Title: Gouda Friends
Author: Cathay Yardley
Genre: RomCom
About Gouda Friends:
Two high school BFFs reunite and endeavor to fix each other’s lives in this geeky romance from the author of Love, Comment, Subscribe.
Tam Doan dumped her boyfriend after he threw away her gourmet cheese. Sure, it’s a little more complicated than that, but the point is, he had it coming. Newly single and unemployed, Tam calls up her best friend from high school and utters the emergency code word—goldfish. Next thing she knows, she’s on a plane back home.
Josh O’Malley was a troubled, unconfident teenager. Now he’s the successful owner of a multimillion-dollar ghost kitchen. Tam, his high school BFF and fellow member of the Nerd Herd friend group, was instrumental in building his self-esteem. When she calls him out of the blue, he jumps at the chance to return the favor.
Josh and Tam immediately get to work fixing her life—but again, it’s complicated. Their close friendship was always a lifeline between them; a blooming romance might confuse things. Still, at least one thing is for certain: their chemistry is un-brie-lievable.
About the Author:
Cathy Yardley is an award-winning author of romance, chick lit, and urban fantasy, who has sold over 1.2 million copies of books for publishers like St. Martin’s, Avon, and Harlequin. She writes fun, geeky, and diverse characters who believe that underdogs can make good and sometimes being a little wrong is just right. She likes writing about quirky, crazy adventures, because she’s had plenty of her own: she had her own army in the Society of Creative Anachronism; she’s spent a New Year’s on a 3-day solitary vision quest in the Mojave Desert; she had VIP access to the Viper Room in Los Angeles. Now, she spends her time writing in the wilds of East Seattle, trying to prevent her son from learning the truth of any of said adventures, and riding herd on her two dogs (and one husband.)
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My thoughts:
Friends-to-lovers is hands down my favourite trope! There’s nothing more romantic than two people who know each other in and out and would do anything to make the other one happy.
Tam had a hell of a weekend at work and then caught her boyfriend cheating only to find out that he had thrown her super special, limited edition cheese. That’s it! Can you, should you continue sacrificing your own happiness and your own dreams for someone who doesn’t seem to know you at all ? goldfish, goldfish…Tam’s secret word with which she calls for help of her best friend Josh in California. Somehow she finds herself on a plane going back to people who care about Tam finally standing up for heself and chasing her own bliss.
Josh and Tam were such sweet characters! I loved the way he kept putting her well-being and her freedom to choose for herself first. First, I thought it was going to be a slow-burn love story, but then…well, sparks flew, the chemistry and tension were palpable and then fireworks went off to the joy of any reader who loves a hot, sizzling scene or two.
Whether your friends are super important to you and you see them on a daily basis or perhaps life has happened and you drifted apart a bit, you will relate to Tam and Josh’s Herd of Nerds and will admire their awesome support.
If you love your romance to be a bit on a geeky side with a touch of spicy and lots of cheesy puns, check this one out.
Thank you to NetGalley and Montlake for the review copy provided in exchange for an honest opinion.
readingtonic 
You convinced me to get this now. I enjoy geeky, spicy and witty reads.
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