3.5 stars rounded up - I really enjoy Meghan Quinn's sense of humor and rom-com antics, so I was excited to be approved for this ARC! This is the story of Lia and Breaker, two nerdy best friends who are denying their obvious feelings for each other. Breaker only realizes his feelings as he tries to be a supportive Man of Honor and help Lia plan her wedding - to someone else. Throw in a horrible, cliche monster-in-law and a simpering mama's boy fiance, and antics ensue. This is a he falls first, friends to lovers, STEAMY rom-com. And overall, I enjoyed the experience reading it. Will it be memorable and stick with me for months to come - no. Did it hit all the romance beats necessary to be an enjoyable read - absolutely. And I'm kind of loving the no third act break-up trend in romance right now. Things can be not fully smooth sailing without a full on break-up.
Here are my thoughts:
Pros - I was rooting for the couple. They were nerdy, their banter was cute, and I enjoyed their interactions, especially at the beginning of the novel. The sexy times weren't cringy (more on that later) and, like I said, I liked that there was no 3rd act breakup. The side characters were some nods to past books, so we got to catch up with them. The sexual tension leading up to the actual sexy times was awesome. I enjoyed the dual POV, although I connected with Breaker more and thought he was a much more fleshed out character overall. The first few sexy times were hot. I love that Breaker wasn't afraid to compliment Lia. It was a sweet, fun story.
Cons - why does everyone still have to be a billionaire? I did like that that aspect wasn't flaunted as much in this book, but it was still there. Some of the dialogue was a bit awkward and stilted - not so much between Lia and Breaker, but between those two and other characters. I just couldn't see actually people saying those things out loud. I also felt like it went from zero to sixty in a moment. The entire last 40% of the book was basically all sexy times whereas before there were none. Breaker, it turns out, is a cinnamon roll in life but an alpha in the bedroom. It was hot at first, but then just seemed out of character. I also felt like this relationship was a bit one sided. Breaker does literally everything for Lia and to her liking. She doesn't often reciprocate that, so it didn't really feel like a partnership necessarily. They do have all of the same things in common, so maybe it didn't matter, but it still felt like Breaker was giving more than Lia.
Things to consider - This was a bit more of slapstick rom-com instead of witty rom-com which is what I generally like better, but I know others really enjoy the slapstick. It was just getting to the point of too much when Quinn dialed it back (thankfully). The sexy times involve some spanking and lots of dirty talk. I didn't understand the need for these things (especially the spanking) it just seemed a bit out of left field for either character. It was light though and didn't detract from the moment, just seemed a touch out of place.
Overall, this wasn't my favorite Meghan Quinn offering, but still an enjoyable read that I think fans of her or of steamy rom-coms will enjoy.
Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for allowing me to review this ARC copy.

#ALongTimeComing:⁣
⁣
Major thanks to @read_bloom partner for my gifted copy!⁣
⁣
Meghan Quinn is auto-buy for life. Between the Agitators, Huxley/Lottie, and Lilly/Keller, Meghan Quinn can do no wrong. Like I said when I read the other books, if there is one smuttastic, one steamy, one pearl clutching book you allot yourself a year, let it be this one. A Long Time coming is best friends to lovers, Best Friends Wedding, it’s always been you/possessive over her, slow burn, Billionaire banter extraordinaire tropes all rolled into one hilarious and page turning read. ⁣
⁣
We’re introduced to this cuties in college bonding over Scrabble. Present day, Breaker is having issues at work, and Lia, well, she’s getting married. Her future MIL is trash and controlling, and it’s not ideal. Thankfully Breaker is there for her every step of the way, including when it stops being a wedding.⁣
⁣
Listen, I’m with Lia on this one. Friends to lovers is always awkward to me because it’s like, “hey you’re joking, now we banging?” Her hesitancy saying “it’s weird” fiftyleven times, I get it. Quinn does a great job of bringing the friend/lover gap in a not too instalove way. But also, I love this girl group that’s become of our previous faves, Lottie, Kelsey, and Myla. Their talks were like a breath of fresh air and gave best friends (queue Sex & the City) vibes. ⁣
⁣
In typical Meghan Quinn fashion, the spice is hot. Out of the three in the series (which can be read as standalones) this was by far the spiciest tamale around. Breaker Cane is something else. However, there are always the sweetest little moments that make me look like this emoji: 🥺. The wedding dress scene? 🥺 Disneyland? 🥺⁣
⁣
Overall, a spicy, fun read to conclude our Billionaire Cane brothers. The banter is there, and the story is a page turner. Re-reading January 2nd, y’all better grab it!⁣
⁣
QOTD: What are you trying to finish reading before 2024 starts?

I absolutely adore Breaker Cane and Ophelia Fairweather-Fern together. The best of friends for years, having no interest in anything more. Until that is, Lia gets engaged and Breaker becomes her Man of Honor. He suddenly realises he wants more (with the help of the perfect dress), and Lea’s new fiancé makes it easy for him to make a play for her, because quite frankly, he’s not the man for her, not by a long shot. Breaker is swoon-worthy throughout, he really makes it easy to fall in love with him. As is the case with Meghan Quinn’s stories, it’s laugh out loud funny, it’s totally entertaining, a little emotional and a whole lot of scorching hot! A friends to lovers true romance. I adore the Cane brothers, they banter so together so well, and when they start texting each other it’s truly hilarious. Wonderful characters, an entertaining storyline, and, if you listen to the audio version you’ll be captivated by perfect narration (in duet) from Erin Mallon and JF Harding. Feel good romance at its best. A full five stars from me again after a re read of the written word.

4.5

Thank you NetGalley for sending me this book in exchange for an honest review!

I loved this one! Well, I love all of Meghan Quinn’s books that I’ve read. But this is a favorite from her! I binged the book, stayed up way too late trying to finish it.

Breaker is my favorite! I almost forget he’s a billionaire businessman…he’s so laid back. Complete opposite of Huxley. I love him so much. I love the banter between him and Lia a lot, very witty and entertaining.

I’m glad there wasn’t a third act breakup, I thought that’s where it was leading to but it turned around beautifully.

Highly recommend.

Breaker and Lia have been friends since college and do everything together. When Lia gets engaged to her boyfriend, Breaker helps with the wedding planning to ward off her evil mother-in-law-to-be but soon realizes that he is in love with Lia. With the help of his brothers, he tries to prove that he is right for her.

A Long Time Coming is the third book of the series of the Cane Brothers which are based off popular Romcom movies. The nice thing about this series is you don’t have to read the first two books to enjoy the third – which was the case for me. You couldn’t help but root for Breaker as he is so much better than her fiancé, Brian, and his friendship with Lia was so special. The other characters were also likeable, and I appreciated that all the women were hyping each other up instead of being catty. The book contained many illustrations throughout the story – even from some steamy moments (but don’t worry, they were tastefully done that left some thoughts to imagination).

I loved this book. It moved quickly and was a perfect friends-to-lovers steamy slow burn. I would recommend it to all the romance lovers.

Thank you NetGalley and Bloom Books for a copy of the book in exchange for an honest opinion.

All time favorite of Meaghan Quinn. I love her Kane brother trilogy and I think this one might be my all time favorite. Definitely recommend this to anyone who enjoys a friends to lovers trope.

I really, really thought JP Cane was going to be my favorite. But then Breaker entered the chat and it was game over. This book was by far my favorite on the series. Friends to lovers is slowly becoming my favorite trope, and this book did it so, so well. I loved Breaker and Lia’s friendship. It’s always amazing to see such a solid foundation for a romantic relationship, and this one felt very real. Lia is so relatable while she’s struggling with her engagement, and with her real hesitation when it comes to changing her relationship with Breaker.

But Breaker Cane is DIFFERENT. His support for Lia before he realizes his feelings was already next level, and only gets better as their relationship changed. And man oh man is he HOT! I loved, loved, loved this book. Definitely in my top 5 romances of the year.

Meghan Quinn's latest rom-com, A Long Time Coming, is the story of best friends (a man and a woman) who are planning the woman's upcoming wedding, with the male friend serving as her "man-in-waiting". What ensues are a list of foibles, some funny, some not, all leading to an ending of predictability and tedium that the reader will most likely figure out in the first chapter. The book is a light read, with likable characters, so that will carry it far with fans of Ms. Quinn and her Cane Brothers series.

This was my first Meghan Quinn book and likely won’t be my last. I enjoyed the slow burn. The illustrations in this edition were a fun addition that I imagine many fans will love.

I love this whole series. This was my fave. Thank you #netgalley for this book. I will always be here to cheer on Meghan Quinn. I love her writing style and her stories. They are perfection for me.

I look forward to reading many more books by her.

Well, I LOVED 𝘼 𝙇𝙤𝙣𝙜 𝙏𝙞𝙢𝙚 𝘾𝙤𝙢𝙞𝙣𝙜! Easily my favorite in the Cane brothers series. I’ve developed a new appreciation for the friends to lovers trope after this book. The pining, the angst, the banter and the characters knowing what the other needs because they know each other on the such a deep personal level. Absolute perfection.

“𝙄 𝙬𝙖𝙣𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙖𝙡𝙬𝙖𝙮𝙨 𝙗𝙚 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙮𝙤𝙪. 𝙉𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙄 𝙢𝙚𝙖𝙣 𝙖𝙗𝙨𝙤𝙡𝙪𝙩𝙚𝙡𝙮 𝙣𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜, 𝙬𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙗𝙚 𝙗𝙚𝙩𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙣 𝙮𝙤𝙪. 𝙔𝙤𝙪'𝙧𝙚 𝙢𝙮 𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧”

The Book:
Breaker and Lia have been the best of friends since college. A solid ten years of friendship, love, and support between these two. However, when Lia gets engaged and forced into a quick wedding things begin to change. Breaker steps in as Lia’s Man of Honor to help with wedding planning and handle the controlling soon to be mother-in-law. With a huge commitment on the horizon for his best friend, Breaker soon realizes he is absolutely in love with his best friend.

Take note:
The FMC is engaged for some of the book but she does not cheat on her fiance with the MMC. The MMC does briefly date someone in the book but he quickly breaks it off once he realizes he has feelings for the FMC. I can appreciate the fact that the author did not do the whole cheating thing. She handled that situation well.

The Tropes:
Friends to Lovers
Billionaire Romance
Forced Proximity

Oh my gosh, I totally loved this book! It's like this perfect love story between two friends that just felt so real. I swear, from the first page, I was like, "Come on, you two, make it happen!" The writing had me hooked; I couldn't put it down until I knew how it ended.

Okay, but here's the thing. Lia's character? Girl, she seemed a bit too much. Like, I get it, we all have our moments, but it didn't ruin the whole story for me. Still, gotta keep it real. Despite Lia being a bit extra, I'd totally recommend this book. It's just one of those feel-good reads you need every now and then!

Meghan Quinn can write no wrong… The BEST book in the Cane Brothers Series YET!! Breaker Cane is by far my most favorite Cane brother… Nerdy, hot, best friend?! Yes, please! Breaker and Lia’s relationship is a true “friends to lovers” romance with ALL THE SPICE!!! If you haven’t read this one, you’re truly missing out! Add to your TBR today!! Heck, add the whole series!!!

This is a book of two halves. Half fun and witty and half romance and sexy. Overall a fun romance with good characters.

do i love enemies to lovers? DUH. is this book quirky and fun at times? yes. did I get bored at times? also unfortunately yes. I really liked the first book in the series but this one seemed to miss the target for me. i didn’t particularly care for with kelsey or JP, sure at times they were tolerable but eh. i’m going to finish the series because i think breaker is going to be my favorite but if this was the couple to start the series i’d probably dnf.

Meghan Quinn can put out literally whatever book she wants and I will read it. A Not So Meet Cute holds my heart but this book was soooo good.

Breaker was just swoon worthy and Lia is amazing. I love a good best friends to lovers trope and this really really hit in such a great fun, nerdy way. I mean the book starts with a scrabble joke.

I will always continue with this series

Not sure how I missed the Cane brothers up to this point but I will be rectifying that soon.
I love a good friends to lovers, dual PoV and definitely loved the ending.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the eARC.

I have a deep love for the Cane brothers and this story did not disappoint! I read it all in one day because I was so invested in the relationship between Breaker and Lia. The Beave was so easy to hate and Breaker is so easy to love! I’m not normally a friends to lovers girlie, but I found myself rooting for these two throughout the whole book.

Also, where can I find a billionaire boyfriend who takes me to DisneyLand on a first date?!

In this third and final installment of the Cane Brothers series by Meghan Quinn, we’re finally treated to Breaker’s story. The youngest of the Cane brothers, Breaker seems to be the most well-adjusted in that he’s not a raging jerk or a slightly obnoxious goofball — he’s ridiculously smart, very nerdy, and (as with all the Cane kids), absurdly wealthy, but manages to take it all in stride and be down-to-earth. Ophelia is his equal point-for-point which we learn at the start of the novel as we’re treated to their college backstory. They’ve been friends for so long and they balance each other perfectly.

Each of the three novels in the Cane Brothers series is based (loosely) on a popular romantic comedy film with A Long Time Coming drawing some plot points from My Best Friend’s Wedding. Whose wedding is the focus of this novel? Well, Ophelia’s of course and Breaker is now just realizing that he cannot afford to lose her, especially not to the milquetoast, clout-chaser that is Brian Beaver. Yes, his last name is Beaver.

Breaker’s relationship with the lovely albeit insecure Ophelia is, by FAR, the sweetest one we’ve seen in the trilogy and the progression of their friendship the most realistic. My one criticism with this novel, as with most Meghan Quinn novels, is the dialogue. It’s *****almost***** realistic until it’s just not. And a lot of the time, it’s easy to ignore, but sometimes it’s so apparent that people just don’t talk like this that it sort of gets under your skin as a reader… or maybe just mine.

If it seems like this novel has been out for a while, that’s because it has. This publication is a reissue as this trilogy was originally only available on Kindle Unlimited. I’m ecstatic for Quinn to finally start getting some main-stream recognition in the form of traditional publishing because she deserves it, even if this wasn’t one of her best.

Newer fans will definitely enjoy this conclusion to the Cane Brothers series and seasoned veterans of Quinn’s work will continue to cheer her on regardless.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bloom Books for the opportunity to review this reissue — keep ‘em coming, Meghan Quinn!

4.25 stars out of 5!

This was such a cute book with a fast pace that immediately draws you in. I have not read the other books in the series but I think this can be read as a standalone book. I absolutely loved Breaker and Lia and I was so happy with how this book ended. This is your classic lovers to friends troupe splashed with a lot of comedy. The part where The Beave is compared to Yzma had me laughing out loud. I am going to go back and read the first to books in this series since this one was so good.

In A Long Time Coming, Lia and Breaker have been best friends for a while. They met at a secret scrabble group in college and have been inseparable ever since. They live next door to each other currently and see each other most days. Lia ended up getting engaged to Brian and needs to plan a wedding in 5 weeks. Brian's mother, The Beave, has taken the reins on wedding planning so Lia has Breaker helping her try to plan the wedding she wants. Throughout all this, Breaker realizes he is in love with Lia and has to figure out what to do and how to win her over.

Overall, this was an excellent read and I am excited to read more from Meghan in the future. Thank you Netgalley and SOURCEBOOKS Bloom Books for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.