing that just didn’t connect me to this story. I just did t connect to the characters, nor the story- I didn’t find it as interesting as the blurb initially made it seem to me.

Literally one of my favourite books of the year. I love how Hahn is building on relationships and characters we’ve previously met, but also giving us a brand new love story. We met Lorelei James in Built to Last and I KNEW that I was going to love a story about her. She’s not afraid to say what she means and is incredibly loyal.

Friends Don’t Fall in Love was such a perfect book, especially in its main characters. I adored getting to read about Lorelei and Huck reconnecting and the slow burn between them as they realize how they feel.

Would definitely recommend this book!

Book 29 of 2023 - ✅! Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press & Erin Hahn for an ARC of Friends Don’t Fall in Love in exchange for my honest review.

Every once in a while, you come upon a book that surprises you…Friends Don’t Fall in Love by Erin Hahn is one of those books. Having grown up in Texas, people find it strange that I’m not at all drawn to country music, but such is life. Erin Hahn’s fun, spicy, laugh-out-loud, friends-to-lovers book had my glued to the page from the start. Set in Nashville, Craig “Huck” Huckleberry Boseman, songwriter turned music producer (and poetry writer by night), and “disgraced” country music star Lorelei James, have been good friends since Lorelei’s ex (and complete loser) fiancé, who Huck used to play bass for, left her at the proverbial alter after Lorelei spoke out about school shootings years ago. The “just one night” trope makes an appearance here, and sets up the friendship for friends-to-lovers with a whole lot of miscommunication trope, which I generally like when done right - and it is done so right in this book.

Representation points for the Female MC/Lorelei having Celiac - this is the first time I’ve read a book that mentions it, and it becomes prominent during a few chapters. Additional points for LGBTQIA+ rep in country music with Arlo, sound engineer + Huck’s best friend, and Lorelei’s new publicist.

Hahn’s writing is so witty and descriptive, I’m so bummed I hadn’t discovered her books sooner. Also, spice is so well-written - I’d say 3.5/5 on the 🌶️ scale and 4.5/5 ⭐️ over-all. I’d recommended FDFIL to most adults who are into rom-coms; for lovers of the genre, I’d add it to your TBR, stat. The book comes out 10/17/2023!

The cutest country romance. I felt like I was watching a Hallmark movie set in Nashville. And it captivates you from the start!

I found this book to be very boring. It was too riddled with references to country music and musicians that I just could not relate to. The overall premise of the book was fine but it just wasn't as interesting as I thought it would be when I read the summary. The characters were okay. They were a little annoying and I don't really like a miscommunication trope either. I'm sure other people would enjoy this book a lot though, especially if you're a fan of country music. It has a very southern feel.

Friends to lovers!!!! Sign me up always
Absolutely amazing read! Really really love it❤️💕

Thank you so much netgalley, the author and the publisher for the advanced review copy if this book💗
"I voluntarily read and reviewed this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.”

3.5 Stars! This book was sent to me as an ARC and I really enjoyed it! I normally don’t love the friends to lovers trope, but I ate this one up! I couldn’t put it down,because I needed to see them with a HEA! The MMC is a total golden retriever and I loved how deep their relationship was. I didn’t think this one would be spicy at all but there was a little spice and spoiler alert: motorcycle sex! who doesn’t think that’s hott?

Friends Don’t Fall in Love by @erinhahn_author is a well-written second-chance romance!!! 🌻🎶

Blurb: Lorelai Jones had it all: a thriving country music career and a superstar fiancé. Then she played one teenie tiny protest song at a concert and ruined her entire future, including her impending celebrity marriage. But five years later, she refuses to be done with her dreams and calls up the one person who stuck by her, her dear friend and her former fiancé’s co-writer and bandmate, Craig.

Craig Boseman’s held a torch for Lorelai for years, but even he knows the backup bass player never gets the girl. Things are different now, though. Craig owns his own indie record label and his songwriting career is taking off. If he can confront his past and embrace his gifts, he might just be able to help Lorelai earn the comeback she deserves―and maybe win her heart in the process.

But when the two reunite to rebuild her career and finally scratch that itch that’s been building between them for years, Lorelai realizes a lot about what friends don’t do. For one, friends don’t have scratch-that-itch sex. They also don’t almost-kiss on street corners, publish secret erotic poetry about each other, have counter-top sex, write songs for each other, have no-strings motorcycle sex, or go on dates. And they sure as heck don't fall in love... right?

🌟🌟🌟🌟

I enjoyed Friends Don’t Fall in Love!!! It is a cute read set in Nashville, Tennessee. I’m not a big fan of country music but I would listen to Lorelai Jones!!! She is such an inspiring FMC because she never gave up on her dreams. Also, Craig is so sweet and supportive of Lorelai. Please read this book when it releases on October 17th, 2023!!! Thank you @netgalley for giving me the opportunity to review this ARC. ☺️🎤🎸💛🎼

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I love a good friends to lovers romance. This book was no exception. I would read everything this author wrote. It was perfection.

Summary
School teacher-turned-Country star Lorelai was at the top of her music career when a choice to sing a song protesting gun control changed her life. In an attempt to speak out against school shootings, she was immediately cast aside by the music industry and dumped by her fiancé. It's now 6 years later and she is finally feeling inspired to start recording again. She partners up with her ex-fiancé's former band mate, who is also one of her best friends, has his own recording studio, and also has a major crush on her.

Why did I pick up this book?
I loved the first book in this series, Built to Last, when I read it earlier this year – I couldn’t wait for the next one to come! I was then gifted an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

What did I enjoy about it?
I love the friends-to-lovers trope because the characters always have such warm and fuzzy history between them as a foundation for their inevitable romantic relationship. For example, their game of naming the best-written songs was so endearing. Plus, this was just one of the ways music was incorporated – I loved that each chapter was a song on-theme with that chapter. Made for an awesome playlist! Last, I love how encouraging both Lorelai and Huck were of each other and that they both found courage to be brave.

What did I not enjoy about it?

A lot of Lorelai's efforts to get back in the good graces of country music fans was spent canvasing radio stations. In 2023, this seems unnecessary. She already had an established fan base from her first go and could have relied on Spotify, TikTok, YouTube, other social media platforms. Second, Huck's biggest hesitation about expressing his feelings to Lorelai was because he was worried she'd go back to her ex. There was no evidence that she considered it once in six years. I didn't have any other major issues but for me it lacked the wow factor I usually give to 5-star reads.