Some of the most important lessons in life are not taught in classrooms. They are learned at kitchen tables, on front porches and in long phone calls with the one friend who never stops picking up. That is the world Jonathan Anthony Burkett steps into with his Friends 2 Lovers novels.
Most readers first meet Jonathan through his memoir, Neglected But Undefeated. But after telling his own story, he turned to fiction. Today, in our “His Books” feature, we look at the series that grew from that choice, and at why its message about friendship still matters.
Three books, one long friendship
The series has three volumes, all listed on Goodreads:
- Friends 2 Lovers: The Unthinkable (Volume 1) (2010)
- Friends 2 Lovers V.2: Closed Doors Open (2013)
- Friends 2 Lovers: Unexpected Consequences (Volume 3) (2013)
The books were published by Jonathan Anthony Burkett Publications. At their heart is a simple question that many people have asked in their own lives: what happens when the person who has always been your best friend becomes something more?
Jonathan’s Goodreads biography describes the story as following two best friends, Claude and Kelly, as their friendship grows into romance and faces challenges along the way. Kelly is someone Claude has known since childhood. When his world falls apart, she and her mother are among the few people still standing beside him.
A story that does not look away from pain
This is not a light, easy love story. In a review for Pacific Book Review, James F. Sadler described a young man on the edge of adulthood who is forced to grow up quickly after a series of heavy losses in his family and among his friends. The reviewer called the book well written and well paced, and said the love between the two friends is “challenged time and again by the realities of life.”
That honesty is part of what makes the books matter. Many young people today are carrying grief that no one around them can see. Jonathan knows something about that. His own published story includes abuse, homelessness at fourteen and brain surgery in 2005, and he came through it all by faith. In his novels, he gives his characters storms of their own, and then asks what it takes to keep loving and keep going.
A note for families: The Friends 2 Lovers books are romance novels written for adult readers. They deal with grief, violence and loss. Parents may want to read them first before sharing them with older teens.
What the books say about true friendship
Two of Jonathan’s quotes on Goodreads come from the first book. The first is about friendship:
“True best friends never fail on understanding, forgiving, and being there for one another.”
Jonathan Anthony Burkett, Friends 2 Lovers: The Unthinkable
Notice the three things he names. Understanding means listening long enough to see the story behind someone’s behavior. Forgiving means letting a friend be human, and giving them room to fail and come back. Being there means showing up, especially when it is inconvenient.
The second line is about faith: “Faith doesn’t get you around problems in life and relationships, it gets you through it.” Put the two quotes side by side and you have the message of the series. Love is not proven on easy days. It is proven when the doors close, the losses pile up, and someone chooses to stay anyway.
Scripture said it long ago:
“A friend loveth at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.”
(Proverbs 17:17, KJV)
Why these books matter
Jonathan wrote from experience, not theory. A boy who never knew a mother’s love grew into a man writing about loyalty, tenderness and second chances. That alone is a testimony. It shows that what was missing in our past does not have to be missing in our future, and that God can teach us to give the very love we never received.
Here are a few ways to carry the message of Friends 2 Lovers into your own week:
- Check on your “Kelly.” Call or text the friend who has stood by you the longest, and tell them what they mean to you.
- Practice understanding first. The next time a friend lets you down, ask what they might be going through before you decide what they meant.
- Forgive quickly. A friendship that can survive a mistake is stronger than one that has never been tested.
- Be the one who stays. If someone you love is grieving, you don’t need perfect words. Your presence speaks.
Through every storm, we rise together, and often we rise because a true friend refused to let go of our hand.
Who has been a true best friend to you through a hard season? Tell us about them in the comments below.
Find Jonathan’s books on his Amazon author page and on Goodreads.
Learn more about Jonathan at www.jonathanburkett.com. Follow him on Instagram and Facebook.
Sources: Goodreads, “Jonathan Anthony Burkett” author page and “Jonathan Anthony Burkett Quotes” (accessed October 2026); James F. Sadler, Pacific Book Review, “Friends 2 Lovers: The Unthinkable” (2016); Neglected But Undefeated (published facts); King James Bible, “Proverbs 17:17”.
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