Better Than Friends by Jill Shalvis
Published by Avon on January 21, 2025
Age/Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Fiction
Goodreads
Old flames reignite in Sunrise Cove in this charming enemies-to-lovers, second-chance, small-town, forced-proximity love story about family, friendships, and true love from New York Times bestselling author Jill Shalvis.
When Olive Porter’s off-the-grid parents go missing, she reluctantly seeks out Noah Turner, her ex and the only person she both trusts implicitly and not at all.
As a special investigative agent for the National Park Service, Noah’s used to living under intense pressure. Or he was until he got injured on the job. Now unhappily recuperating at home while being smothered by his loving but nosy family, he’d love nothing more than a good distraction.
So when Olive shows up looking like a million bucks, he has to do a gut and heart check. Because nope, no matter what, he can’t fall for her again, the woman who once blew up his entire life and never looked back. How ironic then that his own personal hell (Olive) is also his ticket out of town. The question is, will the risk be worth the reward?
When her best friend's husband is injured on the job, Olive returns home to support her and she is forced to confront her past while also finding her future.
It was great to be back in Sunrise Cove. Once again, Shalvis crafted a story filled with humor, family, friendship, and emotion. What I found most interesting was that I felt the romance was front and center in this book.
Olive and Noah met at fourteen when she moved in with her gram and became best friends with Noah's sister, Katie. A lot of time was spent filling us in on the what transpired in the past between them and what had kept them apart for so many years. I will admit that their push and pull frustrated me a bit, but it was well worth it. I love that they pined for each other for so long and that they STILL carried a spark for one another. When they were together, everything just seemed right. They were a healing balm for each other and brought them calm.
Friendships and found family dominated in this book. First, there was an amazing life-long bond between Katie and Olive that 6,000 miles could not weaken. Their relationship was built on being true to themselves, and it was easy to see how well they understood each other. Though we didn't get to see as much of it, I also loved the bromance between Noah and Joe. Another long friendship where they literally trusted each other with their lives. There were a few subplots, here and there, but it was the romance and friendships that really captured my heart.
Overall this was another hit for me. As with all Shalvis' books, Better Than Friends made me smile and laugh while it filled me with warmth. There were these moments of pure joy along with so many sweet and tender moments which simply made me a happy, and I cannot wait to get my hands on the next Shalvis book.
PS: I Hate You by Lauren Connolly
Published by Berkley on December 3, 2024
Age/Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance
Goodreads
Maddie Sanderson would be proud to honor her older brother’s dying wish, that she scatters his ashes over eight destinations that the adventurous 29-year-old never got to visit before he died from cancer. But in his will, Josh assigned her an impossible partner to help complete the mission—Dominic Perry. Seriously, if Maddie weren’t already at his funeral, she would have killed him for this.
Sure, Dom was Josh’s life-long best friend. He’s also the infuriating man who broke Maddie’s heart back when she was naïve enough to give it to him. But since Dom insists on following the rules and Josh didn’t leave much room for Maddie to argue the matter, they embark together on a farewell trip that spans thousands of miles, exploring new places and revisiting their complicated history along the way.
After a snowstorm leads to a shared bed, Maddie starts to wonder if her brother might be matchmaking from the grave. But when grief also reopens old wounds between them, Maddie will need more than Josh’s ghostly guidance to trust Dom again.
When her brother Josh dies, Maddie is forced to spread his ashes with Josh's best friend and the man who broke her heart, Dominick. Along the way, they learn some things about Josh and themselves as they honor Josh's last wishes, heal, and fall in love.
This BOOK! From the very beginning, I knew I was going to have a good time. This story was had multiple road trips, a bit of unfinished business between Maddie and Dom, and a TON of emotions. I felt everything as I read this book, and I loved every second of it.
I feel like some readers may not give Maddie a chance because she can seem kind of harsh, but people - there are reasons. She wore her humor and sarcasm as a shield which she needed to combat her massive abandonment issues. One must understand that she lost the only person in the universe who didn't abandon her and this broke my heart.
After everything transpired with Dom, Maddie fled. She never really got answers or closure. This was her chance for both. I impatiently waited to get some answers. I will say that I guessed at a few of the reveals but not at all of them, and heck, it all hit me hard in the feels.
There was just so much history between Maddie, Dom, and his family. She lost a lot when they fell out with Dom as his family was the only real, kind, and loving family she had ever known. I was sad her brother died but I was grateful that Maddie had this chance to reconnect with some very important people in her life. It was kind of beautiful that Josh was still looking out for her, making sure she would not have to grieve on her own.
And let me tell you, if you do any sort of state base reading challenge (like I do), this book is a bonanza for some of those hard-to-check-off states. The story takes us to Dom's home state of Pennsylvania, Maddie's home state of Washington, as well as Delaware, North Dakota, South Dakota, Idaho, Alabama, Arizona, and Kansas which are all part of the farewell tour. Not only did Maddie and Dom visit those states, but they did something interesting in each one. I loved that I had a sort of unique experience with each stop as I have not personally visited most of those states.
Overall, this was a beautiful story of love and loss which touched my heart. Connelly did an incredible job balancing grief, romance, and humor to produce a tale that was part heartbreaking, part heartwarming, and at times, hilarious. I am so grateful I had the chance to accompany Maddie and Dom as they said goodbye to Josh and found their way back to each other.
*ARCS PROVIDED BY THE PUBLISHER
visited in PS: I Hate You?
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