A love triangle never had so many sides! She likes him, he likes a different her, a different him likes the first her, and then there's a him that could seemingly care less, all while the second him plays second fiddle squarely in the friend zone with they original her. Did you get all that? :-) Goes to show you that while the good guy/girl may not always steal the show, they do have their day


**Copy received for review ( )

I had a hard time getting into this book, and to be honest, I did not finish it. I really did try, as I want to give all Early Review copies a fair chance, but I just couldn't do it. I thought there were a few sweet parts but overall it was too predictable. Geeky boy falls for popular girl, not realizing that his best female friend is there all along and is a much better catch. Also, geeky boy allowing popular girl to treat him like a doormat.

This was my first Dyan Sheldon book but I would be open to giving a different book a try. ( )

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○ i have a physical copy
○ read an e-version, will definitely purchase physical book
● read an e-version, a physical book will be appreciated
○ read an e-version, not interested in its physical book
○ a page-turner
● less than 500 pages (although I felt like it has more than a thousand pages)
○ diverse in any way
● something’s lacking
● took me a long time to finish
● an LMAO read
● i laughed more than a few times
○ it’s j u s t awkward
○ gave me goosebumps
○ one of the best books i’ve read
○ painful & sad
○ tear-jerker
○ a roller-coaster of emotions
○ thrilling
○ confusing
● sooo relatable
○ it is kind of annoying
○ it has a lot of flashbacks
○ it moved me
○ would recommend!
○ great even for a reread
○ definitely a YAY
○ i’m sorry it’s a NAY
● it’s between YAY and NAY

What made me read this?
Netgalley. AND UNREQUITED LOVE.

Did I regret reading this?:
At first, YES. Because it’s such a slow read for me. Look at my timeline!

February 8 – 1%
February 12 – 11%
February 13 – 18%
February 13 – 24%
February 14 – 30%
February 14 – 32%
February 16 – 45%
February 16 – 50%
February 17 – 100%

Then, some kind of magic happened. I read the first half for days and I read the other half for like an hour or more. LIKE, HOW?

PLUS The ending’s pretty unfair. It’s so short. I mean, I can tell that the story’s gonna lead there but I need more GUY x GIRL moments (I used guy and girl as substi because I don’t want to spoil you! It’s not right to tell who ends up with who, right?)

There were also many many many conversations, TMI conversations, between them. And a lot of guessing-what-guessing-who happened. But I enjoy guessing things, so that’s good.

Read it but don’t blame me if it gets a little too boring. ( )

JUST FRIENDS by Dyan Sheldon is a sweet YA romantic comedy featuring Josh Shine, a music-loving, ponytailed, chess-playing, short high school student who falls for new girl Jena Capistrano the first time he sees her. By happy coincidence, Jena lives across the street from Josh's long-time friend, Ramona, so Josh actually gets to meet and talk to Jena even though she has been embraced by the popular crowd--a group that wants nothing to do with Josh and his equally geeky friends.

JUST FRIENDS chronicles the time from Josh's first glimpse of Jena on the first day of school through the spring of that school year. In typical crush fashion, Josh bends over backwards to be the friend that Jena needs while trying to figure out how to tell her that he more than likes her... he LIKES her. Josh's focus on Jena causes a strain on his other friendships, and his core group is more patient than he may deserve.

Many of the characters in the book are the same as others you'll find in a host of storylines focused on high school. There's the jock, the mean-but-popular girl, the flaky parents, the concerned mom, and the close group of nerds. None of these stereotypes are fleshed out enough to feel real, but Josh is wonderfully quirky and witty at his best, and he more than makes up for the hollowness of his friends. I would have in particular liked to spend more time with Ramona--I was always sad when she left the page. Equally disappointing is the fact that the amazingly good times that Ramona and Josh have shared are referenced a lot, but they are only references.

Though the outcome of JUST FRIENDS is predictable, it is a light, fun read, and Josh's kindness and humor will appeal to fans of teen romance. My thanks to LibraryThing and the publisher for a copy of the book in exchange for my honest review. ( )

I was excited to read an advance copy of a book from an author I've enjoyed before. Unfortunately, the book was very predictable and like every other romcom you've ever seen or watched. The characters were generic and forgettable. I felt like I could skip large sections without missing things. The book had some sweet moments but overall lacked charm. ( )

This review is also available on my blog, are in high school, but that's something to keep in mind for younger readers.

All in all, I was kept entertained by Just Friends but I wasn't wowed by it–rather, I was very frustrated/embarrassed for the characters in parts. I don't really recommend it highly, but I won't actively warn you off it either if you still think it sounds interesting. If you do decide to read it, let us know in the comments what you think of it!

Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of this novel from the publisher through a LibraryThing giveaway. ( )

Just Friends is a believable story of a boy falling for a girl that he believes is out of his league while the perfect girl for him is right next to him the whole time. I thought the book was cute and the characters quirky. The author had good insight into the mind of a teen and I felt portrayed their feelings realistically. I will recommend this book. ( )

Just Friends is your typical geeky boy (Josh) falls in love with popular girl (Jena) story. It's about unrequited love, being friendzoned and that tricky line between friendship and romance. Reading this book reminded me of those romcoms I watched when I was a teen, predictable yet sweet. I was rooting for Josh throughout the story, but it was frustrating how weak he was when it came to Jena. Jena is so self-absorbed and irritated me at times, which made me wonder why such a smart guy like Josh likes her in the first place. However, I really like Ramona and I wish there was more Josh and Ramona time, especially towards the end. I think a Josh and Ramona sequel would be far more interesting.

Thank you to LibraryThing and Candlewick Press for sending me a copy of this book. ( )

I received an ARC of this book by Dyan Sheldon, who also wrote the popular novel (and hit movie) "Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen." Unfortunately I really could not get into it at all and dropped it halfway through. Josh's obsessive pursuit of Jenna is more annoying than cute, and Jenna treats him like dirt most of the time. It's obvious where things will end up with Ramona, who really likes Josh for the quirky guy he his, and Josh's real friends are entirely too forgiving of Josh's absurd behavior.

Last, the book was written in the present tense, which sometimes can work, but in this case made it awkward and stilted to read. DNF. ( )

Josh Shine loves blues music, watching old movies with the guys, and taking his weekly yoga class with his good friend Ramona. He’s not like most of the guys in his high school. He prefers chess to contact sports, he’s a vegetarian, and he is rather short for his age.
None of the girls in his high school have ever really interested Josh. He would much rather spend his time raising awareness for multiple notable causes. That is until the day he sees Jenna Capistrano in his class. Josh quickly falls for the new girl, but he knows that they could never be an item, because she is out of his league. Surprisingly, they become friends and the closer they become the more Josh wants to be a couple.
Will Josh be brave enough to put his heart on the line and tell Jenna how he feels?
Not many teenage love stories have a male main character. In fact, this is the first one that I believe I have ever read.
Josh is a very unique, interesting character. He is very involved in educating his peers even when they don’t want to hear it. He’s also into older forms of entertainment like old movies and music. His best friends are a lot like him. Sal is passionate about films, especially older ones with deep meaning, while Carter is into environmental sciences.
Then there is Ramona. She’s a stand-out kind of girl who doesn’t care what most people think of her. She’s eccentric and loves fashion.
Despite the character’s obvious level of intelligence, I found myself frustrated by these characters. Especially by Josh and Jenna.
The plotline is one of those ones where you can guess where everyone will end up in the end. Mainly it is just the journey between that is different and unpredictable.
I’m unsure how I feel about this novel. I would recommend this novel to anyone who enjoys unique coming-of-age love stories.
I received my copy of this novel from LibraryThing.com and the publishers, for the sole purpose of providing an honest review. I have requested permission to use an image of the cover artwork above.
stephanietiner.weebly.com ( )

I received this book as an ARC even though it's been out for a year or so. (Copyright 2015?) I had a hard time getting into this book. In the first chapter Josh sees the object of his affection, Jenevieve, and finds out right away that she is friends with Tilda, the queen bee of mean girls. Josh is short, in to music, not athletic, in other words, not worthy of notice from Tilda or any of Tilda's friends. He pines after Jenevieve until he actually gets to meet her by getting stuck in a tree in her front yard with a dog he is watching. They become friends and then the book just goes nowhere. Week after week, Josh is Jenevieve's friend and ignores his friends. Week after week, Josh asks his friends if he should ask her out. Week after week, Josh ponders the possible outcomes of asking her out. Jenevieve treats Josh as a friend only and when she does get a boyfriend, treats Josh terribly all the way to the second to the last chapter. The book just went on and on. The final resolution in the last 5 pages was not satisfying. Not recommended. ( )

Josh does what many adolescents do - he falls in love with a pretty face. With the hope of maybe having something more with Jena, Josh allows her to use his friendship while he refuses to see who Jena really is. I liked that the emotions were very real, and that Josh's friends were really forgiving, even though he doesn't treat them very well at times. Popularity and compromises to maintain that popularity are very real parts of the teenage experience and Ms. Sheldon handles these themes with compassion. There aren't any bad guys - just kids trying to figure out who they are and what they really want. ( )

Whether because of self-doubt, or too much awareness of how others at his school view him, Josh is painfully aware he's about as far from the popular crowd as possible. That realization, however, doesn't make much difference when new girl Jena Capistrano moves to town. He's more than smitten and when they start talking and she begins relying on him for friendship and emotional support, it's a dream come true.
However, when you're a teen guy with self-esteem issues and find yourself on the razor's edge of ambivalence, the line between dream and nightmare can become very thin. The longer they hang out, the more conflicted Josh becomes...Does he tell her how he feels and risk losing her friendship? Asking his friends just makes things worse for they're as clueless as he, but add in their own mental jumble when giving him advice. Somewhere in this confused mess, he loses sight of his oldest friend, Ramona until it's almost too late to wake up and smell the coffee. Following his ambivalent journey could be really annoying, but it's done so well and he comes across as so sympathetic that everything works and the ending satisfies. ( )