Title:    Barely Even Friends  
Author: Mae Bennett         
Genre: Romance        
Rating: 4 out of 5  

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 ended up being a cute read! I like the grumpy/sunshine trope—if it’s done well and Grumpy doesn’t come across as a jerk—and this one was done well. Bonus points for the body positivity message. Bellamy was a lot of fun, and her voice was so relatable it made me laugh. Her developing friendship with Oliver, as well as the secondary characters, made this a fun read.

Barely Even Friends is Mae Bennett’s debut novel.

(Galley courtesy of Alcove Press in exchange for an honest review.)

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