I honestly enjoyed this book a lot, with this being my first book by the author! Taj McCoy’s writing is phenomenal and relatable when it comes to friendships and modern dating. It had the perfect mixture of the good, bad, and a forever love. I felt like I was apart of the best friend group during the entire read. I also found myself laughing out loud so many times; it was so cute and real! Savvy and Joanie are definitely her ride or die friends! Every girl needs friends like them. Now when it came to Maggie and Garrett, this is the type of book that will have you reassessing your relationship with the guy you’ve been bestfriends with for years and wondering what could’ve been! I love how everything was natural and genuine between them. I couldn’t help but smile whenever they had their dates on Saturdays or when he would call her beautiful. Garrett was such a gentleman and they knew each other like the back of their hands, even down to the food orders! Garrett knew nobody was good enough to be with Maggie! It was so many times I wanted to just yell at Maggie like “Girl, that’s who you need to be with! Garrett has always been the one! Stop playing and open your eyes!!!” This book was truly a page turner and I’m glad Maggie got her happy ending!

Thank you netgalley and harlequin trade publishing for the arc.

I think the story is cute for that friends to lovers feel but it didn’t snatch me up like i thought it would. I did like the friend group and how they were always there for one another. One thing i thought was weird and probably will always be that way for me. Is them wanting her to have a man for their weddings. Yeah i could tell they wanted her to be happy but why does she have to have someone y’all’s weddings?? It’s about y’all and people that love y’all unconditionally. Also Maggie was a little caught up on herself and was forgetting to do things for the wedding couples. Like you’re the maid of honor in both weddings ma’am. Tighten up.

The whole online dating aspect of the read is cool because that’s truly the time we are in right now. Maggie having a career and doing well at it is a nice pov. Showing she’s not putting that on the back burner for love. Making love the end all be all of her life like some people and forgetting there’s more to life.

I like the spice that we got. It wasn’t a lot but enough to hold you over. Especially between Maggie and G. Blake and Garrett were to an extent good dudes by profile. Like Blake with the career, house and style but was finishing first in the bedroom!! Maggie not saying nothing about it?! Then trying to force himself in your place but yet you still couldn’t choose?! oh okay girl. You be talking any other time. Some people are for real book smart over street smart and that’s Maggie.

Then Garrett you sir 20 years??? Like what the heck! I get that people don’t want to lose a best friend but don’t you want the person you marry to be your best friend. Y’all almost 40 out here playing around. Like y’all literally check each other’s boxes. Garrett knows Maggie like the back of his hand, y’all can crack on one another and have a Saturday night route. Is that not what relationships are made of. Smh. Everyone seen and knew how Garrett felt but Maggie?! They all had to tell her in order for it to stick. Girl you stressed me out.

Just wish we could have gotten them two together sooner so their “lovers” relationship could have developed more.

This book had to grow on me. I'm not a fan of the misdirects in communication rather than being upfront. But the characters were so likeable that it was pretty easy for me to get past that point. It's clear from the start that Garrett is in love with her, so you definitely root for them throughout the story, but you also want Maggie to know how great she is all her own. Written in a style that leans women's fiction, if you enjoyed this author's previous works, you'll definitely like this one. It's worth picking up if you are interested in a friend's to lovers with a twist.

This was a light and fun friends to lovers read. I did like the book but it was a little slow for my taste and predictable. Maggie got on nerves y'all. She was very self centered and I was over the food obsession. I love the plus size love but didn't like that all she seemed to care about was food all the time. Like talking about food in almost every chapter. I believe the author has good intentions gassing Garrett up. She did it so well that Blake didn't have a chance in my opinion. Blake was just off to me and needed more for me to believe he was a true contender. Lastly, the fact that she knew someone for 20 years and he finally shares his feelings and she runs all around town asking everyone and they mama about if they knew his true feelings. Overall I love the ending and the amount of Spice. That last Spicy scene I actually enjoyed. The ending was everything I hoped for her. This was my first book by Taj McCoy and I look forward to reading more from her.

Overall, this book was fun and was well written. The author was quite good at writing well-developed and interesting characters, with a strong friend group and people who felt authentic. What kept me from giving it a higher rating were the following.

1) Although I appreciate the heroine's friend group keeping it real and keeping her "overbearing" personality flaws in check, I felt it was overboard and drove me crazy.

2) The heroine's love language was food, but there was too much description at times about the food. I felt like I was reading a foodie blog.

3) However, my biggest problem with the book was the resolution of the love triangle. It was pretty obvious who she was going to choose. While I understood her hesitation, it seemed to drag on for too long, and I felt there was a problem with the pacing and emotional impact of the last 1/3 of the book.

Overall, the book had a satisfying ending and the strength of the author's character writing would make me try her again.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for providing me this arc for review.

This book isn’t officially considered a Rom-Com but it should be. Maggie the MC was funny and just seemed like a fun person. I want to be her friend! The relationship she has with her girlfriends was fun to read and they were funny together. This is a light and fun read with some very steamy scenes. So read with caution 🥵😮‍💨🫣

⭐️⭐️⭐️.5 - ARC Review: The Good Ones Are Taken by Taj McCoy

Pub Date: April 23rd 2024

Thank you to @netgalley and @harlequinbooks for sending me this ARC to read and review. I was so excited to dive into this one having read Zora Books Her Happily Ever After.

Now I want to start this review by saying this book was extremely cute. And I’m always for a friends to lover trope because what’s better then having a lover and best friend rolled into one?

We start this story meeting Maggie, a 38 year old tax lawyer who’s fresh off a break up with a guy she thought was it. While trying to figure out her love life, her two best friends, Joan and Savvy are getting married and she’s the maid of honor. Encouraging Maggie to get back in the game, they set up an online profile and Maggie starts searching for her prefect wedding date. While searching Maggie enlists the help of her best friend Garret who truly thinks nobody is good enough for Maggie. One day, Maggie meets Dr. Blake and is put in a who do I choose situation?!

I’ll say I really enjoyed the friendship aspect of this story. Between Maggie and her girls and especially between her and Garrett. They were always there for her even when she got on their nerves. I will say for me the story started a little slower then I liked but when in picked up it picked up!! The spice was just enough and there were moments when I laughed out loud. Especially when that man brought Maggie that soup and salad. As a fellow foodie even I was offended! Taj McCoy writes love triangles so masterfully and it always feels like you’re in the middle of a rom com! I was so happy when Maggie got her happily ever after!

I would definitely recommend this one for the romance girlies ✌🏾❤️


This review will be available on Instagram and Goodreads on 3/24/24

Fun rom-com, had the perfect amount of spice, relatable moments, and ugh, I need a Garrett in my life! Omg. Thank you to thehive for the arc!

I’ve been wanting to read Taj McCoy for a long time now (Zora Books Her Happily Ever After has been on my TBR for a long time), and I wanted to love this book so much. I mean, look at that BEAUTIFUL book cover! Plus, I have unparalleled respect for fellow authors who always make their FMC either mid-size or plus size. They’re my favorite authors because I can always find myself in these characters. It’s what young me wanted when all my lead characters were skinny, furthering my feeling of inadequacy in my own body. So, thank you to Taj McCoy for letting me see a full-figure woman as the lead character in a book. It’s a beautiful thing.

However, I did DNF this book at the 15% mark. I really, really wanted to like this book, but ultimately I don’t think Taj McCoy’s writing style is my reading preference. Also, from the second chapter, it screamed miscommunication trope, and that isn’t my favorite.

The Good: I loved the girl friend group and the way that they were close and communicated to each other. I also felt like the girl group really held each other accountable. I also really liked the idea of Garret as a character and felt that he was a great friend. I really liked that the FMC Maggie was independent and was making a name for herself.
The not Great: Maggie kind on my nervous a lot as a character and I felt that she was a bit self-centered in her view of herself and the world tbh. I also felt the story was extremely predictable and even the love triangle scene, you know is coming. The book id very RomCom type of vibe which is fine I just couldn’t deal with Maggie and girl how did you not know that man was into you. Plus how was there ever a choice cause that other dude sucked….. ewww #teamGarret.
The book had some spice like a 1 spice level which is fine not ever book needs to be crazy spicy for me it can get old. I just wish the female character wasn’t quite so self-centered and that the other guy had been given some more depth other than being rich but sucking in bed lmao. I give it 2.5 stars, I would check out the other again but this book just didn’t give the vibes for me.

Single and in her 30s, protagonist Maggie finds herself encouraged to start dating online by her friends in order to find a date to said friends' weddings. Her best friend Garrett, who has not-so-secretly been harboring romantic feelings towards her since college, agrees to help her on her quest, and respects her boundaries. Maggie ends up having a meet-cute with a hot surgeon (red flag imo, but whatever) at the gym, so the two of them hit it off and they start to have dates.

Over the course of the book, Maggie has to explore her feelings about both men and decide who to go for-- her best friend who's always been there for her or the seemingly perfect guy, hot commodity catch?

I thought this was a fun, cute read. Thank you to Netgalley for an ARC!

I truly adore Taj McCoy and her writing. I always fall in love with her stories of romance and I read this one in 24 hours! Couldn’t put it down! If you read “Savvy Sheldon Feels Good as Hell”, you will know a few of these characters including the main character, Maggie.

Maggie’s bffs Savvy, Beth and Joanie are in amazing relationships and engaged (Beth and Joanie to one another) and she is going through a breakup with a man she that was her forever. Holding her up during this breakup, her best friends including her college bff Garrett, support her when she tries dating again including online dating. Struggling to find a good match, she meets the perfect guy at the gym. But can anyone be perfect? Or could her perfect person be closer than she thinks?

I’m trying to not give as much as I’ve given in past reviews because sometimes I feel like I told y’all the whole story🤣 This book me think, reflect and laugh (there’s a part about Yung Miami in there and I was cackling). Definitely recommend you swoop this one up!

thank you to Harlequin Trade Publishing and NetGalley for a virtual ARC in exchange for an honest review. I LOVED this book. Maggie was an incredibly developed main character who was easy to root for, and her journey to finding love in the modern age was hilarious and relatable. Maggie is a 38 year old woman who recently had a bad break with her ex. Both her best friends are getting married soon and insist that she needs to get back in the game and find a new man. Throughout this book, we follow Maggie’s journey as she navigates the world of online dating (and in person meet cutes) all the while she has her best friend Garrett helping to guide her. The synopsis gives a bit away as to what happens, but all I’ll say is there is a love triangle and Maggie has to choose between good and better. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and found it easy to connect with and relate to the main character.

3.5 stars

This book will leave readers swooning.

Hits:
- This book was hilarious. From the character banter to the plot itself.

- I loved Maggie’s relationship with her dad. It was so heart warming and refreshing.

- Provided a realistic depiction of the online dating experience.

- I loved Garrett’s character. His respect for Maggie, his patience, and his attentiveness were absolutely *chef’s kiss.*

- Though Blake gave me the ick, I did like his level of maturity once Maggie made her decision. There was a pinch of character growth there.

- This book did well at illustrating what a genuinely healthy platonic friendship looks like between a man and a woman.

Misses:
- I really did not enjoy Maggie’s friends. It seemed like they were trying to force her to date, and it was annoying. While I understood them not wanting her to continue to wallow over her ex, at the same time, I didn’t agree with them forcing her to jump back into dating. Moving on from someone doesn’t automatically equate to wanting/having to jump back into dating. I wished Maddie would’ve set some boundaries with them when it came to this, especially with them taking it upon themselves to create a dating profile for her and pushing her to publish it and start swiping. In addition, pushing her to do this solely so she could find a plus one to their weddings made it even more diabolical. I didn’t understand why she had to have a plus one as a lot of people attend weddings without one.

- Specifically, Maggie’s friend, Savvy, really rubbed me the wrong way. I understood that they had a certain banter and friendship dynamic, but some of the things Savvy would say came off as underlying shade to me.

- Blake had some cringe moments, and I was actually very surprised once his true colors were revealed. I wish Maggie would’ve left him in the dust sooner than she did.

- Maggie’s obliviousness was a bit far-fetched for me. Like, come on now girl. BFFR.

Overall, this was a cute rom com.

Maggie is a 38 year old lawyer who knows what she wants in life. Her job, her family and friends, her food, her men...well maybe not her men. When her best friends Savvy and Joan decide to have a combined wedding in Thailand, they task Maggie with finding herself a date. As she begrudgingly begins online dating, she gets her other best friend - Garret - to help her weed through her picks. Only once she finds someone she's actually interested in, Garret starts to act a bit jealous. Suddenly Maggie is having to choose between what looks good on paper, and what feels right in her heart. But is she willing to risk her greatest friendship in the process?

I'd say most romances are predictable, and I often find myself shouting internally as I read: "HE'S THE ONE FOR YOU, WHY CAN'T YOU JUST SEE IT!" This book was no exception to that, but honesty that's part of the charm of romance novels. The thing that really made this book stand-out, however, was the humor and the main character. Maggie is over 30, a Black woman, with a successful career, who knows her worth. It's so refreshing to have a female main character who is over 35, who has her life together, who doesn't NEED a man but instead wants the companionship. I loved her relationships with her friends and her dad, and I loved seeing a woman who stands up for herself.

I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys romance, rom-com vibes, some spice (multiple open door scenes), and characters in the 35+ age range. I'll definitely read more from Taj McCoy!

Book publishes on April 23, 2024

Thank you @NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for the free e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This story was cute and fun. It had a few steamy moments! I loved how the author made Maggie’s friend group realistic. It reminded me of my girl friends.

Maggie is in search of the perfect guy. Her friends put pressure on her to find that guy in time for their Weddings.

She’s in her 30s and she’s ready to settle, but she hasn’t found the perfect guy yet. Maggie has a bestie of 19 years, that seems to check all of her boxes, but she couldn’t possibly take him serious! One of her girlfriends convince her to explore her options through a dating app. Will she find the one?

Read this book if you enjoy

💕Adult Romance
💕Sisterhood
💕Friends to Lovers
💕Online Dating
💕BIPOC
💕Foodie

This copy had a few writing errors,but it is an arc, so I’m sure that will be fixed before its release. The book was very predictable.

Thank you Hear Our Voice Tours for this ARC!

the premise of this book sounded so good i was so excited but im sorry the format is pdf and its SO HARD to read it i hate it so much im just gonna wait until the book is out

taj mccoy is one of my favorite authors, so i was thrilled when i was approved for an advanced copy of her newest book, "the good ones are taken," and the book absolutely lived up to my expectations. when maggie's boyfriend leaves her for another woman, her friends force her to get on dating apps so she can get back out there. all the men she meets turn out to be duds, until she meets a handsome and successful heart surgeon at the gym. things are going well with him, but she finds herself thinking about garrett, her best friend of 20 years, more and more. one of my favorite things about taj mccoy's writing is that she has a talent for writing love triangles, especially considering this is one of my least favorite tropes. but although blake was a solid candidate, i was rooting for garrett the whole time, because i'm nothing if not a sucker for friends to lovers. along with the enticing and fiery romance in the book, i loved maggie's dynamic with her female friends and their support for each other. this book was an absolute joy to read and i'll be recommending it to everyone i know!

Taj McCoy's "The Good Ones" is like a rom-com rollercoaster you never want to get off!

Maggie's on a quest for Prince Charming after a not-so-great breakup, but her BFF dropping the L-bomb complicates things. The whole "friends-to-lovers" gig is a messy, hilarious ride, and I am here for it!

Her pals, Savvy and Joan, crank up the pressure for her to snag a wedding-worthy date. Online dating ensues, with a parade of maybes and a chorus of hell noes. When she's ready to chuck it all, she enters the swoon-worthy doctor from the gym. Cue the butterflies!

But wait, there's drama from her college bud, Garrett, who's the buzzkill pointing out red flags left and right. The tension peaks when he spills the beans—it turns out he has feelings for Maggie. Plot twist!

Now, Maggie has a choice to make—Mr. Perfect or her ride-or-die friendship with Garrett. It's like a rom-com version of a Choose Your Adventure book, and I'm hooked! Taj McCoy, you've served up a heartwarming, laugh-out-loud masterpiece that's one for the rom-com Hall of Fame. Grab your popcorn and dive into "The Good Ones" ASAP!

This book was a struggle for me to read and it has nothing to do with the author or their writing. I believe it was mainly the fact that you knew two people are meant for each other and they take so long to come to that realization. I also struggled with the denial and naivety of the main character. This author did an amazing job of showing what would happen if you let fear get in the way and motivate your choices in life. So much time wasted but things happen just as they were meant to be no matter the timeframe.