Publication Date: November 10, 2020
Publisher: Thomas Nelson Books
Rating: ★★★
Bree Leake doesn’t want to be tied down. She’s had more jobs than she can count, and she plans to move as soon as the curtains fall on her less-than-minor stage role at The Barter—the oldest live performance theater in the US. But just when it’s time to move on again, Bree’s parents make her an offer: hold steady for a full year, and they will give her the one thing she’s always wanted—her grandmother’s house. Her dreams are coming true . . . until life at the theater throws her some curve balls.And then there’s Chip McBride—her handsome and infuriating next-door neighbor.
Chip just might be the only person whose stubborn streak can match Bree’s. She would move heaven and earth to have him off her cul-de-sac and out of her life, but according to the bargain she’s struck, she cannot move out of her house and away from the man who’s making her life miserable. So begins Bree’s obsessive new mission: to drive Chip out of the neighborhood—and fast.
Bree isn’t the only one who’s a tad competitive, and Chip is more than willing to fight fire with fire. But as their pranks escalate, the line between love and hate starts to blur—and their heated rivalry threatens to take a hilarious, heartwarming, and romantic new turn.
Review:
Thank you NetGalley, Thomas Nelson Books & Melissa Ferguson for a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.
The Cul-de-Sac War was definitely high-up on my TBR and was one of my most anticipated reads. I’m not sure if was my high expectations, but this novel fell a little flat for me.
I am a romance-fanatic, especially with friends-to-lovers or enemies-to-lovers. This premise had sooooo much potential, but the romance and slow burn fell behind the other things going on in this story. Due to the competitive nature of these characters, they both play a ton of pranks on each other. In the synopsis, it says “the line between love and hate start to blur – and their heated rivalry threatens to take a romantic new turn”. Reading that, it sounds great. However, the pranks took the front seat to this book for me and the romance was in the trunk.
I did find this book heartwarming. It was a very cute concept and I couldn’t even imagine if that were me in Bree’s place. There were a lot of parts where I did laugh out loud. Melissa Ferguson did hit the nail on the head with the comedy of it all.
Overall, this is a book I would definitely recommend to someone who loves clean, slow-burn romances. I would definitely try Melissa Ferguson again, I’m hoping the next time that I can really enjoy it!
Lacey's Library 