My Forbidden Romance with My Brother's Best Friend

Port Lane Romances #4

by Clara Nielsen

HOW DO YOU STOP YOURSELF FROM FALLING FOR THE ONE BOY YOU CAN’T HAVE?

Two years ago, I kissed Charlie Owen at a party… and he still doesn’t know it was me.

I wanted to tell him, but my brother was so mad at me for kissing his best friend that he wouldn’t let me even look in Charlie’s direction, let alone say anything.

Now it’s my last summer before college and I’m determined to do everything I’ve been too scared of all these years… And the number one thing on that list is to get Charlie to fall for me. No matter what my brother thinks.

But dating Charlie won’t be easy. Between his vindictive ex-girlfriend being my boss and having to sneak around my brother’s back, I’m pretty much convinced that it would never work out between us.

Good thing I only want a summer fling… right?

Genres: Romance, Contemporary, Clean Romance, Young Adult, Forbidden Love

169 pages, Kindle Edition

Published August 1, 2023

About the author

Clara Nielsen writes sweet & swoony YA romances set in high school, all about shy girls and the boys who are head-over-heels for them. When she’s not busy writing, you’ll probably find her out on the lake, putting together the perfect playlist, or sipping on a chai latte while daydreaming about her next story.

Reviews

[Sydney · Rating 5 out of 5]

THAT WAS SOOOOOOO GOOD

[London · Rating 1 out of 5]

I genuinely don’t even know where to begin with this book. It kind of read like introduction introduction introduction end of book. There was really no buildup of the plot or any real issues in the book. It was almost like a diary where she’d written the highlights of her day. Then there was the epilogue that skipped to one year later which was kind of weird as a kind of resolution had only just worked itself out. Idk if ur looking I’d say do not read.

[Sidney Akers · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought this was so cute! I love forbidden romance stories and this was such a good read

[♡Chee♡ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another cute, cookie-cutter romance from Clara Niselsen!
The thing i love the most about Clara's book is that how there's no unnecessary plots. No third act breakups and no unnecessary couple drama. All fluff 😍. I LOVE the Brother's best friend trope, and this was a cute book in the genre. There were mistakes tho, which im willing to overlook as this was just an ARC.
Also that scene about Skippy the imaginary fish was so fun to read😅
Overall it's a nice and fun book to read!

Thanks to BookSirens for the ARC :)

[Amy Armitage · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received an ARC of this book, and it's a quick, easy, sweet romance read with relatable characters and scenarios. If you've ever had a crush on someone who is out-of-your-league, a best friend's sibling, or a sibling's best friend, I'm sure you'd be able to relate in some way.

[Ayezu Tamarapreye Okoko · Rating 4 out of 5]

BOOK:-MY FORBIDDEN ROMANCE WITH MY BROTHER'S BEST FRIEND BY CLARA NIELSEN.

A high school fiction Book built on forbidden as Matthew forbidding his sister ,Madison from a Romànce with his friend Charlie Owen.;the senior from Madison's school instructing everyone to right(pronounced write) on a piece of paper(pay pa) as forbidden(fore be the earn); forbidden romance of teachers forcing good kids to sit next to the misbehaving ones to be good influence on them;Matthew asking Madison to stay away from Charlie as forbidden romance;violet raising eyebrows at their romance;summer vacation at Canada(can-ada for can-father with ada for father in ijaw also father pronounced farther poetically) by the students as fore be the earn/ forbidden Romànce.It raises questions on going to school vuluntarily(skull or sue -kul as pronounced) and whether nothing good came out of it for the student in reference to public interest litigation and electronic card purchase (poor chase) and whether dating the weak and threes pronounced trees and having a boyfriend came with certain baggages.

[DJ · Rating 5 out of 5]

So I had recently (during my last couple weeks of summer break, if you want me to be more specific) decided to go back into reading this series. I had a little trouble reading the first book and since I knew they were all interconnected standalones, I thought that I would skip to the second book and go back to the first when I was ready.

Now, I didn’t know what to expect from this book but I can tell you one thing for sure: I was pleasantly surprised. I’m not just saying this to say it. I really liked that this was such a light-hearted, quick read. I was able to finish it at a faster rate than normal and I really did enjoy everything that I had read. No regrets whatsoever.

I will get back to reading the rest of the series on my own time but for now, I do think that the Port Lane series is one you should pick up if you enjoy sweet and clean reads but don’t have the time to get through 49 chapters.

[Book Junkie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a really sweet and safe story about a brothers best friend. It would be perfect for some YA readers.

I really enjoyed this book at the beginning and it was building up to be a 5 star read for me until towards the end when it all got a bit rushed. Th couple got together all of a sudden and we’re declaring their love for each other without any real history. We got the FMC thoughts but not the MMC but all of a sudden he was saying “I love you” and I think we missed his perspective on how long he had harboured feelings. The other points that knocked it down for me was there was a pivotal scene at the start and a very important piece of paper and when those came to light they were just brushed over and not given the importance they deserved.

All in all a sweet read but a bit more detail would have made this 5*. There are also a few typing errors.

[Rebecca Love · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 rounded up to 4.
I am a sucker for the brothers best friend trope, and this was super cute. Charlie and madison are great characters, and I enjoyed the scenes at the pool. Also skippy the imaginary fish was hilarious. I like that we don't get a third act breakup either. Don't get me wrong, there is drama when her brother finds out about them, but it's not over the top.

My one issue with it is that it's too short to fully develop the relationship. We go from friends to kissing to being in love with less than 200 pages to fit it all in. I guess what I'm trying to say is that the whole thing was super cute, but there was potential for more of those moments, and it would have helped flesh the relationship out a bit more.

Thank you to the author for the opportunity to read the book as part of the ARC team. This review represents my honest opinion.

[C.Y. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Every time I read one of these books I tell myself that I am too old to read them but for some reason I can’t stop myself. I get swept up in the teenage drama. This was a cute story, and very original.

Madison has had a crush on Charlie, her brother’s best friend, since the night she secretly kissed him. She wasn’t supposed to know that it was Charlie, who kissed her, and he didn’t know that he kissed Madison. We get to see how their relationship develops over the course of time. I have to say that I actually thought Charlie was going to end up being a jerk, but he’s a nice guy.

We meet many characters from previous books in this series. So, although this can be a standalone, I would recommend reading book one, so you have an idea of the couples, and how they got together.

I received an advanced copy of this book for free, and I’m leaving my review voluntarily.

[J ♡ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Y’all know me well enough to know that Brother’s Best Friend is my favorite trope, so when I saw the ARC form, you can bet that I RAN to fill it out. I really enjoy adult romances, but there’s something about a YA romance that I can’t resist! Clara did not disappoint with all of the summer vibes, and she gave me all of the forbidden YA feels. I’m probably going to re-read MFRWMBBF a billion times, because it was so amazing! All of the characters were so fun (except Courtney, IYKYK), and the friendships were top-tier. The wedding scene had me squealing and dying, like, I live for this stuff! If you haven’t already figured out that I adored it, then let me tell you, I did! Definitely go grab a copy once it’s released!

[Only.ever.books · Rating 5 out of 5]

ARC Review
🌹My forbidden Romance with my Brother’s best Friend🌹
Port Lane Romances

By Clara Nielsen

⭐ 5/5 ❤️ 5/5

🌹 Brother’s best Friend
🌹 Young Adult
🌹 High School Romance

A wonderful teenage drama with a forbidden love story, a secret crush and lovely characters.
Madison and Charlie’s story is nothing but sweet. Matthew, Madison’s brother is naturally not happy with his sister and his best friend kissing. But for Maddy that kiss was everything. Only Charlie didn’t know it was her. But we get to see how their relationship develops throughout the book.
Charlie was a really nice character. And Madison was sweet. The side characters we know from previous books and their stories.

[Once Upon a Page · Rating 1 out of 5]

Dnf 30%

I need to stop reading Clara Nielsen books. I can’t seem to resist because I love Ya romance and her books are popular (plus they’re already on my kindle from free days) but I just don’t get along with them.

This one started well with a 7 minutes in heaven anonymous kiss but right after that we jumped to 2 years later and it took ages before we encountered the love interest again.

I didn’t like the mc much and the mmc was barely there so no opinion of him. Plus, the author’s resistance to editing/ proof reading always grates on me. It’s a shame as her stories have potential, but there’s far better out there.

[Delphia Von Heeder · Rating 5 out of 5]

My Forbidden Romance with my Brother's Best Friend is book 4 in the Port Lane Romances by Clara Nielsen. I thought that this story had wonderful characters that I enjoyed reading about. Matthew is not happy with his little sister kissing his best friend, Charlie. Madison thought it was the best kiss ever… what follows is an enjoyable romance. Clara Nielsen writes sweet romances that have multi layers and surprises. I enjoy her books. I received an arc for free and am leaving my review voluntarily.

[whimsical reader · Rating 4 out of 5]

The beginning was sad and boring for a while there but then it picked up.
Still not understanding how he couldn’t have figured out who he kissed in the closet. Loved Matthew even if he was a bit overbearing. Charlie seemed to have dated and kissed anyone that walked. So Matthew knew his best friend. It is fun to see Charlie and Madi commit. Attraction doesn’t always end in lifelong love but it was cute. Had a few surprises along the way. Courtney is the worst and yes Charlie you run from her as fast as you can.
Noticed a few spelling mistakes but loved the story of skippy in the middle

[Jodi Crouch · Rating 2 out of 5]

I feel this book jumped around a little to fast for my liking and dragged on in areas it probably shouldn't. This is the first book I have read from this author so I am not sure about any of her other books. I really thought this book could have been a great read but it is a lot like other books I have read regarding one of the siblings falling in love with the others bestfriend. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Paige · Rating 3 out of 5]

this was such a little cute romance! the older brother, dexton, i think it was, was VERY overprotective and i didn't really like that. like it wasn't overprotective, it was literally she was terrified to tell him she had a crush on the best friend, and they literally got into a fight. if he did something to make him not want his little sister to date him, they should talk it out, NOT get into a fight and be a scary older brother. otherwise, pretty cute.

[Molly Harris · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was honestly pretty disappointed in this book. I have read other books in this series and this one just seemed very rushed. There seemed to be parts where it just drug on and gave unnecessary details while other parts just zoomed by with not enough details. The story line was there - it definitely had potential! There were a lot of grammatical errors and spelling mistakes/typos.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Nicole J. S. · Rating 1 out of 5]

Downloaded this book on stuff your kindle day thinking I’ll get a little quick read in with a clean romantic plot. That’s literally the only reason this book gets one star 🙃 Only positive thing was just that. Otherwise, it was the stupidest plot, with extremely vain characters. I have a thing against DNF-ing things which is the only way I convinced myself to get through it.

[Dru Washburn · Rating 2 out of 5]

cute story

Possible spoiler:
Lots of typos but I liked the story. I wish she would have focused on their first kiss more. She could have made that very interesting but it ended up being an after thought. I was disappointed.

[Teya Teya · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this story. I could hardly put it down. It was a hidden romance flared by a secret kiss and harbored for years. It was beautiful. Plus the fact that it wasn't perfect with the brother upset about it, which is reality. Well written.

[Joshua Owen · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 stars

This was the Best. Book. Ever! The romance and cheesy thrill is absolutely perfect! If you’re into cheesy romances, I definitely give this 5 stars. For a 1 out of 10, this is a 20!

[Chenae Felton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun summer romance

Short Cute book. Quite a few typos but short enough to not be too bothersome reading.
I would read more of her books.

[Meredith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute read

It was very cute, I love brothers best friend romances. It could've used maybe one more run through by an editor but it didn't ruin the story for me!

[Ali · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love the brother’s best friend trope. The way Clara writes is so easy to read and makes me feel as if I’m in the book with the characters!

[Ashley Nicole · Rating 3 out of 5]

A short and sweet read with an easy flow. I loved the forbidden romance between the brother's best friend and the sister—it brought back nostalgic vibes from the books I used to read in high school.

[Erin Dougherty · Rating 2 out of 5]

Needs some editing

Needs to be edited better, a number of spelling and grammatical errors some plot errors also. Not great writing, a little simplistic, it was an ok story line.

[Kylee Timmreck · Rating 1 out of 5]

2/10⭐️

[Alyssa MacDormott · Rating 4 out of 5]

A quick and easy to read romance. There wasn’t much depth to the characters or story but it gave just enough to be a fun read!

[Samantha · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was soooooo cute!