Thank you NetGalley for this advanced copy. So this book was not at all what I expected. I thought it was just going to be about a neighborhood held hostage. It was more along the lines of military/terrorism etc. It just isn't for me. If you are into that, you will like it. I didn't even care enough to find out what was on the laptop or who took it. Just not into that stuff.

Not gonna lie, I asked to listen to the upcoming audio book release of The Neighborhood by Matthew Betley based only on the name and cover. It looked creepy. The author’s similar name to one of my favorite horror authors, Bentley Little, reinforced the idea this was gonna be a scary book.

Then I started listening.

Then I went and checked the actual description of the book - deadly ex–CIA agent and trained operative Zack Chambers tries to take back his neighborhood from a group of police-impersonating men who have taken over the ‘burb.

Uh oh.

I knew this was not a book for me, and might be my first Netgalley DNF.

So I decided to listen just a little longer to have a valid reason why it was gonna be a DNF. An hour later I was still listening. And two hours…..and then no way was I going to not hear how it ended.

Betley created a personable character with shades of Bruce Willis, Liam Neeson and Jack Ryan. If I was a betting woman, I would lay down a c-note that The Neighborhood will be coming to a movie theater near you sometime soon.

This was a fast paced thriller with enough details to make it seem real. So real, in fact, I checked on the author’s bio to confirm he knew of what he wrote. Check him out and you’ll respect the writing even more.

Chambers is conversational and that’s one of the keys to this being an enjoyable read. I appreciated the quick wit, modern day references (Betly managed to use Finding Nemo, Spiderman’s Uncle and Jack Bauer and make it seem perfectly normal) and the relationship of the upstanding citizens who came together to fight for their neighborhood.

I listened to the audio and kudos to George Newbern. He is a credit to his profession. He voices characters flawlessly and this allows the listener to stay within the story at all times.

I am very happy that I did not DNF this one, but may start reading book descriptions first, lol.