First and foremost thank you Alexa Martin and GoodGirl PR for allowing me an ARC of this book in exchange of my honest review.

This was such an original story, I would have never thought of HOA Love story with enemies to lover. I found that it had good banter between the characters and my favorite parts was the friendships Collins make/has throughout the book. I enjoyed the smart remarks and silly games she plays through the story.

I did however feel like it dragged on in some parts, and I think that maybe just my own opinion so please read it for yourself to judge that!!

Overall I feel this book was a solid 3.75/5 stars, I do feel it be a great quick read for most people and a great summer book as well!

Release date is November 14th!

Thanks to Berkley for the NetGalley ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.
Last weekend my best friend was in town. He’s in the process of buying a house and was complaining about the lawlessness of homeowners associations (HOAs) and made me watch a hilarious John Oliver bit about how awful they can be: for example, a fine for a tree being “not tree shaped enough” to an HOA buying houses for pennies on the dollar and then evicting the former owners. When I started reading this book, I texted him that he would love this one - if I could only get him to read romance! Although this book’s drama is nowhere near as bad as that clip!!
Anyway, I’m enjoying the Puerto Rico sun this weekend along with some solid reading on the beach in the AM 🏖️ and by the hotel pool in the afternoon after a short break for snacks and wine - kind of perfect. And this book was an awesome complement - it’s an enemies-to-lovers romance with two 30-year-olds who were best friends in school before becoming enemies. Collins is back in suburban Ohio after her relationship and career have gone up in flames due to a viral video, where she runs into her nemesis who is on the board of the Big Brother-esque HOA. When the president up and moves to FL, Collins challenges her nemesis, named the interim president, in an election for HOA president. There's a bit of referenced Housewives drama if you've read Alexa’s books before 😍
Alexa Martin knows how to write a contemporary romance - if you haven’t read her Playbook series (inspirations have included Travis Kelce!), you should do that right away. And then get this one when it comes out on Tuesday 🎉And if you haven’t seen the John Oliver skit I referenced, please google it!

"As soon as I saw you outside of Cool Beans, I knew I wasn’t over you.”

I really enjoyed this book! I love the enemies to lovers trope mixed in with the neighbors to lovers. And add a prank war into the mix? The best!!! Collins goes back home to her parents after her life crumbles apart in LA. There she finds out that Nate, her ex childhood friend, is her neighbor and part of the community’s HOA. I loved how collins decides to run for president of the HOA against Nate. It was fun reading all the bickering between Nate and Collins. I especially loved all the scenes Collin’s would prank Nate. I really liked how slowly they evolve from bantering, and not getting along to wanting to be together. The two of them have amazing chemistry! I was not expecting this book to be an open door romance, and we get some steamy scenes in this book! So hot!
I hope we get more books from Alexa Martin soon!

Read if you like:
Heroine’s POV
Ex-childhood best friends
Neighbors to lovers
Enemies to lovers
Open door romance
Running for HOA
Prank Wars

"Next-Door Nemesis" by Alexa Martin is a delightful and unique contemporary romance that I thoroughly enjoyed, rating it a solid 4 stars. I'd like to extend my gratitude to Berkley for providing me with an ARC of this book.

The story centers around Collins Carter, a screenwriter dealing with the aftermath of a betrayal that leads to her getting blacklisted from her screenwriting community. She returns to suburban Ohio and finds herself in a clash with her former best friend turned nemesis, Nate, over an HOA-restricted tree in her parents' backyard. What follows is an entertaining and humorous war for the presidency of their HOA, all while Collins grapples with unresolved feelings about the end of their friendship.

The premise of this book is truly unique and engaging. The idea of an enemies-to-lovers romance set against the backdrop of a homeowners association is creative and refreshing. Alexa Martin brings humor and wit to the story, and I found myself laughing out loud at times.

The sexual tension between Collins and Nate is palpable from the beginning, and it's the driving force behind the delicious rivals-to-lovers storyline. Their banter and chemistry make for an enjoyable and entertaining read.

"Next-Door Nemesis" is a fun and unique contemporary romance that stands out with its original setting and engaging characters. Despite the rapid transition, the story still manages to deliver a heartwarming and enjoyable romance that I believe many readers will appreciate. It's a perfect choice for those looking for a lighthearted enemies-to-lovers story with a twist.

Thank you Berkley for my review copy of Next-Door Nemesis.

I love a good enemies to lovers romance, but this was unfortunately a miss for me. But it might not be for you!

Next-Door Nemesis is for people who love kind of a Wednesday Adams lead - Collins describes herself this way. She’s sassy and sarcastic and a lot of people love that. And she finds her Enid to her Wednesday.

The thing is, I’m an Enid. So I don’t find Collins as relatable as many readers do. However, I absolutely could have loved her. My BIG problem was with the love interest. He was SO MEAN. Like, calling her out for her hardest, most embarrassing challenges. I don’t do mean. I especially don’t do mean men.

I did talk to a friend who loved it and she says that his meanness is explained and the book is spicy and fun.

I’m calling this a soft DNF. I might come back to it, but for now I need to take a break and find something else. I will absolutely come back and update this review if I make more progress!

I am literally the WORST secret keeper.

I get way too excited and just can’t help myself, I need to share my news. Even if it’s not my news (per se) I still can’t hold it in or I’ll just about burst.

So, when I see the little reminders that tell me I’m not allowed to post until 30 days before, I nearly lose control of my bladder.

Well, I tried my best and I made it! This little blabber mouth, did not ruin the surprise for all of you.

I absolutely fell head over heels in love with Collins and Nate! The complexity and diversity that lays within these characters characters will have you rooting for them the entire way. I wouldn’t call them flawed but more or less multi layered. Getting to know these two opened my eyes to a whole new world and I enjoyed every bit of it.

Check out this teaser :

Two rival candidates for a homeowner’s association presidency are about to find out how dirty suburbanites fight in this steamy new romantic comedy from Alexa Martin.

After years of hustling, Collins Carter has finally made it...back to her parents’ house. Between tending to the compost with her newly retired dad and running into her high school nemesis at the only decent coffee shop in town, Collins realizes this subdivision from hell she swore she’d never return to is her rock bottom.

Then the homeowner’s association complaint arrived.

Nathaniel Adams always dreamed of a nice, quiet life in his suburban hometown. Or at least that’s what he thought until Collins moved back and sent his quaint, organized life into a tailspin. He thought Collins was infuriating ten years ago, but when she announces she’s running against him for HOA president, all bets are off.

From secret board meetings to vicious smear campaigns whispered over backyard fences, Collins and Nate sink to levels their sleepy suburb has never seen before. But as hate turns into lust, these two enemies are forced to reckon with the feelings they’ve ignored for years. If only there were bylaws for real life.

This book was so much fun! Loved the banter and wit! This was my first time reading anything by Alexa Martin, but I’ll be checking out her backlist immediately. Overall a very fun and sweet romcom.

I will have spoilers but on Goodreads the spoilers won’t go up until after release day.

2.5/5 Stars

Thank you so much to Good Girls PR, Alexa Martin, and Berkley for providing me with this arc.

I requested this book as it sounded fun and chaotic and I truly thought I would love it but I have quite a few issues with this book and the biggest is this is more woman’s fiction than romance unlike what I expected from it saying Rom com in the blurb. This was my very first berkley arc so I wanted to love it but the more I think about this book the more issues I find. I love romance and when I pick up something that has been called a romantic comedy I expect to see more romance than what we got in this book.

Collins Carter has returned home after she left right after high school to LA to go to school and work on her career as a writer in the entertainment industry. She is met with the renewed hatred of her ex best friend and now nemesis, Nate Adams especially when he hand delivers an HOA violation trying to force her out of town. Collins crafts up a plan with her besties both new and old to get revenge on Nate by competing for HOA president but when she and Nate start to confront their feelings things don’t go as planned.

SPOILERS BELOW

I need to talk about my issues with this book as I don’t think they made it a bad book but it did ruin my experience. There is not a lot of romance and when we start to get the romance there are like 2 ish scenes of them interacting romantically before it time jumps 2 or 3 weeks to them being in a fully established relationship but we didn’t get to see any of that growth. The third act break up was emotional but also it felt like after that they got back together a bit too easily especially after what Nate has gone through it felt too easy. I just didn’t feel like we saw any growth in the relationship or even individually to get to the point of a relationship, it went from them “hating” each other to them having a sorta one night stand to them talking about the past to a 2 week time jump. It felt very off pacing wise and too much was focused on what felt like filler instead of Collins actually growing and then entering the relationship.

If I look past the issues I have with this book I did like parts of it. I liked the rival dynamic between the two for the first part of the book and I also liked Collins’s parents. I did like the friendships and family aspects of this book and I wish we got more of them. I also liked what romance we did get in this book but it wasn't enough for me personally to enjoy it. But I also felt like these two 29 year olds were behaving like teenagers which isn’t what I want in adult romance. I’m a petty person and even this felt like a bit much and like everything was forgiven too easily.

I think there is an audience for this book but that audience wasn’t me sadly.

Berkley if you read this review I still adore y’all and please approve me for more books as I love everything else I’ve read from you.

Next-Door Nemesis by Alexa Martin is a rom-com with lots of angst and anger when your most embarrassing moment can go viral on social media—front and center.

Collins and Nate have a history since attending middle school together, but they went their separate ways and not in a good way. Things get ugly fast when they reconnect in their small town in Ohio. But there is still an attraction, even if neither wants to admit it.

Collins has left LA under a dark cloud, and the details play out through the pages…and they aren’t pretty. She and Nate are butting heads about life in their small community with an HOA at its core. Nate wants to be the next president, but Collins has too much at stake and too much pride to let him get his way.

Several storylines wind their way through the main story, and there are intriguing and unusual friendships. The tale has twists and turns with many details that prove their importance. There is a good flow, a quick pace with family and friends, and HOA issues.

When Collins and Nate let their guard down, things heat up fast, showing the importance of their friendship over the years. Their romance shows love is the opposite of hate, and it softens both of them. There is closure in the epilogue when friendship and love wins out. There’s a happily ever after in the offing, but I would have liked the epilogue to go on a little longer.

This is the first book I’ve read by Ms. Martin, but it won’t be my last. I liked how she unrolled the storyline and built up the characters and how the plot kept me turning the pages to see what would happen next!

Next-Door Nemesis is a snappy enemies-to-lovers rom-com based in a small midwestern town that will leave you satisfied, yet ready for Ms. Martin’s next book!

This book had me cackling early on. The friends to enemies to lovers trope is one of my favorites and Alexa Martin delivered. The rivalry between Collins and Nate cracked me and yet while I know this isn’t real, I could ABSOLUTELY see happening. Martin introduces us to a very lovable cast of characters that we all wish were our neighbors. Hell, at this point, Martin is making OHIO look good!
This book gives you all. You will laugh, cry, and rage.
I absolutely LOVED it.

Tbh I grew up out in the country so I have zero experience with an HOA or what kind of rules they have, but I’m glad I’ve never had to worry about them 😂😅

I’m a sucker for extreme angst, and this had that, but the interactions between Collins and Nate came off as incredibly petty and childish for a lot of the book.

I think I would’ve enjoyed this a lot more if it was dual POV. It was a little hard to connect/become invested in the romance with all the petty and spiteful behavior when we only got insight into one side of it.

Highlights:
- Romance: MF
- Childhood friends-to-enemies-to-lovers
- Close proximity
- RomCom
- Angsty banter

⭐️⭐️⭐️.25/5

Thank you Alexa Martin, GoodGirlsPR, & Net Galley/Berkeley for this advance copy. This is my honest opinion.

DNF at 30%. I wanted to love this and was drawn in by the premise. I look at HOA meetings like Rory and Lorelai attending a town hall - I bring my snacks and settle in. I see the ways this could lead to both tension and comedy. Unfortunately, I wasn’t feeling much of either in this book and instead felt like Collins was just being petty and mean. It lost me then - I don’t even want to see them get together. Thank you to Berkley and Netgalley for the free ebook and PRHAudio for the free audiobook.

This was such a cute, fun romcom and I would definitely watch this movie. I had such a fun time reading this book! It was a great way to spend the day.

This is an adorable rom com that will really hit if you live in a HOA and have had friends try to sell MLM products to you. This is a rivals to lovers with a delicious twist of second chance romance. It is pretty heavy on the humor and low on the angst with a satisfying tie up. Extra win for ex Ellen’s secondary characters in both the parents and the girlfriends.

DNF 40%. I thought I would connect with the story, but it was very difficult for me, I didn't get hooked, I wasn't inspired by the protagonist and there were things about religion that mmm, no, I ignored them. I wanted to give it one more chance because I have to do a review on Netgalley but I can't.
Thanks to Good Girls PR for sending me the ARC, my opinion is honest and voluntary.

— 1 ⭑ || dnf @30%
For the readers: may you always find a home in the pages of this book

yeah i can already tell that i won't like this.
firstly, i’m not a fan of the writing style and secondly, i don't like any of the characters. why is everyone acting so immature?

💌- thank you goodgirlspr & alexa martin for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

Thank-you to NetGalley, Berkley, and Alexa Martin for the eARC!

2/5 spice

After going viral in a humiliating way, Collins Carter moves back in with her parents’ into her childhood home. It’s not long before she runs into her ex-friend/nemesis, Nathaniel Adams.

They get into a series of petty one-upmanship leading to Collins running against Nate for HOA president. What ensues are secret board meetings, smear campaigns and one surprising moment of warmth were they open up to each other about recent heartbreaks.

I found Collins incredibly juvenile for a near 30 year old, and Nate downright unpleasant and rude. The writing style felt like I was reading a teenager’s diary. Their pettiness read like bickering teenagers. It was also difficult for me to root for them as a couple, especially when they go from loathing each other to almost abruptly without much lead up giving into their physical attraction and liking each other.

While the majority of the book was focused on the HOA battle, it’s abandoned with no payout to all that buildup of fight with a forfeit. Same with the explanation for why they suddenly went from friends to enemies. I understand that when you are young you make stupid choices, but Nate’s explanation felt inadequate and unrealistic.

Overall a solid enemies to lovers read. The HOA angle was certainly a unique one I haven’t come across. And there were some very cute moments sprinkled throughout. I just wanted more, more character development, and more romance development.

This was a fantastic friends to enemies to lovers novel. You can definitely feel the tension as you read. I loved the secondary characters as well.

Thank you NetGalley and Berkley Publishing for this arc in exchange for an honest review!

This was an enjoyable read thanks to Collins, but Nate didn't do it for me. He started off as a major dick right out of the gate, which stings even more when we learn more about what happened to their previous friendship and knowing he's (mostly) to blame, so wtf?

And then he explains what happened, which doesn't really excuse his treatment of her imo, and then she just accepts that and we move on. I don't even remember seeing him actually apologize, though SHE apologized to him several times during that speech. Booooooo.

And then we he decided he wasn't going to be an asshole anymore, he was just vanilla for me, nothing special or exciting as for MMCs go.

But Collins was fantastic and I loved her humor. I just wished she made Nate grovel more than he did to make up for years of not being friends because he's an idiot.

Though I did like that there wasn't really a third act breakup. I guess there technically was? But it was based on a calm, understanding discussion of what was going to happen in the future. Whereas in another book, they probably would have gotten into a big fight based on what happens toward the end.

So there were definitely aspects I liked about this book, but Nate brought it down for me :(

Nate is so awful early on in this novel of second chances that I almost put this down but I kept reading because I liked Collins, her new pal Ashley, her BFF Ruby and most of all her parents. And that was a good decision because Martin turns a clear eye on moving home after career crisis and friendship, with an HOA as a backdrop. Why did Nate ghost Collins all those years ago and how did he become such a mean man? You won't know for a while but you know, veteran rom com reader, that it's gonna get steamy. Pretty steamy. This one made me smile more than once- not so much with the hijinks around Collins' campaign but because of Ruby, who's a hoot and small things like the Karens (three women named Karen). Thanks to netgalley for the ARC. A good read.