Just Friends

Someone press play on "Shake It Off" by Taylor Swift because haters gonna hate, hate, hate, hate. hate. This book has some pretty negative reviews and I'm not sure why. It's a beautiful story of second chances, but even more so, it's a story of grief in all forms. Not only does the MFC (Blair) experience grief over the death of a loved one, she experiences anger and sadness over the loss of close friendships and the life she had planned for herself. The way Haley depicts grief is real and raw. One passage that stuck with me mentions how even in your darkest moments and worse days, there will still be dirty dishes in the sink. The world doesn't stop just because your world did. Ugh. My heart. If you have ever experienced loss, you get it.

But this is a romance book, right? It is, but not in a head over heels, can't smother out the heat way. The relationship between Blair and Declan is messy. It ends abruptly their senior year of high school and they don't show up in eachother's lives again for years. When they do it is a slow, careful, and painful reunion. It does move slowly as they rekindle their friendship and love for eachother, so I can see how that could annoy some readers. As well as zerooo spice. There is also a touch of the classic miscommunication trope (which drives me nuts) but it worked.

The setting was also a paid actor throughout the book. Every location was painted as a still photo inside my head. The small coastal town, the coffee shop, the cottage. It was all decribed so beautifully, I wish I could take my next vacation in Seabrook. Read it and you will want to, too.