Sophie Sullivan

I really enjoyed this book! From the representation of a female MC that struggles with anxiety, to the way the male MC was just completely understanding and accepted her whole-heartedly, this was a lovable romcom with just the right amount of seriousness.

As I have seen others say, I do agree that the severity of Everly's anxiety disorder, while nice to see represented, should have been handled by seeing a professional therapist or counselor. While it's a step toward improving the narrative show more around anxiety disorders and neurotypical characters, it may also be harmful to some who are already nervous about seeing someone and being treated professionally. This would have been a great step toward normalizing not only the disorder but also the treatment, which is the part many people shy away from due to the stigma.

Aside from that issue, I still really enjoyed Everly and Chris, and I would love to see more about his brothers and Stacey! show less

Real Rating: 3.75* of five

The Publisher Says: All bets are off when a single-minded photographer and a professional hockey player are forced to spend a week together on his sister’s Christmas tree farm, perfect for fans of Jenny Holiday and Maggie Knox.

Maisie Smart has a don’t-look-back policy–not on the choice she made to be a photographer (despite her family’s wishes) and not on the one-night stand she had six months ago. Sleeping with someone she barely knew was out of character; show more sleeping with a professional hockey player who bolted the morning after is a whole new level of embarrassing. Getting invited to spend the week at Tickle Tree Farm with her family this Christmas is a sure way to fill her with holiday spirit. Until the universe throws a Grinch in her festive plans in the form of the one man she hoped to avoid.

Nick King is a mess. After a significant injury lands him on the bench for every game for the rest of the month, he has more time to dwell on the one night stand he can’t get out of his head. With time on his hands, his anxiety hovering, and the holidays around the corner, he figures visiting his sister and nephew at their Christmas tree farm will be a good way to lie low and sort himself out. He’s in for a surprise when it turns out Maisie is staying at his sister’s and his attraction for her hasn’t lessened one bit in the last six months. Apparently, neither has her anger at him for bailing. But Christmas is the time for second chances, and the forced proximity may help Nick and Maisie unwrap feelings neither of them can walk away from twice.

I RECEIVED A DRC FROM THE PUBLISHER VIA NETGALLEY. THANK YOU.

My Review: Apart from renaming "Maisie" to be "Mason" and switching her pronouns...or "how I always read romantic fiction in the past"...nothing needed changing for me to thoroughly enjoy this holiday-themed romance. Its lower-steam (pun intended; you'll have to read the book to see why it is one) level meant I did fairly little skippidy-doo-dah to avoid the squick factor. The forced proximity worked better for me than it usually does because they were both there with their families for a holiday, therefore everyone was very much inclined to find the fun and humor in everything to offset family stress.

Of course they end up in love, it's a category romance. The set-up gives them both real, honest issues to overcome. It's a hallmark (!) of the best contemporary romances to keep the stakes grounded in at the very least plausible conflicts between the couple. Sophie Sullivan is a top-quality practitioner of her craft. Below is another review of one of her works, with a link to an earlier one I read and enjoyed in that series. Suffice to say, I admire craft professionalism wherever I find it.

Nick, in particular, is drawn as a man whose competitive edge is rooted in his need to measure up to his own standards. It's more palatable as a motivation to win than the ordinary need to dominate others. His strong bond to his sister, and his desire to be there in his nephew's life, show that Author Sullivan made Nick's anxiety over his injury and its possible consequences consistent with really positive-feeling issues that still need addressing to move forward in all parts of his life. Needing to contextualize his anxiety and to find good, healthy coping mechanism for it, offer him the additional benefit of being able, and willing, to invite the intriguing and interesting new love into his life on a sound footing.

One of my Goodreads friends really described my response to this read best: "If you’ve ever wanted your holiday rom-com to suddenly morph into therapy with tree ornaments, you’re in for a treat." No one in the entire story does not need some help sorting through their self-defeating behaviors, and responses to others' behaviors, so the playing field is level throughout. It felt very much like being in a positive group therapy session where everyone's honestly trying their damnedest to do the right thing.

Why I'm only at a hair under four stars has to do with the way the mother/daughter conflict utterly dominates the second half of the story. I'm aware that this is a major source of unhappiness for lots and lots of women in the world, I'd've liked a bit less rancor delivered with the effort to reconnect to the genuine loving root of their relationship.

So I was not utterly ensorcelled by the story. I was impressed and pleased at how much Nick's efforts to recover a positive mental frame for his ongoing anxiety were foregrounded. I only wanted a bit less of the focus to be on the angrier emotional valance; it's the holidays, let's have *some* fantasy elements!

A top quality read, no matter what. show less

A slow-burn romance with a bunch of characters I'd like to be friends with.
The best thing for me in this book was the friendships. There is a whole host of side characters in this book with different personalities and qualities in people you would enjoy knowing. Some have appeared in the previous books so it was nice to see them involved in this story. Hailey's friends are funny and supportive. I loved Fiona and her silly quizzes.
Wes and Hailey's friendship started awkwardly but they were show more the perfect complement to each other. It was obvious there were sparks between them but they made the conscious decision of being friends. Their bond and friendship blossomed as they spent time together just doing normal stuff. They could be themselves without any judgement or expectations. They were really sweet together. Wes was down to earth, kind and generous but a bit stuck in his ways. Hailey was strong and independent. I liked that she stood up for herself in her relationship with Wes but that she eventually learned to accept help and support from people who love her.
I enjoyed watching them fall in love while not realising it and how they handled it when the penny dropped.

A few characters were new. I liked Leo. He had an interesting story that wasn't fleshed out and I'm wondering if the author isn't completely finished with the Jansen universe.
I would have liked to have seen the Ana situation get resolved more satisfactorily. She got away too easily with her behaviour. I felt that the situation with the father was glossed over as well.
Wes's mother was mentioned but didn't appear in the book and it would be interesting to see how she settles into the neighbourhood.

A Guide to Being Just Friends is a cute slow burn romance, entertaining, angsty and fun. show less

I am a confessed hockey-aholic. Why have I not read a hockey romance before this one? Good question, but better late than never.

Maisie is a photographer. Not just any photographer, but a very well respected one, who is booked out a year in advance for events. She has an older brother, Jacob, and an older sister, Natalie. Both are married. Jacob is a lawyer. Natalie a veterinarian. And Natalie is pregnant with their first child.

This year the whole family is headed to a Christmas tree farm show more for the holidays. The farm belongs to Jacob’s husband’s close friend Ellie. Ellie was recently divorced and moved to the farm to both live and work. She has a 4 year old named Asher.

Maisie is looking forward to the holidays with her family, but is also dreading that she will be with her parents, who feel she’s never achieved her full potential. Little does she know that Ellie has an older brother, Nick, who Maisie has met before. In fact, not only met before, but someone Maisie felt was possibly her future.

With all of this going on, Maisie doesn’t know how she’s going to handle this holiday with her family, her extended family, and now these new friends, one of whom ghosted her. Just a tad bit of tension for the holidays!

I’ve been reading a bunch of dark, mystery or horror novels, and this was like a breath of fresh air. I absolutely loved Maisie. Loved Nick. Loved their backstory. Each one of them definitely has baggage, but then, who doesn’t. Each one of these characters feels like a real person. Everything about this novel just charmed me to the core. I am not a crier, but I definitely teared up at sections of this. The mom with her passive-aggressive attitude towards Maisie’s life choices. Maisie’s worry over Nick. It was a romance novel, but with a lot of reality tossed in. There is just so much to love about it.

Look, romance novels are what they are. You either love them or hate them. Personally, I think that this novel was the perfect amount of spice, romance, and real life. It was fun. It was endearing. I would definitely recommend it. show less