Not sure exactly where to start with this one, initially I was enamored, couldn't put it down, then Jack went and said something dumb <spolier> calling her "resting burn face" deserves an actual punch in face </spoiler> and honestly, I'm stubborn and unforgiving af to book boyfriends. His apologies were too weak ... to be fair, even if they were the best apologies ever, I'd probably dig my toes in.

I really don't think there was anything the author could do to bring me back after that. She tried. Gave it a real fighting chance. He had some great moments, but at this point I'm jaded and he's on the naughty-not-in-a-good-way list.

This feels like a me problem and that's predominantly why I rated it 4 (when it sits more 3.5 for me personally).

It's not spicy (may be a negative or a positive)
It's a wee bit long, I did find myself skipping ahead a few times, and some of it felt unnecessary word counting.
The side characters were mostly awesome
The random jump ahead a few days that happened mid chapter threw me sometimes, but that might be because I skimmed (naughty!)

I think this book will really appeal to people and it has pretty good reviews.

Sorry Jack but we need to see other people.

Thanks NetGalley for the ARC.

A sweet neighbors to lovers slowburn romance that hits all the marks on heartbreak and redemption. Jessica Sherry did an incredible job telling the hard parts and lovingly balancing those with the sweet. Would definitely recommend and read another of her books.

A strong start, an excellent premise.

The two timelines were a unforseen plot twist that I appreciated.

I did struggle in some parts as I could see some plot lines coming but overall it was a satisfying read,

Dating and relationships have always been difficult for Rowan after being scarred physically and emotionally as a teenager. Her seven month relationship with Dean and his "independent together" arrangement seems like the closest thing she'll ever get to family and marriage. But when Dean proposes in a very public way, her indecision causes him to run away for the summer to get some space. Meanwhile, Rowan is settling into her new home with an eclectic and noisy group of neighbors, one of which is a grumpy famous author suffering from writer's block. Then after an accidental eavesdropping causes Rowan to become Jack's new muse, they realize they can help each other. As friendship turns to stronger feelings, Rowan must decide to settle with Dean or risk her heart for something wonderful and new.
After the initial grumpiness from them both, I just loved Jack and Rowan together. It's so cute that she's his muse and he says the most romantic things to her to build her confidence in herself. With a whole cast of quirky and fascinating side characters, there's never a dull moment in this story. I look forward to reading more by this author.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advance copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

All I can say is, wow! This book left me with a soft spot for the characters and the little bits of humour sprinkled throughout had me laughing after every few pages.

This book was a unique next-door neighbours to friends to lovers romance with main characters that were imperfectly perfect. The character development was done beautifully, Jack and Rowan were mysterious with opposite personalities and attracted to each other which had me wanting to know more. In fact, I was actually desperate to know more about the main characters and the complexities involved in their background stories. And that was an experience that added layers of richness to their narratives.

The found family in this book had me melting! The way the entire neighbourhood came together during tough times was heartwarming and brought a sense of comfort to the story. I also somehow felt a closer connection to Jack mostly because he’s a writer and the way his ‘creative writer’s brain’ worked had me smiling every time!

Before I finish up with this review…let’s not forget one last person, Nosy Daisy—The Daisy Chain was one of the most hilarious elements in this book. Every time an alert was sent out about the neighbourhood gossip made me giggle!

This book would be a perfect fit for anyone looking for a different story with imperfect but relatable characters.

You will not believe the way I sped through this book! I read most of it in one sitting. I was actually in a reading slump and was looking for a book that was hopefully going to bring me out of it, and boy was this the right choice for it! I'm not normally one for sappy romances, but I was really craving a romance book, as I hadn't read one in a long time. And while this book is truly a romance at its core, it also had much more depth than I had initially anticipated.
I loved the neighborly enemies-to-lovers trope, and Rowan and Jack'a banter was so cute!
The only qualm that I had with this book was that the ending dragged on a little too long for my liking. At one point, I felt like the story had reached a natural conclusion, but then I saw that I still had about 50 pages to go. And then I wasn't really interested anymore in reading to the end 😅.

Overall, this has been one of my favorite books so far this year! I definitely recommend this book if you love romance stories and characters being each other's muse and inspiration ❤.

This book! Definitely an underrated gem - great dialogue, excellent use of dual POV and solid backstory. I felt so invested in their journey that I flew through the book in one day.

Rowan Mackey, a teacher and fix-it queen with a past marked by serious burns, seeks solace in a quiet life with her boyfriend, Dean. However, when her relationship hits a snag, she finds herself drawn to her next-door neighbour, Jack Graham, a bestselling romance writer with a reputation as a playboy. Despite their initial clashes, Rowan and Jack discover a surprising connection that challenges their preconceived notions about love and relationships. As they navigate the complexities of their feelings, they must confront difficult choices that could change their lives forever. With heartfelt emotion and engaging characters, this is a captivating romance that explores the power of love to transcend barriers.

This is everything you could want in a neighbors to friends to lovers/slowburn romance! I absolutely loved this book! This book touched on so many heavier topics very beautifully while still keeping the story relatively light. I loved watching Rowan and Jack’s relationship grow and how they helped each other through their trauma and hardships. The found family aspect through Rowan’s sister to fostering to the nosy neighbors was absolutely amazing! I highly highly recommend adding this to your TBR and reading it asap!

I really enjoyed the premise of this book. the characters were interesting, the side characters were awesome, and the plot was pretty good. That said, I do think that there were some minor issues with some things that happened that made me genuinely pause and ask what was the point of adding this to the story. Overall it was fun to read but I do think it drug on way too long and unfortunately the epilogue was really dissatisfying. The end of the book left me really bummed it didn’t have more tied up ends and instead it was finished in a weird way during the epilogue. Hence, 3 stars.

**thank you NetGalley for the advanced copy to review!!**

after reading ‘one thing better’, i was so excited to get my hands on another book by jessica sherry and this didn’t disappoint!

rowan was an easily likeable character, and i was quick to root for her to stand up for herself and demand better and so glad she did! both her and jack are flawed but realistic and still likeable characters, and the daisy chain community add a bit of humour too!

another great read :)

I loved this book. The story was deeply emotional and dealt with important topics. Jack was the most loveable a-hole and he completely swooned me. Rowan was just simply amazing. This was the slowest of slow burns, but it was worth the wait.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me a copy of the book.

This is one of my most favorite recent romcoms. Rowan and Jack are such complex and likable characters. I give the writer so much credit for getting into the characters' flaws, and providing multiple avenues for exploration of those flaws. The story was fun. The cast of characters varied and their own bright spot (yet never stole the show). Really fun and enjoyable read.

This book came to me via Netgalley – I liked the concept and wanted something fun and quick to read. And Yes No Maybe delivered just that 😊

This is the story of Rowan, an English Lit teacher at her local high school. Rowan is proposed to by her fellow-teacher-slash-desperate-to-have-his-big-break-actor boyfriend, Dean, in a very public setting which leads her to respond to his question to marry him with “yes. no… maybe”. While Dean decides to go on a summer-long road trip with his wannabe-actor pals (driven by the humiliation of Rowan’s response, so he claims) to score some roles – and ideally his big break – Rowan decides to buy that house that she’s been eyeing up and moves into a new neighborhood that has the grumpy-to-her-sunshine romance writer Jack as her next door neighbor.

This book is “only” a three-star read for me. I did have a great time reading it and I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys a found family, sassy teenagers, and a lot of literary talk in their romances. This book also deals with a lot of trauma which I think it handled really tenderly, giving Rowan a lot of different facets and colors.

But as much as I enjoyed the actual story and many of the characters, the book did feel rushed to me. There are a lot of side plots – issues/developments that popped up that I don’t think needed to be included. This diluted the overall story and many things were “sorted” somewhat unsatisfyingly. It felt at times that in order to drive the story forward, another issue needed to be added. And then another one. So I didn’t necessarily feel this progressed naturally.

I also wish the reader would’ve been clued in on the actual incident of Rowan’s scars sooner. We only find out the real, heartbreaking reason once we’re way over 50% into the book. It keeps us at a distance and makes understanding certain aspects of Rowan’s life (and of another character’s) difficult.

We were also told a lot of things instead of being shown them. One example is our desperate-to-have-his-big-break-actor fiancé Dean: for up to 90% of the book he is pretty insufferable and mean… until suddenly he is not but instead is the great friend he’s apparently always been.

Then there’s our MMC – Jack. Oh man, I don’t know where to start. I find Jack kinda (totally) unlikable. He’s not just portrayed as the grumpy, sexy, handsome, smart neighbor, he is also particularly slutty (no shame in his game – just a statement of facts) even when he starts spending more time with Rowan and clearly takes a liking to her.
(I think I might be spoiled by the Ali Hazelwood’s, Mariana Zapata’s, or Elsie Silver’s who have their MMCs “sort out” their sex lives usually before they meet the FMC. And I like that as it shows the behavior has changed instead of just having to take the dude’s word for it.)
And here lies my biggest problem: like Rowan, I don’t know where we stand with Jack. When we’re in his storyline, he tells us a lot about how he feels and his intentions. When we’re with Rowan, we see very little of that. (That scene when Rowan witnesses yet another woman in his “rotation” arrive at his front door… nope, no thank you.)

With all that being said – this is a very well written book. I like the banter between the characters, I think the teenagers are portrayed really, really well, and I like the strength of our girl Rowan. The dudes I don’t care about at all within the romance setting – but outside of it, they’re entertaining, too. Would I read another book by the author? For sure! I know I’d enjoy the journey and have laugh-out-loud moments.


🌶️ Spice-level: not closed-door but still pretty tame

I fell in love with this book quickly! I enjoyed how much of an antihero Jack was and how he and Rowan complimented each other. Seeing the growth of them both, especially with Rowan and her scars, was so satisfying and such a journey. I highlighted all over my Kindle and fell in love with these perfectly imperfect characters.

This gem had some of my favorite tropes! Opposites Attract, Neighbors, Grumpy/Sunshine, Overcoming Challenges, and of course Hot Chemistry.
Rowan has felt broken her whole life. She was involved in an accident with a boiling pan that has left her scarred from her face to right above her heart. She has felt her whole life that she has repulsed people and is going to settle when her fellow teacher, Dean, proposes to her. Except, she falters and answers with a yes, no, maybe. Dean leaves for the summer claiming he needs space from Rowan.
Rowan had been looking at a house that was small, cute, and a place she could call home. She decides to go ahead and buy it. She was not aware that her neighbor was Jack Graham, the romance writer. The angsty, crabby, and emotionally distant author that is. He lives like a frat boy trying to work through his writers block and that's when he sees Rowan. She is the woman from the restaurant that changed the trajectory of his career and she has no idea.
Jack is falling hard and fast for Rowan, but old habits die hard. Rowan is still trying to convince herself Dean is what she wants and needs. This story develops so beautifully with found family, past hurts being healed, and showing what baring your soul is really about. I absolutely loved it!
Thank you to @NetGalley and @jessicasherry_books for my copy to read and review. This book is a very special gem!

Thank you to NetGalley and Jessica Sherry for the advanced reader copy. These are my honest opinions.

WOW! This book was absolutely wonderful. I am currently experiencing a book hangover because I cannot stop thinking about Rowan and Jack. This story is going to live with me for a long, long time. It was heartwarming, hilarious and deep all at the same time. There were some amazing quotes that I don't think I will ever forget. Jessica Sherry was able to write about traumatic and triggering events with care and tenderness that made me feel so seen and validated. This book made me both laugh out loud and shed some tears.

Jack is a moody writer type (romance author) who's experiencing some major writer's block. He has a cat named Harper Lee.
Rowan is a high school English teacher and avid reader (everything but romance). She has a cat named Edgar Allen Poe.
He's grumpy and she's sunshine.
The two end up living next door to one another and their relationship is described as "cordially volatile."

I could literally sit here and gush about this book for hours, but I don't want to give too much away. Read this if you enjoy:
Dual POV
Grumpy x Sunshine
Nosy neighbors and cute side characters (LOVED Rose & Vernon)
Found family
Literary puns
He calls her princess
Enemies to friends to lovers
Slow burn
Angst and tension

"A good romance is everything- scary, thrilling, mysterious, happy, sad, funny, dark. I wanted a genre with an emotional depth that could be anything I wanted it to be. Romance fits me best."

I absolutely adored this story. The touching on trauma was a refreshing break from the typical romcom we see. I loved Rowan from the beginning. Jack and Rowan’s romance felt realistic and heartfelt. The neighbors and side characters were such a fun touch. It was fun seeing the MMC be the romance author in this scenario! This book was super sweet and touching and I definitely recommend it!

SCREAMING CRYING AND THROWING UP! Jessica did it again!! She had me absolutely fall in love with the story and characters and she had me chanting and crying! Honestly I can’t wait to continue reading more of Jessica’s work!! I absolutely love it!!

Also I forgot to add.. Vernon.. no.

This is such a cozy romance! The main female character is so relatable, which makes you root so hard for her to get the happily ever after she deserves. I loved the social commentary added in, encouraging people to foster, encouraging more open curriculums especially around reading. I will say the one aspect I didn’t like was that she cheats on her bf, I wish they had broken up before that first kiss, or maybe been broken up before all of it, I don’t know. But that is just my personal preference!