I loved this book! It is the perfect read during these times to escape and read something so crazy funny.
Chip is a handsome, helpful, aggravating man with an easy smile. Construction company owner with beautiful, elegant sweet girlfriend and giant drooling dog.
Previously easy going Bree is a part time fairy at the local theater, helpful friend, aunt to very ill little girl, and favorite person of Chip’s giant drooling dog.
Chip becomes Bree’s next door neighbor in a cul-de-sac (of course). They meet and get off on the wrong foot and things go down from there, as a rivalry of pranks begin between them. But as the pranks increase, they find themselves drawn together.
As far as a faith thread, I love Chip’s words that once he realized that he desired things that don’t exist on earth that he must have been created to live somewhere else.
This is a great hilarious, heartwarming, romantic read. I recommend it!

A great premise, and an eye catching book cover. I loved the sound of it. It was a good read, funny in places and the neighbour battles. I love the author’s voice, very engaging. It was enjoyable and I would recommend.

Unfortunately this book just did not live up to my expectations! I couldn’t warm to the characters and the storyline just did not grab my attention.

Melissa Ferguson has such a way of writing sweet, humorous stories! The main characters were lovable, and the pranks they played on each other will have you laughing so hard. But there's more than just humor in this story. There are also heartfelt moments as Bree and Chip face some difficult personal issues.

"The Cul-de-Sac War", by Melissa Ferguson, begins with an adorable meet-cute between Bree and Chip at their local community theater. The flirtation continues when Chip happens to buy the house next door to Bree and chaos ensues. Unfortunately, I never understand what caused the sudden rift between the two of them, and the animosity lasted longer than I thought necessary. While I was glad the book had a happy ending, it felt like the pay-off was rushed.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

So I really enjoyed the book, but I do think that the name and the description were a bit misleading. It took forever until her parents gave her the “ultimatum” and this was barely war. They didn’t even acknowledge as war for a while and it was mostly just her. That said, the book was fun and I definitely enjoyed it. I also totally felt like this would make a great Hallmark movie! I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

I was very excited to receive this book based off the synopsis I read, however I feel like the book and synopsis did not entirely match. I expected the "deal" between the main character and her parents to come much sooner than it did. I also expected these crazy antics, ones that would make me laugh out loud or root for one of the characters but I really didn't feel any of that. I love an enemies to lovers story line but I didn't feel like they ever got to the love part. There wasn't enough build up or wow moment for me to fully believe the ending I got.

I enjoyed Brea's character and her trying to find her way throughout the book and I honestly think her parents were my favorite characters. Chip was likeable enough but I knew from chapter one that the "girlfriend" had to go.
Overall, the story was a quick and easy read. I would like to read other books by this author.

"If we find ourselves with a desire that nothing in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that we were made for another world."
- C.S. Lewis

Bree Leake has been bouncing from job to job and hobby to hobby for far too long. She is currently sharing her Nana's house with a housemate, because neither of them are willing to give up their share of the house that was bequeathed to them upon Nana's passing. Meanwhile, she's barely hanging on to her bit part at the local theater. In the midst of this, a confounding new neighbor moves in next door, with a giant mastiff named Russell, who deems Bree his "favorite," much to Bree's chagrin. This kicks off a series of increasingly complicated pranks between Bree and Chip, the neighbor, as they both try to figure out where their personal lives are headed, and the part their neighbor relationship might play in it.

I'm not sure how to write about this book. For probably 80% of it, I didn't even like the characters. I had trouble foreseeing an ending that would wipe out the problems I had early on in the story. Chip lied and misrepresented himself and his abilities. He never even tried to understand why Bree was upset, and his lackadaisical approach to her fear, or at least dislike, of his giant dog was lacking in even basic human compassion. Their pranks could have been funny, and if the book played off of harmless pranks back and forth, that could have been a fun story. But their pranks were not entirely harmless, and they drew in other people, wasting their time and resources. If the story had delved deeper into why Bree couldn't find a path in life, or her paralyzing fear over her niece's condition, it could have taken a serious path and been a a better read. But most of that was glossed over, until it came into play to tie up the story in the end. Chip's family and his reasons for setting out on his own were super interesting, and the tragedy that brought him home clearly had a huge impact on him, but the book made it seem only tangential to the neighborhood war.

In the end, the theme seemed to have been based around the C.S. Lewis quote above, but for me, it took too long to get there, and especially in Chip's case, there was very little redemption to a character who was extremely self-focused for so much of the book. I enjoyed The Dating Charade by this author, and some of the characters do carry over, but this one was a miss for me. 3 stars.

I received a complimentary digital copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

This book had such a great description. I was picturing these crazy antics and lots of laugh out loud moments, replaced by hate love and heat.....only that is so far from the story. It was bland. There was no climax, no wow moment. There was absolutely no build up between the characters. There was no war, it was like 2 or 3 back and forth moments that were not even that grand, until the last one. Then they were with other people and at the last second in love....there was NO chemistry or build up. You were even in the head of both characters and there were rarely moments of reflection on looks or personality. I had high hopes and was left with a mildly entertaining story.

Quickly becoming a favorite go-to author, this second offering from Melissa Ferguson hits all the right notes. With the perfect amount of quirk, humor, tension, witty character conversation, and some great multi-layered life revelations....everything comes together to create a fun and also meaningful story.

Bree Leake is a loving daughter/family member, budding actress (among many other things), and committed friend. Her beloved Nana's passing has changed her in different ways - and knowing she has inherited a portion of Nana's home with a chance to buy out the other family members is becoming a driving force in her life.

Chip McBride has recently struck out on his own from the family construction business, and purchased the house next door to Bree with plans to flip it. When they discover some of their mutual life goals may be at odds, the competition begins - and yes, hilarity ensues.

Pranks, friendship, romantic tension, laugh out loud events, and deep spiritual revelations all occur throughout Bree and Chip's journey. The author's previous book, "The Dating Charade" was awesome as well. (And, since Bree's best friend Cassie is the main character of that one, I definitely recommend reading it first.) I will gladly recommend both books.

I was provided a complimentary copy of this book from Thomas Nelson Publishers and NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

This was a fun and quick read. The characters are charming and the plot is engaging.! I highly recommend this delightful book. Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an early review copy

FTC Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book from NetGalley. These are my honest thoughts.

This story was the fun, lighthearted read I needed this week. It was a quick read that was laced with humor and quirky events. I liked that the leads were a stage actress and a construction worker. These roles paired off well and played against each other beautifully.

I was disappointed that there was zero faith thread. The characters solved all their problems themselves and didn’t turn toward God at all. I found this odd in a Christian fiction book. Still, it was an enjoyable story, even if it didn’t go as deep as I would have liked because this thread was absent.

Another disappointment was that one character used bad language in the only scene he appeared in. The thing about this was that the bad words were bleeped out (“bleepity bleep,” for example). While I appreciated that the author did not use the vulgar words themselves, the usage of bleeps made it feel like the character was being censored. Thankfully, this only happened in chapter two, so it was easy to move forward from this moment and enjoy the rest of the book.

While the war itself felt quite immature at times—and was admittedly an “adolescent war,” as the leading lady said once—it was creative and fun to read about and definitely entertained me for hours. The farm animals were an especially funny surprise. The banter between Bree and Chip was phenomenal. This was, perhaps, my favorite aspect of this story. The author definitely has a knack for creating witty characters who interact in believable ways. This was what kept me interested in this story and cruising through the chapters.

My favorite moments, though, were the ones that pinched my heart. The road trip late in the story. The creepy-children-wallpaper experiment. The duct tape dress straps. These and other heartfelt moments made me sigh and smile, and they were what truly endeared this book to my heart.

The neighbor’s dog was fun, and his interactions with Bree were some definite highlights for me.

I was a little surprised the bumper sticker never came up in the dialogue between Bree and Chip. I thought for sure it would be a bone of contention between them, but it faded as fast as it popped up.

Featuring Singin’ in the Rain was an added bonus. This is one of my favorite musicals, and I was glad to see that it was highlighted in this book. The written-out tap dance moves were fairly easy to imagine in my mind as I read.

Content: bleeped-out bad words, tobacco, alcohol, three or four sexual terms/comments

Recommended for 18+ because of the sexual terms/comments

I’m always up for a fun and humorous romance. The premise of this book is one that I really thought sounded super fun and hilarious! There are plenty of neighbor versus neighbor pranks to keep the story flowing and the author’s sarcastic humor is peppered throughout the dialogue. I wasn’t the biggest fan of these characters and had trouble rooting for them and their war ensued. Bree seemed slightly obnoxious and immature and Chip showed several instances where his integrity level was lacking. I just could not get on board with their petty feud. I also didn’t see any sparks of romance until late in the book, around the 80% mark. What can I say, I am greedy for romance in a rom-com novel. I did enjoy the moments where these characters let their guard down and become vulnerable. Sharing their past and present relatable circumstances gave them some depth and really warmed me up to the potential these characters had.
I think most readers will enjoy this back and forth humorous battle between neighbors. It didn’t tick all the boxes for me, but I think it was a cute story. I enjoy this style of Rom-Com, so I am definitely planning to read more from Melissa Ferguson in the future.

DNF at 22%
The MC didn't take anything seriously regarding her job, still but consistently complained and shirked responsibilities. The entire portion with the reckless driving also seemed irresponsible. She was so judgemental of her new neighbor, but honestly she doesn't seem like a catch either. Neither character was likeable at all.

I absolutely loved this book. The story was so original, the characters were loveable. I'm so glad I read this book, I flew through it in a day!

The book has humor throughout it. The things people do for revenge are just to funny. However that being said there are parts that feel to slow. The characters are lovable and make you want to see what they will do next and then you laugh as you see the antics and pranks they pull. I give this book a 3.5


"I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own."

This'll be a quick review since I may come back once I have a paperback.

All right, I loved The Cul-de-Sac War by Melissa Ferguson, it was witty, humourous, romantic, and completely needed right now.

The way this rom-com ended was absolutely adorable. You must order it right away!


I voluntarily received and reviewed a complimentary copy of this book which I received from the author. All views expressed are only my honest opinion.

Do you enjoy stories that have a lot of story development before getting to the heart of the plot?

There are times where I appreciate the slow development of a story, but with a story like this where it was intended to be an enemy to lovers trope, I wanted to get to the heart of the story a bit faster.

My one caveat is that this book started off slow. There were snippets of interaction between Bree and Chip that were delicious and left me craving more, but the author did a lot of character background and story development for the first half of the story. I understand why there was so much attention to each character as individuals. Bree and Chip had multidimensional depth I was not expecting from a romcom, but I just wish that it didn’t take so long to get to fun because from the beginning the chemistry was evident between them and I wanted to see how their story developed.

For what the book lacked at pace, I did enjoy the author's writing which was very imaginative and playful. She does a great job at setting the scene and developing characters. I enjoyed that Bree is still trying to find her way in life which makes this story fun. At 34 who says you need to have all these boxes checked. The marriage, with the perfect job, and the white picket fence and 2.5 kids. Life is messy and doesn’t go according to plan and Bree is the type of person who is living her life rather than planning for it. Bree and Russell scenes are just hysterical. The fact that she is known as his “favorite”. I have never seen someone have so much hate for a dog while the dog had so much love for a human.

There was a lot of depth and intricacy to the emotional side of this story I wasn't expecting. It was refreshing to see Chip and Bree have complexities that spawned more than just surface level emotions. But even though it had good writing and great characters, I was hoping for a bit more romance from this story. It was slow to progress and was lacking what the cute synopsis had promised.

Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas Nelson for this ARC. I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

This was a quick and sweet read. I didn't really think that the deal Bree made with her parents was entirely fair though, and I wondered what the roommate thought about it?

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

An odd rom-com, light on the rom and the com (at least to my sensibilities). The quality of writing isn't great but it's nice to see a Christian author capitalizing on the romantic comedy trend. Would recommend to conservative readers curious about romance.