Just Friends (The Friends)

by Monica Murphy

It’s the end of summer. Just before I start senior year with my two best friends in the whole world. Dustin and Emily are everything to me. We’ve been inseparable since middle school, and when we’re together, nothing can go wrong.





But things aren’t always what they seem. Em’s turned into a drunken mess who parties too much. Dustin and I have hooked up a few times—and now he’s ready to take our relationship to the next level. Yet I’m not sure I want things to change. I’m scared if I take it any further with Dustin, our friendship will be ruined forever. Then there’s Ryan. The new guy. He’s hot. He flirts way too much. And Em has totally set her sights on him.





So when my best friend betrays me in the worst possible way, guess who’s there to help me pick up the pieces of my broken heart? Ryan. But he’s so confusing. Annoying. Sweet. Sexy. I want to trust him, yet he makes it so hard. What I really want is for everything to go back to the way it was before.





Before I found out that best friends make the worst kind of enemies.

• ISBN10: 1682308324
• ISBN13: 9781682308325
• Publish Date: 29 September 2016 (first published 13 September 2016)
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Diversion Books
• Format: Paperback (US Trade)
• Pages: 330
• Language: English

Reviews

[Cocktails and Books]

This review was originally posted on Cocktails and Books

JUST FRIENDS was one of those books I couldn't wait to start reading. Monica Murphy has created some of my favorite angsty New Adult characters and I was anxious to see what she did to the high school set. Unfortunately, this one did live up to the hype I created for it.

Olivia, Emily and Dustin are best friends. Olivia and Dustin "messed around" with each other before Olivia left to spend the summer with her father. Neither of them told Emily about their extracurricular activities. When Olivia returns home she discovers a hard partying Emily has become friends with the popular crowd and Dustin acting weird. And then there's the new guy, Ryan, Emily's been hanging with.

I get these are teenagers and they are going to be full of high drama, but this group was over the top. I didn't like Em, Olivia, Ryan or Dustin. The sleeping with one another and swapping back and forth was a bit too much for me. I though Olivia, Em and Dustin were supposed to be best friend? Even if Olivia never said anything about Dustin before she left, why wouldn't Dustin have some kind of loyalty to her and not jump into bed with someone she knew? That drove me nuts. Then there was Ryan. I couldn't figure out what his game was or what kind of redeeming qualities he might have that would make me think that maybe he was right for Olivia.

I wish I could have liked this one more. I think if just one of the main characters was more likable I could have tolerated it more. Unfortunately, at the end of the book (which does have a cliffhanger ending) I couldn't think anything more than they all deserved what they got.

[whisperingchapters]

This review was originally posted on Latte Nights Reviews.


Just Friends is the second book I've read by Monica Murphy and I don't know if I would give this author another chance. I read another YA title by her and while it was okay, it didn't wow me at all and it was very childish.

Just Friends was a train-wreck. I wanted to stop—boy, did I want to stop—but I couldn't. For some unknown reason, I had to keep reading. I was ready to DNF this one, but I don't know why I kept reading. It's safe to say I wasted my time.

Olivia has two best friends, Em and Dustin. She has been hooking up with Dustin and hasn't told anyone, not even Em. When Em finds out, she tries to play it cool, but it's obvious she's also interested in Dustin and that's when the claws come out. Enter in a new guy, Ryan. He's the type that everyone warns you about. He's kind of player, but will let you know beforehand what he's in for. Olivia still has feelings for Dustin, but she can't get Ryan out of her mind.

Normally, I don't read love-triangles so I don't know what possessed me to pick this one up. I have to say, I wasn't bothered by the love-triangle, which says a lot. Although, it could have to do with the fact that it's not much of a triangle since most of the book Olivia spends her time with Ryan.

What I really disliked were three specific characters.
1. Dustin is... I'll settle for jerk, but I have some more colorful words for the guy. He screwed up big time and lost Olivia in the process. Guys, I was so mad because he's the one to blame, yet he was blaming Olivia. Like, can you not?! From the start, I didn't like him at all.

2. Then there's Em, who's supposed to be the best friend. If she's a friend, I don't want to know how an enemy is supposed to be like. I was so skeptical of her right from the start and with good reason. She also screwed up, but I feel like her cause was redeemable. It's what she did after. She would humiliate Olivia and lie to her all the time. I was so fed up by her.

3. I don't know what to say about Ryan. At the beginning, my feelings were mixed. He came on to Olivia way too hard and the things the guy would say... Soap, meet mouth. They were filthy, to say the least, especially to someone he had just met. Over the course of the story, I kind of liked him and near the end, I was kind of won over. I have to say I'm team Ryan on this one.

Olivia was an...interesting character. She would make some really bad decisions, which is normal since she's a teenager. I was just iffy about her. I think the only great decision she made was befriending Amanda. I honestly kept reading this story for Amanda. I was far more interested in her life and her romance than Olivia's, which is why I'm looking forward to her book. Amanda is a fantastic friend to have. She's upfront, loyal, and so kind. She also thinks twice before making decisions. A few times, she made some not so good decisions, but it was because Olivia would pressure her.

Amanda's romance had me so excited. Gosh, I so wanted more of her and Jordan. Imagine my surprise when I find out the next book in the series is her story! I'm really excited to get to it and see if she can get her happy ending.

Speaking of endings, Just Friends left an open ending at the end and I don't know how the author is going to wrap it up in the sequel, since it won't be Olivia's story. We'll see how that goes.

Overall, Just Friends wasn't good. I wasn't interested in the characters (only one). Everything just kept getting worse and worse.

I received an eARC from the publicist for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.This review was originally posted on Latte Nights Reviews.