Reviewed by Larissa

TITLE:  Just Friends

SERIES:  Never Just Friends Book 1

AUTHOR:  Saxon James

NARRATOR:  Alexander Cendese and Kirt Graves

PUBLISHER:  Tantor Audio

LENGTH:  7 hours and 16 minutes

RELEASE DATE:    March 30, 2021

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. 

REVIEW:

Just Friends kicks off a lovely, heartwarming series of books from Saxon James based on a group of friends living in the small town of Sunbury, Oregon.  This first entry in the series takes us on a romantic journey with best friends Roo and Tanner, who’ve been separated by time and space but upon being reunited, realize their love for each other goes well beyond being just friends.

Ms. James takes two common M/M romance tropes – best friends-to-lovers and bisexual awakening – and gives them a unique spin.  Roo and Tanner’s best friends-to-lovers story arc serves as the primary driver of the plot.  Roo and Tanner have always been inextricably linked, like two halves of a whole.  They’re touchy-feely, can finish each others’ sentences, know what the other is thinking, and can anticipate their needs.  Since the age of eleven, they’ve been inseparable and each other’s fiercest defenders.  Roo and Tanner’s feelings for each other are deep and consuming.  These two have an abiding connection that permeates every aspect of who they are and what they do.  

The separation caused by Roo’s return to Australia for epilepsy surgery flags for each of them how indispensable they are to each other.  What they feel when they are apart is not a simple, “I miss him”.  Rather, it’s an absence of something vital, a yawning emptiness that can’t be filled by anything or anyone else.  

The journey we see in Just Friends is Roo and Tanner’s mutual recognition that what they have together is intimacy akin to that of lovers.  And also that, yes, in fact, they want that too.  They just arrive at the recognition of it at different times.  Roo returns from Australia clearly knowing he’s in love with Tanner.  It takes time for Tanner to catch up. Tanner’s bisexual awakening finally fills in the gap, bridging them from best friends to lovers.  

For the audiobook of Just Friends, we have two experienced narrators on the mic: Alexander Cendese as Tanner and Kirt Graves as Roo.  Both men provide invested vocal portrayals of their characters. Both men have undisputable vocal chops and narrating skills that are on display.  For me, though, the men were narrating the wrong characters. 

Tanner is a fundamentally optimistic person with resiliency that Roo often remarks on and highly respects.  But the Tanner in this story is not a happy-go-lucky guy.  Tanner is struggling with his dyslexia which is keeping him from obtaining his dream job.  Yet he keeps it a secret and plasters a smile on his face to fool everyone into believing everything is great.  Tanner isn’t a dumb guy, although he self-deprecatingly says and thinks he is.  But he is someone who likes things simple and keeps things straightforward, even in the way he communicates.  He’s also completely oblivious, especially when it comes to recognizing his feelings for Roo.

One of the hallmarks of Mr. Cendese’s narration is the sharpness in his tone.  It’s bright and energetic but also has an edginess to it.  When he couples this with a lower-pitched, rounded voice, you get a jock with attitude,  something Mr. Cendese is exceptional at delivering.  An athletic guy with energy and humor to spare, slightly arrogant, somewhat sarcastic, and definitely funny.  This is how Mr. Cendese voices Tanner.

When I read that description, though, I do not think of Tanner. Tanner isn’t a sarcastic guy.  He’s also not a guy who seems particularly energized in this story.  And he is absolutely not arrogant.  Rather, Tanner strikes me as low-key but with a wide-eyed naivete.  Mr. Cendese’s characterization really doesn’t match that feeling.  Additionally, Mr. Cendese’s narration is very active and swiftly paced.  Typically, he will vary his pacing to some extent to add emphasis where called for by the text.  Here, I didn’t hear that.  Instead, his narration felt hurried, with sentences running into each other.  I felt out of breath just listening to him.  Again, this pacing doesn’t match Tanner’s energy or actions. 

Kirt Graves would have been a better choice for Tanner, in my opinion.  Mr. Graves has a natural ease to his voice.  It’s slow, methodical, with a bit of a rumble to it that matches Tanner’s laid-back style and genuine nature.  Instead, Mr. Graves narrates Roo and does an admirable job doing so.  However, it just didn’t feel right to me. 

Roo is prickly and defensive.  After being ridiculed and picked on in school, he’s very careful about who he lets in, and he’s defensive in the face of conflict or opposition.  He’s fiery, has an attitude, and is anxious and tense, especially now that he’s back in Sunbury with the knowledge that he loves Tanner, but Tanner doesn’t know.  Roo is coiled like a spring, full of tension that never completely dissipates.  Mr. Cendese’s energy and edginess, as well as the speed of his delivery, pair better with Roo than Tanner.

Overall, the audiobook of Just Friends is enjoyable and there’s no doubt that both Mr. Graves and Mr. Cendese deliver solid vocal performances.  But this adorable, heartwarming, 5 star/heart story stands so well on its own that I’m not sure how much the audiobook adds.  Personally, the audio dissonance created by the character/narrator mismatch distracted me.  However, like minds can differ and it is entirely possible that your read of Roo and Tanner may comport with Mr. Graves and Mr. Cendese’s narration more than I think it does.  Audio is very personal and subjective, so I suggest you listen to the sample and see what you think for yourself.

RATING:

BUY LINKS: 

Audible

Amazon