I liked the concept and plot of this book a lot more than I liked the writing style. I was hoping this would read like a cat sebastian book (I think she has truly nailed the m x m romance genre). I think first person POV would have made this book more enjoyable for my personally, but other than that, it was a great read.

I don’t often find myself reading a best friends to lovers story, but I dove head first in to Boystown heartbreakers and absolutely loved it. Andrea is the golden retriever boy we all hope for In life, and matches Bastian’s cynical nature perfectly. The third act break up felt a bit forced I will admit. Miscommunications as a plot point has never been my favorite, but as a whole this a cutest fun read

Boystown Heartbreakers was such a fun friends to lovers romance. I didn't love the miscommunication trope, it's never my favorite, but didn't detract too much for me.

This was a cute book book set in Boystown, Chicago. It was cute reading about this couple in a neighborhood I am actually familiar with.

I'm rounding this up from 3.5. I enjoyed the overall story but there were a few things that didn't work well in the story for me.

I received an ARC and this is my unbiased opinion

Boystown Heartbreakers by K.C. Carmichael

This is a somewhat disappointing (because, let’s be honest here) best friends to lovers story. I liked the writing, and I really loved Andres, who is such a sweetheart. I adored that he just came right out and said to Bastian, “Hey, we should date.” (I wouldn’t consider this a spoiler. It happens in the first 10% of the book.) And, that’s where the list of things I enjoy about this book ends, sadly enough. Bastian is snarky, but not in the way I find funny or amusing, just in a mildly irritating way. His friends are always on his back about dating Andres, which is something I can put up with once or twice, but when it’s almost their only point of conversation, it irritates me. And I didn’t care much for the ending, really at all. The book wants you to believe that Bastian has gone through this big character growth, but we don’t really see any growth, we just see a sudden change and it didn’t really feel very realistic. (I’m trying to talk about things without spoiling them, and this specific part is hard to do in general terms.). Also, the ending really pushed the limit of my suspension of disbelief. I’m not an expert in this regard, but I just don’t understand how the solution they come up with would work. So overall, a big miss for me.

Thanks to NetGalley and Rising Action Publishing for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Based on the blurb, I had high hopes for this story. Sadly, it ended up being something of a grueling read. I ran out of patience with Bastian pretty quickly, and I didn't understand why Andres remained interested in him. I liked that Bastian finally (finally!) figured some stuff out, but it felt very tell-y to me and came after I'd long since wanted the whole thing to be over.

On the plus side, the salon scenes were fun and engaging. I wish I had more positive things to say than that.

My thanks to the publisher/NetGalley for an advance copy of this book.

"He has to admit that while Boystown is where he came into his own, Andres is where he feels the most at home and at ease with himself."

This book was an absolute delight from start to finish! I literally devoured it in one sitting. Normally, I'm more of an enemies-to-lovers kinda gal, but watching Bastian and Andres fumble their way from best friends to lovers had me giggling and kicking my feet, then throwing my hands up in frustration, then giggling happily all over again. K.C. Carmichael's writing is vibrant and joyful, even when the plot goes through the inevitable third act crisis; there is a buoyancy there that still allows you to feel hopeful and propels you forward to continue the journey with Bastian and Andres to their inevitable HEA. All of the characters are so well drawn out (with a few minor exceptions), and add just the right amount of layers to round out the story without taking away from Bastian and Andres.

And my goodness, how much did I love these two crazy lovebirds. Bastian is a smart, flirty, and very in-demand hair stylist at one of the most high-end salons in Chicago. His rapid-fire comebacks and witty flirtations had me cracking up, and they certainly kept his friends and clients always entertained. But they also served to mask his insecurities at never quite being enough to keep up with his best friend Andres, a wildly successful, wealthy, and popular restauranteur. Bastian has always felt like he could never compete with Andres and his private school friends, or his wealthy associates, or beautiful dates. And those insecurities are what compels him to disregard Andres as a potential love interest in the first place. Why ruin his perfect friendship, because Andres will eventually realize that Bastian isn't good enough." And it's these constant intrusive thoughts that lead to Bastian always self-sabotaging his life.

What I really appreciate is that K.C. Carmichael has written a character in Bastien whom we can all relate to, because we all have similar intrusive thoughts about ourselves, letting our insecurities take over and get the better of us. Especially in the age of social media, where we are constantly bombarded with opportunities to compare ourselves to other people's supposed perfection and successes, we can self-sabotage and feel inadequate in comparison to those we see in front of us, rather than looking inwardly to see the value in ourselves. And that's what she has Bastian do. He doesn't rely on Andres to be his knight in shining armor and have their relationship "save him" from himself, but instead, uses their friendship and love for another to remind himself of his own self worth. It's a lesson that we all need to re-learn every once in a while.

What a delightful, warm blanket of a love story. I hope everyone has the chance to learn the lessons from Boystown.

This was a very typical friends to lovers romcom. There was tiptoeing around each other, sweet and comfortable intimacy from knowing someone for a lifetime, and of course, some easily avoidable conflict from shoehorned in miscommunication. Obviously, I like some parts of that more than others. Still, the romance was sweet and the whole cast of characters was fun, so this was overall an enjoyable read.

The blurb tells you most of the plot, and this being a romance also tells you that there is going to be at least a HFN.

Between first meeting Bastian and Andres and their eventual happy ending, there is a whole lot of heartache and stupidity and self-sabotage, primarily from Bastian. Starting with the list of failed relationships on the wall of his closet, adding in his inability to see his own worth for reasons unclear, and culminating in his utter failure to put any trust in what Andres tells him, despite the man having been his best friend since they were children, Bastian exasperated me. His self-sabotage nearly cost him the man he loves, and I was incensed that he just assumed something without asking a single question.

Thankfully, the author wove an engaging tale that kept me interested in how the story would unfold, even if Bastian's behavior and inner thoughts annoyed me. The writing flows easily, and the characters feel realistic enough, including the supporting cast. There were occasions when I would have liked a little bit more backstory, but it was easy enough to discern who was who. This story is written in the third person, present tense, which took a bit to get used to, and Bastian is certainly an unreliable narrator, especially considering that he doesn't quite believe what Andres tells him.

Sure, Andres is no saint in this either, even if he has the patience of one. I guess he was too scared to really tell Bastian how he felt, but I expected him to know his best friend well enough to know that sometimes forthright truth is needed.

The differences between Bastian's mother and Andres' parents was also quite interesting to see, and served as a reminder that with wealth doesn't always come happiness.

Overall, this was a pleasant read, and I enjoyed the time spent in their world.

Cute, fun and easy to read! I enjoyed this and it fit the rom-com formula quite well, but didn't really bring anything new or exciting to the genre. Still, it was a perfectly lovely read!

3.5⭐️
I enjoyed this childhood best friends to lovers romance between Bastian and Andres. One of my favorite aspects of this book was how wonderfully descriptive the sense of place is, the Boystown neighborhood is so vibrant. I really loved how the author brought the Chicago setting to life. The dialogue in particular is also very good, full of humor and personality. The characters are likable and I thought their friendship was well established, it is clear they really know and love each other, which raises the stakes for a potential relationship. I really appreciated how their evolution from friends to more happens. It’s not an accident or an in the moment thing, rather Andres broaches the subject with purpose. Sick of all Bastian’s failed relationships, he take a chance to get what he wants- Bastian. It’s a pretty original take for friends to lovers romance - I think. I wasn’t a fan of the third act breakup, but the story was entertaining with a lovely ending for Bastian and Andres.

I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book from NetGalley.

This was such a fun and sweet friends to lovers! I adored the main characters so much and their story felt authentic and real. This was everything I love about this trope and was well done.

"boystown heartbreakers" is a cute friends-to-lovers story about bastian and his best friend andres. after the latest in a long string of bad breakups, bastian turns to andres for support and instead, andres suggest that he get over the breakup by dating him. the story was really cute and i actually really loved andres and all the supporting characters, but bastian got on my nerves pretty badly toward the end. that, coupled with a not inconsiderable amount of grammatical errors, made the book a little hard to push through. it was a fun story and i enjoyed parts of it, but i won't be revisiting it anytime soon either.

this book at its core had a nice romance. there's a great dynamic between the two leads and it did a great job of showcasing how two people in different periods of life can still find each other.

i wish there was a bit more dramatic conflict but it's overall very enjoyable!!

This was a rom com that hit all the right notes for me.

Bastian is a hairdresser who has the rare luxury of living in an apartment in Boystown, Chicago that has a walk in closet where previous occupants of the apartment have kept a running list of the Boystown Heartbreakers (ie men to be avoided).

Bastian has been best friends with Andres since they were 5 and after Bastian’s latest breakup (who is added to The List in the closet), Andres convinces Bastian to give a relationship between them a try. It is blindingly obvious to everyone around them that they both care deeply about each other, but can they make it work? Or will Bastian find a way to self-sabotage? (it’s a fluffy, fairly low angst rom com, so yes to both, obviously but the journey to get there was fun)

I was a bit slow getting into this one, but once I got going it was enjoyable. I found Bastian’s self-doubt easy to identify with, but also could see how it could get a bit wearing for other readers. His bounce back process, for me, was believable. The single viewpoint made it very easy to hear Bastian’s perspective, but I wouldn’t have minded seeing a slightly more complex Andres. It wasn’t anything groundbreaking, but it was exactly what I was in the mood for and, classic tropes are a classic for a reason.

i expected so much more from this but it just didn’t give what it was supposed to give you know? bastian and andres were fun but i didn’t feel liek i connected with them at all i wouldn’t read this again it felt rushed
thank you netgalley for allowing me to read this in exchange for an honest review.

Never before have i found myself crying in a bath wanting to send messages of rage to an author, until this book.

KC managed to break my heart completely with this book.

Bastian is such a sweetheart who has faced so much heartbreak and disappointment in relationships that he cannot accept a good thing when its handed to him on a plate. He is such a relatable character and I am sure everyone will notice a bit too much of them self in him.

Andres is the best friend we all need. Someone who will support every dream and pick us up after every heartbreak. Having suffered such a huge loss at a young age he has built walls that cannot be broken and created a man who depends on no one.

The friendship between B & A is one that spans from childhood and is filled with love. But what if something could change that forever?

Let me just start by saying that this was a really cute read. The characters were funny and adorable.
I don't mind the use of tropes, I loved them, I just think that a best friend to lovers is not well followed by a miscommunication after. This miscommunication and jealousy didn't make sense with the fact that they're best friends since five years old, they know each other, they should know how to talk before acting irrational.

Friends to lovers is my jammy jam!

Boystown Heartbreakers is a lovely story about two people who love one another but have never looked at eachother in that way. . . Until they do. \

Watching Bastian and Ryan figure their lives out was a wonderful experience!