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Blurb

After getting dumped, the last thing I needed was to move next door to someone who reminded me of my ex-boyfriend, Elec.

Damien was a hotter version of my ex.

The neighbor I’d dubbed “Angry Artist” also had two massive dogs that kept me up with their barking.

He wanted nothing to do with me. Or so I thought until one night I heard laughter coming through an apparent hole in my bedroom wall.

Damien had been listening to all of my phone sessions with my therapist.

The sexy artist next door now knew all of my deepest secrets and insecurities.

We got to talking.

He set me straight with tips to get over my breakup.

He became a good friend, but Damien made it clear that he couldn’t be anything more.

Problem was, I was falling hard for him anyway. And as much as he pushed me away, I knew he felt the same…because his heartbeat didn’t lie.

I thought my heart had been broken by Elec, but it was alive and beating harder than ever for Damien.

I just hoped he wouldn’t shatter it for good.

*Author’s note – Neighbor Dearest is a full-length standalone novel. Due to strong language and sexual content, this book is not intended for readers under the age of 18.*

Review

“You only get one true love, one soulmate. Not everyone is lucky enough to find that person in a lifetime.”

5 stars!

OMG, I love this book! It’s a friends-to-lovers romance with fantastic and natural chemistry, great banter, delicious angst and sexual tension, breathtaking romance, and SO. MUCH. MORE! This book took off in a direction that I definitely wasn’t expecting and it made me feel EVERYTHING. I sat down and read it in one sitting and I’m on such a high after finishing it, I’m tempted to go back and start over at the beginning again. I absolutely loved it!

If you’ve read Stepbrother Dearest, you may remember that the hero, Elec was with a girl named Chelsea, but left her to claim his HEA with Greta. Well, this is Chelsea’s story after Elec left her broken hearted and struggling to move on – but this one can absolutely be read as a standalone.

It’s been a year since Elec shattered Chelsea’s heart, and she is still sad, lonely and full of questions about how it all went wrong. While pouring her heart out to her therapist on speakerphone one night, she hears chuckling from her neighbour on the opposite side of her bedroom wall, and it’s then that she realises that he has heard every single word.

“You’ve been listening to me…through a glory hole?””
“No. You’ve been subjecting me to asinine conversations with people who are ripping you off…through a glory hole.”
“You are such a…”
“A-hole?”

Chelsea’s neighbour, Damien, is super-hot and effortlessly sexy artist, but he’s also an angry, broody and sarcastic. They have never held an actual conversation, and they obviously don’t get off to a great start, but after he inadvertently learns all of her secrets and uncertainties, they get to talking and he offers her advice – the first piece of advice that actually gets her thinking and starts her on the road to recovery.

They start talking more, and even hanging out, and before they know it, they’ve become the best of friends. Chelsea has been attracted to Damien pretty much from the beginning, but he’s made it clear that he’s not the man for her. So they try to ignore the sizzling chemistry even though neither of them can deny that they are wildly attracted to each other.

“You have no idea how close I’ve come to losing it with you so many times. No clue … Don’t think I can’t tell exactly what you’re thinking when you look at me. You are so transparent, and it drives me crazy.”

Chelsea and Damien are both wonderful characters, and they are so fantastic together. They’re both smart, funny and sensible, and they have so much fun together. Their friendship is filled with shared jokes, moments of bonding over Damien’s dogs, movies, internet dating and dirty texts, and they’re both straight-talkers, and I LOVE that! And even though they’ve openly talked about it, the angst and frustration comes when their feelings for each other become too hard to ignore, and I loved their honesty as through it all they don’t hide what they’re feeling and they talk from the heart.

“You can’t have it both ways, Damien. You can’t look at me the way you do … You can’t keep me close and treat me as if I’m a huge part of your life and expect me not to get attached to you. It’s unnatural and unhealthy, and whether it’s your intention or not, you’re hurting me.”

It’s an angsty situation that is just bursting with sexual tension, but OMG it’s so good! The banter, flirty conversations and intense stares create a fantastic feeling of want between them, but something keeps holding Damien back. And though they are brutally open and honest with each other about everything else in their lives, he never talks about his reasons for not acting on his feelings – not matter how much it hurts them both. And it’s not until the drama, angst and emotional intensity builds to epic levels that his secret is revealed and the story takes a huge shift. It’s very well done and with their hearts on the line, they can’t hold back from each other anymore.

“You know why it didn’t work out with him?”
“Why?”
“Because God made you for me.”

“You’re perfect for me, baby. I always knew that, never doubted it.”

OMG, the swoon! After all of that build up, the swoon is off the freaking charts! This relationship is truly something special, and I love that by the time they get together, they are already crazy in love with each other, which makes everything so much more intense. And I love that the book takes us beyond the stage of falling in love and coming together to show us more of their journey. This truly is a complete story, and the emotion continues to build all the way through. This is the first time in a long time that I have actually cried in a book because it’s just. that. beautiful!! Seriously, the epic romance and swoon in this book is gorgeous, and at one point I had tears streaming down my face.

“As long as I’m walking this Earth, I’m going to love you … You’re it for me.”

*sniff*

I have loved Penelope Ward’s other books, but with this one she has become an auto-buy author for me. I loved these characters, I loved their journey, and I loved losing myself in their absolutely gorgeous story. Here’s hoping for more with a book for Damien’s brother, Tyler very soon!

5 huge stars.

About the Author

Penelope Ward is a New York Times, USA Today and #1 Wall Street Journal Bestselling author. She grew up in Boston with five older brothers and spent most of her twenties as a television news anchor, before switching to a more family-friendly career. She is the proud mother of a beautiful 11-year-old girl with autism and a 9-year-old boy. Penelope and her family reside in Rhode Island.

Additional books by Penelope Ward

Penelope Ward can always be counted on for fantastic contemporary romance! Whether romantic comedy or drama, she always brings the feels, and there are some all-time faves on this page!

These are Penelope Wards’s individually written books. Please also check out our Vi Keeland & Penelope Ward spotlight.