I (Tara) am a Chelsea M. Cameron superfan, so I was excited when Shana asked if I wanted to review this with her. Unfortunately, although there were elements I liked about The Girl Next Door, it ultimately fell a little flat for me. Shana hasn’t read Cameron, but her catnip is small-town romances where a character reluctantly returns to their hometown. She found this a slow, but relaxing read, with squee-worthy heroines, but an occasional overdose of cheesiness.

Shana: I had a huge crush on Jude. I’m a sucker for a strong silent type, and Jude was a sexily mysterious balance to anxious Iris. I don’t always love stories told from a dual perspective, but it worked for me here. Jude’s inner thoughts quickly clarify that her gruffness covers loneliness, and longing. I found the chapters from her POV very peaceful. The idea of being on a boat in the middle of the ocean, alone, sounds luxurious right now. Also, she crochets. Did I mention that?

Full review: https://smartbitchestrashybooks.com/reviews/the-girl-next-door-by-chelsea-m-cameron/

Heat Factor: It’s not a crackling fire, it’s a warm glow
Character Chemistry: They start off as mismatched, secretly-attracted friends that grow into something more very slowly.
Plot: The plot here really is the romance and only the romance. Jude and Iris fall in love very beautifully, but if you’re looking for outside forces or exciting context, that isn’t part of this love story.
Overall: This is a very lovely book and I enjoyed it a great deal (even if I longed for more).

Iris is a marketing student who leaves Boston after she finds she’s stuck and unable to afford living there any longer--so she moves home to Salty Cove, Maine, to live with her parents (who are shockingly really happy about it--I don’t see that narrative very often in books). Jude has moved into her parents’ old house since they moved away in retirement. She has something very heavy in her past and the grief of that heavy thing compels her to stay separate from others, work incredibly hard on her small crabbing boat, and live very simply.

Jude kind of hopes Iris will stay away (but of course, not really) and Iris can’t help but bring pie and sunshine over. Before long, Iris starts to unravel Jude’s stark solitude and brings joy and sunshine back into her life--but it isn’t long before Jude puts up some temporary, half-hearted walls.

Ultimately, I really wanted to see some kind of plot unfolding with the community to anchor this love story. There was a lot of potential with the owner of the restaurant and the LGBTQ Community Group, but nothing really created enough pull. It really ended up feeling like the characters were kind of floating in their own separate bubble and while it was a lovely bubble, it wasn’t quite as engaging as it could have been.
However! I’d still be very interested in reading more by Chelsea Cameron.

I voluntarily read and reviewed a complimentary copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. We disclose this in accordance with 16 CFR §255.

This review is also available at The Smut Report (6/10).

DNF at 25%. I really wanted to love this book - I liked the premise but unfortunately it fell flat for me. Iris just moved home to live with her parents after trying to make it on her own in Boston. Her parents welcomed her back and she just seemed ungrateful and condescending in the way she interacted with them.

When she sees her next door neighbor Jude has also returned to her parents’ home - she’s immediately intrigued. Jude came across to me as a stereotype, flat character. I’m all for a great grumpy character but this wasn’t working - I’m having a hard time feeling much personality from either of them.

Thank you to Carina Adores and Netgalley for the free book to read and review.

This was such an amazing heartfelt book. I truly fell in love with Iris and Jude’s story. Through the lost Jude went through to all the things life throws your way there’s always a brighter tomorrow. I adored Iris so much she was kind, loving, and patient. She was exactly what Jude needed and the missing piece to the puzzle. One of my fav quotes stated in this book was when piglet asked Pooh how to you spell love? Pooh responded you don’t spell it, you feel it! Chelsea thanks for this gem of a book!💕#NetGalley

Thanks to net galley.com, author Chelsea M. Cameron and Harlequin-Carina Press for the advance ARC copy for my honest review.

This was my first read of author Chelsea M. Cameron, liked 'The Girl Next Door', the storyline could be ripped out of today's headlines with young adult having to move back home, liked her writing, it's slow building, kind of predictable and liked that it's set in Maine.

Liked the Iris Turner character, but did think that be a better story if she ended up with Anya, not Jude Wicks and she could have put a little trickery in the story. Since it's a slow building relationship between Iris and Jude, you kind of know what will happen but for reading value what an easy twist to throw in it, add a scene with Iris and Anya in the story room and they end up happily ever after in Boston.

Not that I didn't like the real storyline, just felt like if I didn't like the author's writing, could have just skipped a chunk of this one and missed out on nothing.

I enjoyed this quick romance read that was sweet and heartwarming. The story dealt with loss and grief, and opposite attract trope that was very well written of a slow burn romance. The two women, Iris and Jude were lovable characters who find themselves coming home to a lovely beach town in Maine. No angst, not much drama, just likable characters falling in love in a beautiful setting. This was a sweet read.

I'm sad to say that this book didn't meet my expectations. I was hoping for a cute f/f romance, but I just couldn't see any chemistry or love between Jude and Iris. Even though this was a dual POV book, I feel like I still don't know who Jude is. She was just there. Iris was the one talking and doing stuff all the time, so at least I connected with her. But with Jude… Yeah, there was nothing. This kinda ruined their relationship for me because it gave the impression that it was completely one sided. I mean, after 70% of the book I saw that Jude started feeling this affection towards Iris, but most of the time it felt fake because her emotions weren't really developed and she was always thinking about her past girlfriend.

Jude spent 90% of the book hiding stuff from Iris and I felt like this was such bullshit. It was bad that she hid her past from Iris for so long, but what was worse is that she hid it from the readers too. Even though you can easily guess what happened, it would have been nice if the author actually showed why Jude couldn't get over her last girlfriend. That would make her hesitation to open up to Iris more believable. Instead, there was a whole bunch of nothing so caring for Jude was impossible. In addition, her POV's were all about what she was doing or what Iris was doing. And that's another thing that bothered me: a lot of telling and not enough showing. Besides that, they didn't have any real romantic moments and everything felt rushed towards the end. I love slow burns, but this one just didn't work.

I really liked Iris and I think she deserved better than she got. I related to some of her struggles, so it's no surprise that I was frustrated when she seemed to give up on all of her dreams to be with Jude. Don't get me wrong, it's totally her choice to change plans, but I think this could have been at least addressed between them at some point. Anyways, 1 star is for Dolly Parton because she was the cutest dog in the world lol

I was a big Harlequin fan growing up so when I saw that they were the publisher I got really excited. I was also happy to try a new author but I couldn’t get into this book. The story didn’t grab me and neither did the MC’s. I kept putting the book down and then I would return to it another day, thinking that maybe it would grab me, but it didn’t. I felt like parts dragged on too long and it just fell short.

This is really a sweet story. There’s a very slow burn, but the payoff is worth the wait. Iris and Jude have a beautiful connection, even though Jude is fighting that connection with all she’s worth.

While this story is more centered around Iris, it’s Jade who has the deeper wounds. But Iris still has a lot to learn, mostly about herself. It’s not necessarily her intent, but Jade brings out a different side of Iris and helps her to see what she wants and who she is beyond all those expectations she put on herself. Iris was on a path she had set a long time ago, feeling if she veered even slightly off course it was a failure. Jade helped her to realize that it’s okay to change your mind and your dreams.

From what I gather, Jade didn’t have it easy growing up. Her parents were never understanding or supportive of her and couldn’t seem to bother getting to know her at all. If she wasn’t going to be what they had pictured in their minds, they didn’t have a use for their own daughter. On top of that, Jade went through something terrible with no support system to back her up. My only problem with her storyline is that it just skimmed the surface. I felt this could have gone so much deeper.

There were a few times the timeline got choppy to me. It was toward the end and during a part of the story I felt was being a bit rushed. As much as I often enjoy a slow burn, I felt this story went 0-60 pretty quickly when it finally happened, and then the sequence of events after that didn’t line up correctly in my mind.

All that being said, I really enjoyed this author and found myself interested to read more. Even with my pickiness about timelines, I can’t complain about her characters. They are all beautifully written.

A very straightforward romance tale, no major strides taken.
The story was pleasant enough and Salty Cove sounded like a nice place.

Unfortunately the writing style and main character ruined it for me.
The author went for a first person perspective, which is a bold choice but pays off when done well. It didn't quite hit the spot in my opinion though, maybe because the perspective then alternated between the two of them for each chapter. There were times I forgot who I was in the perspective of which isn't a great sign. Also there was a lot of swearing in the text. This type of thing doesn't usually stand out for me so it makes me wonder if all my life I've managed to read no other books with swearing or if its the way the author inserted them into the text. They were almost like punctuation at times, no doubt trying to make the internal and external dialogue more 'natural' but instead it pulled me right out of it. Barely a few sentences apart Iris sees her dog 'losing her shit' then comments on how shes moving 'all her shit'. There were a lot of repeated phrases very close together throughout the book which strikes me as pretty lazy writing and stick out like a sore thumb.

Then we come to Iris herself. Honestly, so unlikable. The first portion of the book is her constantly moaning about having to leave Boston and slump back to her small hometown. Her wonderful, caring parents welcoming her back with open arms, letting her stay rent free and help her find her next path in life and all she can do is moan coz she's missing out on her big city lifestyle with various restaurants and hipster ideals. Just wow. And she goes on a big rant about how loads of people in town ask how she is, fucking chill out girl. They're being nice!
[Just one swear word there in the whole review, for emphasis on a point and for the comedy? Less is more]

There were so many moments when she was thinking about explaining her super healthy city girl food to her parents that came off utterly pretentious. I don't know how anyone could like this character. And none of that covers the interactions with Jude, basically tricking her into a relationship by saying it would be FWB.

This was a struggle.

Welp, I devoured this book in a single evening. This sapphic summer romance was a cute, entertaining, and quick read. It wasn’t quite what I was expecting, and I had some problems with the pacing and writing, but if you’re looking for a light, easy f/f romance, this is definitely one to consider!

The Girl Next Door follows 22 year-old Iris and 26 year-old Jude, who—as you would expect by the title—live next door to each other. Iris has just moved back in with her parents after being unable to get a decent job after college. Jude moved back into her parents’ house two years before, wrecked to her core by a traumatic event she refuses to talk about. The women are quickly attracted to one other, and together they must decide who they want to be, and what they’re willing to risk with each other.

One of my favorite parts about this book was how cute all the characters were. Iris’s dad literally spends the entire story reading YA books and even recommends queer YA books to Iris and Jude! Literally my new favorite parent character. Jude is your classic mysterious “bad girl” who rides a motorcycle and is super toned. Iris is a cute and bubbly young woman (who has a dog named Dolly Parton!) and is stressed about her future, which as a recent college grad myself, was totally relatable. I also adored how the characters showcased the importance of communication and consent in their relationship—I feel as though romance books often skip over these moments to make a scene more ‘sexy’.

But while I liked the idea of the story and the characters, I struggled a bit with the execution of the story. I was immediately annoyed with the writing style, which was awkwardly blunt and had a lot of over-telling and exposition. Additionally, the plot felt very unbalanced. The summary stated Iris and Jude decide to engage in a “no-strings summer fling” yet the story instead gave a weird insta-attraction and slow-burn tension that in the last quarter immediately rushed into instalove. The women didn’t even decide to engage in a summer fling until the 70% mark of the eARC. I feel like this decision should have come in the first half of the book??

Overall, I found this to be a decent romance, but it wasn’t a new favorite. I will say that I will definitely be keeping an eye on Carina Adores to see what they release in the future!

The Girl Next Door just didn't interest me much. I ended up not finishing it. Maybe I will try it again another time, and it so, I will review it then.

A not very memorable book about a girl who went away from her small town life, came back when she couldn't make it in the big city, meets the girl next door with a past of her own. They fall in love, have some obstacles but will probably figure out life together is better. It was an okay read, but I didn't get invested in the characters couldn't really connect to the story. For me this is nice for if you want a fast read in between better books.

3.5 Stars

Author Chelsea M. Cameron says she is an author of “tropetastic romance”. Using The Girl Next Door as a yardstick, I’d say that’s pretty conclusively true. This sweet, small-town-girl-next-door love story—the first in Carina Press’s new Carina Adores line—offers up some Hallmark movie style feels with the happily ever after romance readers expect.

Iris Turner and Jude Wicks’ love story is one of opposites attract, but it’s also one of hurt and comfort which added a touch of pathos to the development of their relationship. Iris has moved back to Salty Cove, Maine—the place she’d left and vowed never to return—to get back on her feet again after a disappointing setback. The high cost of living in Boston was more than she could manage, and so she’s had to swallow her pride and return to her childhood bedroom in her parents’ home until she can save enough money and find the right job in Boston to move back again. Preferably ASAP.

Why Jude has moved back to Salty Cove is teased out over time, but there is little doubt it was something impactful that instigated her return. The most anyone seems to know about her is that her parents gave her their house when they retired to Florida, she’s a lobsterman, and she prefers to be left alone. That is, until Iris and her lovable dog Dolly Parton infiltrate Jude’s defenses and gradually insinuate themselves in her life.

There’s enough pining in the build-up of Iris and Jude’s relationship to categorize this as a slow-burn romance, even if the story takes place in a relatively short period of time. It’s clear they’re attracted to each other—we see it more so in Iris than Jude at the outset—but Jude is carrying the weight of a heartbreak that weighs so heavily on her she’s vowed never to love someone, anyone, again. She’s in clear self-preservation mode and it’s her standoffish nature that makes it difficult to know her, let alone warm up to her, for a good while. This is purposeful but was not necessarily helpful in making an emotional connection to her character. I did, eventually, it just took some time. Thankfully, Iris and Dolly were there to be endearing and keep me engaged and invested until the turning point in the romance, when Jude finally allows herself to be emotionally vulnerable to Iris. There were also some instances where I felt that the showing of certain things would have been helpful in supporting their attraction to each other. For example, Jude tells readers Iris is funny, but if Iris was ever funny on page, I didn’t catch it. She was sweetly awkward at times, no doubt, but not necessarily comical, and I’d have loved to see some of that humor coming shining through.

As is par for the romantic course, no-strings-attached sex always means there will be strings attached, and I was glad when Jude was able to trust herself, and Iris, enough to accept that she’d fallen in love with the girl next door. Theirs is a story about reclaiming joy, about belonging, about giving yourself permission to be happy, and that grabbing hold of a new love doesn’t mean forgetting how lucky you are it has been gifted to you more than once in a lifetime. It’s not about flashy drama or grand gestures. It’s is a simple story about finding home in a person as well as a place. In spite of a slow start, I warmed up to this sweet, tropey romance, and enjoyed watching Iris and Jude find their happily ever after.

The Girl Next Door was somewhere in the fair to middlin range for me. I didn't exactly dislike it, but I didn't love it either. It's one of those books that enjoyable enough if you're looking for something quick to read that won't require too much of an emotional attachment from you. Jude and Iris are both likable, and their attraction is instant - one half of them doesn't readily admit it, but the author does make it pretty clear. The reason for that hesitance is also pretty clear from early in the story, but we aren't given the details until almost the end. The book isn't particularly long, but to be honest, it felt longer than it actually was, and I think a big part of that is because the whole story is basically on an even keel from start to finish. There really aren't any surprises, good or bad. Instead, it's predictable as it moves along. There's really no question about why the attraction isn't acted upon sooner just the same as there's really no question about whether or not Iris is going to stay in town or why that might be. In the end, I'd have to say that this one is just an okay read. It was a sweet romance with a bit of steam between two likable enough characters. It wasn't bad, but it's not something I'll be thinking about later either.

Disclaimer: I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Thank you to Harlequin Trade Publishing, Netgalley, and Carina Adores for this free copy. All quotes in this review are taken from the Advanced Reader Copy and may change in final publication.

Iris being back in her hometown is exactly how I would feel if I had to ever go back home. I don’t know why, but I would just feel like an absolute failure for not being able to make it out in the real world and having to go back home and live with my mom, but that’s just me. Apparently, it’s not something that is just going through my mind though, because both Iris and Jude are having to reset their lives back in their hometowns for their own reasons, and are not completely happy about it.

Maybe spending the summer together – summer loving a la Grease movie, anyone? – will give Jude and Iris some time to forget about their troubles and just go with the flow before having to go back to their “real” lives, but what happens when Fall comes around? Will they be able to call their relationship quits? Is it really just a summer fling? Or are there stronger feelings at play here?

I loved the relationship at play here between Jude and Iris. I love that this started off as a simple summer fling, and I love that there was a conflict of how they were supposed to figure out how to move forward from there when Iris was set in her ways to leave home and go back to wherever it is that she was planning on going to. Even though her summer may have been really great with Jude, she went home with the plan to only stay for a certain amount of time, despite what happened at home. I like that this book showed that we are okay to change our minds if we find something better in our lives that makes us happier than what we initially thought. I also love that we already know that we are in for a “HEA” – meaning Happily Ever After – so I kind of know what to expect, but still has some drama and tears along the way.

So for starters let me thank Netgalley, the author and Carina Press for this arc in exchange for a honest review. I had a look back at the reviews I have done of Chelsea's work in the past and for the most part she has scored pretty high. I had very high hopes for this book, I like books that I find hard to put down..this did not check that box..moreover I like books that drag me back to them..make me want to do nothing else but pick the book back up..keep me up at night...check?,,nope. This was not a bad book but I ended it feeling a little disappointed. It was a nice story..sweet...nice enough characters even though I felt that I really didn't know them..and the backstory plot line that was itched at throughout the book kinda went splat. All that being said it's still well worth your time, I think maybe I was expecting better and thus the somewhat less than stellar review. I look forward to her next work. 3 stars plus

CW: brief discussion of death of girlfriend in car accident

This one was just ok for me. It was a sweet f/f romance but I'll admit I started skimming after awhile as I felt like the pace was dragging a bit. It is a slow burn and there's some tension between Jude and Iris as they get to know each other, and they are obviously into each other. There are some almost kisses and finally they do kiss! but I wasn't ever really hooked to the point where I had to devour this immediately.

I would recommend if you're looking for low angst read between two people who are just trying to figure out what they want outta this thing we call life. And they happen to be drawn together along the way.

3.5 stars

The Girl Next Door is an easy and slow-moving book and, for me, it was too slow. While Jude and Iris both had the promise of being interesting characters, there wasn’t nearly enough depth behind them and their story went around and around too long for me.

Iris is back in town after losing her job in Boston. Jude has also been back in town for a couple years and she keeps to herself. Jude is also said to be a leather-jacket wearing, motorcycle-riding character, but that just feels like an on-page description and simply saying Jude wore a leather jacket and rode a motorcycle didn’t add anything to building her character. We are given small pieces of the story of why Jude is back in town, involving an ex and heartbreak, but it takes a long time to get the full story. And, for as long as it took to get the story and for how much we are told it impacted Jude’s life, the emotion we are told she is showing did not come through at all and it was all rather bland for me.

The story is one of building friendship between the women and the story did accomplish that. While we are told the characters are attracted to each other, there wasn’t that chemistry radiating off of them to build upon throughout the book for a romantic connection. The emotion largely stayed flat for me and the love felt like just words without really translating off the page.

This story may appeal to readers that do like that small town romance with a girl next door. I do like books that have deeper character building and emotion that you can feel and this didn’t do that for me.

A note on the cover: If this book appeals to you and you purchase based on the appeal of the cover, I would try to overlook this one. The cover models do not look anything like the characters are described, especially Jude. For me, it has a caregiver and a child feel more than a romance and I do not feel that this cover does anything to sell this book.

This review was commissioned by Harper Collins.

I have long been quite tired of the usual love story; yes, there is a formula and, yes, it works but the last thing devoted readers want is to read a constant stream of enemies to lovers of disdain to love but much of the time it is what we have to choose from.

Cameron's characters Iris and Jude have a bit of that latter (it's more of a disinterest than a disdain) but watching them find each other is wonderful, as is watching Jude's heart thaw against the fear of being stung by love the way she was the first time. In fact, Jude's inner dialogue and the way she worries about life passing her by and can feel sick at the thought of the ex who hurt her so deeply was the most honest thing I have read in ages, and I remember feeling that way after first and worst romantic cut, the waking up and immediately wanting to cry thinking about that person.

I was sucked in and couldn't put it down from beginning to end and, again, the inclusiveness and the veering away from stereotypes made this such a beautiful read.