Reviewed by girlinthepages on
Oh how wrong I was.
Let me clarify one thing: The Friend Zone is not a bad book. In fact, it was quite entertaining and kept me turning the pages late into the night. It just was not what I was expecting (even though I had read several reviews that warned me things took a big turn in the second half of the novel). It had a meet-cute, sassy banter, a great supporting cast, etc- all of the makings of a good romance novel. I also loved the firehouse setting (give me more firefighter romances, please!) and the fact that Kristin was an entrepreneur who sold apparel and accessories for dogs online (we love a #girlboss protagonist). HOWEVER there were three major points in this book that didn't sit well with me and ultimately knocked this down to a 2 star read:
1) Kristin is very much the "cool girl," "not like other girls," etc. stereotype. She's tough as nails, never cries, curses incessantly, seems like one of the dudes, etc. Now, I know female protagonists can come with all kinds of personality traits and that's wonderful! However I just really felt like Josh liked her BECAUSE she "wasn't like other girls" and that's a trope I am SO tired of. Like, what is so wrong with being a crier, or liking "feminine" things, or going to Starbucks in your yoga pants and uggs?? Can we stop shaming basic and/or stereotypical female traits? (Ironically, I thought that the protagonist's best friend, Sloan, was a much more balanced character who was unique without feeling like she was a special snowflake).
2) (Beware, this one is a little spoilery)A little over halfway through the book, a very traumatic and jarring event happens that leads to a character death. It COMPLETELY changed the town of the story into a real downer. There was nothing wrong with this plot point really, and I might not have minded it in a different book, but it felt jarring in a romance novel and also a bit exploitative as it forces two people to finally come together over a shared tragedy.
3) One of the biggest plot points of the novel was that Kristin wasn't able to have children and suffered from many reproductive health issues. This was constantly brought up and obsessed over since Josh wanted a big family and Kristin felt a lot of guilt over not being able to give him one (which I didn't like, this self-shaming she participated in) but it was refreshing to see her make the medical choices that were best for her and not cave to societal expectations. I wondered throughout the book if she would "miraculously" conceive but didn't think the story would actually go there after how much emphasis and detail was put into Kristin's fertility struggles. Yet at the end of the story, after this traumatic death forcing her and Josh together, SURPRISE she's pregnant with basically a miracle baby. That really didn't sit well with me. Though in an author's note she explained this circumstance was based on the experiences of a real life friend, it felt irresponsible and I could only imagine it being very hurtful to someone who struggled with similar health issues who perhaps was excited to find a protagonist they could relate too...only until they couldn't any more.
Overall: The Friend Zone is an addicting read for sure, and I enjoyed the writing and the pace of the story. However, it took a few turns that made it into a story that was very different than the one I was expecting. There is of course nothing wrong with that, but it personally did not sit well with me.This review was originally posted on Girl in the Pages
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- 2 September, 2019: Reviewed