This was absolutely adorable. I am Lily, Lily is me. I loved the way this story starts with email exchanges between Lily and her favorite author. You get to learn so much about them through these exchanges.

I loved how Lily found out who Nick is and how she handled it. I loved everything about Nick. It was also nice to get his perspective. Nick has some really great friends. Lily’s family bothered me a bit. I know they meant well, but they were a bit pushy for me.

One aspect of this book I adored was how Nick and Lily developed a genuine friendship. The interactions between them were beautiful, and their chemistry was great.

There were some scenes that just had me laughing so hard. Forest’s writing is beautiful; it’s like she relaying’s this story to me about a few of her friends finding love. It was absolutely fun. She’s new to me, but I’m excited to read more of her work.

Thank you so much to Berkley Romance and Netgalley for providing an advanced copy of this book!! All thoughts and opinions are still my own.

It has taken me forever to sit down and write this review because I don't know how to eloquently explain how much I loved this book. It was everything I look for in this type of story - sweet, funny, swoony, and beautifully written.

First of all - the opening of this book. It has been a long time since I've fallen for a book as quickly as I did this one. There is something about epistolary elements in romances that always gets me. And Kristina Forest blew me away with her ability to make me fall for these characters and their romance so quickly.

The setup for this could have gone so wrong - the likelihood of these 2 finding each other, nonetheless living in the same place is nearly unbelievable. But everything about this book was charming that I never once brought reality in.

Between the mutual pining, no third act break up, and soulmate level romance, I was so swept away by this story. Easily my favorite book of the month and one I won't soon forget. I can't wait to read more adult romances from this author!!

4.5 Stars - Top Pick! ⭐️

Lily’s dream of being an editor for children’s books has stalled as she watched promotions pass her by. She finds solace in her world of books and reaches out to a popular fantasy author. The two strike up a serious connection, but she is taken aback when he ghosts her.

Lily decides to move on, and what better way than her sexy neighbor, Nick. She doesn’t know that is the same author she has been corresponding with. The two seem to have a vibe, but he turns a bit cold on her and instead offers to help her find a date for her sister’s wedding.

This is the first book this year that just felt right. The Neighbor Favor just has the right elements of a feel-good rom-com. The characters are fleshed out and adorable. The chemistry is on point, and the secondary characters all add a boost to the story.

When Nick and Lily meet, the chemistry is on point. There is the anticipation that this could all go bad for them because Nick is holding back on his end. However, the cat was out of the bag at a good point in the book, and the couple was able to navigate a friendship, which leads to so much more.

What really draws a romance lover like myself in is the cute book dates and chat between Nick and Lily. What girl wouldn’t like a book nerd of their own? While I didn’t necessarily care for Nick’s hot and cold behavior, I end up falling for him. He has family issues that he needs to address, and he eventually sorts through all the emotional baggage, but it does put a slight damper on things. Lily is a lot more mature than most.

I love the side characters and especially look forward to more books by Ms. Forest.

~ Samantha

𝐓𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬💭:
I actually went into this one blind, which I highly recommend! I saw the ratings on Goodreads and put my full trust in them. I enjoyed it soon as i started it on audio. It’s one of those you look forward to getting back to soon as you stop. Thank you so much to PRH Audio for my ALC and Berkley Romance for my e-ARC.

𝐁𝐥𝐮𝐫𝐛📝: (Skip if you wanna go in blind!!)
Lily reaches out to her favorite fantasy novel author through his website as a form of escape from her unexciting reality. They exchange correspondence and blossoms into a friendship. Until they decide to do a video call, but he ghosts her. Months after, when she is needing a date to her sister’s wedding, along came Nick. Her new neighbor and she decides to bring him. Little did she know, that he is the very same author of her favorite fantasy novel.

𝐑𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.💫/5. Ahhh, i was really invested in this story and loved how it all panned out. It gave me huge You’ve Got Mail vibes and the e-mail exchanges in the beginning were highly enjoyable! I think the author knocked it out of the park given that it was her first adult romance. It was written in a way that hooks you and keeps you wanting more to find out how the story unfolds. I do think that the story was a bit longer than it should have, but in spite of it, I was still eager to finish. I cannot wait for what’s next from the author and will be patiently waiting for her next books to come. Highly recommend this rom-com! It had me laughing, swooning and smiling so much!

𝙍𝙚𝙖𝙙 𝙞𝙛 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙡𝙞𝙠𝙚: 𝘈𝘯𝘰𝘯𝘺𝘮𝘰𝘶𝘴 𝘱𝘦𝘯 𝘱𝘢𝘭 𝘵𝘳𝘰𝘱𝘦, 𝘴𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘥 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘳𝘰𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦, 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳 𝘤𝘳𝘰𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘴, 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘨𝘶𝘺 𝘯𝘦𝘹𝘵 𝘥𝘰𝘰𝘳, 𝘧𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘴𝘺 𝘣𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘥𝘴, 𝘱𝘶𝘣𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘴𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴

Lily Greene is in a dead end job with a demanding employer. She is an editor which she loves doing, but her dream is to edit children’s books. However, all she has been doing for years is nonfiction and getting a promotion or a new job has been impossible. Lily does find a distraction, however. Years before she read a fantasy book that she has loved, and she finds a way to communicate with that author. They connect to a degree where a friendship is born, but it suddenly goes nowhere.

Meanwhile, Lily’s well-meaning sisters have been involving themselves in her love life for as long as she can remember. Now that one of her sisters is about to get married, she tells them that she will find her own date to the wedding. The person she plans to ask is her sexy neighbor Nick Brown. Both Nick and Lily are drawn to each other in ways that Lily does not understand. Nick himself has a secret, one that would explain their connection, but he’s very reluctant to tell her what that secret is.

Nick has had a very difficult childhood, and for that reason he has chosen a pen name, and now has a chance to write a sequel for a book he wrote when he was back in college. Yes, the very same book that is Lily’s favorite is the very book that Nick authored. Lily has no idea that this kind and handsome stranger just happens to be the fantasy author that she admires.

With New York City having over 8 million residents, I did have to suspend belief about Nick and Lily meeting. Other than that one thing, this book was a true delight and a real pleasure to read. What was very sweet about The Neighbor Favor is that as much as Nick really cares for Lily, all he wants is her happiness and if this means doing a favor to help her to get a date to that wedding, then he will at least help her find someone else.

Kristina Forest is a new name for me because she has been a successful YA author, which is a genre that I generally do not read. I love that she made her debut in adult fiction with this wonderful book. The characters were wonderful, the love story was genuine and warm, and the chemistry was off the charts. There is much more to the story, however, and that includes the bond between Lily and her two sisters, as well as their parents, the drama Nick experienced in his own family, and how strong Lily had to be to make a career choice at a difficult time in her life. Lastly, as a diehard reader, I love that both characters truly loved books, almost notably science fiction, especially BIPOC Sci-Fi authors.

Many thanks to Berkley Books and to NetGalley for this ARC for review. This is my honest opinion.

This book was such a fun, cute read! I keep seeing others compare it to You’ve Got Mail, and that is the perfect comparison!

I don’t want to give away too much, because I went into this one blind and think it made it even more enjoyable.

Here’s just a few things about it that I liked:
💜Neighbors/Friends to lovers
💜A book about books
💜Lilly’s sisters (they need their own books!)
💜The email exchanges in Part One
💜So many book/bookish life references
💜Diverse characters
💜Good steam

This is a cute, heartwarming, diverse romance with just enough You Got Mail allusions to keep things sweet and not annoyingly obtuse. I appreciate how both Nick and Lily have family dynamics and trauma to work through and that they do so in a healthy way. The chemistry and romantic pacing felt a little off, but I still enjoyed seeing their relationship develop (even if I wanted to throttle Nick for breaking things off prematurely...).

It's more than 400 pages, but it feels like a quick read if you're looking for a solid contemporary romance.

The way I loved this book!!!! I read one of Kristina’s other books (Now That I’ve Found You) and when I saw she had an adult romance I said YES PLEASE.

Do you like romance books about books? Two Black leads with a little friends to lovers? Epistolary books with swoony emails? Second chance meetings? Secondary older characters finding love? Books set in NYC???? Then this is your perfect romance read. Out February 28th, pick this one up or preorder now.

I legit ate this book up. It’s sweet and soft. Kind and funny. There’s little angst and lots of love. I love seeing Black men in romance books be sweet and soft. Cat. Nip.

I liked this book. As far as romances go the characters were fine, the story was fine. There were no surprises, nothing I didn't see coming. Unfortunately, for me, there was nothing to make it a stand-out in a crowd of romances, nothing to make it shine brighter. No memorable swoon-worthy moments, or banter, no great heartwarming moments.

The Goodreads synopsis is pretty much what you get. Just a nice, typical romance.

OMG THIS CUTE, FLUFFY ROMANCE HAS MY ENTIRE HEART. Everyone go read it immediately! 😭✨The Neighbor Favor was really charming and had an incredibly addictive storyline! Kristina Forest did an amazing job with her adult romance debut. I read her debut YA last year, but I think she writes adult romances better? I cannot wait to read more of her romances omg. 5/5 ✨

Lily and Nick were absolute sweethearts. The way they connected with each other as neighbors was just *chef's kiss* 🤌 I instantly fell in love with Lily ~ mainly because she's a bookworm and I found so many of her thoughts relatable throughout the book. And Nick, oh my gosh, Nick. I appreciated how the author focused on his struggles related to his past, because those aspects really changed him to be a better person. The character growth from both Nick and Lily's sides were so beautifully written. I loved seeing them grow into the best versions of themselves with each other's help.

The author also highlighted themes of sisterhood and family pressure in the storyline, which I really loved. The way the story was crafted won my heart. The Neighbor Favor is so much more than a typical romance. I cannot wait for more people to read it!

inspired by a You’ve Got Mail premise, The Neighbor Favor is the story of Lily and Nick who become email friends. Lily is a shy bookworm who works as an editor in the nonfiction department but dreams of becoming an editor of children’s books. Impulsively one day, she writes a fan email to her favorite fantasy author. They begin an online/email friendship. After a few months of steady correspondence, he ghosts her and she is perplexed. Meanwhile, Lily desperately needs to find a date for her sister’s wedding, so she gathers her courage and asks her charming and attractive new neighbor, Nick, to be her plus-one. He volunteers to set her up with one of his friends when he suddenly realizes Lily is really his email friend. Nick doesn’t want to reveal his identity even though he likes her, so things get complicated between them.

I love the epistolary format, so the beginning of this story was well executed. I wish the charming emails had continued for a while after Nick realized who she was. I also appreciate why he didn’t want to lie; however, this led to more lies which landed him in an unlikeable character category (my opinion). If you like the You’ve Got Mail premise, you might enjoy this story.

Thanks #NetGalley @BerkleyPub #BerkleyBuddyReads for a complimentary e ARC of #TheNeighborFavor upon my request. All opinions are my own.

I was so excited to read Kristina Forest’s first adult romance. I especially liked Now That I Found You and we’re back to NYC in The Neighbor Favor! The city and NJ settings were so perfectly described and made the Jersey girl in me feel at home! Also, I was just at Union Square a few weeks ago for a book event and even had lunch at Lillie’s Victorian Establishment! That said, I had a moment or two of hesitance while reading this story because I’m not a fan of the secret identity plot that was going on with Nick/Strick. It did turn out to be handled well in this book and I’m grateful. I’d call this love story a slow burn and the reveal of Nick’s identity did come before they were physically together which helped.

Both Nick and Lily were complexly crafted characters and getting into their minds wasn’t a hardship. Lily’s goal to work in diverse children’s books and her frustration at her inability to break into that career path was all too relatable. Nick is closed-off, unwilling to let people in because of his past and how life with his parents shaped him. This background lets the moments that they’re together and we watch them fall in love, have a bigger impact on the reader. When Nick especially finally lets Lily in, we see how perfect they are for each other. I will say, the favor side of the story fell a little flat. The whole, Nick helping Lily find someone to go to her sister’s wedding with was perhaps unnecessary and was quickly abandoned as they grow closer to each other. Which honestly, is fine with me because I don’t love those type of “setting the heroine/hero up with some else” plots anyway. We get adorable dates and funny scenes with Lily’s family in this book, even a fashion show. And a chance to Nick to heal from his own family as well.

I’m so happy with the transition Kristina Forest made to adult romance with The Neighbor Favor and I can’t wait to see what she writes next!

Well, The Neighbor Favor was a new take on the same premise as You've Got Mail.. Nick and Lily meet online and instantly click. Nick is an author who writes under a pen name to protect his identity so he will not meet Lily. Until he moves to New York and sure enough, he runs into Lily, but his identity is not disclosed. He knows but she doesn’t know. And here we go for the storyline. This book was so much fun. I loved their banter, particularly with the emails back and forth. I loved their romance. I loved the family dynamics of Lily’s family. I loved all of the literary and book references since both Nick and Lily are bookworms. Such a fun book!

So much bookish romance, but this one hit the right spot. Even with the familiar tropes, this felt like a breath of fresh air.

Lily is a publishing assistant eager to be an editor, but she doubts her capabilities as one. I’m ne day, she emails her favorite author, N. R. Strickland, just before she faints from the heat. After months of emails, Mr. Strickland ghosts her when it’s time for a video chat, leaving her with a heartbreaking goodbye message.

Nick just moved to NY and is excited to write book two in his latest series after months of silence. Despite his private life, he’s interested in getting to know his pretty neighbor Lily. When they finally meet, she needs his help to find the perfect date for her sister’s wedding. But with Nick’s secrets, he’s unsure if he should even be in the same place as Lily.

This book should be on your tbr list if you love diverse, contemporary romance.

Hey bookish friends!

My review for The Neighbor Favor by Kristina Forest

I’m back with another review. I’ve only been reading on borrowed time since I started house hunting, while also adulting (so ghetto), but this book was an amazing escape.

If you want a cute romance about two quirky, awkward, and bookish individuals, then look no further. This is it! I found Lily to be absolutely adorable and sooo relatable from the first page. Her awkwardness and shyness was so endearing. Also I loved me some Nick. I won’t lie most of the book he got on my nerves (hello self-sabotage 🙄), but he made up for it with his nerdy swag.

I swooned sooo much over this book. Its had all the ingredients that I love in a romance. A tablespoon of likable characters— a cup of witty banter— a serving of character growth— a pinch of spice (could’ve been more just saying lol)— and a helping of HEA.

This book easily gets ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️\5

Overall I loved this book and can’t wait to read the next two that follow Lilly’s sisters. Also thanks to #NetGalley and #Berkley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I’ll try to not neglect this page so much in the future, but no promises 🤪

#bookstagram #blackbookstagram #bookstagramer #blackbookstagramer #tbr #tbrpile #ilovebooks #boodnerd #booksofinstagram #blackgirlsread #thisgirlreads #blackgirlsreadtoo #books #goodreads #storygraph #Romance #fiction #WinterReads #CozyReads #20booksbyblackfolx #bookishcharacters

From my Blog Post: Kristina Forest is another author whom I’ve read other works by and really enjoyed so I was very excited to hear she was going to write an adult romance. I was not disappointed and was heavily invested in this story (I actually bumped it up in my TBR because I didn’t want to wait anymore to read it, lol). I loved that it was 1) dual perspective, 2) had different parts that added layers to the story and 3) took place in New York. There was also tons of funny moments and I thought the banter between Lily & her sisters was hysterical. And for those who look bookish talk, there is SO MUCH of it in this story so you know I was the happiest panda while reading. I’m so happy that the E-ARC gave us a preview of Kristina’s next book and that it we will get to live in another character we have met’s world for a bit (I was ready to DM Kristina about what/who was next so that saved me a trip to IG, lol). We also got some spice in this story which delighted me being the grown person that I am.

This book was really cute and further proof that romance books don’t need 3rd act break ups to be successful!!! This books follows Lily and Nick as their go from secret pen pals to in real life friends to lovers. Their romance was sweet and I enjoyed both of them grew as characters separately and then together. It did take me a minute to get really invested in the story and I was constantly confusing Lily’a sisters up until the halfway point. Even still it was awesome we actually got to read the emails at the beginning instead of learning about them second hand and it made the actually meet cute between the characters so much more entertaining.

I was a fan of Kristina Forest’s YA stories but I think I’ll love her adult romances even more!!

Thank you so much to Berkeley Romance for reaching out with an eARC of this book!

I absolutely adored this book! I loved the epistolary style in the beginning with the emails and then the eventual meet cute between Lilly and Nick. I also loved Lilly's relationship with her sisters even though they really need to stop meddling in Lilly's love life. This book was full of swoon, angst, and even some steam!

I think Kristina knocked it out of the park with her adult debut and now I need more!

Quick Stats
Age Rating: 18+
Over All: 4 stars
Plot: 4/5
Characters: 4/5
Setting: 4/5
Writing: 4/5

Special thanks to Berkley Romance and NetGalley for an eARC of this book! All thoughts and opinions reflected in this review are my own.

Despite the fact that one of her YA novels has been sitting on my shelves for the better part of two years, this is my first Kristina Forest novel—and I think it was a good one to start with, because I thoroughly enjoyed it, and I’m looking forward to picking up her YA work next.
Lily is a publishing assistant who yearns to work in children’s publishing. She wants to help publish diverse books that make Black kids feel the way her favorite book made her feel.
Nick is the author of that book.
The two email, become close, and then he ghosts her, only to later learn that Lily is none other than his new neighbor.
I love bookish books, so this premise was everything. And of course, the secret identity lent itself to plenty of angst. I honestly loved both him and Lily so much. Their chemistry was great, and they were both such compelling characters. Nick, especially. Did he drive me a little crazy with his constant negative self talk? Yes, but I also felt for him so strongly. I hurt for him like Lily did.
But that does bring me to my main gripe with the book: Nick needed therapy. He needed so much therapy. That negative self talk and also just the traumas that he had experienced had me basically screaming GET THIS MAN IN THERAPY at the book. This was one of those cases where it’s so obvious that he needed therapy to be able to heal and have a successful relationship in the past. These issues and struggles that he has, which play into every issue that Nick and Lily face, that impede their relationship again and again, are not the kind that he could reasonably work through on his own over the course of the two months in which the book takes place. And that fact felt so obvious to me. I understand that there are many reasons a person wouldn’t go to therapy, but it wasn’t mentioned at all in the book. It’s like it didn’t exist, and that honestly frustrated me to no end, and made it a bit hard to root for Nick and Lily, because he was messed up. He wasn’t in a place to be in a stable, healthy relationship, and it felt like he never took real steps to get to that place. Even in the end of the book, it felt like it was more the circumstances falling into place with his mom, not him putting in the work to heal.
I definitely enjoyed the book. It was fun, it was sweet, it had depth, but because of that I just don’t feel sold on the idea of their Happily Ever After.

This book started out very strong for me. I really loved the positive representation and You've Got Mail vibes. But then I felt like the story and events got choppy and didn't line up with the characters personality. It may be a case of it was me and not the book. I will still recommend this one to others looking for a cute bookish rom com.