"I feel like I'm finally figuring out who I am right here in this place, with you by my side."

Charming, sweet (if you're looking for steamy, you'll be disappointed) and witty. There's some fun chemistry between Grace and Noah but the push and pull anticipatory sizzle of enemies-to-lovers just isn't there.

I can see how HTLYN would be a popular light-hearted/clean book club pick searching for an HGTV type romance, but it left me somewhere in the middle of not liking it and not hating it.

Had there been more focus on the enemies-to-lovers chemistry and a little less on interior design details, with a more concise storyline that doesn't leave unfinished or poorly resolved plot points that only seemed to be included to prolong the story, HTLYN would have been a more polished and compelling read.

2.5

Thank you to Netgalley, St Martin's Press, and the author for the eARC in exchange for a honest review.

Enemies to lover and grumpy/sunshine trope.

This book is funny and sweet. Noah and Grace clash heads, they have some insane chemistry before they knew who each other was, their meet cute was adorable. Noah is a son of a rich businessman who just wants to make a name for himself. Grace grew up dirt-poor and is struggling to make ends meet. She is a design student, has just inherited the place from her grandparents and has every intention of renovating the place and not selling despite all insistence from Noah.

Noah and Grace has to work together when a journalist wants to do an article about the renovations in Noah’s house and wants Grace as the designer. Noah and Grace are very different, she is sunny, upbeat and positive, while Noah is a bit moody and surly and they just bounce off each other with their banter and chemistry. One thing they have in common is a complicated relationship with their parents.

I absolutely love the book’s supporting cast, Morty, Grace’s grumpy former roommate and friend; Rosie, her cheerful best friend; Josh, Noah’s funny and smart assistant.

I highly recommend this book to those looking for a sweet, funny, clean, and lighthearted romantic read and if you're a fan of HGTV renovation shows.

Thank you so much @SMPRomance & @NetGalley for giving me this eARC in exchange for my honest and unbiased review (Release Date | 18 January 2022)

SYNOPSIS | Grace has a plan to finish school & start her dream job as an interior designer whilst fixing up her little beach house that her grandparents left her. The only problem is that her next door neighbour (Noah) is a real estate developer & he wants her plot of land so he can build a swimming pool.

WHAT I LIKED:
- the interior design elements were fun

WHAT I DIDN'T LIKE:
- everything felt underdeveloped (the plot, the characters, their motivations, the back story etc)
- a story should have either a solid plot or solid character growth (ideally both)... & sadly this book felt weak in both
- the enemies to lovers just didn't make sense & there was no perceivable tension between Grace & Noah
- the whole magazine spread plot point felt too gimmicky
- since I wasn't the biggest of either Ten Rules for Faking It or How to Love Your Neighbor I'm not sure if I would pick up a 3rd book...

This book was so stinkin cute!! I loved it and I read it super quick. I think it would make the cutest movie! Love hate relationship plots are my favourite. It had some deep stuff into too but just a mushy romance. I loved the characters. Could I say love anymore here?! I am officially a big fan of this author and I can’t wait to go read more of her books!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book!

How to Love Your Neighbor is a perfectly nice contemporary romance novel. It didn't add anything to the genre that was missing, but it also didn't do anything that I hated. It was a nice read about a grumpy rich guy and his peppy less-rich neighbor.

The enemies to lover at the beginning was GREAT. These characters could not have been more different and they were both not very likable in the beginning. I enjoyed the growth they both went to as characters. I felt the family parental drama really added to the story because not everyone has a great relationship with their parents, and I loved seeing that depicted in a romance, it was something different.

There were a lot of design details about decorating the room and I couldn't see the full picture in my head. The interior design was a VERY large aspect of this story which was unique and fun! I loved the trading spaces \scene.

I also enjoyed the exploration of their relationship and the pacing of how it all works out for them. They got together earlier in the story than expected so you got to see them work out the kinks in their relationship.

Thank you Netgalley and Macmillan for this copy in exchange for an honest review.

Overall, I really enjoyed this story. The premise was really cute and the couples banter was so funny. I love an opinionated heroine and she had opinions in spades. And she didn’t back down. The hero was your typical famous arrogant jerk until she put him in his place. And he liked it! I would definitely recommend this title to any romcom lover!

One of the motivations that gets me to the gym is watching HGTV home improvement shows while I do my cardio workout so when I tell you I loved this one, I’m not even exaggerating!!

This also is my FAVORITE trope of enemies to lovers which also elevated it in my “I loved it so much” status!

Ambitious and self sufficient interior designer Grace has finally moved into the house her grandparents left her, the only problem is her neighbor Noah, a rich man trying to prove himself who wants to buy her house. But when a big-time design magazine sees their chemistry, Grace is put in charge of designing Noah’s home. This is a great enemies to friends to lover closed-door romance. It is sweet and fun, filled with DIY adventures and mishaps. This one took me a little bit to really get into, but once I was invested, I couldn’t put it down. Noah starts a little too rough around the edges for me, he’s a little too arrogant that it’s frustrating but I love when he starts to grow and he becomes more sympathetic and I loved how he pushed to grow and prove himself. Grace too I loved, she’s struggling with money problems, a mother who has been using her for money, and she just wants to find her next chapter. Their romance is a slow burn, but their banter is so strong, and the writing in this is phenomenal. The side characters brought so much to the story too, and I just loved the playfulness in all of this. These characters develop so strongly as a team and as individuals. Their shopping and design adventures were a joy to read and I loved the vulnerability Grace and Noah brought to their relationship. Overall, a very cute romcom!

“Lean into the fall, Grace. You’ve got this and you’re not alone. “

Overall How to Love Your Neighbor was a cute enemy neighbors to lovers read. There’s a bickering neighbors dynamic, and two people who are focused on everything and anything but love. Grace is an up and coming interior designer, working a handful of jobs, and trying to make the house she inherited, from grandparents she wasn’t able to know, a home. Noah is an established name in New York real estate, but he’s moved to California to try to distance himself from his fathers name and to find what makes him feel fulfilled.

Mainly Noah and Grace are trying to do big things, reach their goals in life and prove to themselves that they are not their parents. Love isn’t part of their immediate plan, but it always finds a way doesn’t it? There’s some hard to read parent/child dynamics in this one, but they were also very relatable. I think what makes this book good for me is that there’s found family and life lessons weaved in that I adored. Plus, I adored Grace. I related to her character in so many ways and by the end of the book I was very proud of her. I did have some issues connecting to Noah as the hero and to these two as a couple. I just didn’t FEEL it, but I think if you’re looking for a sweet romance that means heavily on the tropes and feel good messaging then you’ll enjoy this book.

3.5 stars

Enemies to lovers is one of my absolute favorite tropes and I thoroughly enjoyed How to Love Your Neighbor by Sophie Sullivan.

I loved the banter between Grace and Noah, and the opening scene with the dogs had me in stitches. Overall, this was a sweet and delightful read, and one I would recommend to friends.

** Thanks to NetGalley and SMP for receiving an ARC in exchange for an honest review. **

Have not read this author before so I did not know what to expect. I found myself enjoying this book. It was an easy and enjoyable read.

Overall this was a fun, quick read, although it definitely lacked something for me.

I was not super engaged with the characters, the plot, or the writing with this book. I felt it was really slow paced for my liking, and not a memorable story.

It was just OKAY, nothing to LOVE or rave about, basic story with no complex characters or plot to make me ponder or think too much.

I love the enemies to lovers trope and this was a cute read. Not my new favorite book, but would definitely recommend to HGTV lovers. I especially liked the forced proximity aspect of them being neighbors, but the side stories and family drama put me off a little. Could definitely just be my mood though.

I received an advanced copy of this book through NetGalley. This is my honest review.

Grace and Noah are neighbors, much to the dismay of Noah. Grace is sunshine, always willing to help out others, and Noah is a grump, always looking for the next deal and stopping at nothing to get what he wants. This is enemies to lovers-esque, but I never felt like Noah and Grace were really enemies, maybe frenemies. They were real and raw and written in a way that allows the reader to connect with them. Each character is dealing with more under the surface than either is willing to admit to at first. I really enjoyed how we got alternating points of view because I love knowing what both main characters are thinking and what drives them. This one has an HGTV feel because there is a lot of design talk, and I loved that because I have a love/hate relationship with HGTV 🤣🤣. How to Love Your Neighbor is a contemporary romance that is heartfelt and humorous with a great set of characters (main and secondary).

Thank you to the author, NetGalley, and the publisher for an ARC to review. This one is out now!

*I received an e-arc from Netgalley and St. Martin’s Griffin in exchange for an honest review*

This was my first Sophie Sullivan book, and it definitely won’t be my last! It was just what I needed to help me get out of a reading slump. How to Love Your Neighbor is a standalone contemporary romance novel, with one of my favorite tropes, hate to love. For anyone looking for a funny, sweet, clean story, this one is for you!

Grace Travis has her plans figured out. She’s going to design school and working several jobs, and she’ll eventually get her degree and her dream job. More importantly, she’ll have a place to belong, something that her mother could never give her. When an opportunity arrives to live in, and fix up a small home on the beach, Grace is all for it. However, her biggest roadblock lives next door.

Noah Jansen knows how to make deals. As a real estate developer, he knows that he’s found something special and maybe even a place to call home. His plans include expanding his property by taking over the house next door, until he meets the headstrong and beautiful woman living in it.

The rules for being neighborly wind up going to the wayside as Grace and Noah go into “battle.” But, sometimes your rival can show you what really makes a house a home.

I really enjoyed watching Grace and Noah grow throughout this story. It definitely wasn’t an instant love between them. They were both dealing with toxic relationships with their parents and knowing when to ask others for help. I really loved the side characters in this one as well. They both have some great friends!

If you like romance, humor, home makeover shows, and hate to love, I definitely think you’ll enjoy this one! It’s out now wherever books are sold.

In a word, meh. When I started reading this it felt like I was thrown into the middle of a story. The feuding that takes place between Noah and Grace is almost non existent. Yes, Noah asks Grace to sell him her house more than once but all that stops pretty early on. I never felt any real tension or angst, I think categorizing this book as an enemies to lovers is borderline false advertisement. Everything was just really drawn out and not in an engaging or thoughtful way in my opinion. Overall there just wasn’t a whole lot of plot. Also, I personally don’t care about open or closed door sex but if the story is boring AND sex scenes fade to black what’s the point of continuing to turn the page?

Overall, this was a fine romance. I read it quickly and enjoyed the home renovation aspect of the storyline, as well as the beach setting. However, that's really all I can say - it was simply fine. It was a quick, easy read, but, for me, was lacking steam and the backstory with the hero's dad and brothers seemed rushed and thrown in to give him an aspect of vulnerability.

However, beware. This is a closed door, fade to black situation; so, for my fellow steam lovers, you have been warned so you won't be upset like I was.

I meant to read this sooner but accidently picked up a different book. It was worth the wait. Very charming romance. I could easily see Matt McConaughey as Noah. if this were a movie.

How to Love Your Neighbor boasts a fun premise with several tropes I love, but unfortunately it falls entirely short of my expectations for it. It feels like romcom paint-by-numbers — hitting the beats, filling in the characters, but with no life, or purpose, or fun. The characters are flat and unlikable, there is no meaningful conflict, and the underlying assumptions and themes are suspect. In addition, there are some running jokes that read as inherently homophobic, and there is a lack of diversity both in terms of sexuality, race, and gender presentation.

This book is simply a miss.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for providing me an ARC in exchange for my review.