I was very intrigued by the blurb but unfortunately this story wasn’t for me. It was a quick read but it took me a while to get into the story
Thank you Netgalley and Alcove Press for this arc

Interesting take on the Beauty and the Beast retelling storyline. In general I liked the diverse cast of characters and found them believable. Instead of objects coming to life there was an AI system built into the estate which was super cool. My only “complaint” was that there was more sexual content than I typically prefer. But, I am not usually a fan of that kinda thing and this was tame compared to what it could have been. I give it 4 / 5 stars.

I thought this was a light and easy read. However, I didn't entirely connect with the characters and felt the pacing was a bit off. Still made for a solid read on a flight though.

Based on the summary I was very interested and excited to read this book, but I had to DNF it after 30%. I really tried giving it a chance, but I'm just not a fan of the writing style. The plot was very intriguing and the characters seemed interesting enough, but this book has almost put me in a reading slump and I'm not interested in forcing myself to read it.
However I'm sure that this book would be amazing, if you like the authors writing style.

Barely Even Friends by Mae Bennett Bellamy is a restoration expert hired to renovate the Killington estate (think Succession weekend mansion in disrepair). The estate is occupied with grandson and heir, Oliver, who was known as “Beast” during his football career, now a recluse as he blames himself for his parents fatal car accident. The mansion come with 3 staff members and a mysterious “enchantment” of AI in this modern updated retelling of Beauty and the Beast (in a very feminist way).



Pros:

Plus Size rep! Bellamy is curvy and the book is accurately body positive (meaning doubts sometimes, acceptance most times).

Dealing with body issues for men as well- as Oliver is heavier than he was when playing football and is embarrassed of his leg scarring from the car accident

Accurate portrayal of depression/PTSD

Quirk of Oliver being terrible at everything he tried to do to help

Cuteness of the Beauty and the Beast connections throughout the book

Bellamy’s best friends





Cons:

Didn’t get the suspenders thing…. And how could one wear “only suspenders” while being intimate? What would they attach to?

The house staff was one dimensional- kept forgetting the butler and didn’t understand if he were related to the cook and their kid



The romance in this book was very cute and I was pulling for Bellamy and Oliver to be able to communicate more effectively (though it made a ton of sense why they were both guarded and putting walls up). Tropes of grumpy/sunshine, enemies-to-lovers and only-one-bed were done in a unique way. The book had the right amount of spice. I enjoyed this debut book by Bennett and will happily read her next one. Thanks to Net Galley and Alcove Press for this eARC in exchange for my honest review. 3.75 stars

Big thanks to Alcove Press for providing this eArc via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own and freely given.

“Barely Even Friends” offers a modern twist on the classic Beauty and the Beast story, dropping us into the middle of the crumbling, yet mysterious Killington Estate. Bellamy Price, eager to prove herself in the tough world of estate restoration, clashes with Oliver Killington, the broody and secretive heir who'd rather have the mansion to himself. He's still dealing with the aftermath of a car accident that changed his life, and he’s not too keen on sharing his space with anyone, let alone a determined contractor.

I really wanted to enjoy this book—the setup sounded super intriguing! But honestly, it didn’t quite hit the mark for me. The shift from enemies to lovebirds felt super rushed, almost like the author just wanted to get to the romance without building up the tension properly. Bellamy’s constant self-deprecation, especially about wearing suspenders (seriously - this was mentioned every other page) and being ‘fat,’ got old fast. It felt overdone and took away from her being the badass contractor she’s meant to be.

The dialogue felt oddly formal at times, which didn’t mesh well with the more laid-back, intimate scenes. It was like the characters couldn’t decide how they wanted to talk to each other. The side characters were pretty much cardboard cutouts, there for convenience rather than adding any real flavor to the story. And the AI thing? That felt out of left field in a mansion that’s falling apart at the seams (like wouldn't the contractors see this wires everywhere?!).

In all, while “Barely Even Friends” set up a promising story of love and personal growth amid the dust and cobwebs of an old mansion, it didn’t fully deliver on its fairy tale promise.

Overall rating: 2.5 stars, 1.5 chili peppers

I really wanted to like this book based off of the blurb because I love Beauty and the Beast retellings but it was unfortunately not for me. I could not connect at all with the main characters and I really struggled to finish this book. I was also not a big fan of the writing style one bit. I loved the concept and this book could be right for someone but it just was not right for me.

Thank you so much to Alcove Press and NetGalley for the gifted copy.

I generally read many of these books, and a retelling of Beauty and the Beast is my absolutely favorites. I feel like this one fell short.
I loved the whole aspect of her having to take over the job from her dad, and a failing business. Grumpy X Sunshine, Close Proximity, Curvy MFC, who is sassy and quick witted. But the whining and broodiness of the Main male character left a sour taste in my mouth, he was always bringing up he was cursed without directly saying it. They did not really banter, or get a good chemistry between them I felt, it was very immature in their relationship.

I found the steamy scenes to be pretty decent and enjoyable for the most part, if you wanting a good plot or dialog between the characters this is just not it. Read for the spice that is all I can say.

this was so fun and cute and i loved both characters so bad. i definitely plan to read more
books from this author soon

Beauty and the beast retelling sign me the f up. This did not disappoint! Bellamy gets the job of a lifetime for her and her father's restoration business but when she has to go on-site without her dad she is met with a reclusive grumpy resident. Turns out she was hired but said grump's father and this man is a mysterious supposed billionaire who hasn't been seen by the public in years. And he wants her gone.

Through some conversations and threats from the patriarch grandfather they come to a truce. Bellamy is allowed to do the job with her crew. And of course they discover (and act on) a mutual attraction to each other all with twists and turns of past emotional damage, some done by family, learning to trust, and the shaky feeling of not knowing if they are building towards something or if the deadline for the reno is also the deadline for whatever they have together.

There are so many cute easter eggs from Beauty and the Beast. I love the quirky side characters and their loyalty to the house and to Oliver. There's certain things like being banished from the west wing, trapped there in a storm, even down to drinking rosé. But my FAVORITE flip of the expected trope/callback I just have to mention is when Oliver aka Beast is helping Bellamy fix up some wallpaper instead of being a brute he is actually "too gentle" which I felt like encompasses who Oliver truly was. The way he supported Bellamy and at times really took care of her was so swoony. When they eventually open up to each other I was just melting.

There is definitely plenty open door spice in this, loved. Thank you to Alcove Press for this eARC!

I DNF'd this one just because it was very slice of life/HGTV with a hint of romance and it's obviously a beauty and the beast retelling and those fairytales aren't much for me. I tried to give this one a good shot but I just got bored. I recommend this if you love retellings with grumpy/sunshine and forced proximity. I'm only giving this a 2 for me.

Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for a review.

I love a retelling of Beauty and the Beast and this one is decently different enough for it to feel fresh and fun! HGTV meets fairty tales! What could go wrong?

Bellamy Price has just been offered the job of a lifetime: lead contractor on the restoration of the mysterious and sprawling Killington Estate. If she meets the owner’s ridiculous timeline, she’ll finally make a name for herself in this male-dominated industry. But when she rolls up her sleeves, slips on her suspenders, and shows up at the crumbling mansion, Bellamy finds the estate very much occupied.
After a traumatic car accident that left his parents dead and himself injured, Oliver Killington, heir to the Killington empire, took up residence as the grumpy caretaker of his grandfather’s mansion. None too pleased by the presence of the hammer-wielding woman who’s moved into his house, Oliver tries to block her at every turn.
But when Bellamy discovers Oliver’s facing his own ultimatum from his grandfather, the two form a cautious truce, which leads to flying sparks that are definitely not from faulty wiring. As Bellamy restores the gleam to the Killington Estate, she’ll have to decide if the walls she’s built around herself are worth knocking down to make space for someone else.

4⭐️ Thank you to Alcove Press and Negalley for the ARC!

This was a really cute retelling of beauty and the beast! I am always a sucker a grumpy and brooding mmc! Def want to read more by this author in the future! The spice was great and all the side characters were awesome too!

This was such a cute book, a Beauty and The Beast retelling with a spicy 🌶️ twist. This was my favorite movie as a kid, so I was excited to read this!

Bellamy is a restoration contractor, she lands a job working at The Killington Estate. She knows this is a job that could launch her career, proving everyone wrong. There’s just one person making it a little difficult…

Oliver is as grumpy as they come, his parents passed away in a car accident years ago and he has since become a recluse. When Bellamy shows up, he wants nothing to do with the restoration project. As time goes on, Bellamy breaks down Oliver’s walls and he starts to open up to her. They start to form a friendship, maybe even more than a friendship. Oliver’s nickname for Bellamy is “petal”, it’s the cutest 🥹

This was a slow burn, but the banter was 🤌🏻 I also loved all the Taylor Swift references 🫶🏻 I loved that Bellamy was a plus size FMC, I LOVE books with this! She was so quirky with her suspenders, which Oliver ends up loving 😉 such a fun read with great character growth!

"I lived in too much silence. I needed you filling up every available space with your words, your laughter."

Thank you NetGalley and Alcove Press for the ARC

I would have loved the chance to review this but apparently the publisher archives books 2 months before pub date which is incredibly strange. I'm absolutely still going to read the book because it sounds like something I will absolutely love, but since NG won't let me download it anymore, I guess I will not be able to read and review it prior to pub date. I'm typically 1-2 months ahead of schedule with my NGs so this is a real disappointment.

Unfortunately, this one wasn't for me. It's creative and has endearing side characters. But the dialogue was too stilted and the romance didn't feel natural. It felt like it was trying too hard to fit into the beauty and the beast retelling. The pacing could've used more fine-tuning, and it would've benefited from adding more build-up to the romance.

3.75/5 stars ⭐️

If you’re a fan of corny love stories, and Hallmark romance movies then this will be right up your ally. It was the perfect mix of predictability and corniness that I personally needed in the moment.

It’s an effortless read, when you just need something to pass the time. For me this is a “train ride” book, something that you can pick up, and put down, and not feel like you’ve lost the plot.

I love a “grumpy/sunshine” trope, and I thought the “beauty and the beast” tie ins were silly, but they made me chuckle. Some of the scenarios that threw the main characters together were so outlandish, but if you’re able to suspend reality for a moment, and let the author take you on a ride, you’ll be ok!

I think my biggest issue was that sometimes I felt like the inclusivity seemed a little forced, I’m all for a plus sized woman at the centre of a romance novel, but it did feel a little half baked at times. Because I personally was not looking for something deep (a little escapism anyone?!), I wasn’t too upset by the topical approach to a curvy woman as the romantic lead. For other plus sized women however, this may be a sore spot.

Overall if you’re a fan of cheesy contemporary romance novels, love a grumpy MMC, and an independent woman who he ends up head over heels for, then you will love this!

This was such a cute frenemies rom com, retelling of beauty and the beast with a reclusive billionaire. Loved the grumpy sunshine vibes and how ti develops. Super fun read

DNF. I was looking forward to reading this when I learned it was a retelling of beauty and the beast. Sadly, the dialogue felt repetitive and the plot fell flat. It didn’t help that the main characters have no chemistry. If this wasn’t a retelling it would have been more enjoyable.

Unfortunately this book didn’t work for me. I couldn’t get invested in the characters or plot so I’m going to have to DNF the book.