The Neighbor Favor was adorable!

The MCs were so relatable, especially Lily. Shy, bookish girls have to stick together! I think the conflict between Nick and Lily was believable. If I were Nick I would be conflicted about revealing my true identity too. Nick and Lily were sweet from the very start. I loved their emails and their real life interactions were even better. The chemistry between Nick and Lily is palpable and the angst was really good. I just thought they were adorable together and couldn't wait for them to see it for themselves.

I think the story's premise was unique and definitely intrigued me. It sounded sort of like You Got Mail but instead of the MCs being enemies they were friends. I think it made the reveal all the more dramatic. Plus it elevated the angst factor (always a good thing in my book).

The cast of characters were a lot of fun and added humor.

Overall, if you're looking for an adorable romcom that's similar to You've Got Mail, look no further than The Neighbor Favor.

Lily Greene has always preferred books to people. While the rest of her family is loud and boisterous, Lily is shy and awkward. She dreams of becoming a children's book editor but has been working as an assistant in the non-fiction division for years with no hope for promotion. One day, Lily decides to throw caution to the wind and emails her favorite fantasy author for advice, never thinking she'd hear back, but he replies. Over a few months, the two develop a close connection-- until he ghosts Lily.

Nick Brown is used to relying only on himself. His family life was never ideal, and he left his small town as soon as possible and never looked back. Nick has spent the last few years as a travel journalist, but his best friend/agent convinces him to move to New York after the book Nick wrote in college, under a pen name, gets bought by a big publishing house. Nicks moves into an apartment building and is instantly drawn to his quiet, beautiful neighbor, Lily-- the same Lily he fell in love with over emails months ago. Nick is unwilling to complicate things further, so he keeps their history to himself and agrees to help Lily find a date for her sister's wedding. As the pair spend more time together, neither can deny the growing attraction, but can a relationship built on a lie survive?

I adored this! Forest's writing was so engaging and easy to read. I flew through this in almost one sitting because I didn't want to put it down. I connected to Lily right off the bat. As a fellow shy, introverted bookworm, I found her so relatable. I loved the relationship with her family and how, even though they drove her crazy at times, they were so supportive of her. But the highlight here was her relationship with Nick. I'm a sucker for an epistolary novel, so I loved reading the emails between them and seeing their connection form, but it shone once they were face-to-face. It was so satisfying watching Nick finally open up to someone. I fully expected to have issues with the miscommunication over the emails, but it was handed in a very mature way, so I didn't mind it as much. It did run into some pacing issues here and there, and some scenes felt unnecessary, but overall, I thought this was great, and I'm looking forward to the next book.

The Neighbor Favor by Kristina Forest is a delightfully phenomenal slowburn romance that also encompasses beautiful individuals journeys of growth along the way.

The beginning is told through emails & as a huge fan of epistolarian novels, I was immediately hooked! I loved reading their emails & watching their budding pen pal relationship grow to be the exact thing they both needed. The chemistry between these two was electric & undeniable. I devoured this book in two days!

Any book with actually-make-me-laugh-out-loud humor AND a Petey Pablo reference is already a gem in my book.

I adored Lily & her sisters & the bond between them. They are overbearing & fantastically imperfect, but their love is undeniable. The dichotomy between the two leads & their opposing family situations & how that affects their relationship with love was fascinating. I enjoyed their navigation through their respective obstacles & witnessing their journeys to healthier relationships with themselves & their families.

I really hope the other sisters get their own stories because I would love to read them & experience more from this group!

If you’re looking for a romance & just overall lovely book, I highly recommend The Neighbor Favor by Kristina Forest!

Massive thanks to Berkley for the free arc, which I voluntarily read & reviewed.

I will post to Goodreads, Instagram & Amazon closer to the release date.

Thank you for the ARC of this lovely book! It was a sweet story about Lily and Nick that I am happy I read.

My favorite part was the email exchanges for the first third of the book. This was the only form of communication which I loved! It was so fun to see how these two characters got to know each other and fall in love without ever meeting! Great concept.

The rest of the book was a bit slow, but I did really enjoy how everything wrapped up. I was rooting for both Lily and Nick the whole time.

3.5 stars!

I'm pretty sure this romance novel was written specifically for me!
-Black protagonists
-New York setting done well
-Protagonists are book people
-Touches of You've Got Mail
-Fun and loving sister dynamics

And I can go on. But beyond how much it resonated, I was delighted by the quality of this book. I thought Kristina's writing was lovely. Lily and Nick had distinct voices and felt grounded--like people you would know and want to be friends with. Their chemistry was through the roof and I understand what drew them to one another. I was rooting for them through their conflict all the way.

This book is a must-read!

It actually breaks my heart to give this a less than stellar review, especially as this is one of the arcs given to me by Berkley (Berkley, which is sooooo incredibly difficult to get approvals for!).

Anyway. This had a really good premise. Two bookish people falling in love. You've Got Mail (one of my all time faves!) inspired. Epistolary. So yes, so much promise! But the delivery rather left much to be desired.

The first part starts off with emails exchanged by the two leads. You see them fall in love with each other. But rather than interspersing the emails throughout the book, they're all dumped in the beginning. I like reading letters but man, even I was wondering when they would end. And they weren't bad letters, but just too much at one go.

And then you have the two main leads meet in person. They're introverted strangers. But they kiss right away. Nothing wrong with kissing, but even I was taken aback. The scenes were just pretty rough and clunky.

It's definitely not all bad though. It's a sweet book. I loved all the bookish references. Them talking about their fave reads, their date at the bookstore... that all made my bookworm heart happy. But a lot of it felt contrived, the complications that drew them apart the first time didn't feel credible, etc. Just too many holes and rough edges. Which makes me even more sad because the book has potential. It had promise to be a really sweet and memorable romance. And you'd see glimpses of it here and there but it needed refinement, editing. More plot fixing.

I highly recommend reading The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy if you're looking for a You've Got Mail, part epistolary romance you want to sink your teeth into. Now, THAT was scrumptious. This one will leave you wanting.

Thank you to Berkley and Netgalley for giving me this e-arc to read.

I loved this book! The way that Lily and Nick connected, came apart and came back together is everything I want in a romance. Characters are well written, complex and easily identifiable.

The Neighbor Favor will appeal to plenty of people, and there is nothing inherently wrong with it. It just fell a bit flat and generic for me in an incredibly saturated genre. It's like the contemporary romance equivalent to table wine: palatable, everyone enjoys it, but nobody is really giving it a second thought beyond it being readily available.

I would easily recommend it for anyone who asks for a diverse contemporary romance with a secret identity trope and a lot of science fiction and fantasy literary references, but it isn't something that I will go out of my way to purchase, rave about or recommend unless prompted. I just think there is better out there in the genre. It does have a dual POV, a wide supporting cast, and secret identities. I'd categorize it as open door because there is at least one love scene that doesn't fade to black.

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for the advanced copy.

The Neighbor Favor is the debut adult romance novel from Kristina Forest, and I have to say I was pleasantly surprised with this book! This novel follows Lily, a nonfiction editorial assistant living in NYC who dreams of becoming a children’s book editor and Nick, Lily’s neighbor and, unbeknownst to her, also the author of Lily’s favorite fantasy novel who inspired her to want to be a children’s editor in the first place. The book follows a winding tale of email correspondence, friendship, attraction, and a mission to find a wedding date.

I really enjoyed the characters in this book. Lily was very relatable in getting stuck in a job where you aren’t appreciated, but struggling to get your big break and get out of it. On top of that, she has successful sisters and parents who are trying to “help” her with both her work and romantic life. Nick was entertaining and had an interesting backstory for why he used a pen name for his book and why he was still hiding who he really was from Lily. I loved seeing their relationship blossom and unfold. While there was miscommunication trope, I think it was handled well based off Nick’s past.

I greatly appreciated that this book focused so much on the lack of diversity in fantasy and in publishing. Nick and Lily are both Black and both are trying to bring stories to life where the characters are POC. Nick’s book was a fantasy with Black elves in it (which is rarely seen) and Lily was inspired by his book to bring more characters of color to children’s fantasy books so ALL kids can read books with people who look like them. It is a pretty big problem in the fantasy/publishing world in real life as well, so I appreciated this book having a commentary on that as well. Throughout the book, Nick and Lily talk about real books that are written/published by non-white authors, so I made a list of these to add to my tbr if I didn’t have them on there already!

Overall, a really cute romcom book. It has a sprinkling of spice, but really is more about their relationship and growth as individuals. I recommend if you want a cute romcom!

Will post a review to Instagram the week prior to release.

Bookish and awkward Lily Greene is tired of her sisters trying to set her up with men, so when she meets her hot new neighbor Nick and starts spending time with him (and falling for him at the same time), she hopes her sisters will finally get off her back. But, it turns out her and Nick already have a past…and he’s not being entirely truthful with Lily.

FIVE GLORIOUS STARS for THE NEIGHBOR FAVOR by Kristina Forest! This contemporary romance was perfect for my bookish NYC meet cute-loving heart!

Both of our main characters work in the book industry (LOVE), spend time exploring the city of New York (double love), and unknowingly spend months sending emails to each other (SWOON). There was just so much about this book that had me smiling ear to ear, and I think a lot of other readers are going to fall head over heels for Nick and Lily!

Huge thanks to NetGalley, Berkley Publishing, and Berkley Romance for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Publication Date: February 28, 2023

I love an epistolary romance, so when this started off with pages of email exchanges between Lily and her favourite author N.R. Strickland, I was so thrilled.

And even better, adorably awkward Lily unknowingly falls for the same man twice. Her new handsome neighbour Nick is, you can guess, N.R. Strickland.

With Lily working as a nonfiction editor and Nick a fantasy author concealing his identity, there's plenty of bookish, nerdy charm in this one. Their shared passion for reading and escapism was really sweet and relatable. And I loved their individual career goals, both having to overcome personal obstacles to achieve them.

I did find their chemistry a little forced, though. The first kiss especially. But it's definitely a slow burn overall, Nick offering to help Lily find a wedding date (before her hilarious meddling sisters attempt again). It became repetitive with him continually pushing any potential romance away, but his reasonings were touching, without a doubt. It was a cute story!

Reviewed for Shelf Awareness:

Kristina Forest (Now That I've Found You) brings everything readers love about her young adult novels--warmth, depth of characterization, emotional intelligence--to her adult romance debut, The Neighbor Favor. When publishing assistant Lily sees that the author of her long out of print favorite fantasy novel has just launched a website, she impulsively emails him. What follows is a delightful six-month email exchange in which Forest sets up and subsequently knocks down a whirlwind epistolary romance.
Travel writer Nick isn't who he claimed to be five years ago* when he wrote the epic fantasy novel featuring Black elves and a devastating cliffhanger. Now, after years of obscurity, Nick's best friend and literary agent lands him a major publishing contract and he moves to New York City... right next to the woman he ghosted. Meanwhile, Lily needs a date to her sister's wedding and her handsome new neighbor is just the man to help her find one--if they can avoid falling for each other, that is.
The Neighbor Favor is a standout contemporary romance that proves a romance can be trope-driven and complex, flirty and emotionally rewarding. Forest adeptly sets up and resolves secrets, complicated family dynamics and romantic hangups. In one insightful scene, she captures the disorientation Nick feels at being welcomed into Lily's big, loving family after growing up with only his dysfunctional parents.
For fans of Farrah Rochon and Christina C. Jones, The Neighbor Favor is a joyous celebration of books, family and Black love.

This book was so cute! I loved all the characters and I really love the Violet and Iris will get their out books too!

I loved this slow burn strangers to friends to neighbors to lovers SOOOOOOOO much! The book starts off really strong with a series of email exchanges between publishing assistant, Lily and Nick, the guy who wrote her favorite fantasy book under a pen name. The banter between them is great but then he all of a sudden ghosts her only for them to end up neighbors in NYC.

Totally unaware that Nick is the guy she was emailing, Lily tries to be friends, even attempting to get Nick to be her fake date to her sister's wedding. While he doesn't agree at first, he does say he'll help her find someone else to go with.

Fair warning this one might not be for everyone because the characters don't actually get romantically involved until near the very end of the story but their friendship was just so good for me and they both had a lot of family baggage to work through to be in a place where they were ready for romance that it worked for me. Nick putting the breaks on things all the time was a tad annoying but he had his reasons so I forgave him.

Full of laughs, good sister relationships and a lot of emotional depth - not to mention a ton of fantasy book references sprinkled throughout. Good on audio too narrated by Keylor Leigh and Malik Rashad.

Much thanks to NetGalley, Berkley and @prhaudio for early digital copies in exchange for my honest review. This book was one of my most anticipated of 2023 and it did not disappoint!

This book was… okay. It started out strong, but really started to fizzle out toward the middle. It could have been about 100 pages shorter and would have been a stronger story. I just absolutely lost interest. 😖

Would still say it might be worth a try for other romance readers, but this book just wasn’t working for me.

I DEVOURED this book. It was, in my unprofessional opinion, SO STINKING CUTE. Now, I admit I am pretty lax in my romance rating. My main criteria are as follows: did I swoon? Did I crush on the love interest? Did I relate to the characters? And the answer to all of these is YES. Okay. I'm done with the all caps now.

First off, Lily was a sweetheart. She's introverted, loves fantasy, and is super awkward around men. Basically my spirit animal. And Nick, while I thought he was a hottie with a body, was also super relatable with his whole family situation. Some people might get frustrated with his choices, but I completely understand why he acted the way he did.

And then there was the conflict. When a relationship barrier popped up, both Nick and Lily were open and ready to work on it. Not once did I feel like throwing my kindle across the room. Did certain aspects of the story happen kinda conveniently? Yes, but it's a sweet romance, and I like to read about things working in the characters' favor.

Overall, I thought this was a super cute, quick romance! I adored the characters and am hoping that Kristina Forest will give us books for both Iris and Violet next!!

This book was SO good. It was fun, made me laugh, made me yell (at Nick) and then it made me giggle. At this point, I’m convinced that Kristina Forest can do NO wrong!!

I think I would have liked it more if the emails were spread out throughout the book. Lily and Nick didn't have any chemistry and all their interactions felt forced. It didn't make any sense that he ghosted her in the beginning and the plot and characters felt immature.

I loved every second of this feel-good love story!!!! Peak comfort and cuteness and so incredibly wholesome. Both Lily and Nick's characters are dimensional and so relatable, and avid readers and/or New Yorkers will appreciate the many nods to real-life culture. There was definitely potential for cheesiness with a story this cute, but instead, everything felt perfectly paced and realistic, and hopeful. Although a large part of the plot uses the miscommunication trope, it doesn't feel forced or frustrating or cringey in any way–it's honestly the first example of this trope that I've read that I didn't dislike. Plus we have friends-to-lovers, dual POVs, and lots of bookish inside jokes and references? I'm in love.

Kristina Forest really captures the sparkly magical feeling of falling in love for the first time and being enamored with every aspect of your person–wanting to support and comfort them while encouraging them to take on the things that scare them. I'm so happy that this is the start of a series with Lily and her sisters because I am not ready to leave this world and these characters. Justice for Violet!!!

We shared this book at our recent live Spring Book Preview event held for the Modern Mrs Darcy and What Should I Read Next communities, where 1200 readers joined us live, and twice that many watched the video replay in the follow week. The PDF from the event is linked below. Long story short: I've been a longtime fan of Kristina Forest's YA works, and am so excited she's writing for adults now! The publishing setting was the icing on the cake to a sweet story.