Love Next Door

Lakeside, Book 1

By: Helena Hunting

Narrated by: Teddy Hamilton, Andi Arndt

Length: 8 hrs and 47 mins

Publisher's Summary

From New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Helena Hunting comes an evocative small-town romance about family loyalty, finding oneself, and falling in love.

When Dillion Stitch left her hometown, she had no intention of going back. But when her brother gets into trouble, Dillion reluctantly agrees to return home to take her place at the family business. 

Being back in Pearl Lake after all these years feels familiar but also brings a few surprises. She’s quick to notice that someone new has shown up at the cottage next door. Dillion gets more than an eyeful when she goes to check out the newcomer and meets Donovan “Van” Firestone - her beloved neighbor’s grandson - in all his unclothed glory.

Having gotten off to a rocky start, it’s not long before they begin bickering with each other all over town. All that back-and-forth inevitably sparks an undeniable attraction. But Dillion’s family has issues, Van’s family resents him, and neither Dillion nor Van feels truly at ease in the small town. For these Pearl Lake exiles, home isn’t just where the heart is - it’s where things get complicated.

©2021 by Helena Hunting. (P)2021 Brilliance Publishing, Inc., all rights reserved.

Loved this so much!!

Oh I just loved this! 😍 Small town romance done in a perfect and fun way. Dillon came home to help the family when they needed it (at a time when she needed it too). And Donovan came back to the place he spent so much time with his grandmother (at a perfect time when his life starts falling apart). These two start out not getting along very well, until one stormy night changes everything. Then you can’t help but be singed by their sizzling connection. I loved all the goings on in this book, trying to figure out who the bad guy was (you’ll see) what’s wrong with her brother (you’ll see) and will they make it (you’ll see!). Truly loved it! And Andi Arndt and Teddy Hamilton as Dillon and Donovan? Absolute perfection!

Good Story

4 Stars for me!

My rating range of this story...
If significant, why? 4 - 4.25

Main Character Ratings...
H = 8
h = 7

Was cheating involved? No
Any major triggers to be aware of?

Scenes with heat... A Few
What point does it start? Last 20%
How much of the story? 5%
Anything beyond M/F? No
If yes, explained

Heat Rating... 6/10
Clean or Fade to Black - 1 or 2
Normal to Descriptive 3-5
Detailed Descriptive Sex - 6-7
Um, Wow, Beyond Descriptive Sex - 8 or above

Was there so much sex or unrealistic sex that you rolled your eyes and/or skipped forward? No

The back story... The H comes back to town to help the family business after her brother is injured while driving drunk. She had just broken up with her boyfriend and lost her job as well. The H came back to start getting his grandmother's property in order after she passed away. The h is the executor and has lots of angry run-ins with the H.

The Romance... Slow burn and well laid out.

The drama explosion... They confront the bad guy.
Did it feel real or contrived? A tiny bit.
Was it OTT? A tiny bit
Separation involved? No
Was it resolved properly or rushed? Properly

Final Notes...


HEA or HFN? HEA

Grammy Bee!

When your deceased grandma plays matchmaker is what so much of this book is about. Grammy Bee arranged for Dillon and Van to become part of each others lives without them realizing her intentions. Van as the sole owner to her home and Dillon as the executor she knew they would end up with each other, so that aspect of what some of the reviews are saying as predictable...maybe. Still a good story with good narration (again despite reviews). Good story with some decent humor.

Couldn't bear to hear Andi Arndt

Andi Arndt was so boring and the story was snore worthy. I struggled through 2 chapters, but I just couldn't listen to any more.

Sweet and Emotional Romance!

This sweet and emotional story takes place in the small town of Pearl Lake. This tight knit community is filled with close friends and family who are fun, quirky, and despite loving to gossip, they are totally supportive. It's the kind of place that draws you in and makes you feel right at home. It was also the place that Dillion couldn't escape from fast enough. As a young girl, all she could focus on was proving she was more than what the vacationers thought of the small town residents. After ten years living in the big city, she is back home to help her family when tragedy strikes. She is embarrassed at first, but begins to feel more at home when the people welcome her home with open arms. But when the grandson of her neighbor, who she loved and missed dearly since her passing, moves in to the small cottage, Dillion is afraid he will destroy the quaint but beautiful property. Dillion and Donovan do not start off on the best of terms. But I love a great meet cute and this one was so awkward and fun, and set the stage for the rest of this delightfully adorable, moving, and steamy romance. Donovan has always loved his summers with his grandmother, Bee. He always crushed on the towny girl who lived next door. Now she is even more beautiful, and sassy, and he loves to push her buttons every time they run into each other. The more time they spend together, the more they learn to like and trust one another, and their chemistry becomes more passionate. Donovan has always felt at home in Pearl Lake, and Dillion and her family is a big part of it. But someone is messing with Donovan's life, and it could threaten not only the peaceful town, but what he is building with Dillion as well. I love Dillion and Donovan together. She is so honesty, loyal, and fiercely protective, and he is playful, sweet, and caring. They helped each other find themselves, and the home they always wanted. I loved all the local family and friends who felt genuine and made this story so rich, fun and heartfelt. ​
The narration by Andi Arndt and Teddy Hamilton was fabulous! They are so perfect as Dillion and Donovan, as they not only build the tension of the story, but the playful and fiery attraction between Dillion and Donovan as well. Their banter was fun, and they conveyed the depth and complexity of all their emotions beautifully. I always love their work and was completely lost in their moving performance.
​I loved this engaging story and the little twists and turns that the storyline took kept me on my toes, and tugged at my heart. This is a great start to the Lakeside series and I can't wait for more from Pearl Lake!

loved it

I really enjoyed reading this author.  I look forward to reading more books by this author in the near future.

Small town romance

This was a cute small town romance. I liked the storyline. I didn't feel the connection between the H and h like I did in the author's previous books so I only gave it 4 stars. Not really a lot of steam.

Summer Love Turned More

This was a brilliant small town romance. It truly had all the elements I love.... strong heroine, some snark with a bit of sarcasm, real world problems, envy, family and lots of love. Romance at its BEST.

Fun!

A fun, well written story. I enjoyed the small town where everyone knows everything about everyone. Story and main characters not quite as memorable as others I’ve read by the author, but still good.

Listened at around 2x speed - I expect the narrator’s voices are unnatural at this speed, and wish they’d record the books at a normal speaking speed. The narrators’ voices are well done, just the speed is painfully slow.

Cute story

Dillon and Van both find themselves in Pearl Lake for different reasons, but with the same mission…figure out next steps in life. Overall a cute story with some hiccups along the way to an HEA. Great narration!

Loved this book!

This is the first novel I’ve read/listened to by Ms Hunting and I will definitely be reading more. A well written story with quite a few twists and turns with some angst along the way but not too much.

Great lead characters and strong supporting characters. A few miscommunications but not too many so as to become irritating.

Loved both Dillon and Van and loved Granny B who although not around physically anymore was ever present in both the lead characters lives. Looking forward to reading/listening to the next instalment.

TBR material. ❤

this was the first audiobook I've finished. To be honest I loved the voices of the narrators and the way they read us the story. Darlin' and Van were amazing, I loved this book because it was mostly drama free. It was such a nice love story ( perfect as a last read of the summer ) and what made the story even more amazing was Bee, it was like she was there with them, she made the story have that special something. ❤ add this to your tbr if you love romance story's

Another winner from Helena Hunting

This was simply lovely. Ably supported by a wonderful voice acting duo, Helena Hunting's words are brought to life.

Oh yes

Lovely story - twist and turns and wonderful. Great characters I can’t wait to have another one 👏

Too many inconsistencies.

Okay story with great narration. It was the narration that kept me listening mostly.
I would have given 4 stars overall of there weren't so many inconsistencies. Couple had spent every summer next door to each other and spent time with the same adult but never met!!!