Title: Spy Thy Neighbor
Author: Shandi Boyes
Year of publication: 2017. The author kindly gave me a copy to read and review
The heroine: Romance novelist Paige Turner
The hero: Tech genius Hunter Kane
The blurb: Can desperation make you delusional?
I flew across the country with one goal in my mind…. finish my book…. and maybe lick the wounds of my shredded heart. My editor was screaming for the first draft, my agent was nagging for teasers, and my publisher was reminding me that my strict deadline was only weeks away.
However, there was a dilemma: I had writer’s block. Not a little spanner thrown into the works writer’s block. Writers. Block.
Just as I was about to call in defeat, I spotted him. The bearded, tattooed man who lives in the glasshouse next door. He was in a venereal, lust filled twist with a pretty blonde who had buxom bosoms and legs that went for miles.
I should have looked away. I should have respected his privacy. I should NOT have taken detailed dot points on his impressive technique, well-carved physique, and droplets of sweat running down his tattooed torso.
However, every precise thrust of his hips had words flowing quicker than I could write them. He was my inspiration, my muse, my next alpha male book boyfriend.
Everything was perfect…. until the bearded man spotted me spying on him.
Standalone or series: Book seven in the Enigma series, but can be read as a standalone
The review: Oh, I enjoyed this book so much! Paige is a successful, best-selling romance author who writes under a pseudonym. After finding her boring fiance cheating on her with an old high school friend, Paige rents a cabin on the other side of the country and flees to try and deal with the loss of her seven year relationship.
When she moves into the cabin, she notices the guy next door is hot. With a capital H. She surmises he is rich, with his house full of high tech gadgets, and it’s mostly made of glass. But what catches her attention is the seemingly unending stream of women he brings home. Archer, as she has dubbed him, never has the same woman there twice. Unable to avoid the sight – and sound – of his numerous conquests, Paige instead uses it as a cure for her writers block.
She delves into writing her new book, her best friend Quinn, affectionately known as Pepper, declaring it her best yet. Pepper is a wannabe actress with a strange fascination for cabana boys, and she is hilarious. Paige can’t help spying on her next door neighbour; he’s got the body of a God and she can’t bring herself to look away.
Until one day, while she’s out on the back porch, he spots her watching. Frozen in place, she’s unable to move as he strides over to her, without a stitch of clothing on, and boldly asks her if she’d like to join him and his companion for the night.
From there on is a wonderfully slow burning romance as Paige and Archer, whose name she finds out is actually Hunter, starting spending time together. They eat dinner every night and share little things about each other slowly. Paige starts to make it clear she wants more, and for reasons she can’t work out Hunter won’t give in to their mutual attraction. Eventually, though, he can’t resist her any more and they fall into a hot and heavy relationship.
They’re both hiding secrets from each other, though, and when Paige’s comes out Hunter gets it all wrong. For the sake of her crushed heart, Paige leaves and goes back home to California. Once Hunter realises he was wrong, he tracks her down and asks for forgiveness, but is it too late?
There is also a very sweet sub-plot about a particular book that Paige has been trying to find for years that will melt your heart. I adored both Paige and Hunter and will happily read this again.
the romance shelf 