When Lily discovers the author of her favorite book suddenly has a website, she emails him about how much she loved his book and what it has meant to her. To her surprise, Strick emails back, and they correspond for several months. Their emails back and forth take up a chapter of the book and are delightful reading. Then out of the blue, Strick cuts off all communication and she never hears from him again.
Lily is sort of the black sheep of her family, being unlucky in love (witness that ghosting), and working as an assistant to a book editor, which isn’t quite as exalted a position/career as those of her sisters. Said sisters are constantly setting her up on blind dates that are always failures, partly because Lily is so tongue-tied. We get a good example of that when she keeps running into gorgeous and hot Nick, who lives in her sister’s building, at which times she is the definition of awkward. But eventually, she and Nick strike up a friendship, which might have developed into something more, but Nick makes it clear he’s not looking for a relationship. So when Lily needs a date for her sister’s wedding, she enlists Nick’s help in finding one.
The cover of this book first caught my eye, with the yellow and purple background, and the girl’s yellow dress (and if I remember correctly she actually does wear a yellow dress at one point in the story). And then the title, THE NEIGHBOR FAVOR, is a slightly awkward rhyming title that doesn’t quite roll off the tongue but still sounds appealing.
I loved Lily’s and Nick’s interactions. They seem so perfect for each other, but unbeknownst to Lily, Nick is the author she was emailing, and once he realizes who she is, he’s horrified and ashamed of how he ended the correspondence and determined that Lily never find out. She deserves better and he’s going to help her find better. I’m sure you already know how well that’s going to work out!
Lily’s sisters are so much fun, as they constantly butt into her life and set her up on blind date after blind date, despite her protests. Of course, they are also a bit overbearing, and I had trouble understanding why Lily let them talk her into these blind dates that she almost always hated. But then compared to her sisters, Lily’s self-esteem is a little low, and while laughing at some of her conversations with them, I also was irritated on her behalf. I wanted her to stand up to them and not let her family make her feel so small.
Nick has his own baggage, besides the secret he’s keeping from Lily about his identity. He’s not just hiding from Lily the fact that he’s the author N.R. Strickland, he’s hiding it from just about everyone, including his editor, who he’s never met in person, and his publisher, who Lily happens to work for under one of their imprints, and most of all, from his parents. He’s sure that if they find out he’s a successful author, his father will show up on his doorstep, wanting money. Nick’s backstory is a bit heartbreaking, and I wanted to scoop up the child he was and shower him with love because no child should have to deal with what Nick did.
Lily and Nick have so much chemistry together, it’s palpable, which is a testament to Kristina Forest’s writing. All of the characters are well rounded, from the annoying sisters who I loved, to Nick’s best friend from college and his partner, who I adored. And of course, there is conflict once Nick’s secret finally comes out, and while dreading the fallout I loved the way the author handled it, with Nick and Lily both experiencing some character growth along the way.
I love trying new to me authors, and THE NEIGHBOR FAVOR was a great introduction to Kristina Forest. A delightful, fun read.
A shy bookworm enlists her charming neighbor to help her score a date, not knowing he’s the obscure author she’s been corresponding with, in this sparkling and heart-fluttering romance by Kristina Forest.
Shy, bookish, and admittedly awkward, Lily Greene has always felt inadequate compared to the rest of her accomplished family, who strive for Black excellence. She dreams of becoming a children’s books editor, but she’s been frustratingly stuck in the nonfiction division for years without a promotion in sight. Lily finds escapism in her correspondences with her favorite fantasy author, and what begins as two lonely people connecting over email turns into a tentative friendship and possibly something else Lily won’t let herself entertain—until he ghosts her without a word.
Months later, Lily is still crushed, but she’s determined to get a hold of her life, starting with finding a date to her sister’s wedding. And the perfect person to help her is Nick Brown, her charming, attractive new neighbor, who she feels drawn to for reasons she can’t explain. But little does she know, Nick is an author—her favorite fantasy author.
Nick, who has his reasons for using a pen name and pushing people away, soon realizes that the beautiful, quiet girl from down the hall is the same Lily he fell in love with over email months ago. Unwilling to complicate things even more between them, he agrees to set her up with someone else, though this simple favor between two neighbors is anything but—not when he can't get her off his mind...
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