Reviewed by Valerie

TITLE:  Just Friends

AUTHOR:  Saxon James

SERIES:  Never Just Friends

PUBLISHER:  May Books

LENGTH:  259 pages

RELEASE DATE:  August 27, 2020

BLURB:

Roo

Five years ago, I walked away from Sunbury, Oregon, and left my best friend behind. The move was supposed to get my life on track. I even had a list.
Life changing epilepsy surgery. Check.
See the world. Check
Get over my straight best friend … Not exactly.
No matter where I go or who I meet, I can’t let Tanner go. I’m back to tell him how I feel. To get the closure I need once and for all. Only now I’m here and falling for him all over again, it’s getting harder to say the words.
Because once I have my closure, I’ll be gone. And this time it will be for good.

Tanner

When my best friend, Roo, left for Australia, it was the worst day of my life. I thought we’d have each other always. But Roo needed the surgery so I let him go, thinking he’d come straight back.
Five years is a long time.
Now he’s here, all I want is to hold on tight. I need to show him what he means to me. The problem is, I’m not exactly sure what that is. My draw to him has always been confusing and different—everyone in town says so. But I struggle to understand it. All I know is I won’t survive him leaving again. And I’ll do anything to make him stay.

Just Friends is a best friends-to-lovers romance with an oblivious MC, only one bed, and terrible kangaroo jokes.

REVIEW:

I found my person when I was eleven, and even if I didn’t know what love meant, I already knew there was no walking away. – Roo 

Oh, how I adore this book! Just Friends is the sweetest love story – first the love of friendship and then romantic love. When one ended and the other began is hard to tell, even for Roo and Tanner. What sets this book apart from others with a friends-to-lovers trope is the intensity and depth of their relationship, even when they’re just friends, and the tenderness once they’re a couple. As best friends they’re closer than half the married couples I know. It’s a pleasure to witness the deep connection of that friendship. It is so intimate without being about sex. At first. When the sexual experimenting begins, whew, it’s HOT. Good thing Tanner is a fireman in case the bed goes up in flames. Their first time together is delicious! 

It all began when Roo moved from Australia to Sunbury, Oregon, when he was eleven years old. Roo has severe epilepsy and Tanner has a learning disability which made both of them prone to being teased when growing up. They helped each other cope, though. Then when the boys were eighteen, Roo’s family returned to Australia so he could have brain surgery more affordably. After five years away – surgery, college, traveling – Roo comes back to Sunbury, back to Tanner, and they’re still best friends but also complete strangers. Just as when they were children, they still are unnaturally close with lots of touching and affection, but that’s just them. Two halves of a whole. Roo says he’s just visiting, but not if Tanner has his way. 

The familiar warmth floods my chest, and hell, I don’t know how I ever confused it for something platonic. It’s consuming, and without Roo here, without these feelings, I’d been so fucking empty, no matter how I pretended otherwise. – Tanner 

This is the cutest bisexual-awakening story ever. It’s so adorable – and so in keeping with the nature of their relationship – with how unperturbed the questioning Tanner is and how he discusses everything openly with Roo without inhibition. While swimming in the public pool, Tanner blurts, “Tell me about gay sex.” Roo knows experimenting with a bi-curious straight guy is the quickest way to heartache. When it’s with your best friend? The inherent risks are huge. Sure-fire heartbreak. But he can’t help suppress his worries because his fantasies and dreams are (maybe) coming true. Remember the delicious sex? 

This is a well-written book by a new-to-me author. That is, until I read the author’s note that she publishes young adult novels under the pen name S.M. James. I realized I’ve read quite a few of her books. I like how Ms. James creates tension in the relationship through a lack of communication without resorting to a BIG MISUNDERSTANDING. There are a couple of minor misunderstandings to drive the plot and create that tension, but not enough to make me cranky. 

Just Friends is a sweet, feel-good book in which Roo and Tanner obtain the ultimate happiness at the end. I love this read and hope you do, too.   

RATING:   

BUY LINKS: 

Amazon