{"id":7410,"date":"2020-11-29T17:02:00","date_gmt":"2020-11-29T09:02:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/bishieholic.com\/?p=7410"},"modified":"2023-12-14T16:38:30","modified_gmt":"2023-12-14T16:38:30","slug":"novel-just-friends","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/aflowerbookmark.com\/?p=7410","title":{"rendered":"Just friends"},"content":{"rendered":"

Book Title:<\/strong> Just Friends (Never Just Friends #1) by Saxon James<\/h1>\n

Published:<\/strong> August 27, 2020<\/h2>\n

Synopsis (from Goodreads<\/a>):<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n

Roo<\/b><\/p>\n

Five years ago, I walked away from Sunbury, Oregon, and left my best friend behind.<\/p>\n

The move was supposed to get my life on track. I even had a list.<\/p>\n

Life changing epilepsy surgery. Check.<\/p>\n

See the world. Check<\/p>\n

Get over my straight best friend \u2026 Not exactly.<\/p>\n

No matter where I go or who I meet, I can\u2019t let Tanner go.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m back to tell him how I feel. To get the closure I need once and for all.<\/p>\n

Only now I\u2019m here and falling for him all over again, it\u2019s getting harder to say the words.<\/p>\n

Because once I have my closure, I\u2019ll be gone.<\/p>\n

And this time it will be for good.<\/p>\n

Tanner<\/b><\/p>\n

When my best friend, Roo, left for Australia, it was the worst day of my life.<\/p>\n

I thought we\u2019d have each other always.<\/p>\n

But Roo needed the surgery so I let him go, thinking he\u2019d come straight back.<\/p>\n

Five years is a long time.<\/p>\n

Now he\u2019s here, all I want is to hold on tight.<\/p>\n

I need to show him what he means to me.<\/p>\n

The problem is, I\u2019m not exactly sure what that is.<\/p>\n

My draw to him has always been confusing and different\u2014everyone in town says so. But I struggle to understand it.<\/p>\n

All I know is I won\u2019t survive him leaving again.<\/p>\n

And I\u2019ll do anything to make him stay.<\/p>\n

Just Friends is a best friends-to-lovers romance with an oblivious MC, only one bed, and terrible kangaroo jokes.<\/b><\/i><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\n

<\/p>\n

Just Friends — for some reason it took me quite a while before I finally get the title despite the numerous emphasis of everyone in this book lol.<\/p>\n

2020\u2019s got to be the year of re-reads. I\u2019ve done quite a bit of them from the books I\u2019ve read last year, but Just Friends is something that I re-read almost right after finishing it.<\/p>\n

It has the trope that I recently liked which is the best-friends-to-lovers trope. The story is a feel-good, warm, and impossibly sweet story, yet, for some reason, it works because the characters make me believe that it\u2019s not impossible to have the kind of relationship Roo and Tanner have because they\u2019re them,<\/i> and their connection is different from the rest of the crowd. Got to love that touchy-feely thing they got going on. I often find myself smiling while reading this book.<\/p>\n

The MCs are Royce aka Roo and Tanner. They are both in their early twenties, but they sound late twenties.\u00a0Roo is epileptic, and Tanner has ADHD, and I love that they are not the usual abled MCs. They prove to be more than just what people usually think when they have those conditions. Besides, everyone deserves a happy ending. Though I\u2019m quite worried about Roo swimming especially when they roughhouse in the pool. Wouldn\u2019t that be dangerous for someone with epilepsy? At least, have some caution when swimming?<\/p>\n

My favorite part is during the bi-awakening stage of Tanner because, well, tension. I live for it. Though, same with angst, it\u2019s pretty low-key, and I already know and feel safe that their relationship will be smooth-sailing despite whatever the cynical part of Roo says.<\/p>\n

While I like and enjoy this book for the fluffy feels, there is no other stronger pull. The events happen because they should be like they are there because it is what is needed to happen. This is also riddled with tropes so I can already guess what will come next. What\u2019s more, this book features a dual POV which is both a curse and a blessing because it lessens the tension. And it doesn\u2019t help that Tanner’s realization came before the confession which reduces the dramatic irony.<\/p>\n

I hope this becomes a series, and I hope that the next characters would be Circus and Rowan judging from the glimpses and small build-up thrown here and there in the book.<\/p>\n

\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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