The Neighbor Favor

By: Kristina Forest

Narrated by: Keylor Leigh, Malik Rashad

A shy bookworm enlists her charming neighbor to help her score a date, not knowing he’s the obscure author she’s been corresponding with, in this sparkling and heart-fluttering romance by Kristina Forest.

Shy, bookish, and admittedly awkward, Lily Greene has always felt inadequate compared to the rest of her accomplished family, who strive for Black excellence. She dreams of becoming a children’s books editor, but she’s been frustratingly stuck in the nonfiction division for years without a promotion in sight. Lily finds escapism in her correspondences with her favorite fantasy author, and what begins as two lonely people connecting over email turns into a tentative friendship and possibly something else Lily won’t let herself entertain—until he ghosts her without a word.

Months later, Lily is still crushed, but she’s determined to get a hold of her life, starting with finding a date to her sister’s wedding. And the perfect person to help her is Nick Brown, her charming, attractive new neighbor, who she feels drawn to for reasons she can’t explain. But little does she know, Nick is an author—her favorite fantasy author.

Nick, who has his reasons for using a pen name and pushing people away, soon realizes that the beautiful, quiet girl from down the hall is the same Lily he fell in love with over email months ago. Unwilling to complicate things even more between them, he agrees to set her up with someone else, though this simple favor between two neighbors is anything but—not when he can't get her off his mind...

©2023 Kristina Forest (P)2023 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

"[A] warm and welcoming new contemporary...the book breathes easily and pulls you right into its world. Especially recommended for anyone who ships Janine and Gregory from Abbott Elementary."—The New York Times Book Review

“The Neighbor Favor is the type of charming, feel-good story that reminds me why I love romance. I dare anyone to try reading Lily and Nick’s adorably awkward encounters without smiling. Impossible.”—Farrah Rochon, New York Times bestselling author of The Hookup Plan

"Forest expertly balances this perfectly matched duo’s emotional connection with their physical chemistry, making them easy to cheer on. This is a winner."—Publishers Weekly, starred review

Cute Story

I really enjoyed the twists in the novel; however, it was definitely a predictable read. It was a cute, romantic story though.

Loved the story. Such a cute couple

I loved their story, the work sub plots, family dynamics and everything else. Ate it right up. Gonna have to read one of her other books soon too

Wholesome love story

I loved this story. The narrators were both captivating and it made it so that it was like watching a movie because I was able to imagine the characters. Finally a love story that doesn’t end in tragedy

Sweet RomCom

Really enjoyed the characters to the very end. My only negative comment is why not make both characters ethnic. If you're going to make them African-American characters, please be sure to make sure one voice is not more "sanitized and straight" then the other one. Our male character's voice was more realistic - like a "cool Jazz, silky voice". Otherwise, very well done.

Real, lovable characters

I loved this book, the main characters and the supporting characters. They were imperfect but caring people. The whole story just made me feel good, even the rough spots. You knew they deserved to be together.

His will to change

I hated when they did each others voices. Cringe . I wish they kept their voices each time .

I loved the plot of the book and the narrators voice

Loved the book it was really good I loved the narrators voices really good read

First audiobook and this book DID IT for me!

I loved the storyline! There was enough in the story from the beginning to the end that allowed me to finish this book in 1.5 days! The romance wasn’t cheesy but realistic and enough to have wanting a familiar ending for my own love story haha! It was a good read/listen.

Perfection

Such an enveloping story, the author captured every little detail just right and made this a truly magical read

Nice love story

Good story. The beginning could have used some improvement with the flow… just dropped dates back and forth.
Room for improvement with the narration. The narrators tone didn’t necessarily bring the characters to life as described. Also, inconsistent in the reading. The narrators (male/female voice) read for the same characters at any given moment, it didn’t seem just by perspective, if that makes sense.
Reveal of main male character, somewhat predictable but still a great story and development of characters. I like that it wasn’t too raunchy, just a little spicy in the end.