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Synergy #2
Friend Me
She’s found her Prince Charming. Her plan to win him needs a little help from her best buddy. Who’s suddenly…sexy?
Romance-reading executive assistant Marlee has a three-step plan to woo her crush, icy and aloof San Francisco tech executive Cooper Fallon.
Step 1: Dance with him at her boss’s wedding. Melt that ice.
Step 2: Work late. Bond over takeout.
Step 3: Share a magical kiss.
But when Cooper takes a date to the wedding, Marlee counters by asking her nerdy, Star Wars–loving, always-there-for-her best friend, Tyler, to pretend to be her boyfriend. Everything is perfect until Tyler gives her a toe-curling kiss on the dance floor and their date doesn’t feel fake anymore.
Kissing the wrong guy? Not in her plan. And neither is Tyler asking for more than she can give. She never meant to break up with her best friend. Especially when she suspects she’s falling for him.
Friend Me is a slow-burn-to-red-hot, friends-to-lovers romantic comedy featuring a starry-eyed heroine, a sweet, cinnamon-roll hero, and a pair of cranky cats. It can be read as a standalone and is the second book in the Synergy series.
Romance-reading executive assistant Marlee has a three-step plan to woo her crush, icy and aloof San Francisco tech executive Cooper Fallon.
Step 1: Dance with him at her boss’s wedding. Melt that ice.
Step 2: Work late. Bond over takeout.
Step 3: Share a magical kiss.
But when Cooper takes a date to the wedding, Marlee counters by asking her nerdy, Star Wars–loving, always-there-for-her best friend, Tyler, to pretend to be her boyfriend. Everything is perfect until Tyler gives her a toe-curling kiss on the dance floor and their date doesn’t feel fake anymore.
Kissing the wrong guy? Not in her plan. And neither is Tyler asking for more than she can give. She never meant to break up with her best friend. Especially when she suspects she’s falling for him.
Friend Me is a slow-burn-to-red-hot, friends-to-lovers romantic comedy featuring a starry-eyed heroine, a sweet, cinnamon-roll hero, and a pair of cranky cats. It can be read as a standalone and is the second book in the Synergy series.
330 pages, Paperback
Published July 24, 2021
283 people are currently reading
2373 people want to read
About the author
Michelle McCraw
79 books143 followersMichelle McCraw loves reading kissing books and working in tech. One day, she decided to combine her two interests, and now she writes steamy, nerdy contemporary romance that just might make you laugh. Her Synergy workplace romance series features characters who unashamedly love science, engineering, and technology. Her latest series, 40 and Fabulous, features heroines who find passion in the second acts of their lives. Her novels have been finalists in the RWA Vivian Contest, the Contemporary Romance Writers' Stiletto Contest, and the Windy City Romance Writers' Four Seasons Contest.
A native Texan, Michelle has shoveled snow during nor’easters and knows the proper response when someone yells “O-H.” She now calls Georgia home, where she doesn’t miss snow AT ALL. She enjoys reading, traveling, drinking bourbon, and spoiling her extraordinarily ill-behaved but adorable dog.
For updates about her upcoming books and free reads - plus guaranteed puppy pics - subscribe to her newsletter at https://michellemccraw.com/joinme.
A native Texan, Michelle has shoveled snow during nor’easters and knows the proper response when someone yells “O-H.” She now calls Georgia home, where she doesn’t miss snow AT ALL. She enjoys reading, traveling, drinking bourbon, and spoiling her extraordinarily ill-behaved but adorable dog.
For updates about her upcoming books and free reads - plus guaranteed puppy pics - subscribe to her newsletter at https://michellemccraw.com/joinme.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 110 reviews
February 14, 2025
Damn you, Book Bub! Even though I DNF’d Book 1 in this series and only liked Book 3, I couldn’t resist that 99 cent Book Bub deal for Book 2. I should have known better, because I’m DNF’ing this book too.
So, the FMC, Marlee, is obsessed with her boss and recruits her friend, Tyler, to fake data at a wedding to make her object of obsession jealous, etc., etc. You know the trope. But actually, Tyler volunteers to help Marlee, because as the reader can quickly tell—but Marlee cannot—is that the sweetheart nice guy “friend” is mad for Marlee. Again, you know the trope and I actually liked the setup for this book, but here’s the problem…
Marlee proceeds to spend the first two-thirds of the story using Tyler, then friend-zoning Tyler, then being an asshole to Tyler, to using him some more, and then treating him like crap again; but along the way finally realizing, “OMG, I love Tyler!” Why? Because you treat him selfishly, and he doesn’t complain?
I quit at the point just before the big turnaround, because then I could pretend Tyler wasn’t going to fall prey to Marlee again but instead will find a nice girl who is going to treat him well.
So, the FMC, Marlee, is obsessed with her boss and recruits her friend, Tyler, to fake data at a wedding to make her object of obsession jealous, etc., etc. You know the trope. But actually, Tyler volunteers to help Marlee, because as the reader can quickly tell—but Marlee cannot—is that the sweetheart nice guy “friend” is mad for Marlee. Again, you know the trope and I actually liked the setup for this book, but here’s the problem…
Marlee proceeds to spend the first two-thirds of the story using Tyler, then friend-zoning Tyler, then being an asshole to Tyler, to using him some more, and then treating him like crap again; but along the way finally realizing, “OMG, I love Tyler!” Why? Because you treat him selfishly, and he doesn’t complain?
I quit at the point just before the big turnaround, because then I could pretend Tyler wasn’t going to fall prey to Marlee again but instead will find a nice girl who is going to treat him well.
June 24, 2024
🎧🎧AUDIOBOOK REVIEW🎧🎧
sigh ... raise your hand if you enjoy reading adults not adulting properly. raise it even higher if you enjoy said behavior to not be occasional, but rather constant ... sigh
This is only my second experience with this author, and I will more than likely, if available in audiobook, finish this series at the very least, but some of the circumstances in this storyline tested my resolve. I did more side-eyeing with this story than I have in a long while and while my fuse does tend to be rather short with certain shenanigans authors love to throw in a story for no good reason but dramatics, it wasn’t really shenanigans that had me shook but rather our FMC. Honestly, I don’t understand the chic at all or her motivations but she’s not my character and this is not my world, so what are you gonna do? *shrug* I just couldn’t relate to her at all and because I really loved Tyler, I just could not root for them.
The storyline itself was fun and easy, but again, if the main characters are frustrating you and you can’t root for them, what exactly is the point? Amirite? I dunno, I just feel blah about it all except the narration I very much enjoyed. But also, on that point, if you’re going to put a story entirely on one character’s POV, can it not be Marlee? #sorrynotsorry Stephanie Kay did an outstanding job narrating. I have always liked her narration and honestly, she is the reason I did not just give up on this story. So, if you get a choice on audio or ebook, I highly recommend this story be experienced via audiobook. That’s just me and I’m no expert, but these are my 2 cents. Don’t spend them all at once! :)
sigh ... raise your hand if you enjoy reading adults not adulting properly. raise it even higher if you enjoy said behavior to not be occasional, but rather constant ... sigh
This is only my second experience with this author, and I will more than likely, if available in audiobook, finish this series at the very least, but some of the circumstances in this storyline tested my resolve. I did more side-eyeing with this story than I have in a long while and while my fuse does tend to be rather short with certain shenanigans authors love to throw in a story for no good reason but dramatics, it wasn’t really shenanigans that had me shook but rather our FMC. Honestly, I don’t understand the chic at all or her motivations but she’s not my character and this is not my world, so what are you gonna do? *shrug* I just couldn’t relate to her at all and because I really loved Tyler, I just could not root for them.
The storyline itself was fun and easy, but again, if the main characters are frustrating you and you can’t root for them, what exactly is the point? Amirite? I dunno, I just feel blah about it all except the narration I very much enjoyed. But also, on that point, if you’re going to put a story entirely on one character’s POV, can it not be Marlee? #sorrynotsorry Stephanie Kay did an outstanding job narrating. I have always liked her narration and honestly, she is the reason I did not just give up on this story. So, if you get a choice on audio or ebook, I highly recommend this story be experienced via audiobook. That’s just me and I’m no expert, but these are my 2 cents. Don’t spend them all at once! :)
April 14, 2022
Thank you NetGalley for this ARC ! Marlee loves being in love and everything about it. This book isn’t just a romance it’s also a book about her growth. This book was entertaining and I can’t wait for the next book in the series !
January 30, 2022
THANK YOU NetGalley!
TW below, it may contain spoilers. At the end you can see if it’s safe for you but it has some spoilers. I don´t know if I would considerate it safe for most people.
This book has surprised me. I though it was going to be more heavy on the romance, but it’s more her story. How she thinks romance and relationship should be. How she’s pinning for one of her coworkers for three years.
H is one of her BFF but she doesn’t see him in a romance way for half of the book. We can see and feel that he’s in love with her but wants to keep her in his life so it’s not trying to romance her. He’s really sweet and kind and he’s always doing things for her. Sometimes I was frustrated with her. She was hurting him because she was selfish and could get her head out of her ass, but she has more things going on her life so I get her. She is 25 I think. My favorite part It’s obv him. He’s an amazing friend, smart, funny and caring. I prefer this type of guys than the man-ho/playboy.
TW:
SAFETY INFO WITH SPOILERS:
TW below, it may contain spoilers. At the end you can see if it’s safe for you but it has some spoilers. I don´t know if I would considerate it safe for most people.
This book has surprised me. I though it was going to be more heavy on the romance, but it’s more her story. How she thinks romance and relationship should be. How she’s pinning for one of her coworkers for three years.
H is one of her BFF but she doesn’t see him in a romance way for half of the book. We can see and feel that he’s in love with her but wants to keep her in his life so it’s not trying to romance her. He’s really sweet and kind and he’s always doing things for her. Sometimes I was frustrated with her. She was hurting him because she was selfish and could get her head out of her ass, but she has more things going on her life so I get her. She is 25 I think. My favorite part It’s obv him. He’s an amazing friend, smart, funny and caring. I prefer this type of guys than the man-ho/playboy.
TW:
SAFETY INFO WITH SPOILERS:
Read
February 21, 2022I loved the friend relationship in this book, it's funny how sometimes you want to be there so much or help a friend out so much bc you care or even love them but in the end that might be the thing that hurts your relationship the most>
One ended love is hard to realize
But this book was amazing as telling this friends to lovers story
the work environment the friends and even down to the animals in their lives we told so descriptively and so well
it took me a few days to read only bc it was a longer book bc I really didn't want to put it down, there were so many ups and downs and events that you just needed to know more
so glad to have gotten this ARC book and hope to read more from this author in the future
One ended love is hard to realize
But this book was amazing as telling this friends to lovers story
the work environment the friends and even down to the animals in their lives we told so descriptively and so well
it took me a few days to read only bc it was a longer book bc I really didn't want to put it down, there were so many ups and downs and events that you just needed to know more
so glad to have gotten this ARC book and hope to read more from this author in the future
February 21, 2022
I got a free copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
The characters are charming and I think it’s impossible not to fall in love with Tyler; he’s so sweet, even if he doesn’t like that adjective applied to him.
Marlee is in love with love and sometimes I’d like to hit her in the head for being so obtuse, but she’s got a cute personality, too, so it makes you like her as well.
Feel good romance with some intense misunderstandings and fake dating… love it!
The characters are charming and I think it’s impossible not to fall in love with Tyler; he’s so sweet, even if he doesn’t like that adjective applied to him.
Marlee is in love with love and sometimes I’d like to hit her in the head for being so obtuse, but she’s got a cute personality, too, so it makes you like her as well.
Feel good romance with some intense misunderstandings and fake dating… love it!
June 24, 2024
✨🎧ALC Audiobook Review🎧✨
Title: Friend Me
Author: Michelle McCraw
Narrated by: Stefanie Kay and Julio Maxwell
Story: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice: 🌶️
Narration: 🎤🎤🎤🎤🎤
Slow burn steam
Workplace
Fake dating
Friends to lovers
**family member with dementia
📚Story overview & Review📚
Marlee is navigating the complexities of her career in the tech world and personal life with grace and determination. As she excels in her professional role, she finds herself head over heels for her boss, Cooper. Meanwhile, her friend Tyler is secretly in love with her, a situation she chooses to ignore in the name of preserving their friendship. The tension and unspoken emotions between Marlee and Tyler is palpable.
Marlee's journey is not just about her romantic entanglements. At home, she is a devoted daughter caring for her father, who is battling early-onset dementia. Marlee's struggle to balance her high-powered career with her father's long-term care needs is both realistic and deeply touching. I felt a strong connection to her story and admired her resilience and compassion.
The story is sprinkled with glimpses of previous characters, adding depth and continuity to the series. Friend Me is not only cute and realistic, but also peppered with funny moments and lighthearted sentiments that make for an enjoyable read.
Overall, this book is a delightful mix of romance and heartfelt family dynamics. I enjoyed it and look forward to seeing what happens next!
🎧❤️Audio performance review❤️🎧
Stefanie was fantastic narrating this one and brought the characters to life. I thought she has great pacing and inflection, and I enjoyed her male voice. Julio narrates the epilogue and was a great casting for that part. Another great listen!
Thank you to Michelle and home cooked books for the advanced listen. It was trot my pleasure!
***These are my own honest thoughts that I have provided voluntarily.
Title: Friend Me
Author: Michelle McCraw
Narrated by: Stefanie Kay and Julio Maxwell
Story: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice: 🌶️
Narration: 🎤🎤🎤🎤🎤
Slow burn steam
Workplace
Fake dating
Friends to lovers
**family member with dementia
📚Story overview & Review📚
Marlee is navigating the complexities of her career in the tech world and personal life with grace and determination. As she excels in her professional role, she finds herself head over heels for her boss, Cooper. Meanwhile, her friend Tyler is secretly in love with her, a situation she chooses to ignore in the name of preserving their friendship. The tension and unspoken emotions between Marlee and Tyler is palpable.
Marlee's journey is not just about her romantic entanglements. At home, she is a devoted daughter caring for her father, who is battling early-onset dementia. Marlee's struggle to balance her high-powered career with her father's long-term care needs is both realistic and deeply touching. I felt a strong connection to her story and admired her resilience and compassion.
The story is sprinkled with glimpses of previous characters, adding depth and continuity to the series. Friend Me is not only cute and realistic, but also peppered with funny moments and lighthearted sentiments that make for an enjoyable read.
Overall, this book is a delightful mix of romance and heartfelt family dynamics. I enjoyed it and look forward to seeing what happens next!
🎧❤️Audio performance review❤️🎧
Stefanie was fantastic narrating this one and brought the characters to life. I thought she has great pacing and inflection, and I enjoyed her male voice. Julio narrates the epilogue and was a great casting for that part. Another great listen!
Thank you to Michelle and home cooked books for the advanced listen. It was trot my pleasure!
***These are my own honest thoughts that I have provided voluntarily.
January 19, 2025
I found the lead female in this really annoying. She was just so hung up on the gorgeous but cold CEO, she couldn't see what was pretty obvious to everyone else around her. She drove me mad. But I stuck it out, for an ok plot, and some other characters who were better. Not sure I'd bother with the other books in the series, although none of the other female leads could be as annoying as Marlee in this one.
December 4, 2025
This book was horrible. I hated Marlee with my whole heart. She is so selfish, self-centred, and delusional, making her super annoying overall.
Tyler, on the other hand, needs to grow a spine. She literally uses him to make Cooper jealous, and he lets her without hesitation. I really hoped he would reject her in the end.
Lastly, regarding the Alzheimer's plotline, it was awfully handled. Marlee didn’t even get his dad tested; they all assumed he had it because one doctor suspected so… I understand the book is set in the USA and that healthcare is expensive, but this is a delicate disease, and she is friends with millionaires who could lend her some money if that was the issue. This whole thing drove me so mad.
Reading this was disappointing because the first book was OK, but this one was just not it.
Tyler, on the other hand, needs to grow a spine. She literally uses him to make Cooper jealous, and he lets her without hesitation. I really hoped he would reject her in the end.
Lastly, regarding the Alzheimer's plotline, it was awfully handled. Marlee didn’t even get his dad tested; they all assumed he had it because one doctor suspected so… I understand the book is set in the USA and that healthcare is expensive, but this is a delicate disease, and she is friends with millionaires who could lend her some money if that was the issue. This whole thing drove me so mad.
Reading this was disappointing because the first book was OK, but this one was just not it.
March 3, 2025
Sweet Romance
It’s obvious how it ends so no spoilers here. But it was refreshing to not be a instalove between an assistant and billionaire. The sub story with Marlee’s dad added a lot to the plot and really fleshed out her character. Being set local to me in San Francisco made it fun.
It’s obvious how it ends so no spoilers here. But it was refreshing to not be a instalove between an assistant and billionaire. The sub story with Marlee’s dad added a lot to the plot and really fleshed out her character. Being set local to me in San Francisco made it fun.
January 29, 2022
I had the pleasure of reading this book as an ARC read, thanks to NetGalley and Lazy Dog Books publisher, in exchange for my honest opinion and review. I thoroughly enjoyed this book! This book is funny, entertaining, steamy, and fun. I really enjoyed the chemistry between the characters and the pacing of the book. I’m also a sucker for rom-com books and this one fit my craving perfectly.
This book contains the following tropes: office romance, slow burn, friends-to-lovers, fake-relationship, one bed.
Marlee, an executive assistant at a tech company, found herself dateless to her best friend Alicia’s wedding, and even worse, Cooper, the man she’d been heavily crushing on for the last three years was taking someone else. Tyler, her best buddy, offers to attend Alicia’s wedding as Marlee’s plus one with a plan to fake-date, in hopes of making Cooper jealous. Through small moments of charm and support, Marlee questions her feelings but refuses to jeopardize her friendship with Tyler. Marlee’s disabled father with Alzheimer’s also proves to be a stressor for her as she struggles to care for him while maintaining her full time job. Can Marlee make the right choices?
I absolutely adore Marlee and Tyler. Marlee is witty and smart and caring, going above and beyond to be present for her colleagues, bosses, friends, and father. Tyler is dependable, smart, nerdy; and caring. I admired Marlee’s compassion and love for her father and how she desperately wanted to keep him comfortable at home and do right by him. I respected her role as her father’s caretaker, and felt her pain when her father mistook her for her deceased mother. This book tugged on my heartstrings and had me franticly turning the pages to find out what happened next.
Highly recommend, 5/5
This book contains the following tropes: office romance, slow burn, friends-to-lovers, fake-relationship, one bed.
Marlee, an executive assistant at a tech company, found herself dateless to her best friend Alicia’s wedding, and even worse, Cooper, the man she’d been heavily crushing on for the last three years was taking someone else. Tyler, her best buddy, offers to attend Alicia’s wedding as Marlee’s plus one with a plan to fake-date, in hopes of making Cooper jealous. Through small moments of charm and support, Marlee questions her feelings but refuses to jeopardize her friendship with Tyler. Marlee’s disabled father with Alzheimer’s also proves to be a stressor for her as she struggles to care for him while maintaining her full time job. Can Marlee make the right choices?
I absolutely adore Marlee and Tyler. Marlee is witty and smart and caring, going above and beyond to be present for her colleagues, bosses, friends, and father. Tyler is dependable, smart, nerdy; and caring. I admired Marlee’s compassion and love for her father and how she desperately wanted to keep him comfortable at home and do right by him. I respected her role as her father’s caretaker, and felt her pain when her father mistook her for her deceased mother. This book tugged on my heartstrings and had me franticly turning the pages to find out what happened next.
Highly recommend, 5/5
March 15, 2022
The truth about this book…
Friend Me by Michelle McCraw // Book Review:
This book surprised me!! I feel like I can be picky when it comes to romcoms & I really really enjoyed it!!
There are actually quite a few tropes in this story but somehow they just all worked well together without making it feel like too much or too ridiculous.
// What it is about:
Marlee works at a tech company and she has been into her boss for a couple of years. No longer willing to let more time go by without saying something, she decides she needs to get his attention. Luckily, her work friend is there to help by being her date to their other bosses wedding. The wedding weekend changes everything. Marlee thought they were just really good friends but then…she ends up questioning who she really wants to be with.
•workplace (tech)
•cinnamon roll love interest
•close proximity
•friends to lovers
•fake dating
•MC is into her boss
•one bed
•Marlee is also a caregiver for her dad and the subject of caring for a parent and Alzheimer’s was handle carefully by the author.
I received this book in exchange for an honest review. 😊
Friend Me by Michelle McCraw // Book Review:
This book surprised me!! I feel like I can be picky when it comes to romcoms & I really really enjoyed it!!
There are actually quite a few tropes in this story but somehow they just all worked well together without making it feel like too much or too ridiculous.
// What it is about:
Marlee works at a tech company and she has been into her boss for a couple of years. No longer willing to let more time go by without saying something, she decides she needs to get his attention. Luckily, her work friend is there to help by being her date to their other bosses wedding. The wedding weekend changes everything. Marlee thought they were just really good friends but then…she ends up questioning who she really wants to be with.
•workplace (tech)
•cinnamon roll love interest
•close proximity
•friends to lovers
•fake dating
•MC is into her boss
•one bed
•Marlee is also a caregiver for her dad and the subject of caring for a parent and Alzheimer’s was handle carefully by the author.
I received this book in exchange for an honest review. 😊
August 8, 2021
Falling in Love With the Other Man . . .
Finding the one you love is amazing… now it’s time for executive assistant Marlee Rice to win San Francisco tech executive Cooper Fallon’s heart. Unfortunately, that’s where her plans fall apart.
Dancing at a wedding was step 1, except Cooper took a date to the wedding. That left Marlee scrambling for her own date, and she and her nerdy best friend, Tyler Young, decided to attend as a “fake” couple. But who knew Tyler could kiss like that?? Right on the dance floor! And now Marlee has all these confusing feelings. The safest thing now is to retreat… but is that what she really wants?
I really loved their story. Tyler was perfect and Marlee was so blind to his feelings. He was the best thing that could ever happen to her. When would she realize it? Or would she continue to focus on the wrong man?
Finding the one you love is amazing… now it’s time for executive assistant Marlee Rice to win San Francisco tech executive Cooper Fallon’s heart. Unfortunately, that’s where her plans fall apart.
Dancing at a wedding was step 1, except Cooper took a date to the wedding. That left Marlee scrambling for her own date, and she and her nerdy best friend, Tyler Young, decided to attend as a “fake” couple. But who knew Tyler could kiss like that?? Right on the dance floor! And now Marlee has all these confusing feelings. The safest thing now is to retreat… but is that what she really wants?
I really loved their story. Tyler was perfect and Marlee was so blind to his feelings. He was the best thing that could ever happen to her. When would she realize it? Or would she continue to focus on the wrong man?
September 24, 2021
When I tell you this book is so Funny!
Marlee's hilarious nerdy, one-liners were everything. I loved seeing this intelligent, nerdy girl, who is ALSO girly. This romcom has the perfect blend of funny to deal with the heavy realities of a main character who is also a caregiver.
Let's talk about Tyler for a second though. I loved how he broke so many nerdy man stereotypes. Yes, he is intelligent, loves Star Wars and all that, but he's also sporty, super hot, and can DANCE! If you love a gooey cinnamon roll, you will fall in love with Tyler Young.
Don't forget to read the author's note at the end, where the author's wishes for this story to become obsolete one day brought a real tear to my eye.
Marlee's hilarious nerdy, one-liners were everything. I loved seeing this intelligent, nerdy girl, who is ALSO girly. This romcom has the perfect blend of funny to deal with the heavy realities of a main character who is also a caregiver.
Let's talk about Tyler for a second though. I loved how he broke so many nerdy man stereotypes. Yes, he is intelligent, loves Star Wars and all that, but he's also sporty, super hot, and can DANCE! If you love a gooey cinnamon roll, you will fall in love with Tyler Young.
Don't forget to read the author's note at the end, where the author's wishes for this story to become obsolete one day brought a real tear to my eye.
February 23, 2022
This book was unexpectedly wonderful and the ultimate slow burn. It touches on some complicated emotions related to being a caregiver and how consuming that can be.
Marlee was a hard sell for me in the beginning but watching her take control of her life was so worth the struggle. Her dynamic with Tyler was adorably frustrating and full of heart and those magical sparks.
‘Nothing had ever felt as good as his fingers in my hair, his lips on my skin.’
Tyler and Marlee were so deserving of their happily ever after and the fireworks that come after ALL that build up! So excited to have found Michelle McCraw and this series!
I received a copy of this story from NetGalley and the author in exchange for an honest review.
Marlee was a hard sell for me in the beginning but watching her take control of her life was so worth the struggle. Her dynamic with Tyler was adorably frustrating and full of heart and those magical sparks.
‘Nothing had ever felt as good as his fingers in my hair, his lips on my skin.’
Tyler and Marlee were so deserving of their happily ever after and the fireworks that come after ALL that build up! So excited to have found Michelle McCraw and this series!
I received a copy of this story from NetGalley and the author in exchange for an honest review.
August 3, 2021
I absolutely adore Marlee. She loves love and she gives everything she has and then some to care for her father. She's had a longtime infatuation with Cooper, the oftentimes cold exec.
Tyler stole my whole heart. He's so caring and selfless, he's an absolute treasure.
I love that this story is told in only Marlee's POV until the epilogue. I found myself wondering constantly what Tyler and Cooper were thinking. I devoured this book! I laughed, I cried, I cringed, I yelled at my kindle. And I cannot wait for the next in the series.
Tyler stole my whole heart. He's so caring and selfless, he's an absolute treasure.
I love that this story is told in only Marlee's POV until the epilogue. I found myself wondering constantly what Tyler and Cooper were thinking. I devoured this book! I laughed, I cried, I cringed, I yelled at my kindle. And I cannot wait for the next in the series.
September 28, 2021
I really enjoyed this second book in the Synergy series because friends-to-lovers is one of my favorite tropes. Right from the start, I was rooting for Tyler and Marlee to get together, because it seemed obvious that they were right for each other. But, as with any good romance, true love isn't easily attained, and there were a lot of fun twists and turns along the way. I also appreciated the sensitive way the author dealt with Marlee's father and the strain of having to take care of an aging parent. I'm looking forward to the next book in the series!
February 9, 2022
I really enjoyed this 2nd book in the Synergy series. The story of Marlee and Tyler was even better than I thought it would be. I laughed so many times during this story and I loved how Marlee was such a romantic. I was holding out for the time when Tyler and Marlee would get together, it seemed really obvious that they were meant for each other. As a daughter taking care of an aging parent, this book really resonated with me. I had so much empathy.
I received a free copy of this book and I am voluntarily leaving a review.
I received a free copy of this book and I am voluntarily leaving a review.
September 19, 2021
I receives the book as a giveaway. The lead character was an obsessed romantic. Felt I missed a little in characters, maybe building for a sequel of these characters, but felt it was a little unfinished as one of the males was the obsession of main female characters. I also like when author gives the POV of the main characters and that maybe what I missed. Did enjoy the story and read quickly. Paperback form. Will be checking out other books by this author
August 7, 2021
Friend me was such a sweet, fun loving, friend to lovers romance!!
Friend me was such a sweet, fun loving, friend to lovers romance. I read this entire book in one sitting because it was so well written. This was entertaining and a wonderful read. First book I have read by this author and will actively seek her books from now on. Happy reading everyone 4 1/2 stars ⭐️
Friend me was such a sweet, fun loving, friend to lovers romance. I read this entire book in one sitting because it was so well written. This was entertaining and a wonderful read. First book I have read by this author and will actively seek her books from now on. Happy reading everyone 4 1/2 stars ⭐️
August 2, 2021
I truly loved this romantic comedy! So glad that I discovered this hidden gem.. Tyler really is a sweetheart!
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
August 16, 2021
I really enjoyed this book! The storyline was well developed, the characters were complex and well developed and the story world was detailed. The writing drew me in, and I felt immersed in the story! I always look forward to more books by this author and would recommend this book!
October 2, 2021
I really enjoyed this book! I love first POV and slow burns so was hooked. Can't wait to see more of her work!
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
September 9, 2021
I really enjoyed this romance. It is super steamy and fun. There is an a lot of chemistry. I loved the scenes and the pacing of the romance.
January 10, 2022
This is a wonderful book. The writing is excellent. I really enjoyed the characters and found them very relatable. It went very fast, and was just a great read. Highly recommend this author.
May 7, 2025
fmc lowkey annoyed me throughout the book. it was so corny but at least i read it all
July 2, 2025
the plot is cute and had potential but ended up being kind of annoying. Like my girl Marlee is a romantic and just wants love and she was going through her own issues throughout the book and my man Tyler was just the WORST
Marlee has feelings for one of the executives(Cooper) which was very obvious to everyone. Tyler, her friend at work, seen this and offered to be her fake date to the other executive's wedding to make Cooper jealous. Marlee was all over the place with her feelings but to be fair to her, when she brought her feelings up to Cooper and he turned her down, she took it and moved on.
UNLIKE FECKING TYLER! Tyler was giving incel vibes from the beginning but it wasn't too bad that I let it slide. THEN when he told our girlie that he wanted to be more than friends and she turned him down, he has a WHOLE hissy fit.
Need we remind this man that HE suggested that he be her fake date to make Cooper jealous when he found out Marlee's feelings for Cooper. HE was the one to continue the ruse once they went back to work after that weekend. Marlee asked if he was okay with it and he said YES.
Then she turned him down, he just left like idk what he thought was going to happen after she REPEATEDLY told him that they were just friends and did not want to ruin their friendship. When she eventually figured out her feelings for Tyler and that she loved him, she told him and he did not believe her. SIR
This man then dissappeared for a whole month back to his hometown and was going to take a job out there to get away from her. No trust for a girlie you have loved for like a year? 🤨 He does show up to the holiday party after being away for a month, sees Marlee kissing Cooper, didn't want to listen when Marlee explained that Cooper was drunk and she didn't feel anything for him anymore and that she loved Tyler and proceeded to walk away from our girl AGAIN leaving her alone.
She was ready to move on because she knows that no means no, UNLIKE SOME PEOPLE! Tyler then has the audacity to come back to her and say that he loves her too and they just get together and live happily ever after. Like they then have sex and thats at like 95% into the book, there is no chemistry, he has a dirty mouth which usually would be fine but I think because he gave me such bad vibes, it just gave me the ick
marlee is no saint, she made mistakes but she tried to right them. While this man was having a hissy fit, she was going through her own issues with her dad's illness. I felt so sorry for her like it was not easy and then the whole Tyler thing on top of that did not help.
She was just a hopeless romantic who's best friend just got married and so they won't get tonspend as much time together anymore, she was losing her father to Alziemers disease which she had to come to terms with and now the only other person in her life was ignoring her and did not believe her when she told him REPEATEDLY she loved him. She was annoying but I do hope the best for her.
Anyway that is my rant. I was going to give it 2 stars but Tyler at the end with his attitude for stupid reasons brought it down to 1. Will I be reading the other books in this series? Most likely, don't ask me why 😭 I just hope they aren't as annoying as this one
Marlee has feelings for one of the executives(Cooper) which was very obvious to everyone. Tyler, her friend at work, seen this and offered to be her fake date to the other executive's wedding to make Cooper jealous. Marlee was all over the place with her feelings but to be fair to her, when she brought her feelings up to Cooper and he turned her down, she took it and moved on.
UNLIKE FECKING TYLER! Tyler was giving incel vibes from the beginning but it wasn't too bad that I let it slide. THEN when he told our girlie that he wanted to be more than friends and she turned him down, he has a WHOLE hissy fit.
Need we remind this man that HE suggested that he be her fake date to make Cooper jealous when he found out Marlee's feelings for Cooper. HE was the one to continue the ruse once they went back to work after that weekend. Marlee asked if he was okay with it and he said YES.
Then she turned him down, he just left like idk what he thought was going to happen after she REPEATEDLY told him that they were just friends and did not want to ruin their friendship. When she eventually figured out her feelings for Tyler and that she loved him, she told him and he did not believe her. SIR
This man then dissappeared for a whole month back to his hometown and was going to take a job out there to get away from her. No trust for a girlie you have loved for like a year? 🤨 He does show up to the holiday party after being away for a month, sees Marlee kissing Cooper, didn't want to listen when Marlee explained that Cooper was drunk and she didn't feel anything for him anymore and that she loved Tyler and proceeded to walk away from our girl AGAIN leaving her alone.
She was ready to move on because she knows that no means no, UNLIKE SOME PEOPLE! Tyler then has the audacity to come back to her and say that he loves her too and they just get together and live happily ever after. Like they then have sex and thats at like 95% into the book, there is no chemistry, he has a dirty mouth which usually would be fine but I think because he gave me such bad vibes, it just gave me the ick
marlee is no saint, she made mistakes but she tried to right them. While this man was having a hissy fit, she was going through her own issues with her dad's illness. I felt so sorry for her like it was not easy and then the whole Tyler thing on top of that did not help.
She was just a hopeless romantic who's best friend just got married and so they won't get tonspend as much time together anymore, she was losing her father to Alziemers disease which she had to come to terms with and now the only other person in her life was ignoring her and did not believe her when she told him REPEATEDLY she loved him. She was annoying but I do hope the best for her.
Anyway that is my rant. I was going to give it 2 stars but Tyler at the end with his attitude for stupid reasons brought it down to 1. Will I be reading the other books in this series? Most likely, don't ask me why 😭 I just hope they aren't as annoying as this one
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 5, 2025
It was boring. Nothing happens for at least 20% of the book. Except a bunch of activities that could have been summarized in one chapter. And being in Marlee’s head for so long was annoying. She’s obsessed with Cooper, and for the longest time she only focuses on him, to the point that Tyler is barely mentioned. Even after Cooper rejects her, she’s still obsessed. I blame it on the wishy-washy rejection. He wasn’t clear, and he made it seem it was only because they’re coworkers, and not from a lack of attraction (it was painfully obvious he wasn’t attracted to Marlee. Well, for everyone but Marlee, that is). Which is very shitty because he ends up with his assistant in book 4. She thinks very highly of herself, but all I saw was a selfish person, and a shit employee, costing the company money (hiring temps and training them costs money, not to mention their mistakes) just to make her crush notice her. That was, at best, abuse of power, and she should have been fired over it. But she’s so nice, and so competent! Nope, I didn’t see that (I mean, she couldn’t differentiate between dog and bear statues, how can she be a good admin?). Not to mention none of that made sense, since she shouldn’t have been allowed to hire people, because she’s definitely not trained for that. It takes skill (and also, it’s not like people can just show up one day and start working, there’s a process, even for temps), but that’s something people who have never worked in HR seem to ignore. Her constant comparing her life to romance tropes made me cringe every time. And she does that a lot. A. LOT. Her entire personality seemed to be Cooper, romance, and pink. With the occasional mention of some physics/astronomy concepts because she’s a nerd (how is any of that related to her having an IT degree of some sort, I don’t know. Her father, apparently, knows his physics and astronomy, but that doesn’t mean she has to). Oh, and her love of musicals that doesn’t get mentioned in the first half, and seemed to have sprang up because Cooper liked musicals.
She doesn’t really start to consider Tyler for anything more than a friend until the second half of the freaking book. And as a result, he comes out flat and uninteresting. We know more about Copper than we know about Tyler.
And Cooper is definitely a gay man still in the closet, in love with Jackson, and maybe attracted to Tyler. At least that’s what he comes off as, despite the author pairing him with his male assistant later on.
I was reading this for a couple of challenges, otherwise I wouldn’t have finished it. Marlee wasn’t as good a person as she thought she was. I liked the first book in the series, and I hated the fifth. Reading this I’m starting to think the first book was a one-off.
TW for dementia.
She doesn’t really start to consider Tyler for anything more than a friend until the second half of the freaking book. And as a result, he comes out flat and uninteresting. We know more about Copper than we know about Tyler.
And Cooper is definitely a gay man still in the closet, in love with Jackson, and maybe attracted to Tyler. At least that’s what he comes off as, despite the author pairing him with his male assistant later on.
I was reading this for a couple of challenges, otherwise I wouldn’t have finished it. Marlee wasn’t as good a person as she thought she was. I liked the first book in the series, and I hated the fifth. Reading this I’m starting to think the first book was a one-off.
TW for dementia.
July 10, 2025
Rounding up from 2.5. They didn't figure their shit out until 88% and the number of times she referred to the MMC as her "buddy" or "friend" (even after they were together) was maddening. The FMC in this book is a trainwreck, and not in a charming way. She's selfish, delusional, and the number of times she threw herself at not one but TWO men who repeatedly rejected her advances had me ready to keel over from secondhand embarrassment. Also, her little character quirk was making alliterative exclamations involving scientists from the distant past such as "Great Galileo" and "Jumping Johannes Kepler!". And I feel obligated to point out, as a person who is apparently an even bigger dork than her, that the "J" in Johannes is pronounced as "Y", so that one doesn't even work. Do with this all this information what you will. 0 stars for Marlee Rice.
What stopped me from DNFing was the Alzheimer's plotline, which was devastating and beautiful. It was by far the best-written part of this book. Not a single person in this book handled that situation well, but it was real and raw, and I imagine how a lot of caretakers find themselves floundering to find out what to do when their loved one starts showing signs of memory loss. As an attorney, I really, really appreciated the Author's Note at the end, which gives valuable and concise information about how readers can arrange Advanced Directives, should a loved one ever need to act as their financial and medical power of attorney in an emergency.
I really liked the first book in this series so I'm going to continue on but I think I'll take a break for now! It was a little jarring how much less I liked this book than Work With Me!
What stopped me from DNFing was the Alzheimer's plotline, which was devastating and beautiful. It was by far the best-written part of this book. Not a single person in this book handled that situation well, but it was real and raw, and I imagine how a lot of caretakers find themselves floundering to find out what to do when their loved one starts showing signs of memory loss. As an attorney, I really, really appreciated the Author's Note at the end, which gives valuable and concise information about how readers can arrange Advanced Directives, should a loved one ever need to act as their financial and medical power of attorney in an emergency.
I really liked the first book in this series so I'm going to continue on but I think I'll take a break for now! It was a little jarring how much less I liked this book than Work With Me!
February 24, 2025
I found this book along with the first book in the series (Work with Me) during amazon's big free book sale at the end of the year. I am always looking for books that are STEM focused with women in STEM fields, and while the FMC was a degreed computer programmer, she spent the entire book as an executive assistant, so you really didn't get to see her shine in this role. I think this was supposed to be a slow burn, but it was way too slow. Between 60-80% complete, that entire section of the book was only focused on the FMC's personal life. There was nothing at all happening with the MMC. Usually I like a fake dating trope, but this one was difficult for me to stomach because it was being done just so the FMC could get another guy jealous, so the first half of the book was spent focusing on a different guy. I felt horrible for the MMC. While there was open door spice, it was very minimal at the very end of the book. I didn't love the first book, this one was worse for me, so I don't think I will be continuing on in the series, which makes me sad because I love STEM focused romances. This author just isn't for me.
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