Collins Carter is taking a break from her tv writing job in LA, and moves back home with her parents in Ohio. She realizes her life is going to go from bad to worse when she runs into the HOA president, and her ex best friend, Nate. Collins decides to run for HOA president against Nate, and their feud continues despite not seeing each other in over a decade.

This was a cute rom com. I enjoyed the audio and felt the narrator did a great job of bringing the characters to life. I felt Collins was a bit difficult to root for at times, and I found myself rolling my eyes at her actions. I felt she was immature for being 29. However, I enjoyed the banter between Collins and Nate, the steam was fiery, and the cast of supporting friends were fun. Definitely give this a try if you like enemies to lovers, laugh out loud moments, and small town romance.

After losing her job Collins returns to her parents’ home. Her high school nemesis Nate seems to be everywhere, and he is not happy she is there. After learning Nate will be running for HOA President, naturally Collins decides to run against him.

This rom-com will have you laughing early and often, you will side with Collins and be frustrated with Nate, the tension is evident. She is sassy with a side of stubborn, and Nate and his sweater vests. As they spend more and more time together….

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group; this is my voluntary review.

This was a new author for me and I am so glad I gave it a try. I really enjoyed the story, I thought it was fun and fast-moving and the spicy scenes were very good.

I didn't totally get why they needed to hold onto grudges from high school and I cringed when they were yelling outside--that is just a huge ick for me.

Hello folx! I’m here with another teenage enemies to lovers, second chance, rivals romance. You know, next week when we’re carving up mr. tom turkey I’m going to give thanks for all of you romance authors serving up delicious helpings of E2L goodness on an ongoing basis. Is it toxic? Probably. Does anyone care? Nope, not at all. So let me bend your ears? Eyes? Whatever, let me tell you about the newest from Alexa Martin, Next-Door Nemesis, a book about rivals competing over the run for HOA President. Yup, you got that right. Home Owners Association President. I’m going to be totally honest here, it’s a trip, a delightfully low angst rom-com that will leave you smiling and shedding a couple tears along the way.

A Little Bit of Plot
Colins Carter, wannabe in demand screen-writer finds herself hiding out in her parents middle Ohio home at the ripe old age of 29 after a viral video forced her to exit Hollywood. Who does she run into on one of her first days back in town, none other than her high school nemesis and former best friend, Nathaniel Adams. Nate, sweater vests in June wearer, real estate agent extraordinaire, large old school Buick owner, and HOA President hopeful, is not delivering the warmest of welcomes. The friction between the pair results in Collins throwing in her hat in the ring and competing against Nate the Snake. Can these two put the past to bed without falling in one themselves?

The Compliment Sandwich
The Top Bun
Collins Carter herself
You see Collins begin the novel as sad, rage-filled and sullen, which, she has every right to be. What she’s gone through is thoroughly infuriating. While I never imagined that a run for the office of HOA president would be the inciting incident that pushes her to move forward and reinvent herself, it works here. Having lived in the neighborhood all her life up through high school, she spent the majority of her time dreaming of a life outside of Ohio. After being chewed up and spit out by LA, she begins to appreciate the more sedate life with her family and friends in this sleepy Columbus suburb (I will not call it C-bus, thank you very much). Once she accepts that this life isn’t inferior to that of California, it’s just different, we start to see a calmer more accepting Collins. While I appreciate a lady who can go from 0 to Angry in 60 seconds (myself included), it’s tough to carry this through the entirety of a novel. Who wants to read about a lose cannon raging heroine for 300 pages?

We start to see this transformation in little increments. Mostly I got the feeling that she was starting to evolve as a character upon her first conversation with her new OTT neighbor Ashleigh. Recognizing her from high school, Collins begins, at first, with no intention of getting to know or becoming friends with Ash.

“Thank you so much, Mark. Let me just say goodby to my friend and I’ll be right there,” she says.
I don’t know what’s more shocking: that she called me a friend or that her tone was devoid of the condescending tone most people around here have when speaking to hired help. I’ve kept to myself, not even remotely interested in forming any new bonds or friendships. But even with her ultrabubbly personality and zest for reminiscing, I feel like Ashleigh is creeping past my defenses.

Those defenses that she kept so high at the beginning quickly crumble as she’s forced to participate in parades, canvassing for her candidacy, and being outright ‘neighborly’. When she delivers her big speech at the HOA debate, you feel she’s grown and begun to appreciate the small things - not a small town thinking necessarily, but living comfortably in a small tight knit community.

The Meat (The con)
Nate divulges what drove him to cutting ties with her in high school and while I understand it…I also don’t? Also, this is only 12 years ago…how was there no therapy for this child!

The Bottom Bun (The Pro)
I Sorta Felt Seen?

I’m going to preface this by saying I was on the board of my HOA at one time, and it was nothing like the book (although a few things were similar) I still appreciated the aspect of placing your rom-com in the low stakes run for HOA political office. Everything that happens in this book, while seeming outlandish, actually if you think about it, really isn’t. I can totally imagine one of my neighbors with a giant inflatable Ben Franklin for Independence Day, I’ve actually been to the Ohio State Fair (I performed at it one summer), and know many women who still get sucked into MLM’s. I’m not going to say I feel seen, but quite possibly maybe glimpsed at. Or...Maybe it’s just living in Ohio. As much of a hell hole it’s been living here the past few years, I definitely felt a connection just the same.

"I've loved you since I was fourteen Collins, I've been waiting for you to be come home my entire life"

Super cute childhood friends to enemies to lovers! It was a typical plot of this type of trope. I loved the banter between the MC's and you could cut the sexual tension with a knife. Their chemistry fly off the pages. If you're looking for a lighthearted read, this would be it.

This book was an easy five stars for me. I’ve never read a book by Alexa Martin before, but I damn sure will be picking up the next REALLY freaking soon. I absolutely loved it. I haven’t read an enemies to lovers in a very long time where they actually stay enemies for a big chunk of the book. Where there is GOOD tension before it finally snaps. This had it. The slow burn was delicious, the sexual tension was sweet, and the spice was so freakin’ hot you needed a fire hose.

It also had a good plot that kept my attention, and I loved the side characters. Alexa’s writing is so readable and addictive. And yes, I cried on a plane while reading. 😂

OH... and yes, he was a butthole for the first bit of the book. It was ENEMIES TO LOVERS. A REAL enemies to lovers. He wasn't supposed to be a teddy bear.

Thank you to Netgalley, Good Girls PR, and the author for the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Next Door Nemesis is a childhood friends turned enemies to lovers romance. The idea of old friends turned enemies running against each other for HOA president was unique and sounded like it’d be a lot of fun.
After reading, I have mixed feelings. I was really enjoying it in the beginning but the more I read, the more Collins and Nate bugged me. They’re supposed to be nearing 30 but neither acts like it.
They have history and their friendship ended quite abruptly over a decade ago so both have their reasons to be wary of the other but instead of talking it out like adults they resort to childish behavior. And once the reasoning for their falling out is revealed, Nate’s treatment of her when she first returned just didn’t fit. She definitely should have made him grovel a bit.
The change to lovers was a bit abrupt (though that could just be me wanting more drama for once) and I was hoping for a dual POV story so I have to admit I was a little disappointed when I realized it wasn’t.
That being said, I loved the side characters - Ashleigh and Ruby were so fun! - and I was very happy with the ending.

11/9 Instagram post.

Next Door Nemesis by Alexa Martin comes out next week on Nov. 14th! Thank you NetGalley & Berkley Romance for the arc!

This was a fun book. Definitely very silly and filled with romcom shenanigans. If you’re looking for a light hearted read that won’t hurt your feelings TOO MUCH. It will a little 🤣 but mostly it’s funny and also it’s spicy. About the typical amount you would expect in a romcom.

I think this is the 6th book I’ve read by Alexa Martin and I’ve really enjoyed them all! I’m just missing Mom Jeans and Other Mistakes.

Short synopsis: After her job imploding, Collins moves back home to Ohio to find space. But her old childhood best friend turned nemesis Nathanial Adams is turning to neighborhood into a nightmare, so Collins decides to run for the HOA Board Director against him.

My thoughts: I am somewhat torn on my thoughts for this one, there were things I really liked and things I felt underwhelmed. I really liked the way the author wrote the job loss conflict. It was great insight into women (especially women of color) in the workplace and how others didn’t even bat an eye when her white boyfriend stole his work as his own. I really liked the exploration into race and sexism.

There were some great lines and situations mixed throughout, that had me giggling out loud. Collins was a bit petty, but it made for some great posters! I also really liked her relationship with her parents especially her dad. It was so tender!

I don’t really buy into the main conflict of running for HOA President, no one likes their HOA and no one wants to the be the president. I also was very confused as to the miscommunication that led to the breakup of the lifetime of friendship. Like, just talk things through people.

Anyway, I think if you like enemies to lovers this will be your jam!

Read if you love:
- Childhood Friends to enemies to lovers
- Your neighborhood and HOA
- Interracial romance
- Funny one liners

Thank you NetGalley, Berkeley, and Good Girls PR for the chance to read this fun enemies-to-lovers rom-com!

Collins Carter never thought she'd ever step foot in her hometown in Ohio, yet now she's back for good. Between a viral video and running into her high school nemesis, Collins feels as if she has hit rock bottom.

Then a complaint from her parents' homeowners association came, delivered by none other than her nemesis himself, Nathaniel Adams. Once announced that Nathaniel is going to run for the HOA presidency, Collins can't help herself and decides to run against him. As they continue their campaigns, these enemies start to explore real feelings and what happened to their friendship over a decade ago.

I never thought I'd read a story centered around an HOA election, but it was such a fun read. The witty banter and chemistry between Collins and Nate added a level of entertainment to this story that kept me reading late into the night. In addition, the Collins' friends, Ruby and Ashleigh, brought so much comedic relief to this book as well. Highly suggest this book if you are a lover of rom-coms and/or childhood friends to enemies to lovers.

“It might not be a popular opinion, but I’m of the firm belief that nobody is deserving of space in your life if they only cause harm.”

3.5 stars rounded up! Hurt people hurt people. That is the behavior of the main characters of this book in a nutshell. And I have to admit, initially I was so turned off by Collins and her petty and often obnoxious behavior that I almost wanted to put this one down. Like you’re almost 30 do you not care AT ALL if you hurt people?! I can’t.

But then the story continued and as we dove deeper into the history between friends-to-enemies-to-lovers Collins and Nate, some pieces started to fall into place and I found myself loving them and rooting for them! It’s almost like I was on her character arc with her as she seemed just as annoyed with herself as I was with her 😂.

This book was such a fun love story. I loved the romance of Collins’s interracial parents that has spanned many decades and the side characters, Ruby and Ashley, that each brought something unique and fun to the story. Also the importance of fair food 🙌🏻👏🏻. This cannot be understated! 🤤

Thank you to Netgalley, Berkley Publishing, and the author for the ARC and thanks to @PRHAudio for the free #audiobook #PRHAudioPartner.

Give me a fun romcom and I’ll love you forever 💕🥰.

I really enjoyed reading Next-Door Nemesis by @alexambooks. This is my first book of her’s that I have read, and I instantly liked her writing style.

Collins suffers a terrible breakup and ends up moving back to her hometown where she runs into her former bff, Nate, which leads to a bunch of excellent banter that made the friends-enemies-lovers trope that much sweeter.

If you are looking for a good weekend read, I highly recommend! 4 out of 5 stars ⭐️.
Thank you @netgalley and @berkleypub for the #arc.

“Ohio is doing weird things to me.”

I struggled with this one...probably because it brought back so many memories of growing up in a small town in Ohio where everyone knew everyone else’s business and...there was that one someone that drove me completely insane, then became my other half...only to disappear on me in the course of three years. Could I picture our reunion going as outlandishly as Collin’s and Nate’s? Absolutely! Add me to the list of fans of this author!

When Collins Carter moved back home to Ohio, she didn’t think she could fall much farther. Her screenwriting career in L.A. had been put on a hard pause when the video of her yelling at her boyfriend in the parking lot went viral. So she’d moved back to her parents home, where she could regroup and figure out what’s next. And that’s where she ran into the boy who had once been her best friend, and then he was the guy who left her behind for the popular crowd, and now he is putting himself right in the sights of all her anger.

Because he came for the one thing that meant the most to her family.

Nathaniel Adams didn’t leave Ohio after high school the way Collins had. He’d stayed and became a real estate agent. He bought a house in Collins’s parent’s neighborhood. He joined the homeowner’s association. And he tried to get Collins to move away again by threatening HOA action against the tree her father had just planted for her mother.

Collins found herself at the next HOA meeting, stirring up the crowd, who was already upset by the board’s overreach. And when the president of the HOA abruptly announces his retirement, handing the reins over to Nate, Collins is done. Before she can think it through, she makes an announcement of her own, and suddenly there is a fight for HOA president, because Collins is running against her old buddy Nate.

The next weeks go by in a blur of backroom meetings and lawn decorations, glittery signs and patriotic yard flamingoes, secrets splashed across the Facebook neighborhood group and a deflated Benjamin Franklin inflatable withering on the lawn. But what’s worse is that Collins finding herself attracted to that man again. The one who broke her heart as a teenager. The one who makes her blood boil when he acts like he is the more obvious HOA president. The one she can’t stop thinking about. And not only that, he’s inspired her to start writing again after letting her laptop sit closed for weeks.

So now Collins has to decide what she really wants for her future—the glamorous Hollywood writing career and all its excitement, or a life in Ohio with lots of HOA meetings and the boy who got away.

Next-Door Nemesis is a steamy rom com about figuring out what really matters and going after it, complete with hand-painted lawn flamingoes and googly eyes. There are lots of lovely surprises, suburban gossip, lawn care, MLM leggings, sangria, chain restaurant appetizers, and Midwestern good manners. There is a lot of snark, some spicy scenes, and a State Fair, so there is a lot to love.

I loved Next-Door Nemesis. As a lifelong Midwesterner, I appreciated all the moments of Midwest love as well as the hot Hollywood writer information. I thought the characters of Collins and Nate were both charming and authentic, but I really fell for Ruby the most. This novel has a genuine sense of place, strong characters, and the writing sizzles on the page. I did not want to put this one down, and I can’t wait to see what Alexa Martin comes up with next.

Egalleys for Next-Door Nemesis were provided by Berkley through NetGalley, with many thanks.

I'll be honest, this book took until about 25% in to really hook me. I didn't think Collins was going to be likable at first, but I quite enjoyed her development as the book went on. I loved the importance of strong female characters and the strong female friendships that came out of that. The hometown rivalry was a delight and I loved the transition from childhood friends to enemies to lovers between Collins and Nate. I thought all the HOA details were hilarious and they really added to the story. Also Nate was a dream let's be clear about that. This book ended up being so much fun and so heartwarming, I couldn't help but love it. Thank you to Berkley for providing me with an e-ARC to read and review!

After a viral video drives Collins out of Hollywood and back to her parents house in Ohio, she encounters none other than her childhood best friend turned nemesis, Nate, who is now on the HOA board. Hijinks ensure and Collins ends up running against Nate for HOA board president.

While there are plenty of home renovation romances out there, this is the first HOA romance I've encountered. And it works! It's super cute with some big characters and lots of heart. Once the sexual tension ramps up... boy does it ever. The best friend to enemy to lover arc is also really nicely executed. 3.5 stars.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

ARC Review

This is the first book I have read by Alexa Martin and it will definitely not be the last! Next-Door Nemesis had me laughing out loud and also getting emotional! It was the perfect romcom

Every supporting character was perfection! And sometimes I feel like that is a difficult thing to accomplish! I wanted to be friends with Ruby, Ashleigh, and Collins. I wanted to garden and bake with the Carters! The shenanigans they all got up to in the campaign for HOA president had me cackling!

I hope there is a second book to this with Ruby as the lead! I would read it in a heartbeat.

Thank you to the publisher, and Good Girls PR for this ARC in exchange for an honest review

Next-Door Nemesis by Alexa Martin is an enemies-to-lovers romance, and I loved every minute of it. This second-chance romance captured my heart, and I was sad when it ended!

I am a sucker for good banter and the back-and-forth between the main characters; being mean is a love language! Collins Carter and Nate Adams used to be best friends, and after ten years of being apart, they are trusted back into each other's path when Collins is forced to move back home after a crazy backup. I love the revenge setting, which is foreplay for Collins and Nate's relationship!

This is my second novel by Alexa Martin, and I enjoy her writing style and the stories she creates with passion, humor, and a chance to find love! Also, the inception of her writing a romcom in a romcom is brilliant!

I recommend this cute rom-com to anyone looking for a cute read that will have you laughing, crying, and begging for these two characters to make it work!

This is one of those stories that is witty and smart and will have you laughing out loud while also tugging at your heart strings. I absolutely loved it!!  Collins' internal dialogue and sassy comments had me smiling through this entire book. The grudges and petty smear campaigns were hilarious. She and Nate clearly had chemistry from their first run in at the coffee shop.  They had both been so hurt as kids they couldn't see past that to try and repair their relationship, at least until the campaign definitely forced them to spend time together.  Collins' struggle with not feeling good enough and not belonging will really resonate with a lot of people, I know it did with me.

I loved Collins' BFF Ruby and new friend Ashleigh.  When the three of them got together it was so funny. I loved their night out on the town in C-Bus!! I highly recommend this book!

Such a good book!! With a friends to enemies to lovers trope, set in a small town, what’s not to love?!
Nate and Collins have fantastic banter, and undeniable chemistry. I will admit, I did not like Nate at all in the beginning (I’m pretty sure that was intended), but by the end my feelings changed a lot.
This wasn’t really much of a slow burn book, with the switch from enemies to lovers being really sudden and unexpected, but there was still enough of the plot left for the story to continue in an interesting way.
There was some really great side characters such as Ruby and Ashleigh, and Collins’ parents.
Overall, a really enjoyable book!!