In my So You Want to be a Billionaire series, I tried hard to make sure that I was identifying the main trope right out of the gate. In fact, the titles all ended up making it very clear what trope readers should be expecting to find.
Book three, which comes out later this month, is So You Love Your Best Friend’s Sister.
I had the very best time writing this story. Some of it, I think, is because I love the friends to lovers trope. And in this case, Ryan and Jessica are friends–mostly–in their own right in addition to Jessica being the younger sister of Ryan’s best friend.
I love the tension of friends to more. And I loved the tension of best friend’s sister, too. Both have so much on the line–because I don’t think in either case, if the romantic relationship fails, the platonic relationship has much chance of survival. I know some people dislike that aspect of these tropes–and it’s a fine line, because you do want to avoid too much time bemoaning the indecision of is it worth it? What if things go poorly? What if they don’t feel the same and I ruin it all? But you also DO have to have your characters think all that through, because the questions are valid. And important.
As much as there’s tension with those tropes, I also love that there are ways to write the stories without making them too angsty.
If you read book two(So You Love to Hate Your Boss – currently only available as part of the Love’s Treasure Collection) you’ll already have met Christopher Ward. Jessica is his younger sister. She’s super smart and hasn’t always spent all of her time behind the keyboard on the right side of the law. Christopher gets Ryan to find her a job at Robinson Enterprises as an attempt to keep her out of trouble. And while it gives her an outlet for her need to do hacking, it puts her in nearly constant contact with Ryan, which does nothing to keep her childhood crush from ballooning into something more.
Here’s a little taste:
“Hi. Jessica Ward. I’d prefer not to be known as Christopher’s sister whenever possible.” Jessica held out her hand with a friendly grin. There was no point in judging the woman by her brother’s standard when Jess didn’t have the background to know if it was accurate or not.
At least Stephanie laughed. Then turned her attention to Ryan—which was all the excuse Jess needed to shift and look at him, too. Why did he have to be so dreamy? He’d taken to wearing a neatly trimmed five o’clock shadow lately. It added that hint of sleepy just-rolled-out-of-bed to his look, and she wasn’t sure if she wanted to tuck him back in or just hug him really tight.
Of course, he was off-limits.
Was that why she was interested?
No one was safer than the guy who was off-limits.
Ryan and Chris had been best pals since they met in the fourth grade, and they’d pegged Jess firmly into the annoying little sister role since day one. Nothing gave either of them more joy than chasing her around with a frog or trying to put an earthworm on her arm.
She fought a shudder.
“You okay?” Ryan leaned close, his breath tickling her ear.
Darn shivers. She nodded, not trusting her voice.
Turns out, Ryan hasn’t always had brotherly feelings for Jess. But like her, he considers the fact that she’s Christopher’s sister a big no trespassing sign.
So You Love Your Best Friend’s Sister will release on July 13th, and I hope you’ll spend some time getting to know Jess and Ryan. This is the first series I’ve written where I feel like the books really are better for having read them in order. You don’t have to — each one is its own, complete story–but the books mostly take place over the same calendar timeframe and there’s a plot arc that connects the books that’s somewhat external to each of the stories. Plus, since everyone ended up being friends, you do see previous couples in future books (although I always feel that the fact a couple ended up together in a romance doesn’t qualify as a spoiler. If they didn’t, I’d be super annoyed at the book!)
Do you have any Christian best friend’s siblings (romance) books to recommend? Or a fun best friend’s sibling story from your life (or your friends’ lives?) Share in the comments!
Elizabeth Maddrey is a semi-reformed computer geek and homeschooling mother of two who lives in the suburbs of Washington D.C. When she isn’t writing, Elizabeth is a voracious consumer of books. She loves to write about Christians who struggle through their lives, dealing with sin and receiving God’s grace on their way to their own romantic happily ever after.
I, too, enjoy the friends to more trope. I lived it, after all. I can’t remember a specific younger sibling example by name. A recent read for me was Emma St. Clair’s Falling for Your Best Friend’s Twin. It’s part of a series on Love Cliches. I liked it. Later ones in the series are even better.
I have Billionaires 1 and 2 via Love’s Treasure and have the rest pre-ordered. Looking forward to them all!
Hmm, wasn’t one of the Freedom Ridge stories about a friend and a younger sister? As I recall, big brother had to get over himself in both relationships! :-)
Thanks for preordering! I have started on the Emma St. Clair series and did enjoy that one.
I think you’re right about Freedom Ridge!
I enjoyed reading this. Thank you for sharing. Happy Independence Day.
Thanks! To you as well!
I love the friend’s sister trope and friends to more so I’m so excited to read this one. Currently my mind is blanking on suggestions.
The closest thing is my uncle who married the best friend of his younger sister hahaha.
Kasie West is not a Christian author but her books are totally clean, the ones I have read and there is one where the girl has like 4 brothers and the best friend of those brothers falls in love with her and she with him the drama is that until then everyone thought that this boy was like his fifth brother.
Another funny thing is a trope in Japanese romance stories where “boy falls in love with his friends’ daughter” and I’m not talking about an older man with an adolescent but something like “protagonist couple used to take care of a cute 4-year-old boy who He considered them his friends, a couple, they get married, they have a daughter and we have that boy 4 or 5 years older, staying with the girl when they grow up “😁.
Oh let’s not forget Jane Austen’s Emma who is staying with her lifelong friend.
I haven’t read a ton of friend’s sibling books but I had so much fun writing one. I need to look for more. Hannah Jo Abbott has a couple in her Love Off Limits series – you could start there :)
I’ll be honest, Emma is my least favorite Jane Austen. I know people love it but I do not. She’s just…horrible. That said, I don’t mind Clueless as a movie adaptation so much.
Perhaps that is why it is one of the author’s longest books, it takes time for Emma to realize her mistakes and she spends it on the final stretch. I like Emma for the way she travels although she can certainly follow you looking awful anyway hahah.
Hoping for Hawthorne by Tara Grace Ericson runs on that trope (best friend’s sibling) as I recall. But you’re right, it isn’t quite everywhere like some tropes are!
Oh! You’re right it is! That didn’t even hit my radar but it totally is.
I’m so looking forward to the book.
Yay! I hope you enjoy it :)
I’ve enjoyed The Cowboys Best Friend’s Sister by Jessie Gussman – very entertaining :)
I haven’t read any by Jessie yet (b/c cowboys are often a hard sell for me sadly) but I’ll look for that one!
I also love the best friends sister trope, I think what comes to mind to me is Little Women. Have a Great weekend and stay safe. God Bless you and your families.
I love this trope and know I have read several but can’t come up with a single name right now, other than this one of course. I loved this story! This seemed to come at the story in such a different way than I expected. I love having such a different twist to the same basic storyline. I encourage everyone to read it!
I would never have come up with Little Women but I can definitely see it now that you say it!
Oh yay! :) Thank you.
I can’t think of any recommendations, but I do enjoy the trope.
I know I have read some often when the the hero has come back to town and the little sister has grown up. But can’t think of names right now.
I cant think of any in real life but I do know of several people in my year level who either married someone they went to school with or an older brother. The one who married the older brother was in the same friend circle as the brother. I think this may happen more in a smaller country town where many of us went knew each other from kindy or the start of school and then went through to the end of school together.
That’s fair! :)
I think it definitely lends itself to small towns or small communities (like a church group) within a larger town/city.
I have not had much time to read anything outside of the book club that I am in. Thank you for sharing the wonderful book. God bless you.
Book clubs are great until you start running short on reading time and can only read your “required” reading. :)
I can’t think of one off hand.
I have some younger sibling or even older sibling books & the sibling ends up with others siblings boyfriend or girlfriend but love all of them!!
I can’t think of any of these type of stories that I’ve read…..I’d think they’d be terribly complex, but fun to read about. I’m checking out this series Elizabeth! Since I have KU I can borrow them :-)