This one was a good read. I really enjoyed the deeper storyline and the characters were enjoyable to read and follow on their individual journeys.
I found the pacing a little off in places, especially towards the end. Things were resolved with Luke and Warren a little too quickly. I also found Warren a bit of a difficult character sometimes. He wasn’t always super lovable, which definitely worked for his story and background. However, some of his actions were questionable and made it tricky for me to really root for him and Chloe.
I did love the writing and I’m excited to read more from this author.

"Next of Kin" by Hannah Bonam-Young is a heartfelt contemporary romance that explores themes of family, love, and personal growth. The story follows the protagonist, Chloe, who suddenly finds herself as the guardian of her young niece after a family tragedy. As she navigates the challenges of unexpected parenthood, Chloe crosses paths with Warren, a kind-hearted and patient man who is also dealing with his own family struggles.

Bonam-Young's writing is warm and engaging, with a focus on character development and emotional depth. The novel beautifully captures the complexities of forming a new family and the healing power of love and connection. "Next of Kin" is a touching and uplifting read, perfect for those who enjoy stories about resilience, the importance of community, and the unexpected ways life can bring people together. It's a book that resonates with readers who appreciate a mix of romance and heartfelt, real-life challenges.

4.25 stars - Chloe & Warren omg these two!!! So touching and adorable, they fit perfectly. The strangers-to-lovers journey and the grumpy sunshine pairing was too good, I ate up every second of this! And that’s just the romance, the plot and the heart of this story with their siblings is amazing and so beautifully written! A very fresh plot and it was done so compellingly. I just adore Hannah’s writing! It has so much heart and emotion and depth, I can’t get enough! This was such an incredible debut.

The epilogue and that proposal OH MY GOD - it was so romantic, I was shocked in the most swoony way!! Listening to this on audio with my jaw dropped! The way he proposed and the words he choses! Perfection, actual romance book/movie dreamy perfection. I love these two and their HEA makes me so happy.

Tropes: strangers to lovers, forced proximity, grumpy sunshine, found family <3

The characters are described very realistically and vividly. I felt for them. I would have liked to know a little more about the city in which they live. Really worth reading :-)

I have and will always be a Hannah Bonam-Young fan till the day I die and Next of Kin is proof of that.

I struggled with this book. From the ‘enemies to lovers’ being insta love to my personal discomfort over the deafness representation (as a deaf person myself), I found myself racing through it to finish. It’s a lovely concept for a plot but it does have a feel of ‘your love solved all my problems’.

I absolutely loved this book and had it finished within 3 hours. I loved the characters and their dynamic and really loved the story, a different take on roommates/enemies to lovers.

I am literally kicking myself that it has taken me so long to read a Hannah Bonam-Young book? This story is the definition of heartwarming. I adored the plot, loved the characters (I was rooting for them from the very beginning), and the emotional depth.

Read if you enjoy:
✨ Grumpy V Sunshine
✨ Opposites Attract
✨ Forced Proximity
✨ Found family

Favourite Quotes:
𝑶𝒖𝒓 𝒕𝒚𝒑𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆 𝒊𝒔 𝒂 𝒎𝒊𝒓𝒓𝒐𝒓. 𝑹𝒆𝒇𝒍𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒃𝒆𝒔𝒕 𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒕𝒔.

𝒀𝒐𝒖'𝒓𝒆 𝒊𝒕 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒎𝒆, 𝒅𝒐𝒗𝒆. 𝒀𝒐𝒖'𝒓𝒆 𝒈𝒐𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒐 𝒃𝒆 𝒎𝒚 𝒍𝒂𝒔𝒕 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒚𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈.

𝑨 𝒅𝒐𝒗𝒆 𝒊𝒔 𝒂 𝒔𝒚𝒎𝒃𝒐𝒍 𝒐𝒇 𝒑𝒆𝒂𝒄𝒆. 𝑻𝒉𝒂𝒕'𝒔 𝒘𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒎𝒆...𝒑𝒆𝒂𝒄𝒆.

Thank you NetGalley and Bedford Square Publishers for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Next of Kin by Hannah Bonam-Young is a heartwarming tale of unexpected connections and redefined family. Chloe, a people-pleaser, and Warren, a surly mechanic's apprentice, are brought together by CPS' initiative.
Forced to live under the same roof, they navigate their differences while caring for their siblings. As their bond deepens, so does the chemistry between them, prompting a decision that could jeopardize everything.
With engaging banter, heartfelt moments, and steamy romance, Bonam-Young delivers a captivating debut novel that challenges conventional notions of kinship. Next of Kin is a delightful read that leaves a lasting impression, promising more great stories from this talented author.

I received an Advance Reader Copy from the publisher. This in no way impacted on my view.

All Chloe has ever wanted was to have a stable life. She passed through the foster system as a child, and though she eventually found a home, the past with her birth mother has changed her. So when it's revealed her birth mother has just given birth to a little girl, who will enter the system unless Chloe becomes a next-of-kin guardian, it's a no brainer. But she isn't a suitable guardian, financially, so needs to group together with another next-of-kin carer, so that she can keep her sister. Warren, a mechanic who needs a suitable apartment to care for his deaf 15 year old brother, hates the idea of living with the peppy Chloe, but will do whatever it takes to ensure that Luke is looked after. As the foursome start to navigate life together, it becomes more natural than forced, and both Chloe and Warren begin to forget they're not actually family.

Well, this book blew me away. The characters were so complex and nuanced, but still so likeable and realistic. Chloe was someone I really felt for. Though her life had improved when she was adopted, she never felt truly part of the family, so having a sibling, who was hers completely, was a dream, though it was also hard. She was struggling financially, but would do anything for little Willow, and that included moving two complete strangers, though vetted by CPS, into her apartment. Warren was the typical grumpy man, but he cared so much for Luke, that he would put up with anything. Both Warren and Chloe were polar opposites, but they worked together so well, and the change from strangers, to friends, to lovers, was great and so natural. Next of Kin was such a fantastic book, and I need to see more from this family in future books!

Next of Kin is a wonderfully written story showcasing the importance of family, blood relatives or not, with a gentle foray into what it's like to fall in love with someone you certainly shouldn't.

The relationship dynamics are so beautifully handled, the portrayal of all kinds of love, of how familial love is every bit as needed, fulfilling and life-affirming as romantic love can be.

Chloe and Wade's relationship was, of course, the standout relationship in the book, but I did love the quickly formed bond between Luke and Chloe, too.

Next of Kin is, quite simply put, a truly terrific novel with beautifully written characters and relationships, and centring around one of my all time favourite tropes: FOUND FAMILY.

If you're, like me, a sucker for the found family trope in a book, you definitely need to read Next of Kin, there is something so magical about this story and something ethereal about Hannah Bonam-Young's writing. She consistently proves to me exactly why she's on my 'always buy their books' list and is one of my favourite authors to date.

A very, very easy 5/5 stars from me for this gorgeous novel. I miss that little makeshift family so much already 🌟💛

The writing style was very easy to follow which helped me to fly through this book. Although the pacing was slightly off, I did still enjoy the cute, fluffy moments and the relationship between the two main characters.
Overall, an enjoyable palate cleanser.

Next of Kin was a cute and heartwarming read. The themes in this book were very unique and it’s something I’ve never really read about. I was intrigued to see how the story was going to pan out and I thought it was a good romance book. The main characters were loveable and their relationship was very cute! I loved their troupes.

Chloe learns her birth mother has recently had a baby but she doesn’t hesitate to become a next of kin guardian. Chloe fails to meet the financial evaluation part of the Child Protection Services’ process and if she wants to keep the baby, she needs to take part in the new initiative to support families. It involves two families merging to meet requirements, this is where we meet Warren. Warren has a 15 year old brother who is also deaf. Chloe is initially hesitant of this initiative but she starts seeing a soft side to Warren.

I liked the characters Chloe and Warren, I thought their relationship was sweet, although at times I did find it rushed. Chloe made me laugh at times and she was a determined character, she would do anything for her new sister to protect her from how she was brought up. Warren was similar to Chloe at times, in regards to his brother. He had his best interests at heart and I could tell how much family meant to him. I loved the diversity of the characters and their backgrounds. I feel like I learnt a lot while reading this book and I recommend this book to all romance lovers. I am very interested to learn more about some of the side characters in the next book.

Hannah’s writing is so beautiful, and the way she brought the two MCs together was a really great use of forced proximity.

Chloe is such a great FMC, she’s caring, selfless and very relatable, the way she gives up her life to try and help her little sister have a loving and stable home is incredible, but not without its challenges! Enter Warren, who is in a similar position to Chloe, and the way they come together and work to save their siblings is great, and the fact Chloe refers to him as “prison break”, I mean come on we all had a crush on Wentworth Miller back in the day!

Once again Hannah knocked it out of the park with her diversity, and the representation she gave to the deaf community was incredible.

If you want a wholesome story about doing anything to help family, then this is your book!

A highly emotional and well crafted story about found family and a cute little dislike to friends to lovers story. I really enjoyed it - more than I thought I would!

Well I never. An author that has given me all the feels. This author knows how to write representation. She knows how to write real, complex characters who you watch grow across the story. I adored this way more than I thought I would initially. I’m so glad places like netgalley exist where we can showcase pure talent. This is a must read - I’m not going to spoilt it- but it’s special!

After reading Out on a limb I just had to request this and was so delighted to be selected.

I found the circumstances of the love interests complex family history and experience in care very unique and engaging.

I am also a sucker for a MMC who can take care of people and especially babies so that drew me straight in.

A different but very good romance.

4.5 stars.

Chloe lives alone in her apartment, and is alone in the truest sense of the word. She doesn’t speak to her birth mother, barely gets on with her adoptive parents and her friends have moved away. One day she gets a call that her birth mother has given birth again, and she wants Chloe to become her guardian. In order to be given custody Chloe needs someone to boost her income; she is placed with Warren, a fellow ex-foster home person, and his brother Luke. Together they must find a way to make their new blended family look coherent enough to pass the upcoming custody reviews.

This is a truly unique story, and I say that as someone who has read MANY romances in my time. The examination of child protection services and the effect it has on so many people was really detailed and heart breaking. Watching Chloe and warren learn to live with each other’s flaws and baggage was a heart warming experience.

The representation in this novel is excellent. Warren’s brother Luke is deaf, and I absolutely loved the ASL rep and how consistent it was throughout the book. I’d love to read Luke’s story in the future, I hope it’ll be part of the story somewhere.

This book is very steamy. The sex scenes are really well done and warren’s worshipping of curvy Chloe was sexy as hell. I also loved that Chloe’s size wasn’t what defined her (a trope I am kind of sick of), but was introduced enough in the story that we got a sense of her and her insecurities.

My only criticism was it went from ‘enemies’ to insta love very quickly, almost as if a couple of chapters of seeing these two learn to accept each other were missing. There was a lot of reference to the rolling inward of lips, to a point where it happened so many times in a chapter it brought me out of the story.

Overall I absolutely loved this and would recommend. Also that new cover is beautiful, Leni has done it again.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an arc of this book in exchange for my honest review.

“A dove is a symbol of peace. That’s what you are to me… peace”

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5

This one was absolutely ADORABLE. I had been wanting to read this for the longest time and it did not disappoint at all. Funny, sweet, wholesome but with depth. The perfect comfort book that just feels like a warm hug. Unbelievable for a debut novel and I am so excited to read more from Helena Bonham-Young!

I also really appreciated the disability rep. It’s so nice to be able to connect to characters even in a small way, so I loved that.

“Out On A Limb” is the next book of HBY’s that I need to read, I have heard such great things!

Read if you enjoy:
🩵 Forced proximity
🩵 Dislike to friends to lovers
🩵 Single parents
🩵 Wholesome reads
🩵 Disability rep
🩵 Quick reads

(Thank you to Bedford Square Publishers and Netgalley for the EARC)

Next of Kin was an emotionally charged romance which was short and quick to read. This was my first experience reading a book by Hannah Bonam-Young but her other novel ‘On a Limb’ has been on my tbr for a while.
This was a great read. Chloe is our main character. She has just been informed that her mother, who is an addict, has just given birth to a premature baby girl who is in intensive care. Chloe is determined to make sure this baby girl doesn’t grow up the same way she did: with a mother that’s an addict and in the foster system. Although Chloe is a model guardian for baby Willow, her financial situation places doubts on her as her income isn’t guaranteed meaning her accommodation could be at risk. As a way of tackling this issue, CPS offers a new scheme where prospective guardians can become roommates until their living and financial situations are more secure.
Meet Warren. A grumpy mechanic trying to gain guardianship of his teenaged brother Luke who is deaf. He was having a rough time in his foster home where the guardians didn’t know sign language and generally, he was struggling. The two don’t get along immediately but they recognise the importance of their cohabitation working out.
This book is best appreciated without much information so you can experience the emotional journey all the characters go through. It was a really short read but it never felt rushed. I’m really excited to read the other books in this world as well as her other books which are being published traditionally. Thanks so much for the eARC!