Queen B’s Decree: I love a retelling. Not Here to Stay Friends is a loose retelling of Cyrano de Bergerac, YA style. Sloane is visiting her best friend Liam for the summer, who she hasn’t seen in years, and sparks seem to fly upon their first re-meeting. But Liam got roped into working on a reality TV dating show to impress his dad, and when there’s a last minute drop out, Sloane fills in as a contestant.
The bachelor is the lead character from Sloane’s favorite show, so Liam watches from the sidelines as Sloane gets “romanced” by this famous actor, Aspen. Aspen, upon realizing that Liam and Sloane are besties, asks Liam for advice to “win” Sloane, hence the Cyrano de Bergerac influence.
I loved seeing both Liam and Sloane slowly come to the realization that their friendship could possibly be more. But even without the romance, their friendship is #goals. Standing up for and supporting each other, being open and vulnerable.
Not Here to Stay Friends was cute, sweet, and fun and I will definitely be reading more by Kaitlyn Hill.
Book: Not Here to Stay Friends by Kaitlyn Hill
Series: standalone
Genre: Young Adult
Hotness: very mild salsa
Plot Devices/Tropes: friends-to-lovers