I am a HUGE fan of friends to lovers romances, so the blurb for this one caught my eye immediately. I one-clicked as soon as it went live and started reading within an hour.
I really, really enjoyed this story and can't stop thinking about how much I want a Linden McGregor of my very own. He's cocky and arrogant, but he's also sweet and vulnerable. Sometimes the things that he said were outlandish and inappropriate but somehow it really worked for him. The idea of him had me swooning from the very first pages.
I also found myself really liking Steph. I could see myself being friends with her for sure. James, on the other hand, managed to piss me off throughout a majority of the book. In the beginning I really thought he was a decent guy but as the story progressed he came across as a jerk with a unfounded chip on his shoulder.
I can see why this story might annoy some readers because of the constant misunderstanding or flat out denials about feelings but those things just made the story more authentic to me. Every day we deal in misunderstandings, it's what we do. I'd imagine that taking a long-term friendship to a different level, especially when other people are involved, is a scary and complicated thing. Would you really expect there not to be misunderstanding and/or hesitations?
This story was well-written and gave me all the feels. I was happy, I was sad, annoyed and extremely turned-on. Everything I look for in a good read. I can definitely see this becoming a top book of 2015 (only because most people have already compiled their lists for 2014, including myself).