Cole and Laila Are Just Friends: A Love Story by Bethany Turner is one of my favorite reads this year. I think I’ve read every book this author has written. I’ve loved most of them and liked a couple. This book is my favorite book she’s written by far, which is amazing because I just loved Sarah Hollenbeck. Laila and Cole’s love story has everything that makes a great rom com and more. The dialogue in the scenes are so good. I listened to some of the audiobook and have to say the narrators really bring the story to life. I cannot recommend this book enough. I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher with no obligations. These opinions are entirely my own.

Rating: 3

Spice: 0

Primary Genre: Romance

Trigger Warnings: Mention of terminal illness, abandonment, alchohol/prescription drug use, death of a family member/parent

Favorite Quote: Who knew romantic comedy was such a brutal sport?

Plot 3/5:
Slow burn, friends to lovers, closed door romance. And when I say slow burn, we’re talking the slowest. This story is about a girl and a guy who live in a small town in Colorado, have known each other since they were little kids, and are extremely close best friends. Unnaturally close, probably. The guy decides he's going to move across the country and the girl can't really go with but of course she doesn't want her bestie to move. They spend a week together in New York City pondering their future.

The Good:
* If you like the witty banter and pop culture references of The Gilmore Girls, you’re sure to love large portions of this book

* If you love the Luke and Lorelai characters of Gilmore Girls and their will they/won’t they, slow burn friends to lovers romance, you’ll like a large portion of this book

* I do enjoy that the characters are in their late 30’s, a lot of the pop culture references were relatable for me.

* Bethany has the ability to craft a romance without spice and still make it interesting

The Meh: 
* I have a hard time finding the premise of this book to be believable. For Cole and Laila to be as close as described in the book, to their point that they have sleepovers as adults, it seems unnatural that Cole wouldn’t have ever had at least a fleeting romantic or even conscious sexual thought about Laila much sooner than the age of 39. I mean, have you met pretty much any man? On the flip side of the coin, the plot alludes to Laila being interested in Cole and just not saying anything. I don’t know anyone who could have feelings for someone for 25 years and say absolutely nothing.

* While I enjoyed the witty banter, this almost felt like I was reading a sitcom script. I think I might have enjoyed this more if I were watching it as a movie rather than reading it.

* While I can appreciate a good slow burn, the unrealistic cluelessness of these two left me feeling frustrated at times.

* This could be taken as an homage to the Gilmore Girls or just a remake of the Luke and Lorelai storyline of the Gilmore Girls because it is very similar with the pop culture references, the banter between Cole and Laila, etc.

Bottom Line: 
This is a sweet closed door romance. The plot was well crafted and if you’re craving a trip to NYC this might help quell that craving for you. The main characters are well written, there’s also an extensive list of side characters that are really well written. A lot of the characters are endearingly quirky. You’ll probably like this if you enjoyed Friends and/or The Gilmore Girls.

I always enjoy a friends to lovers romance and was so excited to receive an ARC of Cole and Laila Are Just Friends. Cole recently moved to New York City from his small town in Colorado, where his best friend Laila still lives. Laila decides to visit her friend for a week and they fall in love. It was a very cute and sweet romantic comedy. I know in romance, it is necessary to suspend some amount of disbelief, but it was a little wild that the two main characters had known each other their entire lives, had been so close, and it took until their late 30s to figure out they were meant for each other. I think a second chance romance would have made more sense for these two. However, the novel had its high points as I loved the first fake date scene and it had me audibly laugh out loud. A sweet read for anyone in search of a romantic comedy. 3.5/5 stars from me.

"And while people stood in his space, attempting to come up with nice things to say, he kept his eye on the people who mattered and noticed that no matter how engaged in conversation they were or how focused elsewhere they seemed, they always had an eye on him. And then there was Laila. His lifelong best friend was an eternal optimist and the sunniest person he’d ever met, but she was struggling today."

Cole and Laila have been best friends forever. Other friends have pushed them toward more, but so far they have resisted. But when life falls apart for Cole, Laila tries to help him find a new start. Is there hope for a new beginning around the corner?

This book is perfect for anyone who loves best friends to more stories as well as the pop culture part of New York City. At times, I personally wished that there were would have been more about experiencing New York itself instead of the famous people of New York. I am not a fan girl, so that part did not mean as much to me.

The book is connected to "Brynn and Sebastian Hate Each Other," and I would recommend reading that book first. Cole and Laila are both such likable characters. I did enjoy this book and am glad I could read it through NetGalley. All opinions are my own. 4.5 stars

I received a complimentary copy from the publisher and all opinions expressed are mine.

This is heartwarming story about friendship and the beauty of having a good person Iin your life. It tells the story of Cole and Laila two good friends who have been seen each through worst storms in life. What happens in New York stays in New York right ? What happens when two friends discover new feelings? Well written ,great characters and a great plot.

Cute story and great narration. Reading the story about Brynn and Sebastian, the reader has some backstory, but it’s not necessary for this one. Laila and Cole have a great friendship and an unexpected situation happens where they are tested to look to see if there is more to it.

Thank you to Thomas Nelson and NetGalley for the ARC of this novel. I thought this was very cute for a beach time/vacation read. I have seen criticism of how long it took for these friends to realize they want to be romantically involved but these books are not meant to be reality. If you want to turn your brain off for a few hours and just be immersed in pop culture and New York sights, this can be the book for you. 3.25 stars.

Thank you NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to review this title. Felt very predictable, Hallmark holiday movie like. Three stars.

Cutesy friends to lovers rom-com.

This was a quick and easy read for me in between my current fantasy series. I enjoyed the banter between the friend group and the storyline.

This book surprised me so much. It is so deeply romantic and it showcases the kind of love that endures a lifetime.

Cole and Laila are two single childhood best friends. Though they’ve been doing life together in their small Colorado town almost every single day for close to forty years, they’ve only ever been just friends. It’s safe to say their friendship is special to them both. But what happens when there’s an impending move that separates them by thousands of miles?

Chock full of American pop culture, this book is an ode to Nora Ephron romantic comedies. It’s a slow burn that embeds itself deeply in your heart. Cole and Laila’s love story has been happening almost their whole lives and each time they relay moments of the past, it’s like we’re falling in love with them all over again.

This is a good book. The two main characters are Laila and Cole. They have known each other all their lives. They are best friends. Cole’s grandfather dies and doesn’t leave the restaurant that Cole and Laila work at to Cole. He sold it. Cole is not sure what to do. His friends that live in New York offer Laila and Cole a trip to New York. They go and have a great time. They realize that they have feelings for each other. They fall in love.

I was a bit skeptical that Bethany Turner could keep me engaged through 350 pages (11 hours) of the ‘best friends to lovers’ trope in Cole and Laila Are Just Friends. But of course she had me cheering for these characters who I first met in Ms. Turner’s 2023 novel Brynn and Sebastian Hate Each Other. It’s not required to read Brynn and Seb first, but I recommend it so you’re familiar with everyone and their backstories.

This story plucks best friends Cole and Laila from their small town in the Colorado mountains and drops them into the fast pace of New York City. The author’s love for NYC and pop culture was evident in every chapter and enriched the novel. There was plenty of tension to keep me interested, even as I anticipated the happily-ever-after ending to this clean contemporary romance.

I enjoyed the audiobook narrated by Talon David (voicing Laila) and Andrew Eiden (voicing Cole). Thank you to Thomas Nelson and HarperCollins Christian Publishing for the review copies of this novel.

I had never read anything by this author before and this book was a pleasant surprise! Friends to lovers is my favorite trope and Cole and Laila were a great example of why this kind of pairing works, the deep connection they had and the support they showed for each other was clear. I would definitely like to read more books by this author!

4.5
Cole and Laila have been friends for their entire life. They've never really not had each other nearby with the brief exception of when Cole went to Culinary school for a few years in Denver, a few hours away from their home. When Cole's adopted step-grandfather dies and didn't leave the family restaurant to Cole, he realizes that he needs to get out of town and establish himself elsewhere. If the man he thought had always loved him, could betray him so easily, he can't spend time being surrounded by all of those missed chances. Laila offers to spend a week with Cole in NYC while he sees what his potential new home could be like. They spend time with their newlywed friends Brynn and Sebastian who are rich and famous. While Cole and Laila are faced with the first time they may not be within a few hours of each other, they start to wonder if maybe they missed out on something big between them.

Friends to lovers can be super satisfying and I felt like that was the case here. Although I find it a little hard to believe that Cole really had no memorable moments of thinking of his best friend in a "more than friends" way, the realization he has feels a bit believable especially for a guy that probably hadn't put much thought into it after spending his younger years reminding himself not to be weird about anything. Laila was a bit of an interesting character. She seems content with her small and calm life, free to do what makes her happy as well as spend as much time as she can with Cole whenever possible. Laila is much more in tune with her true feelings but would never do anything to change her relationship with Cole.

I really enjoyed the way this story was told. The POV changes allowed the reader to follow both Cole and Laila in their respective realizations of feelings as well as explain some of the various awkwardness they faced when having some of these conversations with each other. I also really enjoyed the two narrators for this. They both did a great job and dual narrators for dual POV is the best kind of production!

I really liked everything about the premise of this. Being best friends their entire lives? Laila supporting Cole who wants to move across the country to New York? Their deal? it was all really good and I was really looking forward to it. Unfortunately though, I didn't like it like I'd hoped. I did enjoy some of it, Cole and Laila's friendship was great and I liked the roles they played in each other's lives and I also liked how people around them were nice and supportive of them. I think my main problem with this book was the writing. It just wasn't for me, it felt like rants in between dialogue, changing between first and third person between the POVs was weird and the references that were so annoying because it was so overdone. I also did find it odd that it took them THAT LONG to recognize their feelings for each other with no serious relationships mentioned to keep that from happening, it was ridiculous really but I didn't give that much thought. Overall, I think it can work for other people but not for me unfortunately.
Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the chance to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Cole and Laila Are Just Friends Bethany Turner is a sweet rom-com. Laila Olivet and Cole Kimball have been best friends since forever. They work together, know each other’s quirks and issues, and are rarely separated. Cole’s world is shattered after his grandfather’s death, and they take a trip to New York City to visit with old friends and make decisions. Will they ever be more than just friends?

I have been wondering about Cole and Laila since I first met them in Brynn and Sebastian Hate Each Other. I was very engaged in their friends to more story and enjoyed the dual POV, great dialogue, and chemistry between Laila and Cole. Their first true date was adorable and will become a classic.

The pop culture references, time in New York City, and sweet added to my enjoyment.
I highly recommend Cold and Laila are Just Friends and hope you add it to your TBR.

I was give a copy by the publisher and not required to write a positive review.

Cute friends to lovers storyline
I loved the theme of how sometimes it takes getting out of your comfort zone to see what you've been blind to for so long. It was neat to see a different age group - Cole and Laila are longtime best friends, approaching their 40s. This book was a love letter to New York in media/pop culture and had so many fun references. I loved getting to see Brynn and Sebastian and some of the other Adelaide Springs residents.

This was a sweet closed-door romance, I'd rate PG for kissing and mentions of death.

This contemporary romance, unsurprisingly, utilizes the friends-to-lovers trope, one which I enjoy. It's filled with some snappy dialogue, solid writing, and fun settings from mountainous Colorado to New York City. Cole and Laila's (eventual) romance is tender, sweet, and honest.

What kept Cole and Laila Are Just Friends from being a favorite was my inability to completely suspend disbelief. They'd been friends--intimate, touchy-feely, inseparable friends--for nearly four decades and hadn't considered the possibility of romance? Really? When they were snuggled together and easily declaring their love they never thought maybe that was more than a mere man-woman friendship?

Their cluelessness may have been easier to believe if they were much younger, and based on their behavior, they could easily have been twentysomethings. However, many of the PLETHORA of pop culture references throughout the book (some of which I didn't grasp) would fall flat for characters that young.

So, enjoyable but not entirely believable. I appreciated that it was a clean romance.

This is a sequel of sorts of the authoress´ previous novel "Brynn and Sebastian Hate Each Other", but you can read this book as a standalone when accepting the fact that Cole and Laila are friends like forever :)
Because this is a sweet story of how these two lifelong friends realize that they are, in reality, in love with each other. All this realizations feel like a movie, with all the magical New York-related movies/TV series sightseeings and mentions serving as a silvery screen background.
The story is like a cup of hot chocolate with a dollop of cream in a cold day, warming you up with its innocence (the characters are nearing 40! Yet you believe them their gentle romance) and loveliness.
There are also colder realities present, with Cole being adopted and now facing the very cold last will of his grandfather - does this mean that the old guy had never loved him, never accepted him as a family member?
But the overall tone is sweet. Expect a cute, uncomplicated read and prepare accordingly!:)

When Cole's life is upended he decides to move away from Adelaide Springs, and start over in the big city, but can he walk away from his best friend?

A fun friends to lovers rom-com. Fluffy and full of whimsy, Cole and Laila are adorable together, and I loved their playful rapport. Though it did seem rather unrealistic that at 38 and 39, and best friends their whole lives in a small town that they hadn't figured out that there might be more to their friendship a lot sooner! So in that regard it seemed longer than it needed to be and predictable, but in a comfortable favorite t-shirt kind of way.

Clean in a hallmark kind of way, but there were definitely moments that were more on the suggestive side. It was fun seeing Brynn and Sebastian after their wedding, as well the New York side of them. In the end it was a fun read, cute plot, and I liked the effort behind having older protagonists.

Also, I would like to note that while clean, it is marketed as a Christian fiction, and there isn't really any mention of Christian faith at all.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.