Mundie Moms

Friday, October 17, 2014

Flashback Friday: Better Off Friends by Elizabeth Eulberg, Book Review

By: Elizabeth Eulberg
Publisher: Point
Release Date: February 25, 2014
Source: Purchased
Buy: IndieBound | Book Depostory | Barnes and Noble | amazon
Better off Friends

Rating: 4.5 stars - this is one really good story!

Synopsis: For Macallan and Levi, it was friends at first sight. Everyone says guys and girls can’t be just friends, but these two are. They hang out after school, share tons of inside jokes, their families are super close, and Levi even starts dating one of Macallan’s friends. They are platonic and happy that way.

Eventually they realize they’re best friends — which wouldn’t be so bad if they didn’t keep getting in each other’s way. Guys won’t ask Macallan out because they think she’s with Levi, and Levi spends too much time joking around with Macallan, and maybe not enough time with his date. They can’t help but wonder . . . are they more than friends or are they better off without making it even more complicated?

From romantic comedy superstar Elizabeth Eulberg comes a fresh, fun examination of a question for the ages: Can guys and girls ever really be just friends? Or are they always one fight away from not speaking again — and one kiss away from true love?



I adore stories that follow characters over a longer timeline, and I absolutely love the entire "can a boy and girl ever be just friends" plotline. So, it's no surprise that I loved Macallan and Levi's story.  Plus, I love seeing the very beginning of a love story, don't you?

Elizabeth gives us this and more. We have dual points-of-view and bonding over an obscure (at least in the U.S.) British TV show. You guys know how much I love BBCAmerica. I immediately related to them. And a quick aside for all of us who like to see parents present in YA stories -- this is a perfect example of how it can be done and done well. I adored how Levi's mom was written. The characters jumped off the page and I felt like they may have been friends or friends-of-friends whose story I overheard and just couldn't stop myself from eavesdropping further.

There is a sweetness to the misunderstandings and a realness to the let's-just-stay-friends, but the very best part was how, in spite of it all, they were just meant to be together. I loved how people assumed that they were together when they weren't.

Elizabeth's done it again. She's written a simply sweet, super believable romance and one that stayed in my heart well after I finished the last page. Pick it up next time you're in a bookstore or library.

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