An interesting read. Not my favourite but it was well written and I would recommend reading at least once.

Definitely an angsty drama - which Blake is quite adept at cranking up to the nth degree. Dex, who has been in love with her straight best friend, Grace, is torn between her long and unrequited love and the potential of a new love. There's tons of emotion and chemistry and at times all the drama is engaging. Grace, as the selfish straight friend, drove me nuts - which is what she is supposed to do but she was over the top and the friendship between her and Dex was so very unhealthy. Obviously, you're rooting for Dex to get her head out of her ass and go for Emma - and the scenes with the two of them worked really well but I wanted to shake some sense into Dex. Normally I'm all for a bit of angst but this one was a bit too much for me - which doesn't mean that there are others who will enjoy the drama.

An honest review thanks to NetGalley. I really liked Emma. I immediately clicked with her and enjoyed learning more about her as the story progressed. I could have really liked this, but almost every single scene with Grace ruined it for me. I had very strong adverse reactions to her selfishness and could have done without the chapters with her point of view. I understand why the author wrote Grace like she did, but in my opinion, if it was done much subtler, this book would have been amazing.

Pretty standard for the genre. The chemistry was okay. I would be willing to read another book by this author. A solid 3 stars for me.

Friends Without Benefits is a good book that has a few quirks that may irritate readers. That being said I still liked the book because it wasn't the typical romance.

This book took me a few days to read. I couldn’t get into it at first. Once I did the book was good. I will read other books from this author.

Having not read any of Blakes books before I started this with some trepidation. This was not necessary however as it was a very easy read.
The subject matter was slightly unrealistic as I can't see that any true friend would behave like that to someone they care about., or that someone would stay that close to someone.
That said I enjoyed it and will look for other books by this author in the future

Love triangle! Caught your attention, didn’t I? Yes, this book is dealing with three women and true there is romance. But, is it a romantic sexual triangle?

As I mentioned, there are three main women and one man. Dex Putnam and Grace Standish have been best friends since they were children. They love each other, but their love is different. Dex loves Grace and wishes they could be together as a loving lesbian couple. Grace is straight and only loves Dex as a BFF. Grace is very self-centered and seeks out the special attention that Dex gives her.

The beginning of the book finds Grace getting married to Brent. Dex is the maid of honor at her wedding and seeks comfort in one too many drinks at the open bar. Emma, a good friend of Brent’s, takes care of Dex, who is too drunk to remember much about the wedding or Emma.

Later, Brent sets up Emma on a date with Dex. They are instantly attracted to each other and a bright future awaits them. The only problem is that straight-Grace is still in the middle. Thus, the plot thickens.

I enjoyed the storyline. It was different from so many romance stories. There is plenty of chemistry between Dex and Emma, as well as a lot of push and pull in their relationship. Readers will love it. Ms. Blake does an excellent job of character development.

I recommend this book and rate it 4-1/2 out of 5 stars.

I was given this ARC in return for a fair and honest review.

I received a free copy of Friends Without Benefits in exchange for an honest review. Overall, I enjoyed the story. The author, Dena Blake has a great writing style that was easy to read. The plot was also very realistic, and flowed well. Dex and Emma were such a fun couple, and I really enjoyed how they treated each other.

Now Grace, ugh. She was never a likable character, and if I was her husband, I'd run away from her too. However, without Grace, there wouldn't have been a very long story.

I only gave it four stars because I despised Grace that much, and I was tired of her shenanigans. I would definitely recommend this book to friends and family.

3.75 Stars. I was going to skip this book. While I have read all of Blake’s books, and thought she was improving with each new book, her last book Racing Hearts was really rough. If I add that disappointment in with all the mixed reviews for this book, this seemed like a story I should not bother with. But for some reason I could not get the blurb out of my head. The fact that this storyline is different than the norm really appealed to me. I finally gave in and read this and I’m glad I did. This is not a perfect book, but for me it is Blake’s best so far.

This is not the usual unrequited love story and I was glad for that. I always appreciate when romance authors can mix it up and add something a bit different. At the heart of this book is really a lovely romance. I was completely hooked in by the chemistry that was nice and in your face, just the way I like it. And while I wanted to knock some sense into one of the mains, I still really liked the main characters and was rooting hard for a possible relationship.

Now let me make this clear that this book is no fluffy romance. Blake likes to put angst in her books and this was no exception. Since I read the blurb and the other reviews, I knew what was coming and I was prepared. This book had plenty of drama. It’s almost soap opera like drama. There was a character I absolutely wanted to strangle but still I was entertained. I could not put this book down drama be dammed. Even though I didn’t agree with all of Blake’s writing choices, I still enjoyed the read. It was different and not boring, which I’m all for.

Taking a glance at the reviews you can tell this is not a book for everyone. But if you are looking for a chemistry filled romance, with some drama and craziness, give this book a go. I was glad I changed my mind and read this since it gave me plenty of entertainment.

At first, I got a little aggravated with the main character. I was having trouble dealing with her CONSTANTLY having to remind us that she was in love with her best friend whom she could never be with. I was happy to see that repetitive theme slowly dropped off as she started developing feelings for someone else. I can't be sure if that was intentional, but I felt like it helped the natural progression of the story.

I won't lie, the characters felt a little bit one dimensional to me. I did not care for Grace at all. Not just in the way we were intended to not like her, but I feel her character could have been written a little better.

Despite those issues, I did actually like the book. The budding romance was cute (and believably steamy at appropriate times) and I found myself enjoying the drama.

Dex is loyal and compassionate and in love with her straight best friend Grace. Grace is gorgeous, very needy, rather selfish and has just gotten married. Along comes Emma who so far has been unlucky in love and starts to fall for Dex but Dex is torn between the jealous Grace and the beautiful Emma.
This book is about unrequited love, loyalty and angst. The characters were well constructed and for anyone that has fallen for their best friend it was easy to empathise with Dex. A credit to Dena Blake for writing the character of Dex so well.
Definitely worth reading

Friends Without Benefits is a story of best friends and an unrequited first love that turns into something not very wholesome. Dex has crushed badly on Grace ever since high school but Grace is very straight. I liked that even good friendship and relationship jealously is unable to turn the straight girl. I am frustrated by Dex's blindness and somewhat horrified at the way Grace uses and takes advantage of Dex. The writing is good, and the story is well-plotted, and overall this is a good book although I didn’t quite love it. Recommended.

I enjoyed this story, but there were a couple of things I found to be odd. First of all, how could Dex continue to put up with Grace's bullshit after so many years? I guess it could happen but I can't imagine not being able to see it. Second, Grace's relationship with her husband didn't ring true at all. I couldn't figure out what either of them saw in the other. I did love Emma though, and the chemistry between Dex and her was outstanding. This was a nice change of pace and totally off the standard trope track.

This book starts out with Dex pining after her best friend Grace. When Grace marries, Dex gets set up on a blind date by Grace's husband. The blind date with Dex and Emma goes well and they begin to date. That does not sit well with Grace. This book begins to get dark a little after half way through. Grace is not all she appears to be. This is a very interesting book and an interesting read.

From middle school on Dex has been in love with Grace, and actually Grace dearly loves Dex, however Grace is straight and has no intention of any type of physical relationship with Dex. Secretly Dexter holds out for this possibility . When Grace gets married things change for Dex, she still will do anything in her power to please Grace and Grace plays that up to the hilt a the manipulative and self-centered away. Great sets Dex up on a couple of blind dates to help her get over her loneliness however each of them falls apart before the even begin. So Grace's husband Brent matches Dex up with his coworker Emma. From the first time that Dex and Emma meet there is clearly a strong a erotic electricity between the two. As Dex and Emma become closer and the relationship develops in a beautiful way Grace becomes even more intrusive and demanding of Dex's time. Grace does her best to shatter any possible love interest that Dex may have. Despite there being a true and honest and an erotic connection between Dex and Emma with Graces manipulation Emma walks away from a relationship she desperately wants so that Dex could pursue her long-held desire to be with Grace .
Will Dex give up the fantasy that Grace is her person and finally admit that the thing that she longed for her whole life she actually found the real thing with Emma, or is it too late for Emma to forgive Dex and pursue a happily ever after.

This book is very well written and the author does a terrific job with the character development not only with the main characters but also the secondary ones. All of them seem very real and relatable.

This is a light and fluffy holiday read perfect for the holiday season. If you enjoy romance novels of the flf variety check this out. I haven't read a ton of romance novels but this seems like a standard read. It isn’t challenging or remarkable. To me it’s the literary equivalent of a Hallmark channel movie. I recommend this to someone who really enjoys romance novels or to someone who really wants to read a flf that isn’t heavy. It was ok overall. There were things I liked and things I didn’t.

A book I didn't want to put down with very interesting characters. The characters were very believable and the story didn't feel like it followed any traditional trope. Very refreshing.

I read this book expecting a typical woman pining for straight friend type story but wow. The emotional roller coaster between Dex, Emma, and Grace was wild. Dex is an owner of a landscaping company and meets people of all sorts through her work. She's also a very attentive friend and lover. Unfortunately, she's in love with her best friend who marries another. Grace, her best friend, takes advantage of this devotion of Dex. However, Emma comes in and changes everything, allowing Dex to grow as a person and in love. Their closeness makes Grace feel a bit sore that she's no longer the most important person in Dex's life and encourages her to cause problems for everyone in the story, including her husband. The whole story is about these three women and how their interactions change their lives.

I found myself comparing my own friendship with others because of how Dex is treated in this novel. The book made me question the aspects of obligatory love and friendship and how being in such a relationship can affect one's life. I greatly recommend this story if you like occasional heart stabbing feelings, moments of laughter, and times where you feel like smacking a character and giving them a reality check. This book definitely has all these elements to make the story interesting, fun, and more!

A somewhat angsty story. Most of the times I just wanted to shake Dex and tell to stop being so dense. Definitely a book you'll keep reading to find out how things will get resolved between Dex and Emma.