by: Mae Bennett
Genre: Contemporary Romance/Beauty and the Beast Retelling
Release Date: June 4, 2024
Publisher: Alcove Press
A grumpy, rich recluse meets his match in this steamy Beauty and the Beast retelling—with a Succession twist.
Bellamy Price has just been offered the job of a lifetime: lead contractor on the restoration of the mysterious and sprawling Killington Estate. If she meets the owner’s ridiculous timeline, she’ll finally make a name for herself in this male-dominated industry. But when she rolls up her sleeves, slips on her suspenders, and shows up at the crumbling mansion, Bellamy finds the estate very much occupied.
After a traumatic car accident that left his parents dead and himself injured, Oliver Killington, heir to the Killington empire, took up residence as the grumpy caretaker of his grandfather’s mansion. None too pleased by the presence of the hammer-wielding woman who’s moved into his house, Oliver tries to block her at every turn.
But when Bellamy discovers Oliver’s facing his own ultimatum from his grandfather, the two form a cautious truce, which leads to flying sparks that are definitely not from faulty wiring. As Bellamy restores the gleam to the Killington Estate, she’ll have to decide if the walls she’s built around herself are worth knocking down to make space for someone else.
This clever, steamy debut novel will have readers rooting for this Beauty and her Beast until the very last page.
When her father is unable to head up a once-in-a-lifetime renovation job, Bellamy Price steps up to the plate. This is the moment she’s been waiting for her whole life. If she’s successful, not only will it boost her confidence, and give her bragging rights, but it will also look good on her resume and hopefully help her land her dream job. As with all the renovation jobs she and her father do, Bellamy plans to live on-site. She’s very excited to work on and live at the Killington Estate until she arrives and is reluctantly greeted by Oliver Killington whom she wasn’t expecting. Not only was she not expecting Oliver, she doesn’t know who he is, outside of being the grandson of the man who hired her father.
For the last eight years, since the death of his parents, Oliver Killington has been a recluse. The accident didn’t just kill his parents, but it left him injured, destroying any chance he had to live out his dream. His refuge has been the crumbling Killington Estate which was once his family’s vacation home. Oliver isn’t happy with Bellamy’s arrival and plans to renovate the estate. He definitely isn’t happy she will be living there.
Barely Even Friends is full of tropes: grumpy/sunshine, forced proximity, enemies to lovers, only one bed, he falls first, and found family. It was a fun read with main and secondary characters I loved. The story is told in first person from the POV of Bellamy. I would have liked for there to have been some chapters from Oliver’s perspective. Throughout the book, you’re often left to wonder what’s going on in his mind and what his feelings are. But he IMMEDIATELY owned a piece of my heart. Bellamy and Oliver definitely have passion, in and out of the bedroom.
I am looking forward to reading more from Mae.
~ Favorite Quotes ~
“Information is power.”
“It’s nice to have a friend.”
“Lean into the joy. If you have something you love, do it.”
“I believe in you.”
“Blood makes you related, loyalty makes you family.”
“Vulnerability is hard. Trusting someone with your heart, having feelings that aren’t entirely in your control. That stuff can’t go on a to-do list.”
“Falling in love is scary.”
**Received a copy of the book from the publisher and voluntarily reviewed it.**
Rating: 5
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