A Guide to Being Just Friends
"Sometimes we don't know who we are until we find the right person. The one that helps us see ourselves in a way we never did before."
A Guide to Being Just Friends by Sophie Sullivan is the third and final installment in the Jansen Brothers series, but you don't need to have read the previous two to understand this one. I have not read the two other books, but Sullivan does a great job establishing the chemistry and love shared between the three brothers without forcing it, as well as providing backstory for the other two romances without sounding like she was summarizing Jansen Brothers 1 and 2. I will be going back to read about Chris and Noah though!
Summary:
Hailey needs San Verde to be a fresh start--literally. After leaving behind LA and her toxic ex-boyfriend, Hailey has opened her salad restaurant By the Cup in San Verde, California to prove to herself, and everyone in her life, that she can make it on her own. Sure, restaurants aren't the most secure ventures, but it's California, so everyone loves salad, and she knows hers are good. She gets to live near her wonderful cousin, Piper, and Piper's family, her store is right next to a delicious bakery, and despite her ex Dorian being a heinous human being, she still believes in love.
Wes is also new to San Verde. He's spent years living in New York under the thumb of his tyrant father, but after his two younger brothers, Chris and Noah, moved to California and found love, Wes followed close behind. The Jansen brothers are breaking free from their father's hate and are starting their own foundation, and Wes can do his investments and acquisitions from his computer at home. Wes may not believe in love himself--after all, he's only seen the hatred and destruction that follows--but he's happy for his brothers, and is ready to make San Verde is home.
When Wes and Hailey meet, it's anything but love at first sight. But as time passes, the two become fast friends, with Hailey's sunshine balancing Wes' realism, and Wes teaching Hailey how to accept help. Both have been jaded by love before, and have no desire to ruin their friendship with romance, so as a joke, Wes and Hailey create a guidebook to being just friends, complete with illustrations and silly rules. They have a routine, and each is helping the other feel more comfortable in their new homes. Love is not on the table. Not at all.
Or is it?
Thoughts:
This was a classic, cute romcom. Sullivan hits all of the beats, and it's clear that the formula she cracked with her previous two Jansen brothers works. I really liked Wes and Hailey together, and enjoyed how long they stayed friends before inevitably starting to date. Their friendship was so necessary for both characters personal growths, and I don't think the book would have worked without that foundation. I loved seeing them do the mundane--grocery shopping on Saturdays, playing video games together, making homemade marinara sauce--and I especially enjoyed how easily they fit with the other's friends.
My biggest problem with A Guide to Being Just Friends was how formulaic it was, which I've come to expect in romance books, but this one was particularly predictable. The Jansen brothers series reminds me a lot of Tessa Bailey's It Happened One Summer and Hook, Line, and Sinker; both use the same formula: meet cute that isn't actually cute, slowly become friends, sexual tension but refuse to cross that line, start dating after "the best kiss of their lives," one (usually the man) makes a mistake, they break up, big gesture, happily ever after. There's certainly nothing wrong with this formula--the same steps are followed in every successful romantic comedy movie--but after being spoiled by the likes of Emily Henry, I've come to expect more from my romances. My favorite romance books have substance beyond the love plot, and I didn't really see that in A Guide to Being Just Friends.
Nevertheless, this was a great romance to escape the world in and just feel happy. There were numerous "awh" moments, and a plethora of well-done tropes, including grumpy/sunshine, protective man, jaded man learns to love, and a grand gesture.
Overall:
I won't read this book again, but Sullivan hooked me enough to read the first two Jansen Brothers books, and probably anything else she publishes in the future. This was a quick, fun, romantic read, and was a great choice during finals week as a place to escape to for a few hours. I definitely recommend A Guide to Being Just Friends to anyone who loves a classic romantic comedy (both movies and books)! But be forewarned: you will crave salad and brownies the entire time reading this novel.
My rating: 3.5/5
Goodreads Average: 3.65/5
Information:
A Guide to Being Just Friends by Sophie Sullivan (St. Martin’s Griffin)
Publication Date: January 16, 2023
ISBN: 9781250624208