Mallory Taylor has been homeschooled for all her life. When she was a child, she was almost kidnapped, so understandably her parents have a good reason to be overprotective (although their later behaviour in the book made me question this premise). Now that Mallory is almost 18, she finally gets her wish granted- she can go to the local public school and finally meet her long time crush/ neighbour Troy Parker. Mallory might excel at maths and physics, but as far as human relationships go, she hasn't got much experience. Her only friend Nicole is also homeschooled and they have never even met in real life. Her parents have been hoping she would form a close relationship with Kaitlyn, their friend's daughter, who was pulled out of school because of bullying, but they just never clicked. Once Mallory is at school, she is surprisingly quick to make a few friends, and start dating the object of her inexplicable obsession Troy. A series of unexpected twists and what started out as a YA romance turns into quite a thriller.
I'm still in two minds about this book. On one hand, it was a very fast read and I didn't feel tempted to skip anything and go to the end. On the other hand, a lot of it sounded too familiar
As far as the characters are concerned, Mallory was a bit of hit and miss with me. Some of the things she said didn't sound natural or necessary (why she had to swear at Troy is a bit of a mystery for me as well as his lack of reaction to being called a few unpleasant names). Troy's character and motivations could have been developed more, but here I'm willing to make allowances, as we have only Mallory's POV. I would have also liked to know more about Mallory's new friends and a lot more about her parents.
The ending was a bit too fast for me, while some of the explanations that were supposed to tie the loose ends just confused me. Personally, I would have preferred a tiny bit of foreshadowing.
Thank you to NetGalley and Samantha Armstrong /Expresso Book Tours for the ARC provided in exchange for an honest opinion.

Thanks NetGalley for the preview!

I fell for this book and these characters-I absolutely loved it! I originally requested this title because I had a crush on a neighbor growing up. I loved Mallory and her internal dialogue. She was so anxious and unsure but seemed to convey that in an honest and relatable way. Troy was described as the dreamy great guy-yes there were some instances that were too good to be true but this is fiction. I loved the twist and the conclusion. This book left me wanting more! Sequel please!! I am certainly a fan of Samantha Armstrong!!

I Spy the Boy Next Door: I will admit that I completely got sucked into this book. Before I even got to chapter 4 I was thinking what excuses I had to pull out my kindle and find out what happens next. Mallory is a dynamic character who has a level head, clear thinking, and (sometimes) blindsiding panic. I enjoyed the push and pull of the relationships. Enough detail and plot that as the resolution came I was dreading turning the page to see the acknowledgement as the book came to a close. This book was unexpected, warm, and worth the read. Thanks to NetGalley, Author (Samantha Armstrong), and Koru House Press for this ARC and opportunity for review.

I found the premises very cliched - I almost could have let most of it go if the mom hadn't been cheating with Troy's dad. It was just too much.

Mallory had a crush on the same guy next store for the last five years. Something about him completely sucked her in. Maybe it was his mysterious nature and blue eyes. His six foot frame , unruly dark hair, tattoos had her ogling him whenever she got the chance. His eyes are now harsh, focused, and completely oblivious of Mallory. She knew his routine like the back of her hand. Mallory’s penpal is Nicole. They had been chatting online on the computer for three years. They had never met in person. Mallory wanted to go to public school-H S- it was her senior year. She had been homeschooled all her life. But she’d be eighteen in a couple months. When Mallory was younger she had apparently almost been kidnapped hence the reason she never went to public school or even out of her mother's sight. Mallory didn’t remember almost being taken but it had clearly traumatized her mother na dher also as she had her first panic attack after that and the nightmares had started. But she’s almost an adult and very rarely has panic attacks or nightmares anymore. If she stays home forever Mallory will lose her mind completely. She needed to venture out, go to H S, experience just a little bit of her teenage years before it was too late. When she goes to her father he says yes and than her mother agrees although reluctantly. Although the semester has already started she is still getting to go. Mallory met a scary nice girl named Evie who helped her out when a couple was making out against her locker. Now she was in the seat directly behind mallory in Math Than he-the boy next store-Troy comes in her class and. Her day just got better.He stops by her and she realizes she is in a laimed seat -by Troy. By the time lunch comes around mallory wonders if she has lost her sanity completely. But she has to ride it out. She can’t tell her mom she may have been right. Than she sees Evie and follows her to a table. She meets Jamie.Evie introduces her as the new kid. Evie said he was an actor. Evie told mallory Troy was a boxer best in the state but the boy he was talking to -Dax -was probably trying to get him to fight in an underground match. Evie asked her if she wanted to go see the fight and mallory said yes and snuck out and Mallory gave her a ride. Troy comes up to her and asks her whats he was doing there, she sees the blood on him from the fight and faints. Evie comes up with dax’s arm around her. Troy tells Evie to take mallory home and she does. The next morning she goes to her computer to tell Nic /Nicole what had happened. She found she already had messages from Nic. Troy didn’t speak to Mallory once he was in Math when he comes in the classroom. He just kept ignoring her when she seen him. Than a guy names Peter invites to a party at his house this weekend . Evie tells her troy will be there and she decides to go. Than Jamie said he and Evie will pick her up. Mallory decides to confront Troy and see what his problem is. Mallory got drunk and doesn’t remember much. But Evie lets her know troy took her home and must have carried her into hre room. Than Mallory gets the flu from Evie. She misses some school and one night Troy comes through her window he said he was checking up on her and making sure she was alright since she had told him to come up any time he wanted even though she didn’t remember it. Troy told Mallory he had noticed erh spying on him a couple of years ago.
A new favorite for me. I loved this book. It was an exciting read. This had angst, drama. Lies, secrets, murder, penpals, panic attacks, boy next store, murder, tattoos, FBI agent, cheating, drug lord, unknown sister, danger,action, suspense, love, and so much more. I love troy and Mallory together and how they interacted even when they were trying to ignore each other especially Troy. I loved how Evie than Jamie became her friend right away. I was glad Mallory’s biological dad did really love her biological mother and her and her sister and only wanted to be forgiven. He gave his life up and stayed to prison for his girls. I was so happy when Troy stopped ignoring mallory. I really got into this book and felt like I was there and i didn’t want to put this down and lost some sleep to finish the same day I started this book. I loved how mallory’s adopted parents loved her and her mom and her biological mother had been best friends. I loved the pace and the plot. Everything about this book. I found nothing to criticize - happily. I loved the ending. I loved the characters and the ins and outs of this book and I highly recommend it.

Everyday at 4pm Mallory spies out her window at the boy next door returning from his run. Troy is every teen girls fantasy. He has muscles, attitude and tattoos. Mallory has been sheltered her whole life and is homeschooled by her parents. She finally gets them to agree to let her go to public school her senior year of high school. Troy happens to attend the same school and Mallory is caught up in his fast changing moods every time he sees her. Mallory soon finds herself sneaking out at night to do reckless things in hopes that she may run into Troy. Breaking the rules means getting closer to Troy, and getting closer to Troy means unraveling a past that she may not want to know about...
Going into reading I Spy The Boy Next Door, I had very little expectations honestly. I thought it was going to be another YA romance novel about two teenagers but boy was I wrong!! Not many YA/New Adult novels tug at my emotions and heart strings. I felt all of Mallory's emotions right along with her. Coming from someone who also suffers from anxiety everything she was going through was so accurate. The way Samantha Armstrong portrayed Mallorys Crush for Troy was so sweet and endearing, It reminded me of Bella and Edward from Twilight. Troy's brooding and shifting moods, sneaking into her window at night. Troy's character has a tough exterior but has such a soft spot for Mal and it's seriously adorable. This book made me squeal along side Mal as her relationship progressed! I loved honestly loved this book. I don't read many YA novels but this one will definitely be on my mind for a while! Thank you NetGalley and Xpresso Book Tours for the advanced copy! This review was my complete honest opinion!

This young adult book has romance and a little mystery with a few shocking twists/surprises. It has a Colleen Hoover vibe, so fans of her books will enjoy this one as well. She is going into her senior year of school and has only been home schooled. Grudgingly her parents allow her to have this one year of experiencing a 'normal' teenage year in the public school system, where she gets to come face to face with her next door neighbor/long term crush interest, whom she only previously viewed through her bedroom window. Of course, things don't always go as planned. As you are reading, you can sense there are secrets, but you won't be able to guess and will be quite shocked when you find the truth. The emotions stay pretty steady while reading, not much up and down in that department, but there are one or two instances that are a little heavier. The Hero is a little mysterious. You don't really get a good feel for his thoughts or feelings... at least until closer to the end of the book, when he opens up. He's closed off and comes across a bit broody. The Heroine, having barely left her house at all in her life, is somewhat socially awkward. She is curious, self-conscious, and has anxiety issues that sometimes hinder her. She is also daring, willing to take risks. It starts on the slow side. The sexual content (limited as it is) is pretty clean and safe for teens and up. It's written solely from her POV.

*Received a copy of this book from NetGalley.

This was quite a story I was pleasantly surprise and a little annoyed by some of the plot point but overall it was not bad. I enjoyed how naive and honest Mallory was as the protagonist she was a refreshing character who knew who she was and what she needed. I think I would have really enjoyed the story more if it was told as well from Troy's point of view and not just Mallory or even her family to get a stronger grasp of who they are and how they all feel about the big secret. The story was just a little to easy for Mallory and how she just worked everything out and accept it for what it is and moved on. I would have like to know Katherine struggles and how she was dealing with her suicidal issues, anxiety, and relationship with her mother. Overall I really enjoyed the story and the idea of the story however it feels slightly incomplete.

If I read this book when I was in high school then maybe I would have loved it. As it is, I unfortunately didn't enjoy this as much as I hoped to. The plot felt all over the place and a key twist introduced towards the end left me feeling a little baffled/confused. How did this story about a teenage girls' high school obsession end up involving the FBI and a drug cartel? There was so much going on in this book and I honestly don't know where to start my review... The writing style, a mix of chat messages in between paragraphs, was easy and fun to read. This was a very light summer read that I think would be perfect for more mature young adults, probably in high school.

Having been homeschooled all her life, Mallory has led a sheltered life. After a kidnapping incident when she was a child, her parents become overprotective, so Mallory doesn't have friends and is pretty naive. As a result of this incident, Mallory also frequently suffers from anxiety attacks. The highlight of the last five years has been getting to spy on her hot neighbour, Troy Parker. He rides a Harley, is completely tatted up, and has a body to thirst for, and Mallory basically lives for the moment she gets to watch him. When she's in her last year of school, she manages to easily convinces her parents to let her go to public school so she can experience a normal student life. At school, she meets brooding Evie and exuberantly gay Jamie, and finally comes face-to-face with Troy, who is extremely hot/cold around her. Mallory also very quickly starts to become a wild child: sneaking out at night to go to illegal boxing matches, and wild house parties and getting completely wasted.

This is where things started to get really frustrating for me because it basically ended up being a book about Mallory's obsession with Troy. I mean, I get it. I've been there too. I was a raging hormonal teenager who had all-consuming crushes that I couldn't stop thinking about, and who lost the ability to speak when they walked by. But I felt that this was next level cliche; I'm all for the cheese, but when Mallory describes how Troy's gaze pierces her and fills her soul with life, it just got a bit too much for me. This was definitely steamier than most of the YA novels I've read (with the exception of SJM books) but the sexy scenes, and Mallory's openly sexual thoughts, are the only reason this book could be qualified as NA. Otherwise, the characters were way too YA.

So much of the story was focused on how she felt and acted around him, that there was very little depth. I thought the characters also lacked depth--I wanted to know more about Jamie and Evie, and even about Mallory (beside her obsession). Her parents' care and support was very sweet, although with how overprotective they were supposed to be, they very easily let her go and do her own thing, no questions asked. I got no hint of their overprotectiveness and paranoia, especially when Mallory was able to sneak out of her house the week of her first day of school?

I also thought that the 'plot twist' really came from out of the blue. While I was pleasantly surprised by it, I was equally baffled about how this all made sense. SPOILERS: one minute we're deep into a love-story-obsession, and the next minute we get the FBI, witness protection, the Colombian drug cartel, a murderous rage born of jealousy, hundreds of thousands in hidden cash, and a shoot out. What?! Yeah... I felt Armstrong really rushed the ending, trying to resolve everything in a very short amount of time. I personally thought that this book could have been much shorter than it was. There wasn't much going on in the storyline until the end, and then it was like everything all at once.

Overall, I had high hopes for this novel, but in the end it just wasn't for me. Samantha Armstrong's writing isn't bad though, so I would maybe be interested to see what else she comes out with. Thanks to NetGalley and the author for the free copy in exchange for an honest review.

This book was a good effort, but it fell flat for me because it was sort of a mess developmentally. It felt like I had reader whiplash - suddenly this happened, but wait! Then this other plot line suddenly came out of nowhere, etc. The writing does have a lot of promise and potential, if the developmental issues can be sorted out via a good editor and everything is really tightened and perfected. I could see what the author was going for in the story, but it got muddled by a lack of clarity in execution. That said, I would definitely give the author another chance.

📖 I Spy The Boy Next Door📖
🖋Samantha Armstrong

Much thanks to NetGalley, Xpresso Book Tours and Samantha Armsteong for this complimentary copy. This review is voluntary and opinions are fully my own.

BUY THIS BOOK: Amazon ● Book Depository ● Barnes & Noble

📚 Series: No
📚 Genre: New Adult : Romance
📚 POV: First person.
📚 Cliffhanger: No.

⚠ Content Warnings: Spying/stalking. Descriptions of injuries/blood. Panic attacks.
⚠ Read if: you are into cheesy and cliche reads.

I Spy The Boy Next Door is about Mallory Taylor, a homeschooled girl who has a 5-year long crush with Troy Parker, the bad boy living next door. She is finally allowed to attend highschool because she is now 18, and to her surprise, Troy also attends there and is actually there in one of her classes.

This is a light and easy romantic read, with all the clichès that I was addicted to when I was 14 to 16, basically 10 years ago. Bad boy meets clueless-virgin-turning-wild-child.

A few pieces of freedom and she's lying to her parents, sneaking out, partying, watching underground boxing and even letting a boy sneak up to her room.

I hated all the cliches. I hated sleep-stalking a la Edward Cullen and just barging into her room without consent. I hated lines like this:
There was just so much blood, and before I knew it, I was on the ground. . . and in his arms. SCORE! Maybe having panic attacks and getting nauseous at the sight of blood isn’t such a bad thing.
and this:
I never would’ve thought the help I would need would come from a gay guy and a chick as blunt as they come.


A redeeming part would be the plot twist toward the end, I guess.

Still, it is an okay read, I'm sure many would find it great. Also still looking forward to author's future works.

☁ THE CRITERIA ☁

🌻 Blurb:⭐⭐⭐
🌻 Hero:⭐⭐
🌻 Heroine:⭐⭐
🌻 Support Characters:⭐⭐
🌻 Writing Style:⭐⭐⭐
🌻 Character Development:⭐
🌻 Romance:⭐⭐⭐
🌻 Pacing:⭐⭐
🌻 Ending:⭐⭐⭐
🌻 Page Turner:⭐⭐
🌻 Book Cover:⭐⭐⭐⭐

☁FINAL VERDICT: 2.45/5 ☁

Theme: A mature first-love YA/NA contemporary romance with a mysteriously dangerous edge, comparable to Abbi Glines or Erin Watt.

Warnings: Some cliches (but I know I love them), some violence and teen angst, talk of grieving, self-harm, mental health issues, domestic violence and criminal activity.

Mallory Taylor has been home-schooled and sheltered by her overprotective parents, but that doesn't stop her from spying on her hot neighbor, Troy Parker, everyday. Deadly hot, full of tattoos and tortured secrets, Troy is a gift Mallory wants to unravel layer by layer. But when her parents finally agree to send her to public school, and Mallory confronts Troy, he proves to be more troubled and confusing than Mallory hoped.

As Mallory navigates the new world of high school, and boys, she can't seem to stay away from the one next door. And Troy doesn't want to stay away from her, either. But high school is nothing if not dramatic, and soon Mallory and Troy are testing the limits of their relationship- and the secrets they never wanted to share.

When I was reading the first half of this novel, it was full of tender cliches and super-awkward experiences. Sheltered, good-two shoes: check. Hot, troubled boy: check. Insta-love romance: check. Bad boy has deep dark secrets: check. Comic relief best friends: check. At one point, I made a judgement and wrote in my notes: A hilarious recipe for a romantic catastrophe, with a dash of mystery and many heartwarming elements blended in (it was a cooking scene! haha). But I loved every second of this lively novel anyways.

Little did I know, the last 30% ish, shit really hit the fan. By this point, we already explored the characters and revealed some secrets that allowed them to bond, and Mallory really seemed to grow as a character and was coming into her prime. But no one could have prepared me for the bomb-dropping that occurred. Looking back, there were clues that lead up to this, so it was well planned if you ask me. It turned this beautiful, cliche romance to the next level. I was so shocked, confused, and completely absorbed into the ending of the book.

I don't want to just define this novel by the ending, because I absolutely loved the whole story. But if you take anything away from this review, know it's more than a romantic comedy. It has so many deeper levels and so many good reveals that keep it interesting. I absolutely LIVED for this story, and I wish I could go back in time and experience this all over again.

I really enjoyed this book! It didn't take me long until I was fully engaged in the book. The characters were well-developed and I found myself immediately drawn to the relationships in Mallory's life. The only downside is that I felt it was somewhat predictable, However, was still pretty enjoyable. Would definitely recommend it.

This book really took me by surprise. There were things that bugged me a bit–which I’ll get to–but for the most part, I loved this story.

I’ll start with the things that I was a bit annoyed by …

Our heroine is homeschooled, and along with that came all the “homeschooled kid” stereotypes. She’s naive, very unsocialized, and so awkward around other people that I actually cringed while reading it. Now, I’ll be honest; this is a huge trigger for me because I was homeschooled. All growing up, my peers would ask me how I could understand how to interact with people if I didn’t go to “real school” or my friends’ parents would express “concern” over my not going to a school building every day. I’ll admit that every time I hear someone is homeschooled, I cringe, just waiting for the sarcastic remarks and not-so-witty quips about that person being naive, unable to socialize, and unable to interact with people in a normal way. As I said, this is a trigger, lol. BUT, I will say, the reason behind her homeschooling and super strict upbringing is brought up again later and given much more explanation and I was satisfied with it. It was just the initial “I’m a lonely, homeschooled girl who can’t figure out how to talk with people” that terribly frustrated me. It probably wouldn’t bother me if I didn’t have the experience I do, but I want to make sure I write my reviews authentically and let my readers know what was going through my head while I was reading. In any event, I’ll move on now, lol.
TL;DR: I was homeschooled and reading about the stereotypical naive, socially awkward homeschooled kid is super annoying and slightly offensive.

Aside from the initial impression, I actually really liked Mallory. She’s a sweet, curious, intelligent, and sassy character. While spending time in her room, she’s watched her next door neighbor, Troy, from her window for the last several years–pining for him from afar. The only interaction she’d had with him was when they were younger, and it wasn’t a great one. In fact, she’s convinced that’s the reason he stays away from her–although she thinks it’s rather silly of him to hold a grudge for something so insignificant. But Mallory has a plan; she wants to spend her senior year in public school, and she’s determined to get the sexy bad boy next door to notice her once and for all.

The interaction between the two at the beginning is somewhat predictable; she tries to get to know him and he tells her to stay away from him. She refuses, he’s surly and somewhat mean to her, and just when she starts to give up, he decides he can’t stay away from her any longer. This is kind of YA Romance’s MO, but honestly? I am SO here for it. I absolutely love the boy ignores girl/girl tries harder to get his attention/boy tells her to stay away/girl gives up/boy realizes he can’t stand not having her around trope. I know some people are tired of it, but I still love the teenage angst and I loved the slow build up between these two.

And speaking of the characters, Troy is so different from what I first expected. When you first meet him, he’s brash, rude, obnoxious and seems just a hair too into himself. Honestly, that couldn’t be further from the truth. Sure, he’s definitely got the bad boy, rebel without a cause thing going for him; he’s an underground fighter, rides a motorcycle, takes no shit, and he’s definitely played the field plenty of times in the past, but there’s much more to him than what you see on the surface. I was pleasantly surprised with his character and he’s quickly become one of my favorite book boyfriends <3

While the first part of this book was frustrating for me, I found myself greatly enjoying the rest of it. The main characters, after their initial resistance, have such amazing chemistry and the love they share is so beautiful and raw. The secondary characters were also explained well and were given fantastic and distinct personalities. I enjoyed the friendships between each of the characters and the relationships never felt static or unrealistic. They were genuine and fun and I liked how most of the first impressions of these characters ended up being wrong. There’s also extraordinary growth that we get to see in Mallory and that was impressive to me; she learns that she was too quick to judge and had been selfish in the past and she vows to change her ways. It’s extremely admirable and I love a story where there’s a good lesson involved–this one, in particular, I think everyone should be reminded of, regardless of age.

Also…there’s a major twist in this story that I didn’t see coming at all. And the way the author tied in all the various characters involved was absolutely amazing. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and I would wholeheartedly recommend it to anyone who enjoys the young adult genre :)

Happy reading!

I Spy The Boy Next Door is a delicious, heart-rumbling, heart-warming whale of a tale.

I mean if Troy could just pin me down with those ocean blues, that’d be great.

I’m very much a fan of the boy doesn’t want the girl (pretends not to), but the girl wants the boy, boy fights it, but they eventually wind up together trope.

Mallory is homeschooled and home-bound. But, that doesn’t stop the crush she has on Troy, The Boy Next Door.

Every day around 4, she watches him come running down the block all sweaty and hot. She’s fine with that, for now. But, her 18th birthday is approaching and she wants to go to school. Real school. The kind that requires she leaves the house. Much to her parent's chagrin, they let her go.

It’s in this letting go that Mallory finds herself and she also discovers that her crush is not so one-sided.

Troy was a boy of few words. But when he spoke and moved, it was arresting. From the way the author describes his come-hither stares, his just-barely-there smiles, I practically melted into a puddle of goo.

The romance in this one was an excruciating slow burn that had me panting for the hookup. When it does happen, it’s slow like the pouring out of ketchup in a class Heinz bottle.

But, it’s so good. So painstakingly good.

All of the characters are three dimensional and fitting and perfect for the story. I really enjoyed how the author built up relationships so efficiently and timely.

The story itself is perfectly paced and well-written, very.

And the climax to the story was surprising, I definitely wasn’t expecting it—and it gave the story a nice mystery quality.

Unpredictable, and stimulating, TBND is a great read—with an even better writer at the helm. Very enjoyable, I can’t wait to read more from this author.

Every story has its up and downs and I'm still a little on the fence of where I land on this one. There were parts I really enjoyed and parts that left me a little unfulfilled. Let me try to capture my feelings.

Mallory is an interesting character. While I sympathize with the whole home-schooled, live in a bubble, upbringing it seemed overused as an excuse for her naivety. One of her main character traits is her impulsiveness: sneaking out, drinking, fights, snooping, etc. which seems contradictory to her very sheltered outlook. For me, it seemed like two extremes that didn't quite make sense in my brain. I understand the venturing out for the first time excitement, but with her anxiety and panic attacks I feel that she would have more trepidation doing all these things. The fact that she was spying on her neighbor for 5 years while pining for him is a bit creepy as well, but let's hope that was just her naivety and social anxiety.

Despite the slightly weird "I know you've been spying on me for years" vibe that Troy has, his character is very well written. He is guarded and has several reasons to be. There's a lot of family history that makes him who he is and I really enjoyed the reveal of his angst and guarded-ness with Mallory. Forbidden fruit you might say.

There were some surprises and I did enjoy how things ended up between Mallory and her friends and family. There were some plot holes that never quite got filled but overall it was an interesting coming of age story. Learning about life, love, and how sometimes are parents are right.

I completely and utterly loved this book! I read it completely in a day I was that drawn in by the characters. This isn't your normal teen romance it had twists and turns that kept you in the dark until the very end, and what an ending! I've never read any of Samantha Armstrong's work previous to this but I've already downloaded her other publications. Its been a while since I've been sad at a book ending but this one has. Mallory and Troy are definitely staying with me for a while yet!

Maybe it's me, and I've outgrown this type of book, but I could barely get through this one, and skimmed a lot. I understand Mallory is homeschooled and sheltered, but unless she lived in a commune with no electronics her level of naïveté was astounding. And the set up to have her attend public school was laughable. So maybe I was just so annoyed at the start that I never connected with the book. But it was loooong and nothing happened until everything happened all at once near the end. Just didn't do it for me.

****4 out of 5 STARS****

This book was filled with twists and turns I wasn't expecting. It was breath of fresh air! I like to think I'm usually a pretty good guesser of story lines, and although I had a few hunches, this one left me surprised.

I Spy the Boy Next Door had elements that reminded me of some of my favorite romantic reads, it took me back to the indie community back around 2013ish.

There were a few parts that were a little slow for me. I felt that the MC's had depth but other characters were slightly lacking.

Overall though, I loved the story! And Troy, did I mention TROY?! *le sigh* I found a new book boyfriend y'all. He was that perfect broody, mysterious bad boy.

This was my first ARC that I requested and was approved to read through @netgalley ! I was really excited to read the book and felt disappointed ☹️.
Synopsis: Mallory is about to be a senior in high school and has been homeschooled her entire life. She sits at her window most days and spies on the boy next door, Troy Parker. She convinces her parents to let her go to high school for one year and finally sees Troy up close and personal. But is Mallory the only one doing the spying????
The story takes a while to “get going” with most of the dialogue consisting of Mallory’s observations and longings for Troy, short conversations between the two of them, and Troy mostly grunting as he pulls a hand through his hair. The interaction between the two main characters reminded me a little of Twilight 😐. The plot didn’t really pick up until the last quarter of the book and then felt rushed at the end. However, I did not see the twists in the story coming, so I felt excited about them! But then let down that there was only less than a quarter left in the book and knew this would all wrap up too quickly. Overall, I was left wishing I had more; in particular, more character development and a more developed plot line.
If you want a quick mystery and has the typical teenage angst and a plot twist that comes out of nowhere, this is your book!