Not Here to Stay Friends
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5.0 • 2 Ratings
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- $8.99
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- $8.99
Publisher Description
Two childhood best friends reunite in L.A. the summer before senior year—but when one of them ends up starring on a teen reality dating show, their feelings for each other get complicated. Perfect for fans of friends-to-lovers rom-coms and The Bachelor!
Sloane McKinney feels like a background character in her own life. But this summer will be different, because she’s spending it with her childhood best friend, Liam Daniels, in her dream city, Los Angeles. Sure, she’s surprised to find that Liam just happens to have had a Hot Guy glow-up since she last saw him, but so what? A little attraction won’t ruin her plans for their fun—and completely platonic—reunion.
What might, however, is that Liam has been roped into working for his producer dad’s new teen reality dating show, Aspen Woods’s Future Leading Lady. It turns out the show is one contestant short . . . and Sloane is the perfect last-minute addition.
But it’s behind the scenes where the drama really picks up. Because wanting to kiss your best friend? That’s a plot twist neither Sloane nor Liam ever saw coming.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In this lighthearted rom-com by Hill (Love from Scratch), childhood best friends Sloane McKinney and Liam Daniels haven't seen each other in over two years when they reunite for a whirlwind summer in Los Angeles. Aspiring screenwriter Sloane—who dreams of moving from her Knoxville, Tenn., home to work in TV and film in L.A. after high school—can't wait to visit Liam and experience the city. And while Liam is excited to spend the summer catching up with Sloane, he's instead coerced into working for his father as a production assistant on a teen reality dating show, Aspen Woods's Future Leading Lady, where 25 contestants vie for the chance to romance dreamy actor Aspen Woods. But the show is missing a participant and, in exchange for his help getting her into a prestigious screenwriting program, Liam's father persuades Sloane to take the final slot. There's no doubting Sloane and Liam's inevitable romance, facilitated by palpable chemistry and a low-conflict plot. With snappy dialogue, bouncy narrative beats, distinctly rendered alternating perspectives, and emotional turmoil in place of dramatic stakes, Hill delivers a zealous romance in this relaxed read. The protagonists read as white. Ages 12–up.
