We ended up getting the sister's apology but I stand by my opinion that mom also owed Joni an apology for the debacle

Cute; Blakely did well at really conveying the friendship and how Ren and Joni were each other's person. The tidal wave of feeling like you'd lost your best friend/were losing your best friend was shown very well and conveyed how much it hurt.

That said, the last 15% was wild. It felt like the issue and the resolution were rushed and chaotic in the not-so-great way. I did have an arc copy and there were a couple of errors here and there, but I have no doubt those will be resolved by the time the book fully comes out.

thank you Netgalley and Sally Blakely for the arc!

As soon as I saw this book was recommended for fans of The Summer I Turned Pretty, I knew I had to pick it up!

While Friends to Lovers isn’t usually my go-to trope—I tend to gravitate toward Enemies to Lovers with all the tension and angst—I actually really enjoyed how it played out here. The transition from friendship to romance felt natural and well-developed, making me root for the characters every step of the way.

Sally Blakely’s writing style is effortlessly engaging—smooth, immersive, and honestly, dare I say, immaculate? She masterfully balances the tropes, storyline, and pacing, creating a book that’s easy to get lost in. From the emotional depth to the well-executed romance, everything just clicked.

If you're a fan of heartfelt, well-paced love stories, this one is definitely worth a read!

A fun romance with lots of pining moments between best friends. Ren and Joni have had years together, but for a variety of reasons are not together-together. And, trust me, the vibes are very much there. Friends to Lovers takes you on a time-jumping journey through their near-misses and not-so-near-misses. I really enjoyed the chapters where their tension builds and they can't hide from their feelings, they had gobs of chemistry and I couldn't get enough of it. I did find a few of the time jumps jarring as they extend for 1-3 chapters, but that may be just been the ARC-formatting more than the story itself.

Perfect for fans of Best Friends to Lovers trope!

Specials thanks to Harlequin and NetGalley for this ARC.

My rating: 4.5 ⭐️

I really enjoyed this one. The dual timelines were woven together really well. We truly got to see what made Ren and Joni, Ren and Joni. The way they came together slowly not only felt authentic, but also created some delightful tension. There was a lot of character grown, in both MCs, but most obviously in Joni. It made you understand why it took her so long to come to grips with her feelings. And it’s impossible not to fall in love with Ren.

Than you to Harlequin publishing and the HTP Hive for access to an ARC of the ebook. My review is voluntary and my own opinion

this book will definitely have its people, but that does not include me. To me it was unremarkable, bland, and my favorite pages with a blank ones. People who like Friends to lovers, dual timeline, single POV, and travel aspects will enjoy this. I was just bored through this entire story of miscommunication, lack of self awareness, and confusion.

I usually am not huge fan of the friends to lovers trope. However, I was recommended this book by a friend and so glad I listened. I loved everything about this book, especially the fact that it was dual timeline. This explored there past and present perfectly. I would definitely recommend this book even if you usually like this trope. I promise it is worth it!

I fell in love with this book’s exploration of friendship, heartbreak, and second chances. I connected with Joni’s struggle as she tried to navigate the complexities of her past with Ren while putting on a brave face for her family. I felt the bittersweet emotions as she tried to make her sister’s wedding week perfect while pretending everything was fine with the person who had once meant everything to her. The author’s vivid descriptions of sunny days and starry nights at the summer home made me feel like I was right there with them, reliving memories and questioning what had gone wrong. As the story unfolded, I felt Joni’s emotions deeply—her doubts, her hopes, and the undeniable pull she still felt toward Ren. I admired how the book captured the tension and vulnerability of rebuilding trust after a relationship has been fractured.

I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves stories about rekindled connections, the blurry lines between friendship and love, and the messy, beautiful journey of finding where you truly belong. It’s a heartfelt, moving read that left me reflecting long after I turned the last page.

Ahhhh this book sucked me in right away because I LOVE the childhood friends to lovers trope, and I also love the beach house setting trope (Summer I Turned Pretty, Every Summer After, Same Time Next Summer). Ren and Joni have always been best friends and each other’s plus ones until one wedding changes the course of everything. Friends to Lovers alternates between present day and the past to help tell the story of friendship, love, and heartbreak. I love when authors write books this way, because it gives the present day so much more weight when you truly understand how much exists between two characters, and how much is on the line if it all goes wrong.

After a painful two years apart, they return for Joni’s sister Stevie’s wedding, but is Joni hiding the fact that she was just fired, and together they are hiding the fact that their hearts have been shattered by each other. I felt so much nostalgia and the strong magnetic pull between these two is undeniable, especially when they find themselves paired up in their old sleeping quarters (forced proximity eeeek).

I love Ren, his thoughtful playlists, and his deep and quiet unwavering love and support for Joni. He’s steady and protective of her despite their recent past. He is seemingly immune to all of the influences and personalities that collide when the families and friends come together because his focus is all about Joni (swoon!).

Themes
-childhood friends to lovers
-second chance
-beach house/ vacation home
-beach read


Genre: Romance
Spice: Some, not super graphic.
Rating: 4 Stars
Series or Stand-Alone: Stand-Alone
Thanks to @sally.blakely, @harlequinbooks, and @NetGalley for the ARC copy! This is my honest review.

Thank you to Sally Blakely, NetGalley, and Harlequin Trade Publishing for the eARC!

Friends-to-lovers, dual timeline, and a romance that melts your heart - are we sure this is a debut novel for Sally Blakely?!? This was such a fun and endearing ride that had me enthralled from start to finish. I do not typically enjoy the friends-to-lovers trope but this book is an exception. Prepare to audibly ahhh when you pick up this book!

Friends to lovers has always been one of my favorite tropes but then add in second chance and dual timeline?!?! I’m SAT

Both the main characters were so sweet and I was rooting for them the entire time.

I absolutely lived the summer wedding setting. It just made the perfect vibes for a summer romance.

This book is perfect for people who love People We Meet on Vacation and The Ex Vows.

This story of life, love, friendship and family had me feeling all the feelings. There were laughter, tears, frustration, and it ended with me smiling and thinking finally. I wanted to be part of the families and spend time at the vacation house with them. Joni and Ren are best friends and do everything together until Joni lands her dream job on the other side of the country. They try to stay close and it works until they make a choice that changes everything. Now that they are together for a family wedding can they find their way back to each other and take a chance? Or will fear keep them from even trying? I highly recommend this book to readers that like friends to lovers stories.

I wanted to love this book, but I just couldn't get into it. It's definitely a slow burn, which I'm not opposed to. Admittedly they are never my favorite, but I can appreciate them when done right. However, Friends to Lovers has a frustrating and unbalanced pacing that continually baits you with the promise of clarity and/or story advancement rarely without the fulfillment of said promise. I wanted to get lost in this friends to lovers troupe, but this one just didn't do it for me I'm afraid.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of this novel!

I found the start of this book to be so summery and loved the premise of two friends who have drifted apart having to forced together to celebrate their siblings marrying each other. Ren is our mmc and he is the typical tall, dark, handsome and a great best friend to Joni. Joni starts this story having just gotten fired from her "dream job" that actually seems to have taken over her life. Ren and Joni formed an agreement after college that they would be each other's plus one for weddings. The story jumps timelines to various weddings they have attended together. Eventually you untangle what pulled them apart and by the middle of the story I found my self rooting for these two to talk it out and share how they feel. I also loved the cast of characters that made up Ren and Joni's respective families, they all added humor to the main character's angst!

While I loved the premise and beach house setting there were some parts that felt tedious at times. First off, Joni avoids all conflict and hides herself from her family, much of her and Ren's conflict stems from her not sharing how she is feeling, this got a bit frustrating as she manages to miss out on every meaningful relationship including her sister, mom and Ren. I also found her avoidance of sharing about her job to be extreme, by not talking about it she was just catastrophizing in her head about it. Then at the end its all sunshine and roses because it means that she can easily relocate back home which fixes all her problems.

I think this is a great summer read but I am taking off a few starts for the tedious nature of the fmc!

The formatting of this book on kindle made it impossible for me to get through. So many letters are missing and the chapters aren’t divided but are just new paragraphs. I’ve tried reading it and the story line is good. I’m about 1/4 in and I just can’t keep reading with the formatting. I will read it when it comes out in correct format.

Perfect for fans of Annabelle Monaghan and Emily Henry, This is the story of Joni and Ren. They’ve been best friends since childhood. But, boy/girl relationships can be complicated! This one is so swoon worthy with just the right amount of sweet. I’ve seen mentioned that if “People We Meet on Vacation” and “Happy Place” had a baby, this book would be the end result — and that is the perfect description! Sally Blakely has earned a spot on my favorites list with this sweet romance. Thank you so much NetGalley for this early copy of “Friends to Lovers”,

I absolutely loved this friends to lovers book! That can be a hard trope to write but the author did it beautifully!
Ren and Joni have been friends since childhood. Ren developed feelings for Joni as a teenager but didn't want to risk their friendship. Present day is when they are in their late 20's.
The author did a great job blending the sneak peek of the past with the present.
All around a great read!
Tropes:
Friends to lovers
Forced Proximity
One bed
He falls first

4.5⭐️
(ARC review) — Thank you to author Sally Blakely and her publisher Canary Street Press. I received an Advanced Reader Copy for the July 2025 release of 𝐹𝘳𝑖𝘦𝑛𝘥𝑠 𝑡𝘰 𝘓𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘳𝑠 in exchange for my honest review. This is a fantastic author debut. Reminds me a bit of Emily Henry’s books. Great easy summer reading, like a warm hug. Set in a dual timeline but easy to follow. You’ll love these characters (Ren & Jodi) and eagerly will want to see how their journey unfolds. Would have loved to give this one slightly higher rating🌟but couldn’t because I wanted more at the end of the book. More of their story. So much more!! So I was bummed. If you like friends to lovers and second chance romances, you’ll enjoy this one. Loved it! Absolutely add to your Summer 2025 stack!!!!

FAVORITE QUOTES —
‘𝙄 𝙩𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙄 𝙠𝙣𝙚𝙬 𝙝𝙤𝙬 𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙧𝙮 𝙬𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙 𝙜𝙤, 𝙩𝙬𝙤 𝙥𝙖𝙧𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙡 𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙚𝙨 𝙨𝙩𝙧𝙚𝙩𝙘𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙞𝙣𝙩𝙤 𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧. 𝘽𝙪𝙩 𝙞𝙣 𝙧𝙚𝙩𝙧𝙤𝙨𝙥𝙚𝙘𝙩, 𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙡𝙞𝙫𝙚𝙨 𝙬𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙣𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧 𝙙𝙚𝙨𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙤 𝙩𝙖𝙠𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙨𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙚’ • ‘𝘽𝙪𝙩 𝙡𝙞𝙠𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙮 𝙜𝙤𝙤𝙙 𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙧𝙮, 𝙡𝙞𝙛𝙚 𝙝𝙖𝙨 𝙞𝙩𝙨 𝙩𝙬𝙞𝙨𝙩𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙣𝙨, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙨𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙚𝙨, 𝙟𝙪𝙨𝙩 𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙠 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙨 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙜𝙤𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙤 𝙚𝙣𝙙 𝙪𝙥 𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙬𝙖𝙮, 𝙩𝙝𝙤𝙨𝙚 𝙩𝙬𝙤 𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙚𝙨 𝙝𝙚𝙖𝙙 𝙨𝙩𝙧𝙖𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙚𝙖𝙘𝙝 𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧.’

I found myself drawn into this read right off the bat. Sally Blakely’s writing was perfection! I found this story incredibly easy to follow and felt like I was there with the characters. When Joni and Ren first reconnect in the beach house after all those years…awkward. I love that I could palpate that tension through the page like I was a fly on the wall.

Ren is a total sweetheart and the love you could tell he had for Joni made me swoon and broke my heart all at the same time. I wanted to get eye-level with Joni and ask her to get it together multiple times! The timelines, both past and present, not only progress so smoothly, but also paint the perfect interconnected story, fitting all the pieces into place.

I will admit – I’ve recently decided I just don’t think I’m a huge second chance girly. I certainly know how to hold a grudge and I’m not above it. With that being said, I think this one was written well, I didn’t find it too cheesy as I sometimes do and it was enjoyable, so if you’re someone who loves second chance, this is most likely right up your alley! I would have loved to see more of Joni and Ren together, after we got our happily ever after.

I found this to be a fun read filled with angst and love. This book is definitely up there with some of the best debut novels I have read. Thank you to Sally Blakely and Netgalley for this eARC! These thoughts are my own, honest opinions.

I really enjoyed this second chance romance book and following Joni and Ren's friendship alongside the wedding week. I'm not usually the biggest fan of friends to lovers, but having the separate timelines, it was nicely split between the second chance trope (with forced proximity as a bonus!) that I love and how it all started with their friends to lovers trope. I also loved reading the side characters in their respective families because everyone felt unique and interesting. The writing style was also excellent and Sally Blakely is definitely an author I'll happily read more of. Fans of Emily Henry should check this one out because I think it very much feels like the love child of Happy Place and People We Meet On Vacation.

4.5 ⭐️

I really loved this book! It reminded me of a mixture of Happy Place and Love and Other Words. I found Ren to be very lovable and I was rooting for him and Joni the entire time. The book also hooked me right away and I was dying to know what exactly went down with them as their relationship progressed. The dual narratives made it so fun to get glimpses of the past and present and I definitely preferred Sally Blakely's style of writing over a linear timeline.

If you're a fan of Emily Henry and Christina Lauren and you like second chance romance and friends to lovers tropes, I'd definitely recommend picking this one up.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC. All opinions are my own :)