Sunrise Cove is always a fantastic place to visit, and Better Than Friends is no exception. I love the quirky relationships and characters, the family dynamics, and the small town vibe.

Better Than Friends is the latest stand alone in Jill Shalvis' Sunrise Cove series. Sunrise Cove is a fictional town on Lake Tahoe, so mountains, lakes, remote forests, hiking & small town charm are ever present in this series. Olive Porter goes back home to help her friend, Katie Turner-Brooks with her son, Joey, while she sits at the hospital bedside of her husband, Joe Brooks. Joe is in a coma following an accident caused by a shooting during an investigation into a series of car burglaries for the NPS. Olive is eager to help her best friend, but not so eager to see Katie's brother, Noah, who is Joe's partner with the National Park Service, and also recovering from the accident. Olive & Noah have a history, a little romantic, a lot embarrassing, since Olive accidentally ran Noah's foot over with an ATV in a rainstorm, ending his college baseball dreams. Olive left town right after that, and tried to keep any interaction with Noah, who she's had a crush on forever, short and sweet. The situation with Katie & Joe throws them together a lot during her visit, and then, when her parents are missing, she has to rely on Noah to help her track them down. Does Noah return her feelings at all? Jill Shalvis is one of my favorite authors because of her witty dialogue and romantic love stories. Thank you to NetGalley and Avonbooks for an uncorrected advance e-proof to review.

Olive and Noah have trust issues, troubled family baggage, guilt and are generally messed up emotional wrecks. My takeaway on the overall theme was that family expectations are hard to live up to, no matter what age you are. Olive has no stability with her adventurous hippy style parents constantly chasing their next dream. Noah’s father had a vision of his son’s future not shared by Noah. Olive does pursue her dreams by running to London, she’s achieved many of her goals. She’s still lonely, worried about not hearing from her parents when she returns home to help her best friend. Olive and Noah contend with an abundance of family drama. Their relationship is barely friends, wannabe lovers. The past needs to be resolved, family secrets need to be aired and trust has to be rebuilt. I’ve read all in this series and the author always entertains me and gives me insight into complicated relationships. There’s a romance at the heart of the plot, but it’s really about families, everyday problems and finding our place.
Thanks to HarperCollins Publishers (via NetGalley) for providing an Advance Reader Copy of “Better Than Friends” Sunrise Cove #7, by Jill Shalvis, publication expected 01/21/2025. These are my own personal, honest thoughts and opinions given voluntarily without compensation.

Love a good second chance romance! The characters were lovable and the backstory had me ready for more. It is a delightful read and the series just keeps getting better and better.

This book was gripping and hard to put down. It didn't feel like everything else you see out there, it felt very fresh. I really enjoyed this book!

Another WIN for Sunrise Cove! I have devoured every book in this series so far and I feel like each one keeps getting better and better! The connection is palpable from the very beginning between Noah and Olive, Olive and Katie, and the rest of the characters. I really enjoyed the backstory intertwined within the chapters as well. I can't wait for the next one!!

Jill Shalvis includes all the tropes in a wonderful second change, enemies to lovers, old flames story. Olive and Noah have a lot to overcome to finally get their HEA but with every chapter and every page turned the reader is take on a emotional ride filled with laughter and tears. A beautiful HEA that never disappoints.

very entertaining and enjoyable. olivie and noah relationship was very well developed. noah was driving when his friend got hurt.

This was a great series, I have enjoyed several titles from this series and I think this one might be a personal favorite for me. The cast of characters was great and very relatable, the setting is picture us, and the storyline is engaging from start to finish. There’s just enough intrigue to keep your interest all the way through and the Romance aspect is lovely.

This was so much more heartfelt that I was expecting in such a good way! The author did a fantastic job of creating this story with so much love and care.

This book was ABSOLUTELY perfect. Like just bottle this sweet story up in a jar and keep it forever, it was the most darling wintertime story. The characters darling story, and the more than perfect setting created the most beautiful story. Cozy up, and get ready for this most perfect winter time read. Wonderfully done Jill Shalvis.

Anytime I pick up a Jill Shalvis novel, I'm guaranteed a good read. Once again, she has delivered. Olivia is back home for the first time in years to help her best friend, Katie. Unfortunately, Katie's brother is also helping out and Olivia has never stopped loving him. But Noah has never forgiven Olivia for leaving. This was a very enjoyable second chance romance filled with unique characters such as Olivia's parents. One thing I really enjoyed in this novel was all of the small side stories that were intertwined into the main storyline, it just made the book that much more interesting.

Better Than Friends by Jill Shalvis. Enjoyable second chance romance set in Sunrise Cove this time featuring Olive & Noah. A good addition to the series.

Thank you to Ms Shalvis, Avon Harper Voyager, and Netgalley for the opportunity to preview the book.

I was very excited to receive this book!
I love this author's books because she almost always makes me laugh in these sweet second chance books.
I couldn't put the book down until Olive and Noah told me their story. Sometimes though I really wanted to shake my head at them because they literally couldn't see what was right in front of their face! Wow!
The only thing that I really didn't like was the run around that Olive kept giving Noah.
Then too, how Olive's parents treated her. Made me sort of angry because I felt that they were pretty selfish in that regard.
I loved Noah's family a lot! I felt like they were my family too.
I know that I didn't want the story to end. I enjoyed it that much.
Shalvis writes the sweetest stories loaded with secrets and those are what makes me keep turning the pages. I love the family dynamics portrayed in this book. She really made them seem very realistic.
5 stars for an entertaining novel. I highly recommend.
My thanks for a copy of this book. I was NOT required to write a positive review. All opinions expressed are mine.

Another wonderful SInrise Cover novel from Jill Shalvis!
The tropes abound in this one, along with the quintessential Shalvis heroine and hero.
My best friend's brother, friends to lovers, second chance romance, coming home again; all are perfectly written and mixed together to tell the story of Noah and Olive.
Both are commitment-shy but for different reasons.
Both grew up together from the time they were 14, parted under almost tragic circumstances ( no spoilers!) and then are reunited for another almost tragedy 2 decades later.
Noah, an agent with the forestry department, and Olive, who just started her own PR firm in London, are doing everything they can to avoid one another when they both come home to help Katie, Noah's twin sister and Olive's best friend, after Katie's husband Joe is injured on the job and in a coma.
heavy stuff.
But the everyday humor that is so normal and wonderful in our lives helps these two find each other once again. Even though they each have many secrets and anxieties, they realize they are nothing without the other.
I lovelovelove JIll Shalvis stories. She writes real people with real problems going through real lives.
5 well-deserved stars for another winner of a romance book!
Thanks to Netgally and Harper Avon for a sneak peek at this story!

After a tragic accident Olive left Sunrise Cove and never moved back. Only coming home for special events here and there, she denied herself the family she always wanted. After Katie, her best friend, calls her and asks for her help Olive comes home for her longest stay in over a decade. She’s happy to be back but there’s still tension between her and Katie’s twin brother Noah. Olive and Noah’s feelings for each other are complicated, and so they try to steer clear of one another. Unfortunately that is impossible staying under the same roof. Things get really steamy when Olive is forced to rely on Noah to find her missing parents. Are Olive’s parents okay? Will Noah and Olive finally work things out? Will Olive be able to return home to Sunrise Cove and live the life full of family and stability she desperately craves?

This story had a lot going on. Kudos to the author for weaving it together so well. It was quite the work of art. I really enjoyed the found family and adventurous parts of this book, but the romance was not for me. Personally I’m not a fan of the hot and cold treatment Noah gives Olive throughout the years, and he just all around annoys me for stringing her along. It was one thing when they were younger but he’s almost 30 now. Grow up lol.

If you like second chance romances, being stranded in a storm with one bed, will they won’t they, a little adventure and almost no spice this book is for you.

Olive Porter valued her friendship with the Turner's. Growing up in a family without a foundation, her grandmother and the Turner's provided the stability she needed. A fake relationship with Noah masked real feelings. When an accident forced Olive to flee Sunrise Cove, she sought shelter in anonymity. Returning to her best friend, it wasn't home but a stopping ground before returning to London.

Years later, Katie needs her help and Olive makes her way across the Pond literally almost running into Noah. Forced to confront her past, will she be able to move on from teenage heartbreak or are those embers long since buried about to catch fire?

Thank you to #NetGalley and the publisher for the early edition of #BetterThanFriends in exchange for an honest review. I'm a fan of the author's Sunrise Cove series and each new release feels like coming home. Olive's return to her childhood home stirs up feelings she thought were in the past. Will being thrown in Noah's path create an obstacle she doesn't want to overcome?

Jill Shalvis knows how to weave a story and this book is no exception. I liked the characters in the book however I didn't love them - too many issues, both real and imagined seem to keep the main characters from growing on me. This 7th book in the series is a good one but I would love to see characters from the past books make an appearance just to see how they're doing. I look forward to the next installment from this Author! Many thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and Author for the opportunity to review this book, all comments are my own.

Olive never expected to see Noah again after so many years of not speaking to each other. To her surprise, she will be dealing with him in close proximity when she agrees to help her best friend. Hopefully, Olive will be able to contain her compose and her heart with Noah. She always loves him, but it’s best to keep the distance. 

Noah wants to go back to work; unfortunately, he has to recuperate his injuries. And it doesn’t help that his sister and mother keep setting him up for dates, or he has to deal with Olive after so many years. She still gets to him no matter how long the years past. He just needs to protect himself, even though he still loves her. 

I always love reading any of Jill Shalvis books. She knows how to write romance or women's fiction. And it’s no different with this book, Better than Friends.

What I loved about this was the main character, Olive. She may not be for everyone because she is all about her work and composition. But Olive has guts and determination whenever she deals with an issue, no matter what. I like that very much for the main character whenever they are dealing with major issues in their stories. 

What I didn’t like in this book was Olive's best friend opinions. No matter what, you should always support your best friend. Olive's best friend has strong opinions about her not staying close by. Everyone has their own path, so she should not judge at all. Personally, I think the best friend needs to be a little more supportive and less opinionated. 

Honestly, I think everyone will enjoy Jill Shalvis books. It’s such wholesome yet a bit messy women's fiction read.

old flames come together to help each other, a second chance at love story. Love Jill Shalvis books.