Safety in the Friendzone

by Elizabeth Stevens

Charley and Zane had been best friends since he’d found the broken board in the fence between their houses at the age of four. Sleep overs in the backyard had turned into sleepovers in his treehouse into sleepovers in one of their rooms when they both decided sleeping closer to a toilet was actually great.

Zane and Charley were just friends until his girlfriend dumps him and there’s the beginnings of a spark. But they’ve grown a little apart in recent years and neither of them think the other would possibly ever be interested in anything more. So Charley fakes a crush and it’s Zane to the rescue in helping her follow her heart.

After all, there’s safety in the friendzone.

Please be aware that this story is set in Australia and therefore uses Australian English spelling and syntax.

Genres: Young Adult, Romance, Contemporary

148 pages, Kindle Edition

Published December 1, 2019

About the author

Writer. Reader. Perpetual student. Nerd.

I started out writing fantasy. But, I like to write anything, honestly. These days, I mainly stick to YA and there's always at least a sprinkling of romance, if not a 'whoops, I dropped the whole packet in'. Almost all my books are set in my home state of South Australia, either in real or fictional places - gotta write what you know - with Netherfield being the only current exception.

Like most writers, I love to read. Although, time for reading at the moment is hard to come by. When I'm not too busy writing, I'm usually reading a number of authors. Some of my favourites are Rick Riordan, Jane Austen, Kate Forsyth, Cecilia Dart-Thornton, Kasie West, John Flanagan, Terry Pratchett, Isobelle Carmody, Christina Benjamin, Emily Rodda, and many more.

I'm an avid fan of Marvel, DC, Doctor Who, Supernatural, Red Dwarf, IT Crowd, and pretty much anything similar. I've recently discovered Richard Ayoade's Travel Man and it's brilliant. I love watching soccer (go Gunners) and thoroughly look forward to seeing Eurovision every year. Celebrity crushes include Anna Kendrick and Chris Evans, because they are wonderful.

I live in Adelaide with my husband and a menagerie of animals – a cat reliving her (sixth) youth, a cowardly Beagle-Cavalier who thinks he’s smaller than he is, one meeping guinea pig who thinks any plastic bag has his greens in, two chickens who are terrified of free-ranging, and a turtle with a penchant for sticking her head up her filter pipe.

I have a Master of Arts (Writing) from Swinburne University of Technology. I also have a Master of Arts (Editing and Publishing) at University of Southern Queensland and, am now working towards my PhD. I also hope to one day undertake a PhD in Creative Writing - perpetual student, am I.

I also organise the Sleeping Dragon Emerging Fantasy Writers’ Collective writing group. The group self-published their anthology Tales from the Sleeping Dragon in 2012.

You can also find me on:
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NB: I'm usually happy to discuss review copies of my books. A track record of reviewing is preferable, but not completely necessary.

Reviews

[Mimia The Reader · Rating 4 out of 5]

I usually really like Elizabeth Stevens and this was no exception. However, I didn’t enjoy this one as much as I usually do. I felt it got preachy at the end (and it doesn’t matter my opinion about the thing, I just wasn’t looking for preachy in this kind of book, although I enjoyed that there was the possibility of redemption for the characters which is usually ignored) and I think the relationship between the characters was a little weird (we are best friends at home and kind of enemies at school but the guy is still in the friendzone?).

I don’t know... Maybe I’m beginning to have high expectations and that makes me more snobbish about my books.

All in all, it was a great book that did justice to Elizabeth Stevens but wasn’t my favourite by far.

Note that this is a 4 stars review and I still very much liked the book I just was expecting something else.

[Mayra Biggs · Rating 5 out of 5]

cute story of friendship to love.
They had a secret relationship for a long time, being best friends but not letting anyone know it. It sometimes happens, I like how their friendship is relatable. you can easily connect with characters.
It's a good read.

[funkelbunt.liest · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hmm. I enjoyed a few other books by the author - though I ultimately decided that her unnecessary vulgar language is not for me and there are other great books without it out there - but I didn’t really like the characters here.
The whole dynamic was strange and the banter wasn’t funny imo but rather rude..? I mean there’s a fine line and I felt it was crossed too often.
Btw - another reviewer said the characters were great role models which I would 100% disagree with. I wouldn’t by any means want my kids to hang out with people like Zane or Charley, but to each their own…
Also the cover looks more sweet/clean/wholesome and it’s definitely not that. I knew that going in having read other books by Stevens, but don’t let the cute picture or happy colors fool you.

[Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good read

Boys are such children sometimes. Zane should’ve stood up a lot sooner but Peer pressure is a real thing and it’s hard to against your friends. Well until your best friend calls you out for your bs.

[Becky · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cutr

[Tiffany · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was pretty repetitive. Also I don’t get the friends at home but enemies at school thing. Contains: mild language and kisses

[cierra · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cute love story, loved the boy next door take on it!

[Devison · Rating 3 out of 5]

Adorable and tyoical. Not a book I'd read twice though. It's a romantic comedy in a book. Don't know if I'd watch the movie version of this though. Probably cause there's already version s of this that do exist, i.e. The D.U.F.F. ?

[Loyalhistorian · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 to 4 stars. I was glad I pre-ordered it, and read it as soon as I could. I love when I pre-order a book and then I'm alerted that it has been downloaded in my Kindle. That's one of the best feelings, like a little present. I admit, I was left wanting more with this book. This one was a quick read, shorter than Stevens' normal books. In the "Thanks" afterword, Stevens even says herself that this book didn't go the way she intended. It ended up shorter, with less layers, and less of a moral to the story, but that she was still proud of it. As she should be...it was good. She didn't want to add more to the story because she felt like it would just be "filler" at that point. I can respect that, truly. I did really enjoy this one. Yet I still wish there had been more. There were several places that I would have liked for her to add to the story. Zane and Charley were a great pair. Stevens did a good job of showing an aged relationship that is 13-years in, with the banter, history, and familiarity between both of them. They are very comfortable with each other. I enjoyed that they could bicker with each other like old friends do without things blowing up dramatically. Their relationship moved easily and believably into dating. It was a good one. I guess I just wished that maybe Stevens would have put this story aside for a while, then pulled it out later to see what she might could have added after having some time away from it. Any time I draw or make something, sometimes I'll find that it feels off but I don't know why. I'll put it away, come back to it months later, and then I'll more easily see what I could do or add to it that I wasn't able to see when it was so new, when I was too close to it. I do suggest the book. I'd suggest anything that Stevens writes. Just go into it knowing that it's not her normal. The cover said this was "Book 1", so I look forward to see what else she does in this series.

[Anna Holmlund · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm going to start with saying that I read a beta version of this book.
Okey so I generally like the author of this book. And I like this book to, but not as much as a lot of her previous books. It's missing the typical Elizabeth Stevens spark. And that is bound to happen, you can't always go up and make greater books. Some need to be just OK.
This book well be a good book for younger teens. The main characters are good role models, and confident.
It's written in Australian English, but sense I'm a Swedish reader that does not really effekt the reading experience for me, but it's a to know.

[Kelly Bugler · Rating 4 out of 5]

Brilliant read. I have never found a book by this author that i didnt immediately fall in love with. Love this book!

[Kelly · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5