Thank you so much to Netgalley for an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Riley Thorn and the Dead Guy Next Door is the first book in the Riley Thorn series by Lucy Score. This was far from my first Lucy Score book, but this does feel like a huge departure from her other works. My first takeaway is that everyone should be warned that this is not a romance book. IDK if she spices/romances things up in the series but for just this one- go in expecting more of a one for the money Stephanie Plume + psychic abilities kind of jam.

Riley Thorn is a recently divorced begrudging psychic trying to get her life together. She has spent the bulk of her life repressing what we later find out are some very powerful psychic abilities. After her divorce Riley finds herself in a boarding situation that consists of her and a bunch of geriatrics. and if I'm honest it seems like a fun time. These side characters were my favorite. I love a spunky retiree in a story. Riley is working a dead-end job and pretty much just living for the day to day until she randomly has a vision of her neighbor's murder. After trying to warn him and the police before it happens Riley fully entrenches herself in the police investigation where she meets PI Nick. Nick is a confirmed bachelor who was dishonorably removed from the police force due to his 'rule breaking' tendencies who finds himself enthralled by Riley from their first meeting.

Riley and Nick are joined by a troop of a cooky family (Riley's) a team of bad boy/girl PI employees (Nicks) and the aforementioned geriatric neighbors. These guys all really made the book for me. Between an 80-year-old sneaking out for vigilante justice and a spite cow you get the bulk of the humor from these guys.

While most of the side characters are hilarious I did find a sticking point with Gabe. I am so confused about how he was written. He isn't an alien and yet the man has never had ice cream and speaks as if English is not his first language. which I guess maybe it isn't but the author makes no reference to that. Just how tall and huge he is. Don't ever forget how huge and tall Gabe is. This book could have been edited down about 20 pages if they took out how often we were reminded that Gabe is-you guessed it- tall and huge.

This book is so close to being good to me. The humor, characters, found family and adventure all make this a very readable book. But the romance is a center point of the story, and it isn't that good. Nick could not actually make up his mind on what he wanted with Riley. He would offer a friends with bennys situation to her then be like 'I think it would ruin what we have'. which at that point was him mildly stalking her. I get the attractive points of Nick but the ragey always ready and excited to yell at Riley part was no fun. I think emotionally intelligent book boyfriends are the best and he is an emotional idiot. EIQ not even registering on the charts.

I fully plan on continuing the series. I know that Lucy's writing skills have had a couple of books to work out the kinks and the over all plot of the books makes it worth it.

In the new series by Lucy Score, divorced psychic Riley is living a pathetic life when drama intervenes. This series is a little slow to start, and the first chapter in the present and then a step backward in time does not help. The first chapter is cringy, the second slightly less so, and it takes several chapters to get on its feet. Fans of Score, or Evanovich and the like, will enjoy the book as it gets rolling. There is, of course, romance and drama aplenty, a quirky heroine, and a cast of bizarre secondary characters. As the series progresses, Score will find her footing with this character and no doubt the series will be a successful one.

The Dead Guy Next Door was an unexpected surprise. It’s pretty light and funny, just what I needed right now.

Lucy Score writes such fun, addictive books! I loved the concept of Riley being a psychic and falling for a bad boy PI. The humor and story line made me think of Janet Evanovich's "Stephanie Plum" series. I found myself laughing out loud at times and sitting there reading with a big, goofy smile on my face. This novel had the perfect amount of humor, sex, romance, sarcasm and action in it. I can't wait to read the next book in this series! Thank you so much to Netgally and Sourcebooks Bloom Books for the opportunity to review this ARC!

The Dead Guy Next Door by Lucy Score is the first book in the Riley Thorn series. Riley Thorn just wants a normal life but instead finds herself divorced, broke, living in a mansion with a quirky group of elderly roommates, and having clairvoyant visions. She has a vision of a neighbor being murdered and through her actions ends up being the #1 suspect until Nick Santiago, a PI, offers to help solve the crime.

Overall this was a fun read! It's a bit quirky and cheesy however I very much enjoyed the story. This was an easy read and I would read more books in this series. The characters had big personalities and there were many funny moments.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publishers, and author for granting me an eBook ARC in return for my honest review. This edition was published on March 12, 2024 (originally published in 2020).

This fun story follows Riley Thorn. Riley has an unwanted gift of psychic abilities, which allows her to speak to the dead and receive visions of the future. Riley attempts to live a normal life, but she somehow finds herself involved in the murder of her neighbor because of her abilities and visions. Her involvement leads to her meeting Nick, a HOT PI, while he is investigating her neighbor's murder. She ends up fake dating and getting fake engaged to the attractive private detective Nick, who isn't one to settle down and seems to love his bachelor life. After spending time with Riley in their fake dating/engagement, he starts to like the idea of a relationship.

I enjoyed this book so much. I did not know what to expect when starting. All the characters were fun in their own way. This was just a really fun book. The banter between Riley and Nick was great. I felt like this was definitely a page-turner for me. The suspense was a little different, but for the mood of this book, it was perfect. I recommend and rate it five stars.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and Bloom Books for providing me with an E-ARC in exchange for my honest review!

Tropes: Fake Dating, Romance, Suspense, One Bed

So. Much. Fun. Honestly, I didn’t know what to expect with this book. Is it a romance, is it a mystery, is it purely satire? The answer to all those questions? YES. It’s all of them. And it is a BLAST. Every single character is unique, and quite honestly precious to me. The humor is truly top notch. It’s subtle, but it’s constant, and it left a smile on my face constantly. Please pick this up, I promise it will make life a little better.

In true Lucy Score fashion, this book will have you laughing out loud and often. Riley Throne is avoid her gifts, she just wants to be normal. Nick is a PI who happens to find his way into Riley's life. This rollercoaster of a book has so much in it, it might give you a bit of whiplash, but in the best way possible. Just hang on to your kindle and enjoy the ride, because it's worth every page! The side characters as always in a Score book are just as great and well thought out as her main characters. So run and get this book, you will not regret it!

This story was so much fun. It had a little mystery, a fun cast of characters and of course, romance. Riley has the gift of psychic abilities but doesn't want it. She meets Nick, a PI, who helps her with figuring out what happened to her neighbor. They team up as fake dating and I love the tension and banter between them. The story is fun and Riley's roommates were such a hoot. I am ready to continue this series.

A great series starter! A pyschic heroine who hates her job and just wants to be normal. A house full of elderly roomates. A hot PI to solve a murder with. Some zany vigilantes. A cool dog. And an incredible action/chase scene for the ending. Kept me up way too late. A fun romanctic comedy with a touch of paranormal. I've already started book 2.

Tropes: Fake Dating, Romance Suspense, One Bed, Workplace Romance, Insta Love/Lust

Thank you to the author, NetGalley, and Bloom Books for providing me with an E-ARC in exchange for my personal opinion!

This story follows Riley Thorn, and she has these unwanted psychic abilities where she can speak to the dead and receive visions of the future. Despite her attempts to live a normal life, she somehow finds herself tied up in the murder of her neighbor, which leads to her fake engagement to a smoking hot private detective, Nick, who is investigating the case. Nick doesn't like to follow the rules, and he doesn't like to settle down. But when he is thrown in the path of Riley Thorn, he sees that maybe settling down wouldn't be that bad.

This book was..... different ..... from Lucy Score's other books. It wasn't bad but it wasn't my favorite. I found the book to be funny as hell, but I wasn't vibing with the mystery aspect of it. I did like Nick and Riley together, but I wish there was more romance. There is a love story, but it felt like a book with an element of romance more than the romance being the heart of the story. I'm a huge fan of Lucy Score, but I am not sure if I will read the rest of the books in this series.

As a huge fan of cute mystery stories, when I saw a book about a reluctant psychic x PI AND it was written by Lucy Score, I was instantly hooked. This book was so cute and funny, a perfect light hearted read when other stories become to heavy.

The book was written in third person, and showed us both Riley's and Nick's perspectives. Riley, recently divorced and living with her old and eccentric roommates, just wants her life to be normal. Unfortunately for her, she's a psychic who's able to talk to the dead and can predict the future. After predicting the death of her neighbour (who, spoiler alert, actually dies) we are introduced to our love interest, Nick. A very handsome, dashing and charming PI (He's got dimples).

I loved the dynamic between Nick and Riley. They had this will they wont they energy (mainly on Nicks side), but to be honest they acted like a married couple from the day they met. Nick showed Riley how to have a good time and come out of her good girl shell more, and Riley taught Nick how to be more grounded and leave the bachelor life behind. I loved the parts when Riley would volunteer to do something Nick didn't like, but he had no say because he wasn't her boyfriend. The internal debate was hilarious LOL.

Onto the issues I had with the book:
- There were times when the plot seemed to drag especially in the beginning.
- The biggest issue was the millennial humour. Don't get me wrong, some parts had me laughing but other parts just made me cringe. For example, someone asked Riley what number they were thinking of and she said "Your first thought was sixty-nine but you dismissed that as too easy..." haha 69 joke -_-


Overall, its a super cute book, and I cannot wait for the next one!

This is book one in the Riley Thorn series, I absolutely have no idea what took me so long to read it, but I intend to binge the entire series.

I loved Riley from page one, and Nick from the minute we met him. Watching the two of them solved the case of the dead next-door neighbor this author is known for, was hysterical
I absolutely loved it and I’m starting book two immediately.

This is, hands down, my favorite book of the year so far! I do not say that lightly as I read A LOT. It was a fantastic murder mystery with just a peppering of supernatural!

I absolutely LOVED this book! Lucy Score’s ability to make you fall in love with her characters is truly incredible. And I mean ALL of her characters! I also fell head first into the story because it was based on Harrisburg, PA and I’ve actually been there AND I have been to Little Amps. It was cool to read about it and actually picture it as if I was there. As soon as I finished this book I was hungry for more of Nick and Riley’s story.

Thank you to NetGalley and Lucy Score for this free ARC read. I have found another author who I love!

If you're into Lucy Score's stuff, you'll dig this one too! It gave me major "Mr. Fixer Upper" vibes—great banter, cute backstory, and loads of fun side stories! The main characters, especially Brian and Josie, are hilarious and totally root-worthy. Wish there was a prequel about them though!

Story's solid, but it does drag a bit 'cause it's pretty long for a romance.

Huge thanks to NetGalley for this ARC (sort of). This one was published a few years ago, but has now been republished as of March 12th.

Laugh out loud HILARIOUS! I read and loved the Knockemount series by Lucy Score, and this one did not disappoint. It's funny, full of likable characters, and fast action. Lucy Score is definitely my new guilty pleasure :)

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐💫
Spice: 🌶️🌶️
Other: 💖🔮🔪🐶
Genre: Contemporary Mystery / Romance
POV: Double

Things have been better for Riley Thorn. She's working in a boring job she doesn't enjoy, stuck paying her cheating ex-husband after their divorce and plagued by ghost, telepathy and psychic visions she wishes would just go away. When PI Nick Santiago knocks on her door, looking for her unpleasant neighbor, everything changes. After having a vision of her neighbors murder and then witnessing the actual event, she's thrown into the investigation with Nick to first clear her name and then save herself from being next.

This was such a charming story from Lucy Score. This is not a new book (looks like it was originally published in 2020), but with a shiny new cover, it is new to me. I've read and very much enjoyed Score's Knockemout series but this was pleasantly different. I've ready romance/mystery books before and I feel like it can sometimes be hard to ride the line within both genres. Score did not have this problem! The crime and investigation was fun, engaging and had me going until the end. Riley's psychic powers and her family were such a cool twist on the genre. And the growing relationship between Nick and Riley was just so fun to witness, especially Nick coming to terms with his feelings. I'm super curious how the romantic side of the series will continue now that their relationship is solidly established, but I've no doubt that Score will deliver. With two more books available and one more on the horizon, I'll definitely be reading the rest of these over the next few months.

Well, I thought I had already picked my favorite book that I read this month, but The Dead Guy Next Door by Lucy Score proved me wrong! The Riley Thorn series feels like Janet Evonovich's Stephanie Plum novels and Richard Osman's Thursday Murder Club series had an epically hilarious love child!
Follow along as clairvoyant Riley-insert awful middle name - Thorn and private investigator Nick Santiago unravel the murder of Riley's cranky, scheming neighbor. Surrounded by a cast of hysterically inappropriate old geezers, Riley and Nick uncover more than they ever imagined.
Thank you #NetGalley, SOURCEBOOKS Bloom Books and Lucy Score for access to this brilliant book in exchange for my honest review. I already downloaded the second book and told my book besties about the Riley Thorn series!

If you like Lucy score’s previous stuff, you’ll enjoy this one! It reminded me of Mr. Fixer Upper a lot. Good banter, cute backstory, and lots of fun side stories!
The main characters are really funny and way to root for, I love Brian and Josie- I wish there was a prequel with their story! This is going to be a series, similar to her other works.
The story was good, but it sometimes dragged because its long for a romance story. However, if you’ve enjoyed Lucy’s other stories, this is really similar style!

I absolutely loved this! If The Ghost Whisper and a rom com had a baby this would be it! I loved how chaotic Riley's life was; especially that she lives with a bunch of geriatrics after her divorce. This book was hilarious and had fantastic banter.