Hazel and Josh reconnect years after college and try finding partners through blind double dates, while spending increasingly meaningful time together. Simon & Schuster
Kirkus enjoys the balance between Josh’s steadiness and Hazel’s exuberance. The appeal is being accepted without becoming quieter or tidier to earn affection. Choose it when affectionate comic companionship matters more than formidable obstacles; readers who need the alternative dates to feel credible should also weigh the reservations below. Kirkus
Try it for affectionate acceptance and opposite personalities. Avoid it if contrived bad dates or flimsy obstacles frustrate you.
Provisional Eikna score: 3.5/5. Four core dimensions cover 85% of the quality weight. Ending satisfaction and reread appeal remain unscored; heat is excluded. Researched editorial assessment; no firsthand reading claimed. Evidence confidence: moderate.
A numeric heat level has not been established. Read the review’s heat and content discussion for attributed descriptions before choosing. An unknown level is not a closed-door or no-spice promise.
The heat-level guide explains detail and frequency; the glossary entry for spice separates sexual content from quality.
The romantic outcome is not established in this summary. A romance label does not independently confirm an ending. Consult the discussion before choosing if closure is essential.
For the difference between romantic commitment and wider plot closure, compare HEA, HFN and cliffhangers.
Standalone or continuing-series status is not established in this summary. Read the existing format and series guidance for any available context; do not assume a missing series entry means the book stands alone.
The series-order guide explains what to check when a complete romance belongs to a connected world.
| Title | Josh and Hazel's Guide to Not Dating |
|---|---|
| Author | Christina Lauren |
| Inspected edition | Gallery Books · Trade paperback |
| Publication scope | September 4, 2018 |
| ISBN-13 | 9781501165856 |
| Edition page count | 320 pages |
The author or publisher evidence identifies the work. Publication dates refer to the stated edition or release scope, not automatically the first appearance of the story. Unknown identifiers and formats are left open.
Kirkus finds their failed double dates effective flirtation. Kirkus
The friends can investigate their compatibility without admitting that they are doing so. That sheltered transition suits readers who enjoy watching an obvious match become apparent to the people inside it.
Publishers Weekly values Hazel’s wish for love without surrendering her personality. Publishers Weekly
The romantic question is whether being fully known can remain safe when the relationship changes. A quieter partner can offer steadiness without becoming a correction to an exuberant woman.
Literary Elephant finds the dreadful dates implausible and the obstacles unconvincing. Literary Elephant
If every alternative is plainly unsuitable, choosing one another may feel inevitable before the emotional work has been earned. Readers who need serious uncertainty should give this criticism weight.
Literary Elephant sees a gap between Hazel’s reputation and her actual behavior. Literary Elephant
An eccentric heroine works best when specific choices reveal individuality. This reservation matters particularly if constant declarations of wildness feel less persuasive than observed action.
Publishers Weekly identifies sexual episodes, but exact explicitness, frequency and numerical intensity remain unverified. Publishers Weekly
Cheating by a previous partner is reported in Publishers Weekly’s premise. No exhaustive warning list is established. Publishers Weekly
Try it for affectionate acceptance and opposite personalities. Avoid it if contrived bad dates or flimsy obstacles frustrate you.
Publishers Weekly enjoys the combination of tenderness and sexual attraction while noting convenient mishaps. Publishers Weekly Avoid it if contrived bad dates or flimsy obstacles frustrate you. Literary Elephant These are selected responses; the disagreement informs reader fit rather than claiming a representative average.
Publishers Weekly identifies a standalone. The inspected US trade paperback is Gallery Books, September 4, 2018, 320 pages, ISBN 9781501165856. Simon & Schuster
A direct US product edition has not been verified. The Amazon link is a title-and-author search, with no specific format or availability promised. A verified Bookshop or Libro edition link is not yet available for this review.
We may earn a commission from purchases through our links, at no extra cost to you. Search Amazon for the title and author.
Quality scale: 1 substantial weaknesses; 2 weaknesses outweigh strengths; 3 mixed; 4 strengths outweigh limitations; 5 exceptional sustained strengths. Half points are allowed. Weights: romance 30%, characters 20%, writing 20%, emotional impact 15%, ending satisfaction 10%, reread appeal 5%. A provisional overall score divides the supported weighted sum by its supported weight and rounds once to one decimal. Heat is descriptive and excluded. These scores express the evidence-based judgment explained in this review.
Evidence and limits
Provisional dimension score: 3.5/5.
Evidence and limits
Provisional dimension score: 3.5/5.
Evidence and limits
Provisional dimension score: 3.5/5.
Evidence and limits
Provisional dimension score: 3.5/5.
Evidence and limits
Evidence and limits
Evidence and limits
Friendship develops after their college acquaintance and before they acknowledge romance; this is renewed adult friendship, not uninterrupted lifelong closeness. Simon & Schuster
No. This is a researched editorial assessment of inspected sources; the provisional score covers four core dimensions.
Avoid it if contrived bad dates or flimsy obstacles frustrate you. Content notes are selective and unknown heat does not mean an absence of sex.
Compare acceptance and vulnerability in a contemporary romance whose intimacy starts through a deliberately negotiated arrangement.
Choose another planned dating arrangement, with family expectations supplying a different pressure.
Compare comic escalation built on shared time when the starting point is antagonism rather than friendship.
The friends-to-lovers guide includes this book among other choices. Compare those options if its premise appeals but a limitation gives you pause. The Compare friends-to-lovers reading choices explains the surrounding reading route and what to check before choosing.
Try it for affectionate acceptance and opposite personalities. Avoid it if contrived bad dates or flimsy obstacles frustrate you. Try it for affectionate acceptance and opposite personalities. Avoid it if contrived bad dates or flimsy obstacles frustrate you.
Search Amazon for the title and author when this balance matches what you want to read.
Checked October 6, 2026. The How this assessment was researched preserves attributions and research limits. Unknown details do not establish absence. Purchasing links use our account.
As an Amazon Associate, Eikna Romance earns from qualifying purchases, at no extra cost to you.
Kirkus Reviews — Josh and Hazel’s Guide to Not Dating: The exact-title review lists Contemporary Romance among its categories. Classification verified; checked 2026-10-07.
Gallery Books — Josh and Hazel’s Guide to Not Dating: Josh and Hazel knew each other in college and reconnect ten years later. They arrange dates with other people while their own companionship and physical intimacy make the friendship harder to describe. Friendship-to-romance mechanism verified; checked 2026-10-07.
The contemporary friends-to-lovers collection compares this arrangement with reunions, performed relationships, intimacy arrangements and changing assumptions about familiar partners, so you can choose the particular relationship friendship you want to read about.