I initially expected this book to be a typical romance, but I was pleasantly surprised. For most of the story, it felt like two separate narratives were unfolding simultaneously, as the main characters didn't start interacting until nearly two-thirds of the way through. The focus was much more on self-improvement and personal growth than on romance. Eve and Adam, despite being neighbors, lived mostly independent lives, with only a few near encounters along the way.

I think the author did an excellent job of crafting the characters. I felt exactly what I was supposed to feel about them, and I believe they complement each other well. I didn’t particularly love Eve for much of the book—I just wanted her to slow down and take a moment to reflect, which I think was the author's intention. This made me appreciate how well-written the book was. Adam, on the other hand, is a genuinely nice guy who cares about others' feelings and provides a good balance to Eve's more problem-solving nature.

Thank you, NetGalley, for the ARC of this book!

The parts I liked about this book were Adam, Hugh and their relationship. The way this is showed in the book is really wonderful and also how Adams friends are all actively supporting both of them and each other was really wonderful. On the back of that I really loved Okie and the additional representation of how autism can affect so many things in life.

I not sure if it was intentional but I absolutely did not like Eve, and did not find the redemption in the last 10% of the book believable. I struggled to understand how someone is so out of touch and so self involved that they miss what’s happening around them.

Mein Leseerlebnis

Der Klappentext hörte sich für meine Ohren sehr ansprechend an. Als großer Fan von Katzen in Liebesromanen (und auch außerhalb von ihnen!) habe ich mich auf das Buch sehr gefreut, denn eine Katze als Kupplerin ist schon etwas außergewöhnliches. Doch leider hat sich die Liebesgeschichte als für mich nicht passend herausgestellt.

Beim Lesen des romance Buches fiel es mir sehr schwer in der Geschichte anzukommen und alle Personen auseinanderzuhalten, vor allen in Bezug auf die Nebencharaktere traf dies zu.

Sowohl der Schreibstil als auch der Aufbau der Geschichte wirkten auf mich etwas sprunghaft und unausgereift.

Ein paar der Entwicklungen sprachen mich zudem nicht an und ich konnte zu den Hauptcharakteren keine gute Verbindung aufbauen. Die Sache mit der Katze nahm außerdem einen geringeren Stellenwert ein, als von mir erwartet und erhofft.

Nach gut zehn Kapiteln habe ich das Lesen aufgegeben, da ich zu diesem Zeitpunkt immer noch verwirrt war und wenig Interesse an der Liebesgeschichte hatte.

Keine Bewertung, da abgebrochen.

PS: Ich liebe das Buchcover und hoffe, dass mich der nächste Liebesroman mit einer Katze in einer wichtigen Rolle begeistern wird.

Für wen?

Wer Liebesromane mag, in denen im Leben der beiden Hauptpersonen sehr viel los ist und in denen es so einige Nebencharaktere gibt, für den könnte “Two doors down” einen Versuch wert sein.

YESSSSS. it was a very cute book, dorky loveable, naive friend, stubborn, overworked perfectionist FMC, and adorable sweet kind hearted MMC who can do no wrong! I enjoyed the story, it was a nice easy read. LOVED LOVED LOVED

This was a very different experience from the prior book. Here we have the neighbors-to-lovers trope, but subverted in a lot of clever ways. Really, this book is much more about self-exploration and discovery that just happens to coincide with a bit of romance between neighbors. Adam is definitely one of the nicest MMC characters I’ve read in awhile and it shows that in a lot of ways…for about 2/3rds of the book, I was quietly rooting for him to find someone better than Eve.

Eve. What to say. For about the first 2/3rds of the book, she is in so many ways an awful person. She does some truly terrible things in her efforts to “have it all” and she was a struggle to root for. Oh, Kirsty isn’t any better, but Eve’s behavior is awful, unethical and borderline psychotic. She is a truly “type A” personality and while that doesn’t bother me, the lengths she goes to to attempt to get a temporary promotion are mind boggling. She is a self-centered narcissist who does not see what she is doing is awful. Adam deserved better than that version of Eve and there IS a change to her as the book gets deeper.

Something to note…I was fascinated by the fact that for a solid majority of this novel, there are two separate (but nearby) stories being told. Typically, most rom-coms introduce the main characters to one another in the first 10% of the book or so – either rivals, friends, frenemies, neighbors with beef, coworkers, etc. But not here. Here the characters dance around each other’s orbits for the first half of the novel, only really “meeting” one another at exactly the midpoint of the novel. The longer it went on, the more fascinated I was by this. I’m not sure if the author was trying to explore the hidden depths of the lives of people who are only a few doors away from us – but that was definitely the vibe I was getting. Indeed…it might have been an interesting idea to have them never meet, though I suppose that would have defeated the idea of it being a “rom-com.”

But there is a fundamental truth the author is going for in this novel. We have the power over ourselves and our situations by the decisions we make (or don’t make). Sh*t will happen to you whether you choose to be ruthless or not. Doesn’t it make more sense to be good to one another instead? Grab onto the people we choose and hold on tight.

The comedy in this was better than Casket Case and I did find myself loving Hugh (how can you not!) and Old Sausage – as the cat-dad of a tortoise shell cat, I’m familiar with their peculiarities and laughed frequently. Did I love this book? I don’t know. But I definitely liked it. A lot. And the ending was just wonderful. I’m notoriously a hard grader but…here I am saying… 4 stars!

Thank you to NetGalley and Joffe Books for the ARC.

I had a hard time struggling with this book. The characters, the story... Everything! No, unfortunately I didn't enjoy this at all...

Are you ready for your next romcom? If your answer is yes, Two Doors Down should be the next book you add to your TBR list.

Spoilers included:
As a romance lover, this really did not hit the spot for me. Yes, it could be classed as a verrryy slow burn but it didn't really feel like it was building up. In all honesty, it felt closer to a female fiction book focusing on a character's journey to self improvement. The FMC did not feel relatable as she was so arrogant, work centric and self-absorbed that I really didn't like her. I understand that may be the point of the whole novel, to show her change, but I just really couldn't get behind her as a character because of it. That being said, the MMC being wholesome and charming did pull it back a little bit as he was sweet. Not to mention the fact that the element that tied them together was a stray cat who had chosen them (cat distribution system working overtime). Generally, an okay book but lots of things in here that irritated me or left me close to DNFing the book unfortunately.

Thank you to Joffe Books and netgalley for providing me with the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

DNF@ 20%

This book isn't what I thought it was going to be. It was boring, I didn't like the the main character or the writing.

While I adored Adam and the cat, this book really didn't work for me. Eve wasn't a very likeable character although she had some redemption in the end. The writing was almost juvenile and the general plot was just boring.

This is a charming neighbor romance with a strong focus on personal growth and self-improvement.

Eve is deeply career-oriented, but as her professional life unravels, she becomes increasingly annoyed by a neighbor’s cat that keeps appearing at her door. Adam, loyal to a fault, is dealing with the collapse of his love life when he, too, is visited by the same cat, which leads him to Eve’s door. When the two finally meet, they realize the cat belongs to neither of them and decide to work together to find its owner.

The story is delightful, and the "Adam and Eve" jokes added a fun touch. While I struggled to like Eve for most of the book, I appreciate how the author made me root for her redemption. Eve made some questionable choices, but by the end, she owned up to her mistakes and earned her redemption.

I adored Adam from start to finish and was cheering for him to get his happily ever after. He’s a sweet character who didn’t deserve the hardships he faced. My only gripe is that the book ended too quickly—I would have loved to see more of Adam and Eve together.

Thanks to NetGalley and Joffe Books for this title. This review is entirely my honest opinion.

I didn’t like how this book started out with the fmc on a date and spending the night with someone who isn’t the love interest in the story 🫠 it didn’t hold my attention long enough to find out who she was even going to be into.

Before requesting this, I had a quick nosey at some early reviews who mentioned this wasn’t very ‘romance focused’, I love a good cat yarn so I thought I’d give it a whirl. While the cat was sweet, the writing style didn’t work for me, the plot was unexciting, and the characters were so immature and ridiculous, I really struggled with this overall.

What worked for me:
👍 Tabitha the cat
👍 I didn’t mind Adam as a character (although his pals calling him “Ad” was weird as heck). Adam was the one character who felt multidimensional and the most human. I loved Adam and Hugh’s relationship and Adam’s friend group had a really great dynamic - I love seeing healthy male relationships in fiction and felt that these were a well-rounded, supportive, and good group of friends
👍 Glossary of British terms at the back of the book - can every British book have this pls?!

What I wasn’t so keen on:
👎 The writing style felt very simplistic and paint-by-numbers: there was no subtlety, no nuance, no depth, no beautiful prose… It felt very juvenile stylistically.
👎 The plot was boring: everything was telegraphed miles in advance, it followed a well-trod path, and it was full of many overused tropes (including refusal to communicate as ‘drama’). I was disappointed this book didn’t offer anything new or unique.
👎 Adam and Eve (don’t get me started on those names! Ugh!) took ages bringing Tabitha to the vet to get her microchip checked. They kept commenting on how unwell she looked and she obviously needed help. It was absurd that the vet would just give these clowns Tabitha’s owner’s home address and let them return her. Not only is this a serious breach of GDPR, Tabitha needed medical attention by the sounds of things!
👎 I could not stand Eve. She behaved like a teenager but had a toxic and harmful obsession with the job. She was a selfish user and bully with significant arrested development. I felt like the attempts to redeem her came far too late and weren’t convincing. She’d caused a lot of harm and hurt a lot of people and I didn’t like how easily she got off the hook.
👎 Eve’s job environment nearly triggered a trauma response in me because it was so toxic: the hyper-capitalist culture, the cut-throat employees, the obsessive vibe… it was horrible being trapped in that fictional space - this was compounded by Eve’s toxic relationship with the job.
👎 Many of the women characters were frustratingly immature: Why was Jess shrieking like a toddler all the time? Why couldn’t Kirsty and Eve just have an adult conversation? Why was Katie’s only characterization ‘villain’? These folks are around my age and I just didn’t find it plausible that they’d be behaving like this. Eve’s circle reads like teenagers (except Will/Nina) whereas Adam’s read closer to 30+ year olds.
👎 The romance was unconvincing and the match felt forced. I was sensing more of a connection with Adam/Becky (although Adam needs time and space to heal) and I think Eve needs to learn to be on her own for a while and get her act together.
👎 So much product placement in this, it felt like advertising

I honestly think this would read better as New/Young Adult fiction. By dropping the age to early 20s (still a stretch in some cases), it might be more plausible. The writing style, plot, and characterization might fit a YA audience better than an adult one.

I was privileged to have my request to read this book accepted through NetGalley. Thanks for letting me give this a whirl, Joffe Books.

Two Doors Down by Mary Hargreaves is a heartwarming and uplifting romance that will captivate fans of feel-good, opposites-attract stories.

Eve is struggle to root for but you keep waiting for her to get her redemption arc while Adam deserves so much more! Reading their two stories before they collide into one gives so much insight to their future relationship, and I love how Old Sausage brings them together. Zero spice, slow burner for the MCs, but a story that felt like real people dealing with real issues with a great found family.
Thanks Joffe Books and Netgalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review!

I thought this book was going to be a normal romance but I was wrong. Personally, I felt like there were two stories happening simultaneously for most of the book as the love interests didn’t start interacting until almost 2/3's of the way into the book. There was a lot more about self-improvement and personal growth than romance in this book. Eve and Adam were mostly living their lives separately even though they were neighbours and there were a few moments when they would almost meet but they didn’t. I think that the author wrote the characters really well I felt exactly how I should’ve felt about the characters and I think that they are good for each other. I did not love Eve for the majority of the book I just really wanted her to slow down and think for a second and I think that's what the author intended to do with the character which is why I think this book was written well. Plus Adam is just a nice guy who cares about people's feelings and is a good balance to Eve's problem-solving personality

3.5 stars! What truly intrigued me about this book was the brother of the MMC having Cerebral Palsy, it was really nice to see representation in mainstream books. My sister actually has the same condition as a result of the same way.

This book is very heavy in the dual POV, and sometimes you can feel that it is almost two different stories. I thought it was a very cute book! It had the dorky loveable, naive friend, stubborn overworked perfectionist FMC, and adorable, sweet, kind hearted MMC who can do no wrong! I enjoyed the story, it was a nice easy read, it was very British and reminded me of so many things back home. I do wonder how non Brits will cope with some of the terms/ wording and swearing, but overall I enjoyed the book and think it’s a cute little Rom Com. Thank you to Netgalley And the publisher for the e-arc of this book!

Finally, after searching for a lighthearted beach read and slogging through some major duds, Two Doors Down was exactly what I needed.

A FMC that you have a love hate relationship with, who makes colossal mistakes but learns from them in the end.

A lovable MMC who is just a good guy. A guy to root for. A guy you want to see triumph in the end. And triumph he does.

Lovely read!

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC!

thank you netgalley for the e-arc. i think this is an overdone trope but the book was fine. the characters felt fresh enough that the neighbors to lovers thing didn't bother me as much. protect the cat at all costs.

This was a cute neighbor romance with a lot of self-growth and improvement.

Eve is very career minded and as her work life becomes shambles, she is even more frustrated by her neighbor's cat that keeps showing up at her door.

Adam is loyal to a fault and as his love life falls apart, he is surprised by a cat that keeps showing up. He tracks it to his neighbor.

These two finally meet only to discover that it is not either of their cat. The decide to work together to find the owner.

This is a cute book. I thought the "Adam and Eve" jokes were a cute addition. I did not like Eve at all during most of this book. I always love an author that can make me dislike a character but still root for a redemption. This author delivered perfectly. Eve did some really not nice things, however in the end she owned up to everything pulled up her proverbial big girl panties and got that redemption she deserved.

I loved Adam through the entire book. I was rooting for him to get his HEA. He was such a sweet guy who did not deserve the things that happened to him.

The only thing I did not like was how quick this book ended. I would have loved to see more of them together.

Thank you NetGalley and Joffe books for this title. This is my very honest review.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for granting me free access to the advanced digital copy of this book.
4 stars book from me. Loved the plot and the storytelling in Two Doors Down and the relatable, likable characters,. Loved every single second reading it.