"Unexpected" by Grace Turner is a poignant and heartwarming tale that explores the beauty of serendipity and the power of unexpected connections, leaving readers with a sense of hope and wonder.

Phew, content warnings for days. I can imagine it's tough to write a romance with a character experiencing abuse from a romantic partner. I commend Turner for attempting such a feat and doing it well.

Thank You to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to review this book.

If you are looking for a spicy book with heart, this is it. Hazel and her neighbor Luke have been feuding for years over his loud parties and his dog being in her yard. All that changes when Luke notices that there may be problems in Hazel's relationship, and she may be in danger. As they grow closer, someone from his past emerges and it may ruin their relationship for good.

If you are sensitive to situations of domestic violence, crude language, or a lot of spicy scenes, this will not be the book for you. However, if you can see past those things, this is a decent book that is a breeze to read. The characters aren't as fleshed out as I'd like, but there's enough there to get a good idea of who they are. There are some sweet moments as well. All in all, definitely a book I'd reach for again!

INTENSE roller coaster ride - escaping domestic violence, obsession, stalking, and ultimately the redemption of real love and friendship. A definite page turner.

Thank you to Netgalley and Grace Turner for sending this arc,

Unexpected ended up being a 3 stars for me.
While I liked the banter and the developping relation between Hazel and Luke, I did not enjoy all the drama happening around them. The book in itself is great but I was in the mood for something sweet and fluffy as university started again and it's stressing me out so much. Some events in this book gave me even more anxiety.

My true rating for this would be a 3.5 rounded up to a 4!

At the beginning of this story, we follow Hazel Cooper as she escapes an abusive relationship with her long-term fiancee Michael with the help and support of sexy next-door-neighbor (and veterinarian, love that detail) Luke, who has a damaged past of his own.

The beginning of this story was very strong for me. The writing was well done, the characters were set up with *gasp* actually personalities!??, and I was genuinely intrigued to see what would happen next to the point where I was staying up past midnight multiple nights in a row to finish "just one more chapter." However, about 40% of the way into the book, the plot has a bit of a personality transplant and takes a complete 180. New villains and plot points are thrown in from out of left field, and though the main storyline from the beginning, which is Hazel's abusive relationship, still plays somewhat of a role, it definitely takes the backseat. This wasn't a bad thing, necessarily, but at times it did feel like I had read two separate books in one. I wish that the events from the beginning of the book related more to the climactic events at the end of the book. I also felt like after the romantic tension was broken between the characters after they began being intimate with each other for the first time, the personalities that had been developing from the onset of the book got a bit lost in the contemporary romance cliché sauce.

This book was fun, exciting, and entertaining as hell. The SPICE was THERE, and plenty of it. Grace Turner does not shy away from a bedroom scene, let. me. tell. you.

I am super interested in continuing with this series, especially because I have a feeling that the set up for book #2 will be a romance between Josh and Amanda, and I'm totally here for it.

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book started out with such a fun scene to read! It made me question Luke at first, but I quickly fell in love with his character and his background. I also immediately loved Hazel’s character- she is a sassy, hardheaded woman who has been through it. (TW: domestic abuse, violence).

My favorite thing about this book was seeing the relationship form between Hazel and Luke. They had many things to get through and had obstacles to work through and against as well. But the feelings they felt and how they handled things gave me hope and it paid off! I love happily ever afters and this book did not disappoint.

While there are some heavier topics discussed throughout this book, it somehow maintained a nice even feel-good feel throughout. I loved the length of the book (not too short and not too long that I was getting bored).

I think if you like enemy-to-lovers this could be a good choice for you. And if you like HEA’s then it’s also a good choice. Plus, who doesn’t love a tattooed, six-and-a-half-feet tall man?

I absolutely LOVED this book. This story has an incredible way of pulling your emotions in all directions; I was an emotional wreck by the time I finished reading it. Outstanding. The unexpected twist was so well executed that I can't stop thinking about it.

I'd like to thank the author for taking such care and attention to some of the more serious topics addressed in this novel. Many authors struggle with writing these types of scenes, but I was completely blown away by how well this author handled it.

Hazel, the female lead, is such a strong character that I was rooting for her from the start. She was fierce, loving, and endured so much that your heart breaks for her.

Luke is 🌶 🥵 🔥 there aren't enough emojis to describe how wonderful this man was!!! Not only that, but his level of support and willingness to step up made my heart skip a beat.

The heat between these two main characters was electric, but it was their emotional connection that drew your attention. I could feel the deep bond develop between them.

This is my first book by this author, but it will most certainly not be my last. I can't wait for the next book in this series to come out.

Thank you to Netgalley, Xpresso Book Tours and the author for this ARC. I am leaving this review voluntarily.

⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ / 5

Unexpected by @graceturnerauthor was… wait for it … an Unexpected surprise.
#seewhatIdidthere lol

When I read ARC’s, I try to go in with no expectations what so ever so this was a decent read.

I’m always interested to read a book that has characters that have traumatic pasts. Unexpected is the first book in the Murphy’s Law series.

✨
The book follows Grace, who is engaged to Michael. All up they’ve been together for 10 years and their wedding keeps being put off because Michael is always out of town. They have been living for the past 2 years in a suburban home next door to a loud, grumpy neighbour called Luke who also lives with his brother. The only interactions that Grace and Luke have had are when Grace storms into Luke’s house to tell him off about the loud party music or when his dog Sadie ends up on her side of the fence.

What Luke doesn’t know is that Grace and Michael’s relationship isn’t exactly the perfect relationship that Grace makes it out to be. Having bedroom windows that are directly across from each other, Luke one day sees Grace covered is faded bruises. Having a personal history with domestic violence he takes it upon himself to make sure Grace is okay and their friendship begins. This triggers memories from his own trauma and when someone returna from his past, Luke must battle his own demons as they start to affect his relationship with Grace.

✨

This book is trigger heavy. The physical and mental abuse is detailed and I feel was done well however I wouldn’t recommend to read this book if sensitive to this. There are also some violent scenes as well.

This would have been a 5 star read for me however the book itself was a little long and overly descriptive which it didn’t need to be. The timeline was a little confusing to follow because there is so much that happens in the plot.

If you like:

🖤 Unfriendly Neighbours to friends
🖤 Friends to Lovers
🖤 Past Trauma for both characters
🖤 Touch her and Die vibes
🖤 Romantic Suspense
🖤 On fire Smut
🖤 Dirty Talk/ Praise Kink

Then add it to your TBR!

Thanks to the author and @netgalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

✨

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5 stars

(4.5/5)

I LOVED that this is a long story and the author took the time and care to describe both past and present facts that were relevant to the story at the right time (I had chipped all my nail polish off towards the end 🙈).

Hazel is a strong Female Lead, and not gonna lie, I found it extremely tough to read through some of her scenes because her shinning aura came through the scenes.

Then we have Luke... 💀 I'm just gonna say it: everybody should have someone like Luke in their lives. Chivalrous, charismatic, sure of himself, understanding and very aware of everything Hazel might be feeling during difficult times.

The story line is a very clear Enemies to Lovers (even though we don't get to see many interactions of the MCs as enemies, which didn't bother me too much) with a touch of suspense and a few unexpected turns that had my jaw on the floor.

AND THE STEAM 🥵

Their dynamic is really good, and believe me when I say that you'll never think of your neighbour's window the same way again 👀

This is a spoiler-free review, but let me know if you want any more details once the book is released 🖤

Unexpected is the first in The Murphy's Law Series, debut novel to Grace Turner. It's a story about the unexpected, how one can find heartbreak, love, tragedy even when everything seems to go well or when you're not looking for it.

Slight spoilers ahead.

The story starts off with Hazel stimulating an orgasm in front of noisy neighbor Luke who she hates because of the constant parties and the fact that, Sadie, his dog keeps running out of his house and to hers. They have been neighbors for two years, they barely talk to eachother unless is to complain and yell, they know nothing of eachother, complete strangers and hate eachother for no absolute reason.

What follows is the same patter until one night, Luke sees through her window and catches a mark that shouldn't be there. He starts thinking, watching, spending more time with her, liking her. (I thought it would be a slow burn after all Hazels been through but it's not.)

When Hazels fiancee, Michael, comes back, things go downhill after he sees Luke- without a shirt- with Hazel and well snaps. He gets jealous and not only confesses that he has cheated but also hits her. He hits her and because it's worse than the previous times, she finally walks away but not before cleaning her whole house of all the evidence.

If I'm correct, 50% of the book happens in one month, maybe less (2 weeks maybe) In that many weeks, she leaves him, moves out, gets an apartment, starts seeing Luke, kisses him, gives him a blowjob that if I'm being honest, felt forced.

The rest of the book is just drama. From Michael to Valerie (Luke's crazy ex wife.) To ex's and who not. Its them trying to be together and keep the bad away.

I tried to like this book, the writing I could excuse- it wasn't bad but there are things that dont make sense, which throw off the timeline and make things hard to understand at times.. Things seem to happen very fast and without much of a reason- but it just didn't click. I didn't feel the chemistry between the characters or even like the characters that much.

Hazel is supposed to be this spitfire, stubborn and quirky person but I just didn't see it.

Luke, he had problems. Like seriously, he has anger issues because of his past, not only because of his ex but his parents too. His thoughts were a bit off from the beginning and even after. I didn't even know him, who he was. Hazel kept describing him as big and tall and dark with tattoos.

Honestly, I didn't feel the characters at all.

To other matter, Sadie, the dog, seemed to have no purpose but to get these two together. All she did was run away and sleep. Josh, Luke's brother, just like a therapist. It's the same for Delilah, Hazels sister. Everyone.

Almost every single character felt too basic. Not well put together.

By the 70% mark I was going to give up, especially with the dirty talk and sex scenes. It wasn't that I was uncomfortable just that, it felt unnecessary. But I read/skimmed it because I cant leave a book unfinished.

In the end, it was an okay story. Writing was manageable. Plot okay. It did take me a while to get through this book and honestly, it could have been shorted.

One thing is that, Ms. Turner did handle the topic of DV well, slightly.

Unexpected is a dual POV, deals with heavy subjects such as Sexual Assault. Domestic Violence. Abuse. Cheating. Kidnaping.

QOTD: Do you know your neighbors?
My A: Nope!
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Unexpected was the perfect for this book, because it truly was unexpected. I went into this totally blind. I’d requested it on NG awhile back and by this point had forgotten the blurb. I decided to just jump in, which, apparently, meant skipping the content warnings. So I want to put this here first.
READ THE CONTENT WARNINGS! This deals heavily with domestic violence, including direct scenes of DV, not just memories or side conversations. This obviously surprised me. I’d just finished reading Pint Of Convention but Susannah Nix, also a neighbors romance, and they couldn’t have been more different. I guess going into this, I thought it was going to be a lot lighter than it was so just a heads up!
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All that aside, I really liked this book!! It took me no time to switch gears and dive into Hazel & Luke’s story. I loved Luke, the perfect example of a book boyfriend! I was anxious to discover Hazel’s secrets, even if I had a sinking feeling I already knew, and I thought that Grace Turner wrote Hazel’s story with care. DV is never an easy topic to read or write about, but I think she handled it well!

This book. Oh my gosh. I breezed through because I was excited to see what was next. The title is perfect because I didn't expect the twist and turns. The characters are great particularly Hazel, Josh and and Luke. I hope more people give it a chance because it has everything!

So so good! First off, I adored these characters, all of them. Hazel starts off pretty rigid and seemingly cold, but as we are slowly let into her world behind closed doors and as Luke begins to break down her walls, we are shown a more endearing, vulnerable, and so incredibly tough side of her. Also Luke is such the perfect guy for her. His patience and understanding throughout absolutely every moment is so commendable. And Josh! Josh is such a loyal brother and I just hope for the best for him.

There was the perfect amount of suspense sprinkled throughout the romance. It kept me on my toes the entire time and always guessing what was around the next corner. I devoured this book so quickly because I was so eager to just read more and more!