Thank you to Victory Editing NetGalley Co-Op for the eARC!

I was like giggling and kicking my feet (not literally) the entire time reading this book! I am SUCH a sucker for a friends to lovers trope, so I was super excited from the second I read the description — and it did not disappoint!

Highly highly recommend if you want a sweet and heartfelt romance.

As per usual, I didn’t realize it was the third in a series, but the author confirmed you can read it as a standalone! I’ll probably re-read it 5 more times before my eARC expires and then will absolutely be reading the other two!

This book was everything I wanted it to be and more! I was best friends with my boyfriend for seven years before we started dating. Just Friends reminded me so much of those seven years. Hazel gets cheated on and is struggling to cope. She meets Alex and they become the best of friends. She decided that the time is right to start dating again and they decide to set each other up for blind dates. Alex is very reluctant to do this because he is in love with her. As they go through these dates, Hazel begins to realize that she doesn't want him dating anyone else. This book is very relatable and I know a lot of my patrons at work will really enjoy reading it. I can't wait to read the other two books in this series.

Thank you to Victory Editing NetGalley Co-Op for the eARC!

I was like giggling and kicking my feet (not literally) the entire time reading this book! I am SUCH a sucker for a friends to lovers trope, so I was super excited from the second I read the description — and it did not disappoint!

Highly highly recommend if you want a sweet and heartfelt romance.

As per usual, I didn’t realize it was the third in a series, but the author confirmed you can read it as a standalone! I’ll probably re-read it 5 more times before my eARC expires and then will absolutely be reading the other two!

Friends to lovers is almost never a miss for me so I was so excited to jump into this book! It did not disappoint! This sweet story managed to me giggle like an idiot multiple times. And I teared up pretty much anytime Alex got too deep into his feelings for Hazel. This is a slooooow burn and these two danced circles around each other maybe one too many times even for me but gosh it was so fun! It’s full of tropey goodness and makes a great summer beach read!

Thanks for the eARC Madison!

MY FAVORITE FRIENDS TO LOVERS BOOK, EVER.

Oh👏my👏goodness. This book is amazing. The love between Alex + Hazel was so pure. This was like if lovelight farms by Bk Borison and a long time coming my Meghan Quinn had a baby.

I can’t express how well written this story was painted. I just wanted to keep reading because Alex is so freaking adorable!!

✨friends to lovers
✨forced proximity
✨double dating
✨he falls first

An infinity out of 5 stars for me!!

Where to even begin with this book. First off this is my first ever Madison Wright story and can I just say I am HOOKED!!! I need to read her other two stories in this series now. Going through Hazel and Alex's love story was so beautiful to read. This story was beautifully written that it had me giggling like a little girl at times and then sobbing at work during that scene at the lake & during the last three chapters! If you want to know what I am talking about I HIGHLY encourage you to add this book to your TBR. If you love friends to lovers, slow burn, and he loved her first this story is a MUST READ for you!!!! To Madison thank you for the ARC and I cannot wait to read more of your work you have EASILY made it into my top 5 all time FAVORITE authors!!!

💫4.5/5 |🌶️ 0/5 | Best Friends to Lovers | Slow Burn | He Falls First | Dual POV | Arranged Blind Dates | Some Forced Proximity

** I received this book as an ARC from NetGalley. My review and opinions are solely my own and given freely. ** Let me start by saying that this is part of the ‘Just Us’ series; this is book 3 but you can read this as a standalone. I reached out to @madisonwright myself before diving in to make sure that I didn’t need to read the earlier books.

You guys! This book was so tender and heartwarming, I loved it! Everything about this was so wonderful – from the MCs to the secondary characters, the different settings (Nashville, Small Town, Lakehouse), and the dialogue. This was done excellently! And I do not mean to compare, but if you loved the whole Luka & Stella story, this is similar and gave me those vibes. Madison definitely sprinkled some magic between our MCs Alex & Hazel. They were perfect for each other!

Let’s start with our MC Alex, good grief, this man was perfect. Like impossibly such a great character. He was patient, caring, understanding, and most importantly attentive. His POV was EVERYTHING. Swoon City! The fact that he gave Hazel the space that she needed and the how he handled his feelings would literally make you melt into a puddle. I also loved his relationship with siblings. We don’t really get to see much between him and Ellie, however, his relationship with Adam was hilarious!

Hazel is our FMC, who is our artistic little butterfly. She’s a romantic at heart who loves her 90’s romcoms, loves to chill with Alex, and has a beautiful set of family and friends. We get to focus more on her journey of healing, overcoming fears, and finding love. There is a lot of character development for Hazel, and I loved it. It wasn’t out of the ordinary, just plain old fear and self-doubt when your last relationship ended abruptly because he cheated.

The chemistry you guys is off the freaking charts. There is no way you wouldn’t swoon for Alex because he seemed to know just what to do at the right time. The progression of their relationship was very relatable and natural. The witty banter, the pining, the forced proximity, and the secondary characters we’re amazing!

I loved this so much – I had to order all 3 books and book 4 is also in the works.

When I started this book, I was unaware it was part of a series. Although I was a bit confused I was glad you did not have to read the first two books in order to understand the plot, but there were surprise appearances from both couples from the previous two books. Going to the plot and storyline, I enjoyed the story for the most part, especially their friendly/flirty banter but at some parts, I often felt detached from the characters and the story more often than not which is why I decided to give it 3 1/2 stars. This book follows Hazel and Alex throughout their friendship as they try to find love. If you're looking for a book that's friends to lovers, where he falls first, silent longing, as well as small-town romance with friends playing matchmaker, this is the book for you. I think this book is a great easy summer rom-com that will make you giggle and blush.

YAY! Hooray to NO THIRD ACT BREAK-UP. I appreciate that so much in a rom-com.

Alex and Hazel are so sweet <3

Read if you love friends to lovers, SLOW burn, and 'he falls first'

Also I had no idea this book was the third in a series, but you don't NEED to have read the others first.

This book had so much promise that I just blew my expectations up and it had no chance at meeting them, The tropes are there for me to love this but there is flaws in execution whether it be pacing or character development. These characters read very junior to me and I could not envision a world in which two adults communicated like this. It drove me actually a little crazy that we are reading about two adults who contribute to society, have jobs, homes and yet she could not tell he was in love with her and he could not confess his feelings.

Thank you Victory Editing and Netgalley for the ARC!
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🦋This friends to lovers is to DIE for!!! From breakups to blind dates…Wright creates such a fun, beautiful romance that has just a bit of angst here and there. Wright did and amazing job with the pacing of Alex and Hazel‘s relationship which, for me, pacing is usually a huge issues when it comes to a trope such ad friends to lovers but this book was very thought out in that aspect. There is no spice but to be honest, the book really didn’t need it. It was sweet and romantic and that’s exactly all it truly needed.🦋

Thank you for the free advance copy of this book in exchange for a review! I requested this on Netgalley on whim, did not know anything about it other than the cute cover. So, I did not except to love this one as much as I did and for it to be a 5 star read! It was everything that my last book wasn’t. Hazel and Alex are just everything! I really adored everything about this one.

Just Friends is a rom com about two best friends Hazel and Alex. He definitely falls first for her, but is patient and keeps his feelings to himself. Hazel is hesitant to feel anything romantic between Alex due to her past relationships and does not want to ruin their friendship. In hopes of wanting to date again, Hazel suggests they go on double blind dates. Alex uses this as an opportunity to show Hazel his feelings. We get some summer vibes. One bed trope. Yes, it is predictable, but in the best way. Such an awesome slow burn. There is no spice but plenty of tension. And no third act breakup!

I very much recommend this one!

I went in thinking this book would be a little steamy but it was very closed door. It’s a nice romance but it lacked plot for me and moved really slowly through the second act. There’s a lot of “will they/won’t they” moments but it was missing that 3rd act conflict that really engages me in a romance. The HEA left me a little unsatisfied

I think this may be my favorite of Madison Wright's so far! Alex is in love with his best friend, Hazel & she loves him as a friend. She was hurt years ago by crappy boyfriend after crappy boyfriend, but at her brothers wedding is inspired to try to find her one & enlists Alex to help set her up on blind dates & she'll do the same for him. Cue adorable but award blind dates where one is in love with the other one & you've got Just Friends. Written with Madison's sweet & charming writing this book will make you say awe, fall in love with how utterly adorable Alex is and make you incredibly proud of Hazel. If you like friends to lovers, pick this one up!!

Slow Burn, Friends-to-lovers, Rom-Com

⚠️But more like a no burn…. Sorry there isn’t much action in this book. It’s hinted at that there will be at least 1 good scene, but there isn’t. The whole book is sexual tension that builds up to nothing. Which is fine if you’re into that. But so felt like there was something missing. Idk if it was the spicy scenes or something else.

Hazel has a lot of friends, and sometimes it was hard to remember who was who. Lucy he supposedly best girl friend only had a brief role in the beginning. Then it switched to her home town friends being her support system. 🤷🏻‍♀️

This book has a lot of other good qualities such as:
🦋hilarious at times
🦋Wholesomely romantic
🦋Sweet Male MC
🦋He falls first
🦋No last minute break up, but really that’s because they don’t get together until the end

I loved the two MCs and their real action ship together was just so cute. Two best friends who love each other and develop feelings for each other. Hazel has issues with herself that she has to face in order to be with Alex.

My first book by this author and I adored it.

A closed-door, friends-to-lovers romantic comedy with all the feels. Alex falls first and is the most fantastic friend Hazel could ask for until she decides they both need to start dating and should set each other up. He goes along with it, all the while trying to make her realise they should be together.

Just Friends is a slow-burn, perfectly paced, quick read that had me smiling the whole time I read it.
This is such a comforting read that leaves you with a warm feeling in your tummy.

Thank you to NetGalley and Victory Editing for providing the ARC.

I will preface that I did not realize this book was part of a series until after I finished it, but it didn't really affect the story in any way.

I want to start off by saying that I love Hazel and Alex. I thought they were adorable characters and their friendship was really something amazing to see. However, I felt like this book had all the makings of a friends to lovers story, but it never quite hit the mark.

The first half of the book felt really rushed to me. It seemed the author was trying to build up the tension between Hazel and Alex with their blind date situation, but because the pacing was so fast, it didn't give me enough time to get on the same page. Additionally, one of the best things about friends to lovers stories is seeing the realization when the person who falls first realize that they love their friend. Alex was already smitten the minute he met Hazel, and while he became her friend, there was always an undercurrent of non-platonic love for her. So we did not get that pivotal scene.

The last 40-ish% of the book was where most of the meat was and also where the author's pace slowed down significantly. It is here where you see how Hazel and Alex's relationship develops and how Hazel begins to understand the feelings she has. But because the foundation was missing from the beginning, this part did not really live up to expectations.

I did like the book. Like I said, Hazel and Alex are great characters and I loved the premise of the story. I just wish the pacing issues were fixed and the beginning fleshed out a bit more than it was.

Oh man, this was so cute. First of all, the ghost thing. I'm glad that was done well after all because I almost DNF'd it. And now that that's out of the way, I really enjoyed this so much. Alex was a star from the start, exactly the kind of book boyfriend that gives real boyfriends a run for their money, and hazel really presented a character that I connected with, and that I'm sure many other women can connect with, too. Their relationship was so precious. Really, I was hooked from the texts of chapter 1. Immediately I needed to know how they become more and what that looks like. Alex was so considerate and patient of Hazel's feelings and fears and it warmed my heart watching them grow into more. That ending was worth all the cringe (I say with love) in the beginning. Easy solid 4 stars.

I didn’t know Just Friends was the third in the series, however it is a standalone interconnected series so it doesn’t feel like I missed out. It only made me want to read the first two novels.

Just Friends follows Hazel as she learns her boyfriend has been cheating on her for a while so she moves back home and to her best friend, Alex. Alex has been in love with Hazel for a while. The opening chapter is indicative of how the story will play out.

Just Friends is a friends-to-lovers, slow burn, he falls first romance with no spice (heads up to my spice girlies). The angst and tension is upped tenfold when Hazel and Alex start going on double dates in an attempt to find partners. These moments were easily some of the best of the novel.

Hazel could be irritating and annoying at times. It’s so obvious to everyone but her that Alex is in love with her. I mean, he wears a scrunchie on his wrist in case she wants to tie her hair up. Since Hazel is so oblivious for most of the novel, it gets repetitive so the pacing becomes inconsistent.

Overall, Just Friends was a cute slow burn friends-to-lovers if you’re looking for angst and no spice.

This was the cutest little romance! I loved the progression of Hazels character and seeing Hazel’s & Alex’s relationship blossom. From beginning to end I was routing for Hazel just like her friends were. A nice easy read.