STRANGE NEIGHBORS by Ashlyn Chase

Publisher: Sourcebooks
Date published: June 1st, 2010
ISBN: 978-1-4022-3661-7
Paranormal Romance
Mass Market Paperback
Reviewed by Dawn
Obtained by Self-purchase


Nurse Merry Mackenzie is thrilled to move out of the family home and from under her family’s overprotective eyes and into her new apartment. She loves her new job as a nurse at the local hospital and finding out that her landlord/owner is a hot, sexy man is just the icing on the cake. Her apartment building is full of odd yet intriguing people and love is around the corner if she takes the risk of getting involved with local baseball celebrity, Jason Falco. Merry has to deal with snoopy reporters, Jason’s nosey aunt and on top of that, Jason has a secret…one that Merry is going to have to accept in order to be with him or decide to walk away. Can Merry find a way to have the life she yearns for with Jason?

Ms. Chase’s first book in this new series has left me in stitches and eager for more. STRANGE NEIGHBORS delivers a light, fun read for anyone who enjoys a paranormal romance story with wit and humor. Ms. Chase delivers a strong introduction to the cast of characters in STRANGE NEIGHBORS and I was eager to read more about them after the last page was read. Ms. Chase is a talented author who knows how to engage her readers with imaginative storylines that feel fresh and unique in the genre of paranormal. She delivers her own spin on this genre with a splash. The writing was tight, characters grew on you as you followed Merry and Jason’s steamy romance and it was fast paced. I couldn’t put this one down-even to sleep. I giggled, sighed and growled throughout the story.

Meet Merry Mackenzie. She is finally moving out of her family home and into her first apartment. The building is private, nicely kept and granted she has some odd neighbors but that doesn’t take away from her excitement in finally getting away from her overprotective family. Merry took a little to get used to. I loved she wasn’t a damsel in distress character. The one thing I hated was that it took me a while to fall in love with Merry and Jason as a whole. The sparks fly between them but singularly, both characters were hard to enjoy at times. The secondary characters are a major plus. I loved the quirkiness and intriguing way this author introduced the different tenants of Merry’s building and had me hoping they turn up in future books.

STRANGE NEIGHBORS is a fun, enjoyable story that will leave you in stitches then clamoring for more. Ms. Chase is one author I have on my auto-buy list now and I cannot wait to read the follow-up book, The Werewolf Upstairs. If you are looking for a fun, lighthearted yet steamy story filled with enjoyable characters and hot romance, then grab STRANGE NEIGHBORS. You won’t want to put it down.

This is an objective review and not an endorsement of this book.