I was in the small majority of people who were not a big fan of Seven Days in June. But I’ll have to say this book was really enjoyable for me. Tia Williams did a great job of actually consulting with people in the same age group as her main characters. The slang and mannerisms felt very authentic.

The book took a bit of time to pick up for me, but once we were in it, I was excited to finish it. The characters and their backstories and struggles they were facing made me connect to them even more.

If you liked Seven Days in June, I think you will also enjoy this one.

I’m literally crying my eyes out as I write this. Omfg! This was everything I didn’t even know I needed 😭💕

Tia Williams does it again, no surprises there! Reading about Audre and Bash just being friends and falling headfirst for each other was one of the sweetest and most healing stories I’ve ever read in my life. Like my adult self and my inner child are both so freaking happy right now 😮‍💨💕💕💕

Knowing how much I loved Seven Days in June, I knew this book was going to be something else. But I had no idea how much it would actually mean to me. Growing up the way I did, I felt so much like Audre. I felt ruled by this unobtainable idea of perfection and I felt so isolated by it. I had no way to express it back then and no real books or stories that helped me understand what was going on. And like Audre, I also felt like no one understood me and like my mom was my main opp. ( I swear I talk about this all the time but there really should be more studies about why/how all teenage girls go through this weird period of hating tf out of your mom/parent 😅🤦🏽‍♀️) That was one of the wildest points about this book tbh, watching the beef between Eva and Audre grow. Like wow I literally love both characters so much in their own ways. But seeing them not get along was really emotional for me bc I truly understood both sides as a former child and now adult.

And then there’s Bash. Sweet sweet Bash 😭💕. His character truly broke my heart. I’ve also felt hurt like he did and not accepted by the people who you thought was supposed to love you unconditionally. And seeing him say F all of it and do whatever tf made him happy was everything. I felt such kinship with that spirit fr.

But seeing Audre and Bash connect and form this bond was so heartwarming and healing. Like ngl, I would’ve done anything to have something when I was in high school 😭💕 Audre and Bash were literally soulmates just like Eva and Shane were! And their connection was so deep and next level 😮‍💨 seriously summer time love at its finest! I almost bout lost it every time they linked up to tackle a challenge off Audre’s list or simply enjoyed the others company. I literally felt all the feels with this just like Seven Says in June … but soooo much healthier fr 😅🙃

And I can’t end this review without mentioning how good it was revisiting Tia’s NYC world and seeing Eva and Shane (+ Baby Alice 🫶🏽) again 🥲 It was so heartwarming to see how much their family had grown, but I also loved that Tia kept it real and showed that even with their happy ending, there’s still work to be done to ensure everyone in their new family unit is okay. I appreciated that so much.

All in all, my heart feels so full rn it’s crazy 😅 I know I spazzed with this review, but what can I say? I love anything Tia writes atp 🙂‍↕️🫶🏽 this book was beyond good. Probably one of the best ya books I’ve ever read.

Hey, hey, my favorites 😁

Tia Williams’ Audre & Bash Are Just Friends is a heartfelt young adult novel that explores the complexities of teenage relationships, mental health, and self-discovery. Set in Brooklyn, the story follows Audre Mercy-Moore, a high-achieving junior with big ambitions, and Bash Henry, a laid-back recent graduate with a troubled past. What starts as a simple summer challenge—Audre’s “Experience Challenge” for her writing—quickly turns into a transformative journey for both characters.

Williams excels at crafting realistic and multidimensional characters. Audre’s anxiety and struggles with parental expectations feel authentic, while Bash’s charm and emotional depth make him a compelling counterpart. Their friendship is filled with witty banter, undeniable chemistry, and an emotional depth that makes their journey both engaging and relatable.

The novel handles serious topics—such as mental health, parental pressure, and substance use—without feeling heavy-handed. Williams balances humor, romance, and introspection in a way that keeps the story engaging while tackling important themes. Some aspects, like the frequent teenage substance use, may be unsettling to some readers, but they add to the novel’s raw and unfiltered portrayal of adolescence.

Overall, Audre & Bash Are Just Friends is a beautifully written, thought-provoking novel that captures the highs and lows of teenage life. Fans of Williams’ previous work will appreciate her signature blend of sharp dialogue and emotional depth.

Rating: 4/5

Thank you, NetGalley, for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The one thing I would tell people before they read this book is: if you are here from seven days of June read this book without it in your mind, or like me you will struggle in reviewing this book when you are finished.

This book fell into the second gen syndrome and that is when the relationship dynamic between parent(s) and child gets ruined. The Eva I knew in this book I would have hated her if I did not know of seven days in June. Understood her, but hated her. Anyways, I don’t think it taken anything away from this book I just feel like I struggled with rating it because of that, so people should know.

Audre & bash. Wow. Innocence in a way that all relationships are at this age. Kids living life falling in love. There’s such a level of love and joy that comes reading these two characters slowly fall in love.

Also this book was SAD. Audre and Eva relationship sad. Bash back story sad. How these impacted Audre and bash relationship sad. As much as this book was happy it was also equally as sad.

This book was not easy to rate considering sdij and my feelings with how second gen also ruin the parental dynamic, but if I look at this as a separate entity which you should because at the end of the day it is. This book is not hard to rate at all it. It was everything! The relationship was so joyful, the pacing was excellent, the writing 10 out of 10.

I thought the book started off really great! Around 50-60% though, it started to get a little frustrating.
What I loved:
- Diverse representation in characters
- Anxiety rep
- Seeing Audre grow out of her "golden daughter" box

What I didn't love (some spoilers below)
- the two breakups (one happening at 91%??) I feel like this was completely unavoidable but Eva just yelled at her daughter again so it was the end of that
- Eva's character felt very different in this book for some reason (most likely because it's being told from the perspective of her teenage daughter) but I just thought that it was really crazy how she didn't really pay her daughter any attention except for when she was making mistakes and then didn't bother getting to the root of the situation until after she read private information. And even after that, it felt like not much progress had been made until the veryyyy end
-There was a lot going on between all of the side characters. The petty arguments make sense for teenagers but the relationship with Audre and her best friend was odd and it felt like Audre was ignoring her for something that was just not that deep
- What happened to the girl that was basically obsessed with Bash after she saw them in target and asked Reshma about it??

I think the book was still pretty good though. As a high achieving, first born daughter, I saw parts of my younger self in Audre so there were some aspects of the book that I really appreciated

This was such a great read! I fell in love with Audre in Seven Days in June and was so excited to see her get her own story. I even reread Seven Days in June beforehand just to soak it all in.

Bash was effortlessly lovable, and his laid-back nature was the perfect contrast to Audre’s meticulous, structured personality. I also loved the dynamics between Clio and Reshma, and how the book captured teen emotions so authentically—it gave me that nostalgic feeling of first love.

Even as a YA novel, this story had so much depth, with plenty of gems that make it relatable for all ages.This book made me love Shane even more, and I enjoyed seeing the balance he and Eva bring to each other.

Tia Williams is an autobuy author for me, and once again, she did not disappoint!

Thank you NetGalley & Little Brown Books for this ARC.

Audre & Bash Are Just Friends by Tia Williams is supposed to be a Teens/YA romance following the daughter of the FL from Seven Days In June and I looked forward to this book for that reason. Whilst I liked Audre's character and the romance buildup was cute, I think this book is too heavy and political for a Teens/YA book. The issues and even behaviour of the characters were too far advanced for teenagers in my opinion, but I may be mistaken.
Thank you, Little, Brown Books for Young Readers and Netgalley for the ARC

I love Seven Days in June. I love a YA coming of age story. I love a cheesy romance. I LOVED Audre and Bash Are Just Friends publishing May 6th.

Audre is a perfectionist, class president junior in high school and when both her parents are having new babies, she feels pushed to the side and like she needs to live a little. She meets Bash who she asks to teach her to be her fun consultant. A very quick and fun read, I couldn’t put this down. Thank you to NetGalley for a copy of this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Bahhh my favorite YA romance in a long time! I knew I was going to read this when I saw it was written by Tia Williams. But when I saw the main character was Audre, the daughter from SEVEN DAYS IN JUNE, this shot right to the top of my TBR. The romance between Audre and Bash is so swoony. And they really bring out the best in each other. But they also bring out each other's shadow selves, the emotions and childhood traumas both have been keeping hidden from everyone else. The dialogue and language choices felt so fresh, funny, and realist for teenagers (at least to me as someone who teaches 18 and 19 year olds). It's a beautiful, emotional, romantic book in its own right. And a follow up to SEVEN DAYS IN JUNE that is both deep and fun to read.

Audre and Bash completely swept me away. This story was so brilliantly written, it had me feeling all the emotions and even tearing up at times. Audre, a sharp and determined 17-year-old, owns her unofficial title as the go-to teen therapist. Her world? Utter chaos, thanks to two babies—one from her mom’s side, the other from her dad’s. It’s gearing up to be a summer full of challenges. Enter Bash, the effortlessly cool and enigmatic heartthrob everyone seems to adore. Sure, he’s charming and good-looking with his laid-back vibes, but there’s more to him than meets the eye.

Audre’s on a mission to tackle a list of adventures to create a guidebook for teens, and she needs Bash’s help. Sparks fly, secrets threaten to surface, and their chemistry is everything.

This is an undeniable 5 star chick (aka 5star read), and I will absolutely be snagging the physical copy for my shelf when it’s available. Audre and Bash? Pure magic.

I love a Young Adult novel that directly depicts the struggles of teens in a relevant way. Tia Williams did just that! Sign me up for every YA novel that takes place in New York in the summer time because I will devour it. If I didn’t have to leave the house this would have easily been a one sitting read for me. The story was easy to follow, relatable, and overall enjoyable.

Tia Williams uses topics like mental heath, self identity, and complicated parent-child relationships and brings them to the forefront. Tia Williams uses real life examples through these characters that help develop them throughout the story which I appreciated so much.

Thank you Little, Brown Books for Young Readers and Netgalley for my e-ARC!
Pub date: 5/6/202

Rating 4.5 ⭐️

7 days in June fans- you’re in for a treat! I absolutely adored this book! Audre and Bash are just friends, gives us a glimpse into what Eva and Shane are up to, but the star of this show is Audre Zora Maya Toni Mercy-Moore! We become reacquainted with Eva’s daughter, Audre and she’s now a full fledged teenager with teenage thoughts, fears, anxieties, complexities, and desires while she tries to figure herself out. As a mom of a teenage daughter who also has a large age gap from her younger siblings , I empathized and sympathized with Audre and recognized the stage of life she was in. If you are someone who has been around a teenager, this book is so “teenage coded” but not in an annoying or irritating way! It was adorable. This was like a blast to the past, taking me back to falling in love for the first time- the giddy feelings, the cheesing. No matter what age you are, this book still felt relatable, whether you’re in that current stage of life or waayyy beyond it, like myself. I also believe perfectionists, type A personalities, and even eldest daughters will relate to this. There were so many gems and words of wisdom in this book that would be especially great for a teen/young adult!
Also, it is not often where a book makes me laugh out loud, but this book literally had me laughing out loud, throughout! The banter between Bash and Audrey was hilarious without feeling forced!
I also enjoyed reading the texts back and forth between Audrey and Bash. I love books that insert communication threads whether it’s via text or email.
There are a few heavier topics tackled in here as well, which gave it just the right amount of depth!

Tia Williams is and has been an auto buy author for me since 7 days in June! I’ve read every single book of hers and she for sure has another hit on her hands with this one!

Thank you so much to Little Brown Books and Netgalley for the ARC copy!

I loved this!! Great characters and enjoyable writing. Love this author and will definitely read more. :)

Thank you NetGalley and Tia Williams!

It was so fun to be back with the Mercy girls! Getting to see Audre as a teenager was so heartwarming.

This book was extremely sweet and emotional, two of my favorite things. Sometimes with YA romances, it can feel as though the characters are acting way out of line for how I (a 31yo teacher and mother) think teens should be acting. But Bash and Audre seemed truly authentic, which I’m sure is thanks to the focus group research she did in order to write an authentic high school experience.

The pacing was perfect; the development of Audre and Bash’s story unfolded nicely.

Audre is back! And she's still bright and delightful. But- her life is pretty hard right now. While I knew that seeing her struggle in some way was likely to happen in a book from her perspective that centers on her life as a high schooler, that didn't make it easy to witness. And discovering that the reasons why I loved her in Seven Days in June (she's so smart, funny, mature for her age, ambitious, takes care of her mom) were the same factors impacting her extreme sense of overwhelm and pressure in Audre & Bash Are Just Friends- that was tough. But- it was real, and Williams did what had to be done. I hope this helps young readers to identify and reflect on the challenges they're facing and, most importantly, find a way to talk to their parents about them.

This was a particularly interesting read for me as I'm a mom of teens/young adults, so I understood Eva's vantage point. But Audre also reminds me A LOT of myself in high school, so I definitely understood hers too. (I even had a Bash in my life! Phew, it was dramatic.) All in all, Audre and Eva are both characters I will always root for and one of my favorite fictional mother-daughter duos.

As for Audre and Bash- such a sweet friendship and young romance. There's a lot of mystery and intrigue around Bash as the new kid in town and it was interesting to see how Williams revealed the many layers of his life and background.
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So, I really enjoyed this book as an adult reader. However, I will note that I know Williams is illustrating reality for teens- of course kids are drinking, doing drugs, having sex, secret parties, and more. Still, I think that a parent or adult screening this for teens in their life might find a couple parts of this going *ever-so-slightly* too far.
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Ratings
Story Concept 5/5
Quality of Writing 5/5
Pacing 5/5
Plot Development 4/5
Character Development 5/5
Overall Enjoyability 4.5/5

Thank you to the publishers for this advanced copy of this title.
I loved it. Simply put. Older daughters everywhere who feel the pressure to be their family’s glue will definitely relate to this one. I loved Audre in Seven Days In June and it was great to see her grow and develop into her own character within her mom’s world. Bash was very cool and I felt like him and Audre were a great team as well. His character wasn’t dependent on Audre’s story which I liked.

The writing reminded me sooo much of Tia Williams’ other book The Perfect Find. Nostalgic in a way to read. This story is about two young adults cultivating paths while discussing the pasts that shaped them with each other in a way that’s productive and vulnerable.

This was sooo cute!! It’s your typical teenager behavior and you could just feel that from the writing. Bash and Audre obviously struggled to communicate their feelings to one another but it works because of their age range as teens tend to struggle being vulnerable about how they really feel. I thought it was beautiful how they both were really struggling with feeling wanted and loved by their parents (even Reshma).

As a mom— it inspires me in a way to make sure that no matter what’s happening with me whether career wise or relationship wise, my kids still feel like they are important to me. 🩵

One of the easiest five stars I’ve ever given!! I adore Audre and her growth. I found her anxiety pretty relatable and I loved seeing how she worked through it. I think Bash is a really great character as well. He’s definitely giving heartthrob with his cinnamon bun energy.

This book has me giggling, screaming, and crying. It was so well done. The pace was perfect, the characters are so lovable, the plot was fun, and the cameos of Eva and Shane were very reflective.

I’m a 27 year old white woman so I’m not the main target audience but that didn’t matter to me at all, if anything it made me reflect more

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!!

⭐️⭐️⭐️.5

When I heard Audre was getting a spin-off, I was ready. I just loved her character in Seven Days in June, so getting to see her step into her own story? I was excited. Thank you, NetGalley, for the ARC! 🥹🩷

Spoiler-Free review:

Audre is sixteen, locked in on school, college apps, and doing everything right. But then it hits her—she’s been so focused on standing out that she’s never actually lived. Enter Bash, the effortlessly cool new kid. Audre? Not so much. So she does what any logical overachiever would—asks him to teach her how to be fun. A ridiculous plan? Absolutely. But it makes for the perfect setup.

Tia Williams knows how to craft characters that feel real. The humor? Sharp. The banter? Top-tier. The Gen-Z slang? On point. And the romance? That sweet, slow-burn, friendship-turned-something-more tension. It captures the highs and lows of being a teen—first love, friendship fights, overprotective parents, and those moments where everything feels ten times bigger than it actually is.

Things I liked:
• Seeing Eva through Audre’s eyes—watching that mother-daughter relationship evolve was layered in the best way.
• The way mental health was handled felt thoughtful and real, not just thrown in for drama.
• The humor! Tia Williams has a way of sneaking in lines that’ll have you laughing mid-page.

This book was amazing! It’s smart, engaging, and blends humor with the heavier moments perfectly. 🩷

Disclaimer, I didn't read Seven Day June. However, I really enjoyed Audre and Bash Are Just Friends.
Audre an inspiring therapist recruits Bash an inspiring tattoo artist to be her funsulant to help tackle a list of small list of task for cross off during the summer. This was a cute quick read, and im excited to read the rest of the blacklist by Tia Williams