Review courtesy of Dark Faerie Tales

Quick & Dirty: Adorable best friend romance filled with drama, steamy times, and great characters.

Opening Sentence: I fidgeted with my coffee cup as I tried to find the courage to say what I’d held back for so long.

The Review:

Paisley Morro has been in love with her best friend Eli for twelve years now. She has watched him hook up with countless girls and it seems that he will never settle down. She never said anything because their friendship was always too important to her and she knew that if she told Eli how she felt things would change between them. But then she meets someone that she could honestly see herself really falling for and she realizes that it is finally time to tell Eli the truth. If he doesn’t want her it will really hurt but she knows she can’t truly give anyone else a real shot if she doesn’t find out how Eli truly feels about her.

Eli Jenkins is an eternal bachelor. He is sexy, has a great job, and knows how to charm women. Filling his bed has never been a problem and he also has an amazing best friend that fills all his other needs in life. His life is going perfect until Paisley decides to tell him that she is in love with him. Paisley is the only girl he has kept in his life for more than a night, but it takes a family tragedy for him to realize how much she actually means to him. But he might be too late and he may lose the only girl he has ever cared about forever.

Paisley is such a sweet girl and it is impossible to not like her. She has a calming demur but she also has some fire in her. I thought that she was a very well rounded character that I connected with her very easily. In some ways I can’t believe she has been in love with Eli for twelve years and never said anything to him. But at the same time I can see why she wouldn’t want to ruin their amazing friendship. Personally, I wouldn’t have the patience to wait that long, but patience is a quality Paisley possesses. I actually really felt bad for her when she had to watch Eli with all of these other girls even though it was partly her fault for not saying anything to him. In many ways she is very fragile and putting herself out there has never been easy for her. She was a really fun character to get to know and I am glad that I got to read her story.

Eli is a very sexy man that I fell madly in love with. When I first met him in the other books in the series I was very intrigued by his character. He isn’t really in the two previous books very much, but I loved how he was such a great big brother. He has a very protective streak for the girls in his life that he cares about and it was really cute. I will admit he was a total idiot when it came to Paisley. First off, he had no idea how she felt about him and it was totally obvious to everyone else in their lives. Then he didn’t react the best when she finally tells him how she feels. But even though he can be really stupid I still totally loved him! His relationship with Paisley was beautifully done and from the very beginning you can tell they are perfect for each other. They have amazing chemistry and their story was really fun to read.

Changing Everything is a sexy, emotional story that I completely devoured. It is no secret that I am a huge fan of this series and this novella was a wonderful addition. Everybody probably already knows that I am a huge sucker for best friend romances and this book is a perfect example of why I love them so much. When a couple starts out as friends they already have a strong connection, so when things turn into something more it is just so much more believable and realistic. There is also tons of fun drama and humor weaved into the story that made it a very entertaining story to read. While you can certainly read this book as a standalone, I would highly recommend you read the other books in the series because they are amazing and you will appreciate this story more. I believe that McAdams’ does plan to write others books for this series, which I am really excited about. I would highly recommend this story to anyone that is looking for a great, sexy new adult story that is a quick and adorable read!

Notable Scene:

Eli just continued to stare at me like I’d blown his mind, and my body began shaking as I silently begged him to say something—anything.

After twelve years of being his best friend, of being used by him as a shield from other women, of being tortured by his pretending touches and kisses … I was slowly giving up on us. I couldn’t handle the heartache anymore. I couldn’t stand being unknowingly rejected again and again. I couldn’t continue being his favorite person in the world for an entirely different reason than he was mine. I couldn’t keep waiting around for Eli Jenkins.

This was it for me.

“Eli, I need to know.” I exhaled softly and tried to steady my shaking as I asked, “Is there any possibility of there being an us?”

FTC Advisory: William Morrow/HarperCollins provided me with a copy of Changing Everything. No goody bags, sponsorships, “material connections,” or bribes were exchanged for my review. ( )