BLURB
Fresh out of a failed engagement, Olivia Hales is in dire need of a fresh start. Tired of being the charming and accommodating girl that always gets stomped on, she’s determined to change her outlook on life.
When she finds her dream job in a small town in California, she thinks she’s finally found her place in life. That is, until she meets her new neighbor.
Roman Banks.
Moody. Foul-mouthed. Jerk.
And the hottest man on the planet.
At a sprawling six foot five, he was coldly distant and physically intimidating. Not only was her new neighbor a God that was good with his hands, he was also a grade-A jerk. Trapped on the same street, sharing the same space together, they’ve become entrenched in an addictive, ridiculous, never-ending game of insults and pranks that result in the destruction of two perfectly good homes.
The tension between them is as thick as the walls of their houses are thin. Roman’s touch burned like fire even when his words were ice, and both of them will stop at nothing to make the others life hell.
In the midst of the pranks and the hate they harbor for each other, Olivia slowly pulls back the layers of the man next door and finds herself consumed with wanting to fix him and his past. When both enemies start to catch feelings for each other, Olivia finds herself hiding her own secrets, not wanting to lose another man in her life.
Lines are drawn. Strict rules put into place. But that doesn’t stop Olivia from wanting to save the quiet, broody man next door.
They say you’re supposed to love thy neighbor, but that was the furthest emotion she felt when thinking about Roman. Hate was all there was to their relationship. At the very least, that’s what she tried to tell herself.
REVIEW
This book is described as an enemies-to-lovers romance, and I am happy to report that it is in fact just that. Roman and Olivia completely hated each other's guts! From the snide comments, to the pranks, to the looks of disgust they gave each other. I'm sure if they could murder each other without the risk of going to prison, they'd do it in a heartbeat.
But of course, even though they hate each other, there is still this undeniable attraction between them. That's probably why they disliked each other so much, it was all just misplaced attraction.
Roman and Olivia have two very different lives, and are two very different people. Where Rome is short-tempered and moody, Olivia is a lot more pleasant and borders on being overly-friendly. But, they have baggage that made them this way, and its only a matter of time before they realise that even though they don't match on paper, they perfectly complement each other where it counts. It was only a matter of time before hate turned to something else.
At first, I really didn't like Roman. I felt that he was unnecessarily cruel towards Olivia. And even though it was because she got under his skin like no other, he acted like those boys in primary school that bully girls because they like them and don't know how to tell them.
But, there was a reason for his unnecessary aggression towards Olivia- not saying it makes it right, just that it wasn't him just randomly deciding to be mean to her. Plus, he eventually got his head out of his ass and apologised, and realised he really just wanted her.
As for Olivia, she definitely wasn't as mean towards Rome as he was to her. Yes, she had her moments of payback, but overall, she really just wanted to understand why he seemed to hate her so much. Although she was dealing with her own baggage as well, she still wanted to help Rome out with his own issues. We love a selfless heroine!
The chemistry between them was quite intense, which is what you'd expect between people who 'hate' each other while simultaneously wanting to rip their clothes off. They say hate sex is the best sex, and after this book, I just might agree with that.
Their entire story was really nice. The plot was straight forward, the supporting characters kept the story entertaining, the ending was satisfying. I would definitely re-read this one. I loved it.
Happy Reading!
xo
Eli
My Rating: 4.5 STARS
My Recommendations:
Enemies -Tijan
To Hate Adam Connor -Ella Maise