Sarah Adams

"Hi, my name is Bree Camden, and I'm hopelessly in love with my best friend and star quarterback Nathan Donelson (so is half of America, judging by the tabloids and how much the guy dates). The first step is admitting, right? Except, I can never admit it to him because he clearly doesn't see me that way, and the last thing I want is for things to get weird between us. Nothing but good old-fashioned, no-touching-the-sexiest-man-alive, platonic friendship for us! Everything is exactly how I like it! Yes. Good. (I'm not crying, I'm just peeling an onion.) Our friendship is going swimmingly until I accidentally spill my beans to a reporter over too much tequila, and now the world seems to think me and Nathan belong together. Oh, and did I menion we have to date publicly for three weeks until after the Super Bowl because we signed a contract with...oops, forgot I can't tell anyone about that! Bottom line is, now my best friend is smudging all the lines and acting very un-platonic, and I'm just trying to keep my body from bursting into flames every time he touches me. How am I going to make it through though three weeks of fake dating Nathan without anything changing between us? Especially when it almost-sort-a-kinda seems like he's fighting for a completely different outcome? Send help. XO Bree" -- back cover

The Cheat Sheet

Alesha Clifford

Bree is everything I aspire to be, everything I love, everything I desire. She holds my heart, and, with all that I am, I hope she never gives it back.

Sarah       Adams

peyton 

Bree is everything I aspire to be, everything I love, everything I desire. She holds my heart

Christina Farkona

“I will cherish you until my last breath,” he whispers against my bare shoulder, and the sound of my dress falling is like wind through luscious green trees.

“It is not the things you do that make you worthy, it’s that you have a beating heart in your chest. You have a soul, which means you are allowed to feel hurt, tired, stressed, sad, angry. All of those things—you are allowed to feel them. Everyone is.”

“You’re not broken. Having a panic attack or anxiety does not reflect your wholeness. You’re burned out, and that’s completely understandable. You push yourself more than anyone I’ve ever seen before, and it’s only natural for you to reach this point.”

Bree’s hand squeezes mine, and I look back to see her crinkle her nose at me in her signature cute smile. It’s her 

 look. My heart bursts. It’s wide open, completely hers for the taking. Always has been.

My heart is in my throat. No, it’s in my hands. I’m holding it out here for her to take.

“hope is healthy. Even if you prepare yourself for the worst in life, it will never make the fall hurt less.”

I don’t like craving more, because I don’t like who I was back when all I did was strive for more. Contentment is what I need.

So I like to nap and they always get out of hand —what about it?

It’s fine. I’ll just climb up there like all of us short people learned to do when we stopped growing at the age of twelve.

If there is anything important I learned through my accident in high school and losing the only future I planned for, it’s that everything works out better if I just live in the now and work with what I’ve got. No sense in relying on something I don’t officially have in my hands at that moment. Life pulls the rug out from under us all the time, so if I can just be happy with what I have at this exact moment, I’ll live a healthier life.

I wish I could lean forward and kiss her. Just a quick peck to let out a little of how I feel about her. It’s been bottled up for so long it physically hurts, but I don’t have permission to be that man in her life.

Because here’s the thing about dancers at this level: they will do anything to succeed, which usually translates to working themselves so hard their feet bleed, starving themselves so their bodies have leaner lines, constantly striving for perfection and spending more time dancing than living. That was me at one point, and I’m so thankful it’s not me anymore. Now, I eat when I’m hungry, and I live life outside of dance.

I only date other women because Bree is always dating other men. But currently she’s not…and since I can’t seem to find a woman even remotely as amazing as Bree, I feel like it’s time I quit looking anywhere else.

Bree is one of the strongest human beings I know, but she’s also somehow the softest. 

They think I’m a major threat. But that’s where the story gets sad.

They all get to have Nathan in a way I never will.

Because here’s what I forgot to mention before: I’m not a threat to these women…until they make him choose. Then, I’m more threatening than a glitter bomb. I might not get to sleep in Nathan’s bed, but I do have his loyalty —and to Nathan, there’s nothing more important than that.

raia – inactive

I lose sight of Nathan and feel slightly panicky. How is he holding up? My steel teddy bear of a perfectionist is on this field somewhere, and I know he’s crushed. I need to get to him.

Our gazes connect, and for one glorious moment, everything else falls away. It’s just me and her here. Her smile splits across her face, and my favorite dimples punctuate her cheeks.

“Your soul is my favorite in this entire world,”

“When you told me ballet was over for you and you cried over the phone…” He sounds anguished. “Bree, I would have sold my soul to be able to get your dreams back for you in that moment.”

. I like the fact that the guy is pursuing the girl so hard, it’s rare to find a guy like that in REAL LIFE, so it’s refreshing to read a guy like that.

This book is chef kiss. I like the fact that the guy is pursuing the girl so hard, it’s rare to find a guy like that in REAL LIFE, so it’s refreshing to read a guy like that.

this was so good for the first ⅔ and then sorta fell off. all of a sudden bree says i love you to nathan and it felt so random that she said it when she did. it feels like the author had this great plot planned out, then got bored and wrapped everything up as quickly as possible.

kels

Zoë Mauldin

Zoe Robeson

Yes this is the millionth time I’ve read this book and it’s just as good as the first

Kate W

Selin Igten

awh this was cute and decent
i didn’t really like bree in the first few chapters but she’s cute 
3.5

Sandrin

I like cheesy romance. That's fun and easy to read about, but cringy? Not as fun.

This is a challenging read to rate. It had its funny and endearing moments, yes, but also so many questionable plot decisions, some pick-me girl vibes, and bad dialogue. The writing didn't help either - lots of telling and not enough showing. It felt like one large exposition that actually hindered the two main character's chemistry.

So, 2.5 stars, but I will round it up to 3, because our protagonists were kinda cute together and the story had fun supporting characters.

Ana Luiza

Que livro fofoooo! A Bree é LITERALMENTE a Jess de New Girl! Serio, exatamente a mesma personalidade. O que quer dizer que no inicio a achei um pouco irritante, meio pick me, mas depois logo me apaixonei pelo jeitinho dela. O Nathan é perfeito, um dos melhores protagonistas homens dos ultimos tempos. No começo não estava me importando muito com a história porque não sou muito fã de friends to lovers, mas logo fui conquistada. Não achei que a história seguiu um rumo muito clichê, me surpreendi com varias atitudes dos protagonistas.
Quando eles ficaram juntos finalmente em tipo 75% eu pensei aii que saco la vem algum problema, que logo vai ser resolvido antes de terminar o livro. E isso não rolou! Achei muito legal. Quero ler mais da autora em outro momento

It's easy to forget that they are adults when it feels like they are very much teenager's. I liked the story it was well written, and I read it in 2 days, which is fast for me, I didn't like Bree, though she was like a stubborn teenager. 😐

ezmeralda 

This book was sorta like a slow burn romance but it kept things exciting at the same time! I loved how it showed the characters povs between chapters. Nathan is such a sweet lovely man, so goddamn precious. Bree has the kindest soul ever, they're the perfect match! I loved the relationship between Nathan and his teammates. They had his back the entire time and you don't see that kind of friendship everyday especially in sports. I'm very happy with the ending, it was really heartwarming and cozy. This book feels like a nice cup of hot chocolate while sitting by the fireplace on a winter day. Highly recommend this book!

rerated: 2.5/5 coming down from my high and coming to a realization im afraid. (view spoiler)[definitely one of the most unsatisfying bffs to lovers romance i read this year. and underwhelming one too. ik a lot of ppl love this book but it isnt for me. 

---

okay. first of all i am going to talk about the things i love about The Cheat Sheet. i love and appreciate the display of vulnerability bree and nathan showed to each other. (view spoiler)[nathan was there for bree when she needs shoulder to cry on, and bree was there for nathan when he had his breakdown (hide spoiler)]. their honestly, openness, and trust is beautiful. also, i really like the friendship between the shark boys and bree. my favorite of the bunch is jamal, he's funny yet caring (if there was any side character i'd love to read the love story of, it would be him).

now, things i don't really like. there's some scenes that made me internally cringed (view spoiler)[aka in the first half (or more?) of the book bree keep repeating that if she and nathan date it would be like incest. like, she keep stating it over and over again. i want to scream to bree because 1) no, you are nathan are not and 2) stop repeating incest word over and over please consider using other words to beat having feelings for nathan allegations. (hide spoiler)]. i almost cannot stand that. 
good thing i gave it a chance and keep reading because, yes, it's getting better on the second half and the character development definitely there. (hide spoiler)]

my favorite part of the book was probably only the second last chapters and the epilogue; they're so sweet.

taryn

** spoiler alert **
           It was cute? Fun. Fake dating. Friends to lovers. But the fade to black was overall disappointing. And all the sexual tension build up to "wait until marriage" didn't make sense.

Kenzi Linton

This is my first book by Sarah Adams and I am so mad that I waited so long to read it. I was invested and so in love with everything about this book from the characters to the scenes to the way it was written. To top it off, there is awareness about panic attacks and anxiety in some of the chapters. As someone who has been diagnosed with social anxiety and gets panic attacks way too often, this book made me feel seen. Everyone needs to read it. I truly don’t have enough words to say how much I loved reading this book.

Meghan Morris

melina25

I am absolutely in love with Nathan. This book had me in its grip from the first page all the way to the last one. Gotta admit I thought that whole cheat sheet list will bite him in the ass when Bree finds out about it but boy was I wrong. Wonder if I'll ever find myself a guy who will be so in love with me like Nathan was in love with Bree😅😩

Is it ever too late to leave the friend zone? Discover the heartwarming friends to lovers romance that became a sensation on TikTok--now with a new chapter and a Q&A with the author! The friend zone is not the end zone for Bree Camden, who is helplessly in love with her longtime best friend and extremely hot NFL legend, Nathan Donelson. The only problem is that she can't admit her true feelings, because he clearly sees her as a best friend with no romantic potential, and the last thing Bree wants is to ruin their relationship. But those abs . . . Nope! Nothing but good old-fashioned, no-touching-the-sexiest-man-alive, platonic friendship for Bree. In any case, she has other things to worry about. After a car accident ended her chance at becoming a professional ballerina, Bree changed paths and now owns her own dance studio, with big dreams to expand it. But one more rent increase could mean the end of the studio entirely. Then, as usual, Nathan comes to the rescue and buys the entire building. A stubborn Bree is not happy about it and decides to rebel with a couple--okay, maybe more than a couple--of tequila shots. Then her plan backfires as she spills her deepest, darkest secret to a TMZ reporter. One viral video later, the world thinks Nathan and Bree are the perfect couple. Before they can really talk about her confession, Nathan's publicist proposes a big opportunity that could mean financial security for Bree. The catch? They have to pretend to be in love. For three whole weeks. What will happen when Bree gives in to the feelings she's been desperately hiding for so long, and could she be imagining that Nathan is actually enjoying it? Sarah Adams scores more than touchdowns in this exciting romantic comedy.

A Novel

This book was so cringy to me. I struggled through it. There was absolutely no angst, and it was entirely too much insta-love. I almost gave up on it. The cheesiness was too much. 

Sarah Campbell

Friends to lovers I loved the plot I just hated how it took Bree forever to finally accept Nathan as more than a friend.

Hana 

it was cute, funny, lovely and adorable. i also need to mention that is a slow-burn!

i’m quite happy with the plot, except for two little things maybe but overall pretty satisfied. 

Nathan is such a cutie pie and i enjoyed his POV. i also enjoyed way too much his POV with his friends/teammates. it’s been such a pleasure to see their friendship and dialogues. 

Bree was a tiny bit annoying with how she sort of ruined every single moment but she was also funny so i can’t stay mad at her lol. 

it left me happy and satisfied which is always the best feeling after reading a book.

i’d recommend it as a funny and light read.

it was cute, funny, lovely and adorable. i also need to mention that is a slow-burn!

i’m quite happy with the plot, except for two little things maybe but overall pretty satisfied. 

Nathan is such a cutie pie and i enjoyed his POV. i also enjoyed way too much his POV with his friends/teammates. it’s been such a pleasure to see their friendship and dialogues. 

Bree was a tiny bit annoying with how she sort of ruined every single moment but she was also funny so i can’t stay mad at her lol. 

it left me happy and satisfied which is always the best feeling after reading a book.

i’d recommend it as a funny and light read.

Melissa

Alright but kind of disappointed. Friends to lovers simply does not make me go feral

Yasmin Dunnewind

It was cute, but also cringey. Nathan is a nice character, but Bree could be a little annoying. I absolutely dispise the tiktok reference and when they finally confessed their love, it was kinda anticlimactic. But overall it was just a easy fun read, that you can easily finish in a dayyy

Cindy McKee

Cute little Rom- Com about life long friends who each are madly in love with each other but are both stuck in the friend zone.

Levena Banda

My first ever sports romance and I'm not upset about it. Are there a few to things I didn't like about it? Sure. But on the whole, these best friends turned lovers are frustratingly funny and adorably thoughtful. A nice, fluffy; cozy read, packed with some of my favorite tropes.

The Cheat Sheet

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