Alex has been my best friend since we were two. We do everything together, which is why I felt…weird when at sixteen I found out he’s gay. How can Alex be something I’m not? But now he’s getting married …to a guy he’s been engaged to for three months…in Vegas , which isn’t Alex’s style. Luckily, they realize what a mistake this would be and the ceremony doesn’t happen. Hungover, Alex and I go on his honeymoon together where we discover a wedding did go down, and I’m now married to my best friend. Did I mention I’m straight? But if that’s true, why do I love the idea of being married to him? Why do I want to touch him, kiss him, and never let go? Looks like I’m actually bi and maybe I’ve been in love with Alex all along. Married to my Best Friend is a 27,000 word novella, which was previously available in the year long YBBB promotion.
Riley Hart is the girl who wears her heart on her sleeve. She's a hopeless romantic. A lover of sexy stories, passionate men, and writing about all the trouble they can get into together. If she's not writing, you'll probably find her reading.
Riley lives in California with her awesome family, who she is thankful for everyday.
This was really lovely. So many things I love in one story. I loved the characters, loved the way their relationship was portrayed. It was so sweet and swoony. It almost didn't feel like reading a novella.
My only niggle is that it was a bit cheesy towards the end and I didn't need the epilogue at all. I wish it ended with the last chapter, because it was perfection.
******* Re-read 1/2023 Re-read 12/2024 via audiobook. Great narration by Nick J. Russo.
How would it be if real life imitated a romance novel?
I have a few close friends, a couple of whom I've known for twenty plus years (lord, do I feel old!), but I've never been as attached to a friend the way Alex and Caden are attached to each other.
They can't exist alone.
Which is why Caden is angry and conflicted when Alex gets engaged to a guy he barely knows. It's why he freaks out the week of Alex's wedding, and why he marries Alex during a drunken night in Vegas (once Alex and his fiancé mutually call off the wedding).
Except neither MC is sorry. They want to be husbands. It just takes Caden a while to catch up, but once he does, he's all in.
This is a a quintessential best-friends-to-lovers story. Caden's bi-awakening comes hard and fast.
Forget the relationship angst. Everything is easy in Alex and Caleb's universe. It's not remotely realistic, and that's okay.
Can you believe that this is one of only few best friends to lovers stories that I genuinely liked?
It also had a bit of a GFY vibe which I find hard to relate to, but still it entertained me A LOT.
Starting out as friends in elementary school, Caden and Alex are inseparable.
When Alex comes out at age 16, Caden is devastated, knowing that Alex will one day leave their friendship-resembling-a-relationship-but-without-sex thing to be with a boyfriend.
When Alex finally does settle down at age 28, Caden is his best man. But the wedding in Vegas doesn't go as planned when Alex and his fiance make a last minute decision and blow things off.
Happy that Alex doesn't "leave him" Caden joins Alex on the honeymoon trip that he now had to go on his own or cancel.
But what they just slowly start to remember before going on that trip together is that they had drunkenly married in a Vegas chapel the night before.
And while enjoying a gay vacation together as husbands, Caden realizes that neither his commitment-phobia nor his heterosexuality are carved in stone.
Definitely an entertaining novella and a feel-good romance.
2.5 stars ⭐️ This was another novella I was reading ‘without having any intention of reading’ only because I couldn't let freebies slip away from my hands.
One of my favorite tropes that I never get tired of reading is friends to lovers. And this book started off really well, and I liked how Caden and Alex's relationship developed from being friends to lovers. But when we got to the latter part which was also Alex and Caden being lovers of the book, the story felt so cheesy and unbelievable, and I couldn't stop rolling my eyes. 😔
But the story was cute, angst-free, and engaging enough to finish it without skimming.
"Because I could never be happy with anyone other than him, and we will never be anything other than happy together. When I doubted it, Alex was my reminder that there is true love in this world. I won’t walk away from that for anything.”
Sometimes all you need is a good short, sweet, romantic novella.
This was a feel good book😍😍.
I am a sucker for the best friends to lovers trope. So it was only natural that I would devour this gem.
Two best friends fall in love and no unnecessary family drama was included. Just romance, cheesy at times but I loved it. It was cute and sweet.
Ngl I was hesitant to read this since RH's recent books haven't been a hit for me. But this one was a win😉.
Showcasing a friends-to-lovers romance, and featuring fake-relationship vibes and a soul-shaking bisexual awakening, Married to My Best Friend tells the swoony love story that unfolds between lifelong friends, Alex and Caden, after they wake up accidentally married but soon decide they want to keep it that way forever.
This story was seriously smile-inducing. I loved the way the story was formatted, featuring several early chapters covering Alex and Caden’s formative years and cementing their epic friendship and hidden deeper feelings with clarity. Their connection jumped off the page, practically since they were children, so it was all too easy to believe the love they felt for each other as adults.
This story had just enough emotional oomph to keep it from being too fluffy or frivolous, but I relished the overall joyful tone, largely due to Caden’s excitable and lovable nature. And, oh boy, did I enjoy the eagerness and passion Caden showed when he decided to embrace his bisexuality and love-up on his favourite human ever, Alex.
This M/M freebie was just the sexy-sweet and romantic ticket I needed to help kick-off my 2022 reading year on a super positive note!
DNF at 79%, who does that with a book so short as this one? ME 🙋🏻♀️🙋🏻♀️ I couldn't handle the chessiness, is that a word? If not, it should be. 😑😑
I had the same feeling in the whole book: you know when you go out with friends and there is always a couple that goes: we are soo fated, or so perfect for each other, or some kind of phrase like that? And you are there just wondering who the fuck asked? 🤣🤣
In here they used: this is so us... And I couldn't, they ended each other sentences, everything they did was: this is so us. Well, me DNF this is definitely so me, that's why I didn't rate it, I just don't like this type of stuff, I know is a me problem. 😁😁😁
Give blood, toxic, tears and I'm happy... This? Nope! 😷
[4.5] sure i'm more forgiving when it comes to novellas, but pack all my favorite tropes into a single story, spend some time giving a proper intro to their friendship, give me the cutesy wootsy with a spicy dash of jealousy, and i wholeheartedly support it 🥺
A lot of fun if you suspend your disbelief and sense of reality 😬
To start it off: for a novella with less than 100 pages, it’s surprisingly well written - but in the other hand, it’s Riley Hart. And while I haven’t loved all of the books I’ve read by her, she’s a good writer for sure.
On top of that, I got the audio (for free on BookFunnel right now) narrated by Nick J. Russo. And NJR is a legend amongst narrators, so I didn’t expect the book to be a bust anyway.
And I was right - it’s the classic friends-to-lovers romance, starting when both Alex and Caden were 12, jumping ahead to some milestones in their lives - like when Alex discovers at 16 that he’s gay, and in love with his straight best friend, Caden.
At 28, Alex is about to get married in Vegas, and Caden is his best man.
Ofc, seeing as it’s Vegas, things take a different turn 😅 and they end up going on Alex’ previously booked honeymoon together.
It’s sweet, funny and a bit cheesy towards the end, but I didn’t mind - I had a lot of fun listening to the audio, and while it’s a bit TOO pink-unicorn-clouds towards the end, it left me with a sappy smile on my face.
bahaha not me not at all realizing that I knew this story already until after I finished and wanted to add the book to my shelves. *lol
Anyhow, it was cute all over again. With the added bonus of NJ Russo narrating.
4**** stars for these two cutie pies.
Ugh! I am a total goner for the whole getting-drunkenly-married-in-Vegas trope!
I've seen this novella when I scrolled through the "your book boyfriend's boyfriend" group giveaway in January but it took a personal recommendation to finally pick it up. And I'm glad I did. This story was so fucking sweet, I loved it. Loved Alex & Caden.
This was my first book by this author and I hope I can find anther one I like amongst all the books she has written so far.
I have a diagnosed case of FOMO that flares up from time to time. So while I haven’t been big on RH books for a long time, this darn book started popping up all over my feed and in came my FOMO. 🤣
This book was totally cute and I can see why everyone is loving it. But it wasn’t for me. And that’s ok!
Now I’m off to the doctor about this FOMO. Oh wait-I don’t want to be cured. Because often I discover really great things with this illness! 😂
I was debating with myself how I'd feel with 3,5 or even 4 stars. The novella is exactly what the blurb promises, so I can't fault the book for being sweet, right?
The MCs weren't easily distinguishable to me. When I could distinguish them it was because the narrator made Alex sound like a child (yes, I listened to the audiobook and yes, I should have read the physical copy instead).
The epilogue was what made me settle on (low) 3 stars, though. I hate sex epilogues. This book's epilogue was the perfect example for why I hate them. You should NEVER EVER combine a serene outlook into the MCs future with enthusiastic ass licking.
“We were us. Alex and Caden. Best friends. Somehow, we were even more. Inevitable.”
Possibly one of the sweetest covers ever. 😍 Probably one of the reasons why I chose to read this. Promising to be a lighthearted, but lovable childhood friends to lovers read - for which, I am always weak, and in a way, it was. 🥲 Predictable plot, but pleasantly wholesome. Pretty much what I would expect from Riley Hart's writing style, but I feel like I should be more forgiving, because I was already prepared for it. 😊 Plus, it being a novella, I knew it would be a fast-paced and romantic read, so why not just roll with it. 🥰
“Promise me we won’t ever change. That our friendship will be just like this forever.”
Was it perfect? No, but it was sweet and endearing and angst-free. Next door neighbors since they were kids, each others' ride or die, Alex and Caden knew each other better than anyone - felt more comfortable with each other than with anyone else - were there for each other during their troublesome teens. 'He was my bro, my best friend, my ride or die.' 🥺 It was just very simple and straightforward, which acted like a nice buffer for all my usual emotional reads. They were putty for each other and it showed. Even when Alex was too afraid to confess that he was gay to Caden, or even terrified to admit that he was attracted to him - 'I’m gay. I’m gay and I love you. Don’t leave me' - having him in his life, just the way he was, was better than not having him, at all. ❤️🩹❤️🩹
Till, of course, his wedding does get called off and heartfelt and wholesome confessions are delivered at just the opportune moment, and, well.
Don't you just love when friendship turns into something so much better than forever? It was nice and warm and full of love. I could even tolerate the whole waking up to your best friend in Vegas spin, because the two best buds were quite likeable souls - not really a bad bone in either of their bodies. I love when friends realize they mean more to each other than just being friends - that the promise of being in each other's lives forever carries so much more weight to it. 👨🏻❤️👨🏻
“I couldn’t figure out what was wrong with me, just knew it felt wrong. You felt like mine.”
Their sudden 'oh, it's always been you' realization also felt natural and I just feel so happy when that moment comes along - just gives me the fuzziest feelings. 🥹 'There has never been a time in my life when I haven’t thought so, when I haven’t wanted you.' The two of them were the products of their parents' upbringing - each feeling that they way they viewed love and romance was because of them, so when their insecurities were finally let go... 🥺 Their vulnerable states of uncertainty - though, short-lived - felt believable to me, as was the instant way in which they fell into each other's arms, because well, when it's always felt like the most natural thing, why waste any more time than they already have. 💞💞
Thankfully, we were saved of any drama, but the parents do play a part in how the emotions pan out; which, I would not say the ending was quite a bad scene, it's just the writing style doesn't quite suit my palette at certain moments that it becomes almost painful to endure and I try valiantly not to cringe. But, urgh, it does get a bit bothersome for me and difficult for me to overlook - try as I might. 🙄
But, again, that cover... 🫠🫠 I really like it for some reason! 😄 It makes me all soft and gooey inside, that I can even ignore all the problematic points that I still knew what I was getting into. 😌
Did I overkill with all the words beginning with p? Perhaps. ☺️
A sweet best friends-to-lovers story chock-full with cute moments, pining, laughter, a possessive not so straight best friend, bi awakening, and a drunk Vegas wedding that proves an eye-opener.
This one got away from me. I wanted to enjoy it. I tried to enjoy it. But it was a struggle to finish. Loads of great reviews. I'll chalk it up to me or my mood. Or maybe I just don't click with the writing? #undecided
This author is always really hit or miss for me (lately more misses than hits) and based on the summary I had a feeling this wouldn't quite work, but I gave it the old college try!
Promising start--I love best friends to lovers and bisexuality discovery, and I appreciated that the author didn't make the "almost husband" an asshole. But from there, things kind of went downhill for me. The "drunk marriage" trope isn't really my jam, and I just never really connected with the characters or their relationship. They both got really mushy very fast, and something about the way both of them were written didn't really feel like two dude best friends. Lots of exposition and clunky dialogue and everything just felt so unrealistic and also very surface level. IDK, I'm a grump, but I didn't vibe with this one. :(
Novellas can be tough to get right, but this is a good one. I really liked the little snapshots of the lifelong friendship between the leads that open the story and their chemistry and connection just leap off the page. My only complaint is that it all got a bit cheesy towards the end, but otherwise this is a charming and heartfelt bi-awakening/friends-to-lovers story that felt satisfyingly complete despite the short page count and left me with the warm fuzzies.
I did liked it, it was sweet, cozy, and gave me all the warm feelings but yeah, it was also very predictable. Nothing wildly new or groundbreaking here, and the beats were exactly what you'd expect from this kind of setup. But honestly? Sometimes I’m in the mood for that exact brand of comfort-read.
The flashbacks to Alex and Caden’s younger years were super cute and did a good job showing how close they were from the beginning, so once the romance hit, it felt earned. Caden’s bi awakening and his whole “wait... I can love my best friend?” moment was chaotic and adorable. The emotional moments hit just enough to keep it from feeling too fluffy, but overall it was just a joyful, easy little read.
Cute short story about two best friends who get married in Vegas and now need to understand what that actually means. I like this theme and think it is very well done in this story. First, you definitely feel a deep friendship between the main characters. Also, and that’s important in these types of stories, the reason why Caden is unsure of his feelings is also quite reasonable.
Overall it's a good story and I won't be surprised if I keep coming back to it. It warms your heart.
This is a sweet, low-angst, quick read. It was fun and the prologue was great to establish their relationship when they were kids. I wished what we saw in the prologue had more bearing on the actual story than it did. I still had fun and the transition from friends to lovers made sense to me as well. The bi-awakening was pretty fast but given what we are shown in the prologue it made sense. I'm happy with this one.
I quickly read this a few hours ago and it was so adorable <3 I absolutely love love love reading this and it made me realize that yup Riley Hart is an author I def love reading. This is my third book by her and (!!!!) I have adored every single one of them.
Married to My Best Friend is a novella featuring the childhood best friends trope, oops I got married in Vegas while drunk, and so much PININGGGG. The pining is insane in this one. It's a light-hearted romance with no third-act breakup so don't worry. You get a sweet, beautiful love story about two people who have loved each other for a very long time.
When Alex calls off his wedding an hour before he goes down the aisle, he decides to go on his honeymoon either way. He invites his best friend Caden, not knowing that the same night of the failed nuptials, these two actually got really drunk that night and married while in Vegas!!! They find out while in Mexico and omg they go ahead and put on their rings and act as husbands for one week. Though this absolutely changes everything between them because Alex has been so in love with Caden but because Caden is straight he has never acted upon it. But Caden's head is all confusing and he doesn't know anything anymore. What he does know though is that Alex is everything to him and he doesn't want to ever lose him.
I love that Caden is so touchy and cuddly and clingy. Like this man is always touching Alex and IT'S SO CUTE AND AAAAAHHH you can't help but giggle and swoon and kick your feet into the air <3 This romance novella is literally the cutest soooo if you want something like this, read it now!