Just One of the Guys

Written by Kristan Higgins

Narrated by Xe Sands

Being one of the guys isn't all it's cracked up to be. So when journalist Chastity O'Neill returns to her hometown, she decides it's time to start working on some of those feminine wiles. Two tiny problems: #1-she's five feet eleven inches of rock-solid girl power, and #2-she's cursed with four alpha-male older brothers. While doing a story on local heroes, she meets a hunky doctor and things start to look up. Now there's only one problem: Trevor Meade, her first love and the one man she's never quite gotten over-although he seems to have gotten over her just fine. Yet the more time she spends with Dr. Perfect, the better Trevor looks. But even with the in-your-face competition, the irresistible Trevor just can't seem to see Chastity as anything more than just one of the guys..

• Language: English
• Publisher: Recorded Books, Inc.
• Release date: Dec 11, 2015
• ISBN: 9781490696676

Kristan Higgins

Kristan Higgins is the New York Times, Publishers Weekly and USA TODAY bestselling author whose books have been translated into more than twenty languages. She has received dozens of awards and accolades, including starred reviews from Publishers Weekly, Library Journal, The New York Journal of Books and Kirkus. Kristan lives in Connecticut with her heroic firefighter husband, two atypically affectionate children, a neurotic rescue mutt and an occasionally friendly cat.

Reviews for Just One of the Guys

[gpangel_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Just one of the Guys by Kristan Higgins is a 2008 HQN publication. Chastity O’Neill grew up the only girl in her large family- then Trevor came along and was for all intents and purposes, adopted into the O'Neill clan. Trevor’s own family was torn apart by tragedy, but the O’Neill family embraced him as one of their own. But, for Chastity- her feelings towards Trevor aren’t brotherly- she’s in love with him, and try though she might, she can’t help but compare other men to him… and so far, no guy has been able to measure up.The problem is, Trevor’s feelings towards Chas, are firmly planted in the ‘sisterly’, ‘best friend’, ‘just one of the guys’ categories… This is one of Higgins’ older titles- published back in 2008. This book was buried deep in my TBR list, and I was surprised to find it there. I was positive I’d already read this book, but with no rating or review and listed as ‘want to read’, apparently, I hadn’t. According to my new rules, if a book has been on the list longer than five years, it gets deleted, or read immediately. Well, there’s no way I’m scratching a KH book off my list, no matter how long it’s been there. But- If I’m ever going to make headway with this monster list, I needed to read it right away…So here we are…This novel is over a decade old, and it shows, with some dated phrases and attitudes- with Chas’s willingness to poke fun of her body image being one of them. Okay, she is funny- laugh out loud funny- but sometimes, I thought she was too hard on herself. The premise of the story is emotional, and I loved the various challenges the characters faced, and am a firm believer in the moral of this story. The tension between Chas and Trevor is palpable, for a while- but things went on a bit too long, and I found myself more interested in another thread. When the big moment finally came it was literally at the last moment, and though the gesture is huge, it seemed to come out of nowhere, and was super rushed. I admit, I never really warmed up to Trevor, for some reason, but I wanted Chas to be with the great love of her life, so I was happy, if she was. The epilogue was perfect, though, and I closed the book feeling good about how it all turned out. Admittedly, this was not my favorite KH novel, but I still enjoyed it, overall, and I’m glad I finally took the time to read it! 3 stars

[lolakarns · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Another solid and satisfying story from Kristan Higgins. I love her complicated yet loveable heroines.

[jendoyle2000 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Loved it. In some of Higgans' other books, the inner dialogue has been a little bit too much; that wasn't the case here. I loved Chastity, and loved listening to her voice. I also really loved the Chastity/Trevor interaction. I didn't mind the fact that the resolution wasn't until the very end because I felt like there was enough happening between them to both sustain me and lay the foundation. (The building out of the new bathroom brought tears to my eyes.) And given the history of their relationship it seemed entirely justified that there wouldn't have been more interaction than what there was. The family dynamic was wonderful, too, and the interactions between Chastity and her brothers, with the sisters-in-law, with her parents, her co-workers... Um, o.k., yes, with everyone. I just loved them. They were also pretty funny. Not only were there several laugh-out-loud moments, there was one scene that was hysterical, enough so that I found myself having a laughing fit at 1 a.m. in my bed, trying desperately not to wake up the whole house.The one downside was a phrase that got used way too many times. But, honestly, that's such a little thing that it didn't detract from my overall enjoyment. Definitely 5-stars for me, and this one goes in the keeper, will-definitely-be-reading-again pile.

[stephxsu · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Oh for the love of.... Okay, Chastity's pretty cool. She's tall, she's athletic, she holds her ground (adorably) against her four older brothers and their dumb friends. I empathize with her situation with Trevor; I get why she thinks they can't be together even though she wants to be. But having to wait until the very very end before anything happens between her and Trevor? Oof! Painful. Just painful, and a little unsatisfying because it felt so abrupt. But, like all of Kristan Higgins' books, I couldn't put JUST ONE OF THE GUYS DOWN. Higgins has a natural way of developing characters and their relationships with one another that just flows right off the page and into your life. Chastity stands out from other Higgins females because of her athleticism, but the rest of the book is pure, good, enjoyable Higgins.

[creativejunkie · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

3.5 stars (wish goodreads would fix that already)

All in all, I enjoyed this book. I read a lot of reviews that talked about their personal distaste for the author's choice of writing in first person/present, but I wasn't bothered by it at all. There are some stories that need to be told like that, and I think that the MC's voice probably would have been compromised had she not written it this way.

Now, on the topic of the MC's voice - I loved it. I laughed out loud, snickered, snorted, and guffawed several times through the book. It was totally my sense of humor, and that's refreshing to get in a book.

A few things stood out for me on the negative: first, it felt like it dragged on unnecessarily. There were whole sections of this book we could have deleted completely and not lost anything. Second, the addition of the "stalker" was an unneeded, unnecessary, and--when it was all "resolved"--laughable conflict to stick into this story. It was drama for the sake of drama, and my patience runs thin with that crap. I also felt several times in this book an eerie similarity to Love Walked In: Girl comes from big family, lives in a smallish town, boy who's not really family but is treated like it is the love interest, "brotherly" type issues, both involved with other people, hell, even the guy's names both started with T. Small things, but put together, they equal a whole lot of what the crap?

In the end, I laughed, I teared up, I enjoyed it overall. I do wish we had more resolution with Trevor and Chas, because after 365 pages, I was hoping for a little more than 10 tying it all up to give us our HEA.

[cranberrytarts · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I really liked this one. It was a fun, fast read. I'll definitely be looking for more from Higgins in the future.

[allureofbooks · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The wonderful Lauren Willig mentioned this book on her blog a few days ago, and I happened to be between books at the time so I decided to pick up a copy on a whim. It quickly became clear as I was reading that I had found a new favorite. Not only a new favorite book, but a new favorite author! Chastity O'Neill is not down with being considered "just another brother" by close family friend Trevor Meade. The question is, what is she gonna do about it? She is such a great character - certainly not a weak female in need of a man! She has beefy(ish) arms and shoulders as she is a rower, a massive Lord of the Rings obsession, and a fierce independent streak. You will be rooting for her like you have never rooted for anyone, and this even leads to a few slightly emotional moments because you'll be so involved with her character. Another character you'll love is her (ugly) dog Buttercup. They have some great moments together as well. No, not much about the plot of this book is terribly original. Who cares? When you pick up a novel with a romantic plot, what you hope for is dynamic characters and a story worth reading, and this book will give you more than you could hope for in that regard. The dialogue is wonderful and constantly infused with very snarky humor. Seriously, you'll spend a lot of time laughing. This is a fantastic book, definitely a must read for any romance/chick-lit fans.

[lynnm_71 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Humorous contemporary romance with a very likable heroine and a hunky if a bit clueless hero.Chastity O'Neill is the only girl in a family full of brothers. An athlete, sports fan and killer pool player, she's always been okay being one of the guys. But after she returns to her tiny home town, she's determined to meet someone, get married and start a family, a goal made very difficult when no one seems to see her as anyone other than a buddy who's fun to hang with it. When she meets ...more Humorous contemporary romance with a very likable heroine and a hunky if a bit clueless hero.Chastity O'Neill is the only girl in a family full of brothers. An athlete, sports fan and killer pool player, she's always been okay being one of the guys. But after she returns to her tiny home town, she's determined to meet someone, get married and start a family, a goal made very difficult when no one seems to see her as anyone other than a buddy who's fun to hang with it. When she meets Dr. Ryan Darling, things seem to look up. However, her history with family friend Trevor Meade continues to haunt her and threatens any future happiness she might find with her hunky new boyfriend.Chastity is a great heroine, funny and self-deprecating without having any serious self-esteem issues. She's also very practical, determined to forget about her feelings for Trevor in favor of finding happiness with someone capable of returning her feelings. Since the story is told from Chastity's first person point of view, the reader feels her confusion and frustrations over her continued feelings for Trevor while his thoughts and feelings remain a mystery.

[virginiagill · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Well hallelujah!! A female in a romance novel who is tall, has muscles, and is utterly awkward. Thank you Ms Higgins! First time I've ever read a romance novel and felt like the character could be me. This book was a wonderful read full of great laughs. Just One of the Guys is not to be missed.

[icedtea_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A rollercoaster read for me. I snickered out loud; I got very sniffly when things got gritty towards the end. I got caught up in the parents' outcome more than Chastity and Trevor's outcome, but overall it was an enjoyable read.

[nitestar_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I had never read Kristan HIggins before and was so pleased to discover a new author. I am a big fan of chick lit and although I might qualify this as more of a contemporary romance the storyline was so funny and engaging that it was a breeze to read this book. I knew I would instantly bond with this author as soon as I read the first page. Our main character Chastity (or Chas) is being unceremoniously dumped by a loser and as she is listening to him drone on, she chokes on a mushroom - ensues a hilarious little bit that I adored (and yes, I would definitely have spit the mushroom at him). Chas is a girl - but she plays with the big boys - and this is a bit of a problem as the big boys can't handle it. To make things even harder - now that she is newly single (again!) she comes face to face with the guy who got away. What to do? and how to deal? I loved the funny writing (this author does not take anything too seriously) which goes a long way for me - especially if we are talking about matters of the heart. The main character is flawed but fun and I even sort of kind of liked the male main character. This is a great story and I am planning on reading more of Kristan Higgins - her humor, to me, is one of the best things about her books.

[trishkit · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Despite the fact that I nursed a HUGE unrequited crush on the boy next door who became a firefighter for more years than I care to admit, I managed to read this book without cringing or experiencing humiliating flashbacks (ten years have passed since then. It still hurts).Maybe it is because the heroine is a full foot taller than I. More likely it is due to the skill and humour of Higgans that I was able to put a very sensitive issue behind me and just enjoy a great story.This book was full of engaging characters and laugh out loud moments. My favourite bit was the section where Chas experimented with online dating.My one complaint is that all of the supporting characters were already paired off. Each character was so engaging and interesting that I would have welcomed a series featuring each one.