Scan barcode
A review by julinino19
A Guide to Being Just Friends by Sophie Sullivan
3.0
2.5 || So, I did not know that this was the third book in a romance series before requesting the ARC...oops.
That being said, I don't think it really matters when it comes to romance series; you don't HAVE to read the previous books because each follows its own story.
THE PLOT
Hailey has fled her life in LA and started her own salad shop in San Verde, California, where her cousin (that is practically her sister) lives with her husband and three kids. Hailey is leaving behind her toxic ex-boyfriend and his Hollywood crowd. Wes is the oldest of the Jansen brothers. They each have found themselves in California after growing up in NYC, leaving their controlling father and his career plans for the three of them behind. Wes loves getting to spend time with his brothers and their girlfriends (read the previous two books in this series to watch their love stories unfold), but love has never been in Wes' life plan. He watched his parents marriage crumble and doesn't want to ever go through something like that. Hailey is on a dating hiatus in order to heal from her breakup and focus on her business. Both Wes and Hailey aren't looking for a relationship, so when they meet and conclude that they enjoy each others company, their friendship blossoms. But, of course, Hailey and Wes soon realize that their feelings for each other go beyond friendship—they slowly start veering off into "I love you" territory. But before they can accept this, each must learn to let themselves be loved.
WHAT I APPRECIATED
Let's start on a positive note before I dig into what I didn't like.
I think this book has a lot of "good" things in it. Good friendships, good life lessons, and a good setup/plot. There's the classic rom-com's with Julia Roberts or Sandra Bullock, and then there's the Hallmark movies—the one's you might turn to when you just want to watch a lot of good unfold. A Hallmark movie doesn't try to trick you; you welcome its predictability. This book was like that, therefore it accomplished what it set out to do.
I haven't read many friends-to-lovers romances (I find they are hard to come by), so it was nice to watch that specific trope unfold.
WHY IT'S MEDIOCRE
But, here's the thing, I don't like Hallmark movies. I can appreciate a book that accomplished what it set out to do, hence why this didn't get a lower rating from me. Now it just comes down to personal taste and my reading experience.
Everything was extremely spelled out it was actually nauseating. Rom-com's are already predictable and cheesy, but when the characters' dialogue and inner thoughts are so generic because it's what they "should" say/think, it makes everything seem so forced/unnatural.
This made the conversations between characters clunky, and I dreaded when there was a group scene with six or more people. The corny dialogue made certain characters feel one-dimensional. Also, humor is something I look forward to in rom-coms, and I am known to actually laugh out loud when the banter is deliciously witty, but I did not laugh a single time. Nothing that was said for comedic effect worked for me.
Alongside everything being so on the nose, the repetitive nature of this book didn't help. There are several points the author tried to make with this, and each one was repeated a bunch throughout the novel; this is something that never works for me. This kind of repetition takes away from the narrative, making it feel overly structured and systematic. I can appreciate a romance that tackles other issues beyond the main relationship, but it didn't flow and mesh for me in this one.
Lastly, and this one is always going to be very personal, Hailey and Wes made me roll my eyes one too many times. They had me sighing at their inner dialogue and the way they both hyper-fixated on everything. I didn't HATE them as mc's, but they were irritating and basic at the same time.
YOU SHOULD READ THIS IF...
1. You have read the previous two books and you enjoyed them
2. Looking for a friends-to-lovers? Here ya go!
3. You like Hallmark movies (my parents love them and I totally get their appeal, so no hate whatsoever)
4. A rom-com with a big cast of characters
Thanks so much to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for an advanced reader's copy in exchange for my honest review.
That being said, I don't think it really matters when it comes to romance series; you don't HAVE to read the previous books because each follows its own story.
THE PLOT
Hailey has fled her life in LA and started her own salad shop in San Verde, California, where her cousin (that is practically her sister) lives with her husband and three kids. Hailey is leaving behind her toxic ex-boyfriend and his Hollywood crowd. Wes is the oldest of the Jansen brothers. They each have found themselves in California after growing up in NYC, leaving their controlling father and his career plans for the three of them behind. Wes loves getting to spend time with his brothers and their girlfriends (read the previous two books in this series to watch their love stories unfold), but love has never been in Wes' life plan. He watched his parents marriage crumble and doesn't want to ever go through something like that. Hailey is on a dating hiatus in order to heal from her breakup and focus on her business. Both Wes and Hailey aren't looking for a relationship, so when they meet and conclude that they enjoy each others company, their friendship blossoms. But, of course, Hailey and Wes soon realize that their feelings for each other go beyond friendship—they slowly start veering off into "I love you" territory. But before they can accept this, each must learn to let themselves be loved.
WHAT I APPRECIATED
Let's start on a positive note before I dig into what I didn't like.
I think this book has a lot of "good" things in it. Good friendships, good life lessons, and a good setup/plot. There's the classic rom-com's with Julia Roberts or Sandra Bullock, and then there's the Hallmark movies—the one's you might turn to when you just want to watch a lot of good unfold. A Hallmark movie doesn't try to trick you; you welcome its predictability. This book was like that, therefore it accomplished what it set out to do.
I haven't read many friends-to-lovers romances (I find they are hard to come by), so it was nice to watch that specific trope unfold.
WHY IT'S MEDIOCRE
But, here's the thing, I don't like Hallmark movies. I can appreciate a book that accomplished what it set out to do, hence why this didn't get a lower rating from me. Now it just comes down to personal taste and my reading experience.
Everything was extremely spelled out it was actually nauseating. Rom-com's are already predictable and cheesy, but when the characters' dialogue and inner thoughts are so generic because it's what they "should" say/think, it makes everything seem so forced/unnatural.
This made the conversations between characters clunky, and I dreaded when there was a group scene with six or more people. The corny dialogue made certain characters feel one-dimensional. Also, humor is something I look forward to in rom-coms, and I am known to actually laugh out loud when the banter is deliciously witty, but I did not laugh a single time. Nothing that was said for comedic effect worked for me.
Alongside everything being so on the nose, the repetitive nature of this book didn't help. There are several points the author tried to make with this, and each one was repeated a bunch throughout the novel; this is something that never works for me. This kind of repetition takes away from the narrative, making it feel overly structured and systematic. I can appreciate a romance that tackles other issues beyond the main relationship, but it didn't flow and mesh for me in this one.
Lastly, and this one is always going to be very personal, Hailey and Wes made me roll my eyes one too many times. They had me sighing at their inner dialogue and the way they both hyper-fixated on everything. I didn't HATE them as mc's, but they were irritating and basic at the same time.
YOU SHOULD READ THIS IF...
1. You have read the previous two books and you enjoyed them
2. Looking for a friends-to-lovers? Here ya go!
3. You like Hallmark movies (my parents love them and I totally get their appeal, so no hate whatsoever)
4. A rom-com with a big cast of characters
Thanks so much to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for an advanced reader's copy in exchange for my honest review.