I liked this book! When I first started reading, I had a little bit of trouble understanding Jesse, as I did feel a little bit like I'd been thrown in without much explanation, but as the story progressed I got more comfortable with the characters and really found my stride as a reader. I liked how realistic the awkwardness felt, which made me have suuuper secondhand embarrassment, but that really worked for my investment in the story <3

Rating: 4/5
Steam: 3.5/5

Thank you to Harlequin and NetGalley for this copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

Why did I wait so long to read this book? It was absolutely fantastic! I just love Ruby Barrett and her writing style—it always pulls me in.

There are so many things I think were really well done in The Friendship Study: the friends-to-lovers dynamic, with a side of friends with benefits, was executed perfectly. The academic setting added an extra layer of interest, and I really appreciated the bisexual and ADHD representation, which felt authentic and refreshing. And can we talk about the spice? FIRE EMOJI is truly the only way to describe it—so well done!

The theme of making adult friends and finding a sense of belonging hit close to home for me. It’s such a real and relatable topic, and I loved seeing how that played out for Jesse and Lulu, who were both so precious and soft in their relationship.

If I had one critique, it’s that I would have loved to see them build a few more connections with other participants in the friendship study. Also, Jesse's accident is a key part of his story, and I think learning more about it earlier on could have deepened the emotional stakes even further.

Overall, though, this book was a gem, and I’m so glad I finally picked it up!

Jesse and Lulu are the most special couple. I had the honour of being part of Ruby’s life as she wrote this book and was able to love this book in every single draft. And the final product is nothing short of perfection. Barrett balances romance and reality on this beautiful line that is singular. I feel like a part of the story, more than a bystander to the romance. This book is the perfect romance for everyone. It is so unbelievably special.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review of The Friendship Study. Unfortunately I did not get to this before it was archived. I'm looking forward to checking it out at my local library!

The overall plot was fun but it was missing something. It wasn’t really for me but it was a nice read.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for granting me free access to the advanced digital copy of this book.

Super cute quick rom-com read with great MC's! It's perfect or summer. This is another great book by Ruby Barrett!

Jesse and Lulu had the sweetest friends to lovers romance, and I loved their chemistry. I really enjoyed the writing and inclusion of neurodivergent and well developed characters.

It was such a great romance that had me swooning.

*many thanks to Netgalley for the gifted copy for review

Why was this book SO PERFECT? it was the most relatable thing ever. Making friends as an adult, especially when you're neurodivergent is so hard and this book portrayed that in such a perfect. And dear god was this book spicy.

A heartwrenching, beautiful book that explores the many facets of adulthood, sexuality, and friendships. I loved Jesse and Lulu and the ups/downs of their relationship. They are unapologetically themselves, and grow together rather than apart which I felt was so beautiful.

A book full of love and tenderness. I had the pleasure of meeting Ruby, and it was clear that she put so much heart into this book! I love the LGBTQ+ representation in the book and the way that the characters supported one another. Friends to lovers is also a favorite trope of mine, and this book delivers!

I think one of the most unique aspects of this book is how awkward it manages to make me feel along with the characters. This book felt very vulnerable as the characters were getting to know each other, which made it difficult for me to determine whether or not I was enjoying it. The beginning of the story was the strongest and where I felt like the building of the relationship felt real and genuine. Towards the end, I thought the spicy scenes took over and I was left with wanting more from their relationship.

I wish the topic of neurodivergence was talked about more, not just between the characters but for Lulu finding a way to deal with this so that her life could be more satisfactory. The information just sits there with no end goal .

I am not typically a fan of misunderstandings/miscommunications as a plot device and this book was no different. I thought it felt a bit over the top.

What if there was a study to understand specifically why millennials have a hard time making friends and the person you kissed after an awkward first date was in it too? And y’all decide to be friends but also with non-touching benefits because it’s against the rules for participants to have sex during the experiment?
That’s the basis for The Friendship Study by Ruby Barrett.

Jesse Theodore Logan (PLEASE tell me that’s a Bill & Ted homage) used to be a firefighter. An accident two years ago took that away from him, and with it his identity and career plans. Lulu Banks, PhD, is struggling to find her place as a professor after leaving a British university once she discovered her ex-boyfriend and ex-best friend were having an affair.

Both are yearning to belong in places they didn’t expect to be, and I could relate to Lulu’s and Jesse’s struggles to find and create community where it hasn’t existed for them before. Lulu has felt like she’s “too much”, and Jesse has a signature “grump face,” so there is some internal work to do through therapy to be vulnerable and make platonic connections with people.

Plus the STEAM! I love the loophole Jesse and Lulu use that if they don’t touch, it doesn’t go against the rules of the study. So there’s lots of mutual masturbation and dirty talk. 🥵

The Friendship Study
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Author: Ruby Barrett

I requested a digital advanced readers copy from NetGalley and Harlequin Books and providing my opinion voluntarily and unbiased.

Synopsis: Jesse Logan doesn’t want a fresh start. He wants his old life back—before an injury made his career as a firefighter impossible, before his grandfather’s Alzheimer’s got so bad he doesn’t recognize Jesse anymore. When a friend tells him about a paid psychological study, Jesse sees it as a chance to get back to the man he was while making a little extra cash.

All Lulu Banks is asking for is a fresh start. Back home after a devastating breakup, she’s struggling to find her place. She’s always been a lot—too loud, too eager, too obvious about her feelings. The friendship study seems like a great idea…until she’s paired with Jesse Logan, who recently ghosted her after a blind date that led to a steamy make-out session.

Now that old familiar tension is back. Despite the program’s strict “no romance” rule, Jesse and Lulu are quick to find a work-around that allows them to explore their tenuous connection. And soon they’re on their way to total self-improvement…

As long as they don’t get caught.

My Thoughts: This was a wonderful emotionally charged read. I really loved how the author explored these MCs. The premise was unique and along with the cover attracted me to read. Jesse had an injury that took him from a job he loved, being a firefighter, coupled with his grandfather’s Alzheimer’s disease, he has not been himself. Lulu just left a devastating breakup and is really struggling to fit in, outside of her family’s name, to make her own mark on the world. Both Jesse and Lulu join the friendship study as a way of making friends and finding themselves. The only rule is no romantic relationships, only platonic in nature. Jesse and Lulu are paired up and they soon find that they connect on many levels and have a way around the “rule.” Will they survive the study? This follows the tropes of friends to lovers, grumpy/sunshine, friends with benefits, and hurt/comfort.

The story is narrated in a dual narration by both Jesse and Lulu, in their respective perspectives. Jesse is strong, broody, sexy, and is struggling to find his place after his injury. Lulu is independent, trying to heal, and is looking for a fresh start without using her family’s name. The passion between our MCs is fast and strong. The unique way they find to circumvent the rule is amazing. The characters were developed with depth, witty banter, chemistry, and were creatively captured. The characters really had such character growth and enrichment. They were both broken, in different ways, through the study and counseling, was able to put themselves back together and came out the other side strong and capable of having a relationship. The author’s writing style was steamy, spicy, passionate, intriguing, and beautiful. The supporting characters were great and really added another layer to the story. The author does an amazing job with queer representation and addressing mental illness with grace.

This was a beautifully created story that I really enjoyed. The heavy moments were perfectly balanced out with the sweet moments. There were times that I shed some tears, some happy and some sad. Seeing that this couple get their HEA was so heartwarming. I highly recommend to other readers. I love Barrett’s style of writing and the steamy/spicy scenes are the perfect amount of spice.

Can we please have more book plots where the book starts off with a character being set up on a date by his ex? Like, I want every book to feature a friendship like George and Jesse!
Overall, Ruby Barrett writes relationships really well. Not only are the friendships and family dynamics in this book both complicated and realistic, but also, Jesse and Lulu have phenomenal chemistry! I don’t think I sensed their friendship chemistry like I was supposed to, but their romantic chemistry was off the charts! They were also really cute, both being nervous about being in love with the other person.
I really enjoyed both Lulu and Jesse’s backstories. I think both of them go through experiences that a lot of people can relate to, especially in their late 20s.
Overall, this was a really good romance that balanced romance and heart really well!

- Friends to friends-with-benefits to lovers
- Opposites attract
- Secret relationship
- Bisexual rep
- Mental health rep
- Dual POV

Ruby Barrett knows how to write memorable, relatable characters.

In this instance, we have Jesse and Lulu, who are set up on a blind date that doesn't go overly well. But then they reconnect in a friendship study profiling people who struggle to make and keep friends as adults (hi, it's me). There's a no-dating rule among participants, but when Jesse and Lulu realise they have more in common than they first thought, they decide to bend the rules in their own way.

I loved seeing them both be vulnerable and open up to and connect with each other and other people.

This book is spicy, emotionally charged, and hard-hitting. But you get a beautiful HEA at the end.

I didn't realize there would be bisexual representation so that was a fun surprise. There were moments that really worked for me and others that didn't. I realized have read one other book by Ruby and will have to keep my eyes out for more.

please note that the trigger warnings and topes/themes may contain spoilers
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
HEA: yes
POV: dual 1st person
spice: several open-door spicy scenes
TWs: family member with alzheimer’s/dementia, car accident (non-fatal), sexual assault (recounted), mental health (anxiety, depression), grief over injury (mobility issues), cheating (not MCs),
standalone: yes
final thoughts: this was a medium-paced, easy-to-read book with some great tropes. I loved being able to be in the minds of both MCs to see how they were struggling internally and trying to connect with each other. The FMC is all sunshine with a loud personality and the MMC is all grumpy who barely says a word and they worked so well together. The spicy scenes were creative and super hot with a few “teach me” scenes that were 👏👏
Their journey had me laughing, crying, closing my page with aggravation, and smiling. This is a great book that deals with some deep topics while not feeling dark or heavy. It’s a wonderful odd-man-out friends-to-lovers story where we really get to see the MCs grow throughout their story.

read this book if you love

😬 angst
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 found family
🌈 LGBT+ representation
💼 workplace (kind of) romance
💞 friends-to-lovers
🤐 miscommunication
🏝️ forced proximity
💓 slowburn
😡 grumpy/sunshine

First let me say that I 💯 wanted to read this book based on the cover. It’s GORGEOUS, and also gives a hint of what’s to come. But what I find fascinating is that past a first steamy kiss, that neither of them can stop thinking about, Jesse and Lulu do almost everything BUT kiss for the majority of the book. It’s amazing how much power is in one single kiss. From it we know they both desire each other, but because of their unknown dual enrollment in a “friendship” study, seeking to understand why adults have difficulty making friends, Lulu knows she absolutely cannot break the rules of engaging in a relationship with anyone in the study.
Thus begins the sexual tension. And it’s good. Quiet natured (and dealing with his own insecurities) Jesse is the hot firefighter type, but because of a car accident is feeling lost in who he is now that part of his identity has been taken from him. Lulu is equally unsure of herself after returning home, leaving her best friend and ex who cheated on her with one another. When Jesse’s ex-boyfriend sets the two of them up on a blind date, sighting their “loneliness”, the chemistry sparks instantly and ignites further from there. Just how far will “friends” go? How do friends soothe each other? Can you bend the rules of the friendship study without breaking them?
Ruby Barrett knows how to write a sex scene and it felt so refreshing to read about characters using their creativity to bend the rules as far as what sex includes. There’s toy play, pegging, mutual masturbation, truck sex, but it never felt like too much and seemed like a true outlet for how Jesse and Lulu felt about one another. I appreciated the neurodivergent representation through Lulu’s character and the bisexuality of both her and Jesse that felt true to them and not there just for the sake of being inclusive. So, did the cover live up to the story? Yes! This would be a great afternoon rainy day read I’d recommend.
I received an early copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟.25
Steam: 🪭🪭🪭

Ugh, Ruby Barrett hits another one out of the park. So cute! So thoughtful! SO STEAMY.

I have a consistent hesitancy about queer man / woman romances. Some of them are amazing, and tackle queerness and passing in insightful and new ways for me. Othertimes, it feels like a straight romance with a bonus label for marketing purposes. This book DELIGHTFULLY fell into the former camp, as I felt hopeful that Ruby Barrett would be able to accomplish.

Lulu and Jess are two adults going through massive transitions in their lives related to work and how they relate to it. Both of them are hesitant about dating and friendship and effectively corner themselves into participating in an adult friendship study at a local college - a fantastic premise combining several tropes together.

As Lulu and Jesse continue to connect, things get messy and hot very quickly. I had to CAREFULLY choose when and where to read this book because even as a mostly sapphic queer, the sex scenes were so good - even one featuring mutual masturbation - that I was visibly riled up every time.

But what I love most about Ruby's books was the way that these sexy scenes carried the plot forward, and we kept peeling back the layers alongside Jesse and Lulu as they figured out important things (neurodivergence! Trauma!) about each other and themselves.