Evie Sterling’s Just Partners offers an engaging small-town romance wrapped in a detective story, though it leans more on the romance than the mystery, making for a light but slightly uneven read. While the premise of a former TV star returning to her roots in a detective agency is compelling, the story sometimes struggles to balance the investigation with the emotional complexities of its characters. A solid 3-star read, this novel has its charming moments but doesn’t fully hit its stride.

The protagonist, Cassandra Love, is a likable character with a relatable backstory. After being blacklisted from Hollywood, she finds herself back in Pinecrest, Montana, at her father’s detective agency, which is now managed by Lincoln Suco, her childhood crush. The setup is rife with potential for tension, as Cassandra’s return to the town and her complicated history with Lincoln immediately set the stage for a "will they, won’t they" dynamic. Cassandra’s struggle to redefine herself after her career setback is one of the more interesting aspects of the novel, adding some emotional depth to her character.

Lincoln Suco, the brooding small-town detective with a past, is a strong counterpart to Cassandra’s more vibrant personality. Their chemistry is clear from the start, but the "just partners" dynamic feels a bit too familiar for fans of the romance genre. While the sparks between them are undeniable, the relationship feels somewhat predictable, with their romantic tension following a fairly conventional path. However, their banter and shared history do add warmth and a sense of familiarity to their partnership, making their evolving relationship enjoyable to watch.

The mystery aspect of the novel—centered on a baffling case that brings them together—takes a backseat to the romance. While there’s potential for a more gripping detective story, the investigation feels somewhat thin, with few twists and turns to keep readers on the edge of their seats. The small-town secrets and dangers that are hinted at never quite build the level of suspense you’d expect from a mystery-driven plot. As a result, the detective aspect of the novel feels more like a backdrop for the romance rather than a fully developed storyline in its own right.

One of the novel’s strengths is its small-town setting. Pinecrest, Montana, is brought to life through its quirky characters and close-knit community, adding charm to the story. Sterling captures the essence of small-town life—the gossip, the familiar faces, and the slower pace—making it an inviting place for Cassandra to return to. The contrast between Cassandra’s big-city dreams and the simplicity of Pinecrest adds another layer to her internal conflict as she grapples with what she really wants for her future.

However, Just Partners stumbles in pacing, especially in the middle sections. The push-and-pull between Cassandra and Lincoln feels drawn out, with repeated moments of hesitation and denial that slow the progression of their relationship. While it’s understandable that both characters have baggage to work through—Cassandra’s career implosion and Lincoln’s mysterious past—their reluctance to admit their feelings for each other starts to feel frustrating after a while.

The ending, while heartwarming, wraps up a bit too neatly, leaving some of the deeper emotional conflicts unresolved. While the resolution of the romantic storyline is satisfying, the detective case feels underdeveloped, with few memorable revelations or high-stakes moments to leave a lasting impact.

Final Thoughts:
Just Partners is a light, enjoyable read that will appeal to fans of small-town romances with a dash of mystery. While the chemistry between Cassandra and Lincoln is undeniable, the detective plotline takes a backseat, and the pacing could be tighter. It’s a solid start to the "Investigating Love Series" but doesn’t quite stand out in either the romance or mystery genres. A 3-star read, perfect for those looking for a cozy, low-stakes romance with charming characters but without much in the way of suspense or surprises.

Just Partners is a lovely story of second chances and simmering forbidden romance with a bit of small-town mystery. The story follows Cassie, who returns to her hometown of Pinecrest, Montana, seeking a fresh start. Reunited with her childhood crush and dad's best friend, Link, she finds herself entangled in a perplexing case that forces them into an uneasy partnership.

As they dive into the town's secrets and confront unexpected dangers, their professional lines blur, and old feelings resurface. I enjoyed the brewing forbidden romance and the age gap. A few times, the story's pace was a bit confusing, but overall, I really liked it. The romantic suspense aspect was written well, and the passion between Cassie and Link was electric. The simmer of that slow burn was just the right heat.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a free copy of this book in exchange for honest feedback.

Cassie Love’s acting career as a TV detective has taken a recent hit and she can’t seem to understand why. While she takes time to figure out what happened and what her next move will be, she heads back to her home town to tie up some loose ends with her late father’s PI business which puts her back in the presence of her childhood crush Lincoln. While they work together to solve a case, it becomes harder and harder to deny their attraction to one another. But with the age difference, Lincoln being her father’s former partner, and Lincoln keeping secrets of his dark past, can they overcome the obstacles?

This started out slow for me because it felt like I started reading in the middle of the story instead of the beginning. In other words, I felt like I learned details out of order. For one thing, if I hadn’t read the synopsis of the book, I wouldn’t have known that Cassie is from Montana and that is where she goes when visiting her hometown. This is revealed much later in the book. We also learn that Cassie had a crush on her dad’s old business partner but don’t know what the age difference is until literally 80% into the book. Don’t get me wrong an age gap storyline is right up my alley but at the same time knowing this specific detail helps me understand if I should be rooting for the characters or not, especially given Link is also her dad’s best friend and business partner.

I feel like lately when I write reviews I use the phrase “suspend my disbelief” so often. And I get that happens with fiction but sometimes I really think the authors are asking a lot from their audience in this regard. Like first of all, it seems like such a stretch for Cassie to need to hire a PI to figure out why she’s not getting jobs in Hollywood, not to mention to think someone “higher up” is to blame for her career tanking. Also since when is it a PIs job to wrangle cows (or was it a bull?)? I get that it’s Montana but surely there’s other people you call in for something like that. I found myself annoyed, too, when they go to interview Mrs. Harper and afterwards Link asks Cassie where she learned to ask good questions like that. First of all, it sounds condescending to ask that, but even if it weren’t intended as such, her questions were basic. Like “what makes you think he did it?” And “why after all this time?” These are not groundbreaking questions.

I know this book is the first in what will become a series so there’s certain things I understand we won’t learn until later, such as why Link got himself involved with Phineas, but I felt like we could’ve done with a bit more backstory on our main characters. There were pieces I think it feels silly to save for later books, such as why Cassie hates being called Cassie even though her POVs literally all label her as Cassie. Or Link’s relationship to his parents which was briefly mentioned. That being said, I happened to enjoy Link and Cassie’s tension. It’s weird because I hate having my buttons pushed but watching these two push each other’s buttons was entertaining. I also enjoyed Link and Quinn’s sibling-like bond and in general how Link was protective of both Cassie and Quinn even if he’s not being fully truthful and also is at least partly to blame for any threat to their safety.

I did like what a quick and easy read this was, but overall felt like it was just good and not great. I will, however, be on the lookout for the next book to see where the story takes us.

I was really excited for this book, I love cop/ detective romance books and age gap books so I was all in. The detective love story I got. Cassie, down on her luck actress, goes back to her hometown and her dad’s PI firm that is now run by Lincoln, her dad’s partner. Together Cassie and Lincoln try to solve a case while Cassie is also trying to solve the case of while she was blacklisted in Hollywood. During all this Cassie and Lincoln try to stay professional and not let their feelings for each other out.
The age gap however is where the book struggled for me.
I feel like the author couldn’t decided how much of an age gap she wanted to do. We know Lincoln used to be Cassie’s dad’s partner and he was her “childhood crush”, however the book goes back and forth. The only time we find out how big the age gap is when Cassie states he’s 12 years older than her and she’s 24. And this is said 82 percent into the book. So that’s makes Lincoln 36. However in the first couple pages he says the bounty he hunting he has 20 years on him so I thought Lincoln was like 40 Plus. Which 40 plus would make sense if he’s was a 24 years olds father partner. However Lincoln is actually much younger than Cassie’s father. At another point he says when him and Cassie were kids like as if they’re the same age at around the same time.Then he says he watched Cassie “blossom into a beautiful young woman” and calls Cassie, “Robby’s little girl”. Lincoln is also really immature, borrowing money from bad people, not being able to pay the bills, ect. That doesn’t charactization doesn’t really fit an older man who’s was her dad’s partner.

This was a tough one for me. From the chaotic beginning to this story a difficult time getting into this book and I didn’t connect with any of the characters and just did not like the MMC. That being said, it is not my typical genre.

I’m sure it’s the right book for some. Anyone who likes slow burn, enemies to love interests with clean romance may enjoy this book.

Thanks to Netgalley and author Evie Sterling for the ARC in exchange for my honest feedback

Thank you NetGalley and Victory Editing for this free ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Before Just Partners, I had never read anything by Evie Sterling. Therefore, I wasn’t too sure what I was getting myself into. With a quick glance at the synopsis, I thought this would be a cute, quick read that I’d probably enjoy. Unfortunately, this book ended up not being for me.

Just Partners by Evie Sterling follows two characters: Cassandra (Cassie), an actress living in New York who’s career is on the line, and Lincoln (Link), Cassie’s dad’s best-friend who’s currently running her deceased father’s PI practice in her hometown. When Cassie finally gets around to looking into the mail she’s received around her father’s estate and notices that her father’s old partner, Link, is writing a novel about being a PI, capitalizing on many of her father’s famous quotes, Cassie decides to return to her hometown to confront him. When she notices that Link has started to let the bills pile up and her dad’s practice go under, she gets sucked back into the investigation game to help save it. With her acting career sinking, will Cassie ever return back to an industry that’s eating her alive? Will her childhood crush on Link finally evolve into something more?

From the beginning, I had a hard time getting into this book. It opens up very chaotically. It was very fast-paced, giving you little about your main characters. I felt like I was suppose to already know them in order to justify some of their actions. We are given little knowledge of why Cassie’s career is sinking and Link is immediately introduced as a sleeze-bag. I kept feeling like I was missing something as the POVs changed too quickly for me to keep up.

I think dad’s best-friend is just not a trope I like. It also made it really difficult to enjoy Cassie and Link’s budding relationship, especially when I was struggling to figure out the age gap for so long. You do figure out near the END of the book, that it’s a 12-year age gap. With knowing that age gap, it did make some weirdness around the ages of her parents that just didn’t add up. It felt like the author game up with the precise age difference, after they had already established other age facts within the book and forgot to go back and correct them. Or they’re just okay with a minor having a kid with an older man. Not sure there.

The investigating part of the story was really fun. It was really interesting and different from anything I’ve read, so I did really enjoy that. There isn’t much world-building or anything - so it’s quick into the cases. I also enjoyed that we see a realistic timeline of these two working themselves out. We end without them being together, which is great because Cassie hasn’t been back in town long, after being away for six years, and really needs more time to figure out where she is in life (which Lincoln does too) and rushing into a relationship would feel very unlike her character.

I did initially think this was a stand-alone series, so I was incredibly disappointed when it ended on a weird cliff-hanger and they hadn’t established themselves as anything, but friends. But now knowing the series continues to follow Cassandra and Lincoln - I do enjoy the ending a bit more now, but it still fell a little flat to me.

Overall - this book isn’t bad, but it’s just not one for me. I can appreciate what it’s trying to do and do recommend this to people who enjoy age-gap, dan’s best-friend, slowburn romances that aren’t full of sexual content.

Lincoln Suco is an incredible name for a detective. It sets the tone for the relationship he has with Cassandra. Here comes adventure!

Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for this ARC. All opinions are my own.

*I received a free copy of this ebook from the publisher; the review is my own.*

I wanted something cute and relatively short when I opened this up on my Kindle, and I sort of got that. The book was all right, but I just didn't love it. That said, there wasn't really anything wrong with it, and I'm sure there will be other readers who enjoy it more than I did.

Cassie (24) and Link (36) have known each other since she was a teenager, but thankfully there was never anything between them prior to this book. Yes, she harbored a massive crush on him, but he was unaware of it. I'm not big on the age-gap trope, which to me can easily feel kind of . . . icky. Cassie and Link spend this whole book reminding themselves of the difference in their ages and that Link was her father's best friend and co-worker, which didn't do anything to lessen that weirdness for me. That said, their actual age difference wasn't given until near the end of the book; in fact, at one point, Link points out that he's two years younger than Cassie's mother (at least that's who I assume Sophie is), and Cassie reminds herself that he's a notable amount younger than her father. That brought on an additional level of weirdness because that would mean that Cassie was born when her mother was 14. So what's going on here?

I'm sorry--I tend to fixate on knowing characters' ages.

Aside from that, I didn't find Link particularly likable. He always appeared to be putting on a front (even to the reader and possibly to himself). To be honest, he reminded me of Joe Jr. in While You Were Sleeping, though a much more physically attractive version of Joe Jr. Through his thoughts, it was clear that he genuinely cared for Quinn and Cassie, but he was rather flippant about, well, everything. Cassie was more likable, but I still didn't love her.

There were a few things I got nitpicky about, but most of them didn't interfere with the story itself. However, Link lost any and all credibility as a PI when he referred to a pistol grip as a "handle."

I recognize my review hasn't been overly positive thus far. But I can appreciate the good things about this book. As the first in a series, it successfully portrayed the internal struggle both Cassie and Link have about their feelings. With how little time Cassie had been back in town after being away for six years, it would have been very odd and a little creepy if the two of them had jumped right into a romantic relationship. This book established a friendly though not inappropriate history while also clearly indicating that both characters are adults and viewing each other in that light. It also showed that, despite my lukewarm feelings about Link, he does have good intentions and can be counted on when things really matter. The story was pretty light and easy to read.

Note: Nothing bad.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫ARC Review

This fun, entertaining and exciting read is book one in a new series called the “Investigating Love Series.” It follows our main characters Cassandra Love and Lincoln Suco from reluctant colleagues to something much more! I have read multiple books by Evie Steeling lately and they have all been so good and engrossing. She has become an auto buy author for me! This one was full of mystery and witty banter. I am a sucker for banter in books! I haven’t read many age gaps, but this one was done really well and I didn’t mind it at all…in fact I really enjoyed the complex attraction between them. Great book, looking forward to more in this series!

Enjoyable content:
🩵 Enemies To Lovers
💼 Age Gap
🩵 Forbidden Love
💼 Father's Best Friend
🩵 Sweet Romance
💼 Opposites Attract
🩵 Slow Burn

Quote: "MY THOUGHTS GO BACK TO OUR MOMENT AGAINST THE WALL. I SAW THE MAN HE WAS TRYING TO AVOID, BUT I WAS MUCH MORE FOCUSED ON HOW CLOSE HE WAS. I HADN'T HATED IT; IN FACT, IT WAS WORRISOME HOW MUCH THE OPPOSITE WAS TRUE."

Spice: None

Thank you to the author Evie Sterling for the advanced electronic copy of the book!

3 ⭐
0 🌶️
Tropes- Childhood crush, age gap, Dad’s best friend, enemies to lovers, slow burn, mutual pining


Just Partners is the story of Cassie- a hollywood star who is being kicked to the curb, and Link- a PI in small town Minnesota who used to be PI partners and BFF’s with Cassie’s dad.


When Cassie finally stops ignoring the paperwork about her deceased father’s estate and is confronted with the book that Link, her childhood crush, has been writing about Link and her dad’s PI company, she makes her way back to her hometown, only to get sucked back into the investigative game.


I had a hard time reading this book. The beginning of it was very chaotic to me and I think that was because there was a lot to get through so the pacing was very fast, but I kept having to go back and reread sections to even know who was narrating.


I did appreciate all the adventure and drama, but it was more like shallow world building? It felt kinda forced. I was also bummed this ended on a cliff hanger and none of my questions were answered, but that’s on me because I didn’t realize this was a standalone.


There is not much to Cassie and Link’s budding romance either. Most of it is just their internal dialogue discussing their pining but not much chemistry

Thank you to NetGalley and Victory Editing for the chance to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

**After one of the worst reading slumps of my life, I devoured this book in just two days!** Cassie is a washed-up actress—so out of luck that no one will even hire her to play a dead body! To make matters worse, her late father's detective agency keeps flooding her mailbox with bills and problems she can't ignore. Desperate, she heads back home to tackle at least one of her many messes. But she didn't plan on running into her dad's old partner—and her long-lost crush—Lincoln Suco. As they dive into one unsolved case after another, it turns out that maybe her old crush isn't so old after all...

What can I say? I loved this book! It's the perfect blend of romance and mystery. The banter between the main characters is *chef's kiss*, and that ending... AHHH, I can't wait for the next book!!
Ten stars! 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
♥️Age Gap
♥️ Father's best friend
♥️ Enemies to lovers
♥️ Forced proximity
♥️ Small town romance
♥️ Unsolved cases

From a TV star to a detective. Just Partners highlighted just the scenario. It was fabulous. It is a must read!

✨️💚✨️Book Review✨️💚✨️

Book: Just Partners
Author: Evie Sterling
Rating: 5 stars 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Another absolutely amazing book by Evie!

Now, I have read quite a few by this author and this one is completely different than other ones she has done.

This is a suspenseful sweet romance!

You get a taboo age gap, father's best friend, private investigators, drive bys, and so much drama.

I am obsessed and the chemistry/tension between the main characters is so so so good!

You get:
• Sweet Romance
• Suspence
• Dual POV
• Tension
• Slow Burn
• Age Gap
• Dad's Best Friend

I can't wait to read the rest of this series! Available on KU, ebook, and paperback.

I’m going to be honest, I was a little skeptical at first because it’s a bit different than what I read (age gap scared me a bit) but I was pleasantly surprised!!! Cassie and Link were so fun to read about! I know he was her Dads best friend but there was no ick with them or their age gap! I enjoyed the added suspense with the case too!
It’s a slow burn that’s for sure but I didn’t mind because the bickering between them and even him and Quinn was hilarious. I liked the way it wrapped up but also left me wanting more and excited for the next book in the series!
Thank you @haylingbookstorm and @eviesterling.sweetromance for trusting me with your ARC.
As per usual, you did not disappoint and I highly recommend!

***ARC provided by Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op***

This is my honest opinion of this book.

This was the first book I read by this author. Just Partners is a cozy mystery with a sprinkling of romance. This was a good starting point for the series and there is a lot more to find out.

I giggled at this line: Was Laura Ingalls your teacher?

I will admit I was scratching my head trying to figure the age gap between the two leads. I was expecting a larger gap and was not sure I was going to get behind them.

I look forward to seeing how this series progresses.

Thank you to netgalley for this book in exchange for an honest review!

wow, wow, wow. This book left me speechless. Link and Cassie are so much fun & I’d want to go on double dates with them in real life. The chemistry was there, the banter was there. I can appreciate a minimal spice romance as well because sometimes i need a break (lol) I enjoyed this read so much and will be back for the next one!

Oh my goodness, what a fun read this was! First of all, the chemistry between Link and Cassie was absolutely fantastic. I adored their witty banter--- banter that would certainly make Veronica Mars proud! I must admit though, when I noticed that 'father's best friend' was one of the tropes, I had a moment of hesitation. I'm all for an age gap to a degree, but when that's thrown in there too, I start to question it... but honestly, there was absolutely no ick felt with this story for me. Yes, Link is Cassie's dad's best friend and former business partner... but he was also quite a bit younger, only 12 years older than Cassie, so it didn't bother me personally in this one. I found I enjoyed every second with them together and could definitely relate to Quinn's enjoyment in their interactions too. They definitely drew me in and kept me intrigued right through to the end. Their story is definitely a slow burn though... and in fact, it really was only barely getting started in this book setting the foundation for future books. While the primary mystery of the book was wrapped up in the end, there are definitely still some questions left unanswered. As such, if you want stories that will completely be wrapped up in the end, you may want to wait until the series is complete! Personally, it has me all that much more excited to read the next book to get more answers... and to see more romance from these two! I truly cannot wait!

Just Partners is a closed-door romance with kisses only and no language.

**I received a complimentary copy from Netgalley. All opinions are my own.