Sweet, funny and hot. This is a great single mom/grumpy hero romance Gabriella has come back to her hometown with her two sons and moved next door to Jay. Their meeting is definitely different and the two start as friends. There is chemistry with them from the beginning. O enjoyed this read and the story is well done.

Adriana Locke's latest release is "Between Now and Forever." The Queen of the Small Town Setting has done it again! The book had everything I love to read: funny, sexy, and swoon-worthy scenes between a single mom and a gorgeous grumpy neighbor!

Gabrielle falls hard, literally, and makes an unforgettable first impression on her sexy neighbor Jay! From the start, the funny and sweet meet-cute had me hooked!

Gabrielle is a single mother of two boys who has returned to her hometown. She is divorced, but her ex-husband, who was still her best friend, unexpectedly passes. Jay is a grumpy neighbor who keeps to himself, and despite his determination to stay away, he can't help but be attracted to Gabrielle and bonds with her youngest son, Carter.

I enjoyed the slow buildup with Jay and Gabrielle. Their journey was not without its challenges, but there was no denying their attraction! Gabrielle learned that it was okay to ask Jay for help and rely on him. I also loved seeing how his relationship with her two sons evolved, particularly with Dylan.

Adriana did a great job exploring challenges parents have to deal with especially when one parent has passed. The story was wonderfully written, and it is not only beautiful, but also passionate and heartfelt.

Rachel Vivette and Oliver Clarke gave a wonderful narration. They did an excellent job delivering the performances in the audiobook. Together, they brought these characters to life. Their performances drew me into the story and made me feel for the characters. Rachel and Oliver's heartfelt performances made this an excellent audiobook.

Thank you to Adriana Locke, Brilliance Publishing (Brilliance Audio), and Valentine PR for the advanced reader and listener copies. All opinions are my own.

What to Expect:
🔥 Slow Burn
🏘️ Small Town
😠/😎Grumpy~Sunshine
💞 Neighbors to Lovers
🧑‍🧒‍🧒 Single Mother
💘 Second Chance at Love
🧑‍🧑‍🧒‍🧒 Found Family

“The way his gaze penetrated me makes me shiver. Too bad that was all that got penetrated.”

Had a great time reading this book, give me all the single parent romance!! I’ve always enjoyed Adriana’s humor and this one definitely didn’t disappoint.
Being a single mom myself, I was able to relate to Gabrielle in so many levels.

Gabrielle is back in her hometown Alden, Ohio with her 2 sons. Their new house needs some fixing and she has a list a mile long. One of the things on her list is the porch railing that she accidentally broke while she fell with nothing but a flimsy towel on for her sexy new neighbor to see. What a meet cute!

Jay is content with his life until his new neighbors moved in. His grumpy self might act like he’s not interested with Gabby but he was smitten right from the start. He doesn’t understand his desire to help her out with her long list of to-do’s. And how he secretly enjoys interacting with her sons especially Carter who is really the sweetest.
Now he has to figure out if he’s ready to move on from his painful past and start something with the woman of his dreams.

A small town romance between a single mom and her grumpy neighbor packed with swoon, spice and all the feels!

This was a fabulous read by Adriana Locke - the characters are relatable with all of the emotions tied to love after loss. There’s always a great mix of reality and romance in her stories, and the chemistry in this one was excellent. Irresistible!
Can’t wait to read the next one!

Gabrielle is a single parent just trying to keep her kids happy. That's hard when one's a teenager though and they are in a new town. Her neighbor while attractive is also moody which doesn't help things. All of their interactions are with Gabrielle embarrassing herself of course which does tend to lighten the mood. As neighbors begin to help each other, softer sides are seen and moody neighbor isn't as moody anymore. A cute small town love read.

Between now and forever is ticking those boxes for me, Ms Locke has delivered a great story that kept me wanting more from these neighbours but also wanting to smack them up the side of the head!

Gabrielle and her boys have been through the ringer, they have felt the worst pain possible. Moving to a small town is their fresh start. Jay has his own demons, falling for a single mum is not on his bingo card and in his mind never will be.

When things heat up, they take a step back only to step up when the time is right.

I personally really enjoyed this story, Locke is a one click for me don't hesitate.

Overall 4/5

I loved it! So sweet and good. I could really identify with Dylan and his fears and loss. Jay and Gabrielle are such a great couple and I loved how they worked through their problems. It's a great book and I didn't want to put it down!

There is a lot packed into this book. It will make you laugh, it will make you wanna cry., it will make you want to call the MMC an idiot, but overall I really enjoyed it. I would love to possibly read more from the views of the other characters in the town. 3.5 ⭐️

I always look forward to a new book from Adriana Locke. She is always on my must read list. This one is no exception.

Jay and Gabrielle’s story is a little bit of single mom, grumpy/sunshine, and instant chemistry all rolled into one. I loved how she paints the small town true to life (if you know you know).

This one is a total standalone and a fun and easy read. I promise you are going to love it.

Adriana knows how to write small town romance. Honestly this book had me giggling and kicking my feet many times, Jay and Gabby are amazing, and they both work through their issues and fall in love. I don't read a lot of single mom tropes, but this one was so well written.

“ She says she wants to live again… But I didn’t even realize I wasn’t living until I met her.”

Thank you to @authoradrianalocke and @valentine_pr_ for an ARC. Single mom falls in love with the hot, broody man next door… with a meet-cute that had me laughing out loud… anyone?! Jay and Gabrielle, i loved them so much. They both had some trauma they needed to work through in order to give love another try — but I loved how they worked through those together. I have such a soft spot in my heart for her two boys. I think Adriana did an amazing job at working through grief, especially when children are involved. I loved Gabby’s DIY mindset, even when she constantly got critiqued from everyone. It made for some amazing banter. And can we talk about her side hustle of a job?! Who knew 😆 I always hate a third-act breakup but the way it all came back together was literally perfection. Add this to your TBR immediately if you love small towns, second chances, single moms and grumpy x sunshine. I’ll definitely be reading more from this author.

This story is romantic and very mature. It shows how vulnerable Jay and Gabrielle can be but also how desperately they need a companion. To belong and feel like a unity. I loved all those heart to heart moments especially when they included the kids. And Carter brings a light freshness to the book that creates the perfect balance.

We start with Cricket warning her cousin Gabrielle about something. It had me chuckling. Who are Della, Dylan, Peter, Carter, and Kyle? How does Gabrielle meet Jay? I could not help but to snort and giggle. What do we learn about Gabrielle's family as she is at church? Who are Hayes and Freya? How does Gabrielle meet them? I loved Jay's response when he discovered what Gabrielle does for a living. I couldn't stop laughing when Gabby tripped the breaker. Oh, I felt angry but sad at and for Dylan. I was glad to see his olive branch! I enjoyed the story.

Gah, my soppy heart runneth over. How does Adriana Locke take a grumpy carpenter neighbour who’s stupidly hot, pair him with the sweet single mum next door and create magic? Somehow she always manages to take these normal people doing normal people things and make me fall in love with them. I could sneak peeks into their lives forever and not get bored. Though thank goodness Dylan’s teenage baditude finally turned around.

Gabby was the usual Locke h. Sweet but sassy, feisty and fierce and I could feel her kind nature every time she was on page. Jay on the other hand was a hard nut to crack, but boy did I enjoy Gabby’s attempts to thaw him out. The meet-cute in the bush was hilarious. Also so well written, as that night I had a dream about a snake attacking me. Thanks for that Adriana😂😂

I received an arc from Netgalley and Adriana Locke and it was a pleasure to read.

I really enjoyed this book. I love that we see real problems and how they have to learn to overcome them. Jay and Gabby are both dealing with issues. You also have Gabby‘s two boys that are grieving their father. Dylan is angry and Carter is just so lovable. I love how Carter bonds with Jay even though he’s fighting it. Jay and Gabby are just what each other needed to heal. I absolutely love this book and recommend it. I’m kind of hoping that we get to see a second generation with these boys getting their happily ever after.
I received an advance readers copy, and I’m leaving a voluntary review.

📕 ARC REVIEW 📕

🌟🌟🌟🌟

A great read of a single mom with a next door neighbour in a small town. What more could you ask for. There was instant chemistry, great kids, new friends which are very funny and not too much drama.

I really enjoyed this one and definitely one I be picking up again.

Really enjoyed Jay and Gabrielle’s story!

I loved how even when Jay was acting rude and brushing Gabrielle off, his inner thoughts showed how screwed he was cause he had a deep attraction for her. We know from the beginning Gabrielle is attracted to Jay cause the only reason she was on the porch in just a towel was to get a good look at her shirtless neighbor which led to their comical “meet cute.”

I loved the mix of dynamics between Jay and the two boys, Dylan doesn’t care for Jay and is somewhat hurt by his presence while Carter thinks he hung the moon. The relationship build between not only Jay and Gabrielle but her boys as well was special to read.

Yes, their relationship went from impossible to seeing a future together very suddenly, but I don’t think it hindered the story in anyway. Hope to see more from Alden like a story for Scottie and/or Della.

Gabby and Jay are experiencing two different types of grief. When Gabby moves in next door to Jay, she falls fast… into a bush.

At times I was frustrated by Jay, but I really enjoyed how the relationship and all the friendships developed throughout the story. It was emotional at times, but a great read.


REVIEWS:
https://www.amazon.com/review/R3KGDU2VIV0UZS/ref=pe_123899240_1043597390_SRTC0204BT_cm_rv_eml_rv0_rv
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/7017590301
https://www.bookbub.com/reviews/3603633816?source=link_share

Gabrielle wants to help her and her two sons heal from the passing of their father and her ex and she believes the best way for that to happen is to return to her hometown where they will be surrounded by people who care about them. She has found the perfect home, even if it needs a little work, but the one thing she hadn’t taken into consideration was her new neighbor and the feelings she would have for him.

Jay isn’t looking for love or a relationship especially with a single mother due to events from the past. Despite that rather than distancing himself from them he finds himself wanting to spend time with them but the adjustment is complicated not only when it comes to Gabrielle and Jay but her children as well.

Both Jay and Gabrielle bear the emotional scars of the past which doesn’t always have them making the right choices. I enjoyed seeing them give in to their feeling and find the love, romance and family they have always wanted but didn’t think they could have.

I love reading books by this author and this one is no exception. From the first few lines, I was laughing and it just got better frome there.

This story has all if my favorite tropes: Single mom moves to a small town. Kids that are a great addition to the story. An awesome meet cute. A hot as heck neighbor. And a storyline filled with enough awes and ohs to make your heart squeeze and your soul root for the couple.

If you're looking for a great stand alone book, Between Now and Forever is an awesome choice and won't leave you disappointed.