Member Reviews
ᴛʜᴇ sᴛᴏʀʏ: Best friends their whole lives, Sydney and Kyler head up to Kyler’s ski home for their annual holiday trip. When a brutal storm strands them, it forces them to be honest with each other and themselves.
ᴍʏ ᴛᴡᴏ ᴄᴇɴᴛs: The first thing that caught my eye was the author. I love From Blood & Ash and didn’t realize Jennifer L. Armentrout wrote contemporary romances as well, so of course I had to jump into this one.
While I do prefer the romantasy series I’m still in the middle of, this was a nice winter palette cleanser with all the cozy snowy vibes to curl up with. I don’t know if I bought Kyler’s “voice” the whole time, but it’s definitely a good rec if you like the friends-to-lovers trope and I cannot wait to read book two Scorched because I can already feel the 🔥
𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐢𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮:
❄️want to curl up with romance for the winter
❄️love a friends-to-lovers redemption story
❄️enjoy forced proximity mixed with some sabatoge
✨Book Review✨
Romantic suspense is a new genre for me and I really enjoyed this. Childhood besties who both have feelings for each other but suppress them. They need up on a friend trip but oh guess what there's a massive snow storm and only they're able to make it 🙈 what do you think happens when you add in some forced proximity? I really liked the plot of this. They're feelings and then all these weird things are happening I couldn't stop reading!
Thank you to @read_bloom and @netgalley for the gifted eARC
I debated posting a review on this book but in the end thought that someone out there might really enjoy it. Especially if they really like the playboy trope. That’s not really my thing and I don’t enjoy it. So as much as I liked the friends to lovers part I could have done without the other girls being on page. It wasn’t well written and there is a mystery that plays out with Kyler and Sydney while they are snowed in. It’s a well written, cute college romance. It wasn’t for me but I think it could absolutely be amazing for someone else!
3⭐️
Tropes: friends to lovers, miscommunication, secret pining
Sydney & Kyler were a good time! I did feel like the miscommunication and friends to lovers trope went on a little long but I did enjoy it overall. It was a quick easy read and I really enjoyed the side characters. There’s just something about friends to lovers that hits a little different!
Very interested to see what’s gonna happen in the next book with the next couple!
I really wanted to love this book! Like, really wanted to. The cover makes you feel like you're in a winter wonderland, which is perfect since it's almost Christmas. I didn't get very far into this book before I had to stop. The characters weren't calling out to me like I wanted them to, which was a little disappointing. I might give this another try in the future.
Spicy, male female, dual point of view, friends to lovers, contemporary romance. There is a bit of mystery/peril and a whole lot of miscommunication. The main lead has a "playboy" history that rubbed me the wrong way but aside from that he was a great character. I didn't love this but it was a quick easy read. I'll definitely try more books from this author.
Sydney loves Kyler. Kyler loves Sydney. They have been friends their whole lives so neither one of them thinks they can be together as more than friends. When they find themselves snowed in together, will they finally realize that they belong together or will they continue to live in denial?
Sydney is a nice person. She thinks she is frigid after one of her boyfriends was cruel to her. She has a lot of issues wrapping her head around the fact that she isn’t frigid. The author did a good job showing how Sydney developed confidence in herself and her desirability. Kyler is a hot mess. He seems like he’s on top of the world but he is terrified of disappointing people. He knows he has made some terrible choices and he knows he can’t go back and erase them. I understand why he is convinced he isn’t good enough for Sydney. The author chooses to have them deal with their attraction only because they are stuck together, alone, in close proximity and under threat from a bady guy. Yes, there is a bad guy. I think his reasons for being the bad guy are both believable and ridiculous. What he adds to the story is the element of the unknown danger from the outside world. I liked the addition of a bad guy to the story.
I have a lot of issues with Kyler admitting he has loved Sydney for years but he chose to parade woman after woman in front of Sydney. I don’t know how anyone could overcome being treated that way by someone who claims to love them.
I enjoyed this story when I could put Kyler’s history aside (even though the couple discussed it repeatedly). This isn’t my favorite story I’ve read lately but I think it was well written and will appeal to a lot of readers. I will read more from this author in the future.
Sydney and Kyler have been friends since childhood and they have been in love with each other for years…but neither one knows this. So, when they are suddenly snowed in for days, you know the tensions were high. With confusing emotions, high hormones, and a little bit of trouble, will they get together in the end?
I loved this book! It hooks you right away with high tension between the two main characters who are best friends. Throughout the story we see Kyler continuously and unknowingly throw Sydney through a roller coaster of emotions that hit her self esteem. All the while Kyler feels as if he’s not good enough for Sydney and tries to stay away. The miscommunication is the driving factor that holds the main characters back in this book. If you’re looking for an entertaining story, steamy plot, friends to lovers, and a fast read then this is the book for you!
Kyler and Sydney are best friends that have always been in love with each other. They just don’t know it. This book was great! I picked it up and couldn’t put it down. This book had a little bit of everything; from spice, to thriller, to love and connection. It was perfect. To be honest, the thriller part of the book definitely kept me on my toes. There was so many people I could think of that would’ve been the assailant. If you are looking for the perfect winter read, this is it! This new edition is now officially out today! And it is so pretty! Go get it now!
Thank you NetGalley, Jennifer L. Armentrout, and Sourcebooks Bloom Books for a copy of this ARC!
This was a fun romance to read. The friends to lovers trope is done really well, and if you know me at all, you know that’s my favourite trope. Not only was there a great romance, but there was also a bit of a dark plot that kept things interesting. It didn’t overshadow the story, but it was a nice addition.
Kyler and Sydney had a lot of great chemistry, and the spicy scenes were fire. But despite the fact that I really enjoyed this book, I have to admit that both main characters drove me nuts. Kyler seemed like a grade A douche, and Sydney seemed a lot younger than she was meant to be (which is only 21, so you can imagine how juvenile she seemed). Her constant negative interpretations of Kyler’s actions were exhausting. Girl, you’re supposed to be best friends with this guy.
Anyway, I just accepted the MCs for who they were and enjoyed the writing. I would definitely read another book by this author.
Thank you to Bloom Books for my gifted copy!
Not her best work unfortunately, just wasn't for me. I felt the characters were too flat and it felt like they were probably better apart.
📖 Book Review 📖 As the days grow colder, the time to curl up and read a good friends to lovers trusty trope is here! Frigid certainly warms up the brisk nights with a gripping storyline that draws the reader in and brings a sense of nostalgia for college days for those (ahem) older readers, a reminder of what five carefree days on a ski trip in college looks like…bonus points for the trip including your best friend that you have a massive secret crush on. And if I can’t actually get rid of all of the adulting that I have to do, I can at least postpone it with a good read…
If you’re a fan of friends-to-lovers, Frigid is worth a read. The two friends get snowed in and have little to do except confront their feelings. There’s some decent tension regarding angst and unrequited love, as well as some external tension in terms of safety. Although it seems marketed as a duology, it ends in a happily ever after.
There were some things I loved about this and then some things I didn't like quite as much.
I usually am not a fan of friends to lovers because I never really feel the tension, but it was done so well here. There was some really nice tension from both sides, and when they finally acted on their feelings it was fantastic.
The plot was definitely solid. However, since they're isolated just the two of them in a cabin, there's not a lot going on besides them. You don't get a whole lot about their friends, family, history, etc so it makes the characters feel a little more flat. Third act breakup? I don't like. Some of the drama was definitely unnecessary.
Even with the things I didn't like this was a really cute book. The spice was spicing, the angst was there, and even with them being isolated I was definitely not bored. This is one of those books where you know it's going to be a cute time and it gets the job done. Absolutely something I'd read again.
Thank you to Netgalley and Bloom Books for the gifted ARC.
This is one of those good pallet cleanser books it’s a Friends to lovers romance and I enjoyed it but I felt like it was missing something. I loved the friendship between the girls but especially loved how protective Kyler was of Syd. Kyler honestly kind of sucks at first but he grows on you and you learn to appreciate his character. I will say miscommunication is one of my least favorite tropes and this one has a whole bunch of it and is prevalent throughout unfortunately making this one a miss for me.
I just finished reading Frigid by JLA, and oh my gosh, I really thought it was a solid 4-star read! From the very start, I was hooked on the depth of each character. The friendship between the girls was so real and sweet, and I loved how protective Kyler was of Syd! The banter between the 4 friends was just funny! Kyler was not the best guy ,but he really grew on me as the story went on. If you read this book please remember this book is very much NEW ADULT! JLA added some drama in the middle that had me holding my breath and questioning everything! I really enjoy how she develops her characters. At the beginning, everyone has their walls up, but when they finally come down, things get super spicy!🌶️ 🌶️🌶️ I can definitely see myself picking this one up again. Now, I'm eagerly anticipating diving into book two!
Sydney has been best friends with Kyler forever, and in love with him for almost as long. A notorious play-boy, Kyler goes through a constant rotation of women - it bothers Sydney not just because she has to watch the man she loves with other women, but he's ditched her for other girls before. Kyler has Sydney on a pedestal, and doesn't believe he's worthy of her love.
Despite that, they *are* best friends and are headed on their yearly trip to the ski resort. An unexpected and heavy snow storm traps them at the cabin and their friends in a nearby town, so Sydney and Kyler are stuck together. Alone. Or so they think - dangerous things start happening and the forced proximity brings both of their feelings to the surface. But they have to survive the snow storm, their feelings for each other, and a stalker trying to do them harm before they can think about HEA.
Miscommunication is one of my least favorite tropes, and boy was there SO MUCH MISCOMMUNICATION. While I found Sydney boring and stereotypical (a book nerd who's sexually inexperienced and in love with a play boy? unheard of!), Kyler was a total dick to her and definitely didn't deserve her attention; he ditched you for other girls! Even if he was doing it to "distract himself" from how perfect Sydney is, the fact that he reneged on promises disqualifies him. The perpetrator of the mishaps at the cabin is also glaringly obvious, so if you're looking for a bit of thriller/suspence with your romance, you'll be disappointed.
I think I'm getting too old for this type of plot to be interesting to me any more... or maybe it's the fact that it was written in 2013 and clearly not re-written to make it more current. It's possible that die-hard fans of JLA books will read and like this, but it was a miss for me.
Frigid will send you spiraling back to your college days, where the future looked bright but uncertain and true lasting love seemed daunting. Syd and Kyler have been friends since they were children, and they have secretly been in love with one another almost just as long. But neither is willing to destroy their friendship to take a chance and tell the other how they feel, nor do they realize it is mutual. Syd hides this by not dating and being "frigid" as one ex-boyfriend stated, while Kyler hides behind a facade of manwhoring and partying. But when these two are forced to be alone together in a snowmageddon will they finally be forced to admit their feelings for eachother?
I really wish that I could have loved this book. The writing is very well-done and the characters behavior is very age-appropriate, which I appreciate. But both MCs were bland and didn't really have any personality besides being a "wallflower" and a "playboy". I could not find one reason that I wanted to root for them to be together. Kyler in particular is super cringey with how high-handed he is with Syd, and he treats all other girls like they are flimsy. I honestly do not know why Sydney even liked him, as he didn't seem to have any good attributes. This book was neither plot, nor character driven in my opinion.
Overall, I know there are a lot of JLA lovers out there that really enjoy her style of writing and characters. This is a well-written book and I would imagine that if you absolutely adore the author's other works you would enjoy this. Sadly, it was not for me, but not every book hits readers the same. If you find yourself drawn to books about college romances with a friendship to lovers plot and a close proximity trope than you should pick up this story.
✨Frigid by Jennifer Armentrout✨
Genre: Romance
Pages: 252
Pub date: Nov 5th
📚For twenty-one-year-old Sydney Bell, being in love with Kyler isn’t anything new. They’ve been best friends ever since he pushed her down on the playground and she made him eat a mud pie. Somewhere over the years, she fell for him and fell hard. The problem? He’s never stayed with a girl for longer than a few nights, and with it being their last year of college, Sydney won’t risk their friendship by declaring her feelings.
Meanwhile, Kyler has always put Sydney on a pedestal too high to reach. To him, she’s everything. But he’s hidden away his feelings, drowning them in other girls instead. After all, Kyler will always be the poor boy from the wrong side of tracks, and Syd will always be the best thing he can never have.
But when they’re stranded together at a posh ski resort after a massive snowstorm, there’s nothing stopping their red-hot feelings from finally coming to the surface. Can their friendship survive the attraction? Better yet, can they survive at all? Because as the snow falls, someone is stalking them, and this trip may be a life-changer in more ways than one.
📝 Two best friends who are secretly in love with each other find themselves stuck in a blizzard, sounds like fun😉
If you’re looking for a fun and spicy romance, this might be for you. The tropes are forced proximity & friends to lovers.
I wasn’t a fan of the miscommunication as a plot device though💁🏻♀️
💫Thank you @read_bloom for my #gifted copy💫
This romance has the makings of a page turning good time but missed the mark in some ways. I enjoyed the forced proximity, friends to lovers, and satisfying ending- I didn't love the naive YA feel of the story. It created some disconnect for me and made it difficult to root for the main characters. Miscommunication isn't my favorite plot device, unless it's believable and executed very well. Which wasn't the case for Frigid.