Kaitlyn Hill released Love from Scratch last year and is back with Not Here to Stay Friends. Friends-to-Lovers spin on The Bachelor? Yes, please! Today I’m on the tour for this book hosted by TBR and Beyond Tours. I got to interview Kaitlyn again for this tour, so keep on reading to find out more about the books and author!
Genre: Young Adult Contemporary
Publishing date: April 4, 2023
This friends-to-lovers spin on The Bachelor follows two childhood besties reuniting to spend the summer in L.A. after five years apart—but when they both get involved with a teen reality dating show, their lives take an unexpected turn for the unreal.
Sloane McKinney feels like a background character in her own life. But this summer will be different, because she’s spending it with her childhood best friend, Liam Daniels, in her dream city, Los Angeles. Sure, she’s surprised to find that Liam just happens to have had a Hot Guy glow-up since she last saw him, but so what? A little attraction won’t ruin her plans for their fun—and completely platonic—reunion.
What might, however, is that Liam has been roped into working for his producer dad’s new teen reality dating show, Aspen Woods’s Future Leading Lady. Liam figures Sloane can still hang out with him on set while he fetches coffee for the film crew, or whatever it is that production assistants do. Except it turns out the show is one contestant short . . . and Sloane is the perfect last-minute addition.
Once cameras are rolling, the whirlwind of dating teen heartthrob Aspen Woods feels way more real than Sloane expected, and Liam doesn’t exactly enjoy watching it all unfold. But it’s behind the scenes where the drama really picks up. . . .
Because wanting to kiss your best friend? That’s a plot twist neither Sloane nor Liam ever saw coming.
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Author Interview
What inspired you to write Not Here to Stay Friends?
NHTSF was inspired by my longtime love of reality dating shows like the Bachelor franchise, and of teen dramas like One Tree Hill or The OC! The two meet in the form of my fictional teen reality dating show, where the star is an actor on a popular teen drama called The Cove.
What has been the favorite part of your publishing journey so far?
Hearing from readers has been amazing in ways I never expected! It honestly didn’t seem real to me that anyone would read my first book until it was out, and it’s still hard to fathom that it happens. I don’t think it’ll ever get old hearing that someone connected with something I wrote, or that they loved the book so much, they finished it in an afternoon. I feel really lucky every time.
If you were a character in Not Here to Stay Friends, what kind of character would you be?
Ooh, this is a fun one! I think if I was aged down (lol), I could be one of the other girls on the reality dating show, Aspen Woods’s Future Leading Lady. I wouldn’t be into Aspen, but I’ve watched so many dating shows for so long that I’d just be excited to be there and would try to play the “game” and stick around for a fun time as long as I could. I’d also be overly invested in Sloane and Liam’s romance from the sidelines. ????
What is your favorite quote from Not Here to Stay Friends?
“You’ve always been the main character to me.” ❤️
What do you hope readers take away from your story?
I hope most of all that they have a fun time with Sloane, Liam, and everyone else on Aspen Woods’s Future Leading Lady! I also hope anyone who feels like they often fade into the background might see that being “the main character” can mean different things for different people, and you’re wonderful just as you are.
Could you give us 5 random facts about Not Here to Stay Friends (think the story, writing, publishing, anything that comes to mind)?
- Sloane and Liam are from Knoxville, Tennessee, which I consider my second hometown!
- Originally, I thought I wanted Sloane’s love interest to be the teen actor starring in the reality dating show.
- Some of the other contestants are named after my friends! It’s hard to think of that many girls’ names.
- This was my first time writing in dual POV, or from a boy’s perspective at all!
- I thought of the acronym “AWFLL” before coming up with the name of the show Aspen Woods’s Future Leading Lady.
Tour Schedule
If the synopsis and interview have you curious about Not Here to Stay Friends, click here for the full tour schedule. There are amazing bookstagrammers and bloggers talking about this book this week.
About the Author
Kaitlyn Hill is a writer, reader, and sweet tea enthusiast who believes that all the world is not, in fact, a stage, but a romance novel waiting to happen. She is the author of Love from Scratch and Not Here to Stay Friends.
Kaitlyn has a BA in Sociology/Anthropology and German Studies, which means that she can tell you way too much about the Communist Manifesto in Karl Marx’s mother tongue. Before landing on writing, she worked in roles from city government intern in a small German town to Haunted Mansion Maid at Walt Disney World, and most recently, at her hometown public library.
Aside from books, Kaitlyn’s favorite things are giraffes, ABBA, and excessively long naps. She lives with her real life romance hero in Lexington, Kentucky.
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Books with The Bachelor like themes are books that always catch my attention. Or anything with a reality TV element, haha. Would you ever go on a reality show? Let me know in the comments!
