First Chapter Review: The Man Next Door by Sheila Roberts

 

Today, you will find my First Chapter Review of The Man Next Door by Sheila Roberts. Was this supposed to be a First Chapter Review? No, but my work schedule has been a word that starts with B, ends with H, and rhymes with witch. This funny contemporary novel is one that I've been eagerly anticipating for weeks. Look for my full review coming soon.

BLURB: "In this spunky nod to Rear Window, Roberts infuses a charming domestic comedy with a soupçon of suspicion. . . . a heartwarming diversion." –Publishers Weekly 

Love in the Time of Serial Killers meets The Woman in the House Across the Street from the Girl in the Window in this delightful romp about a recently broke divorcee who moves in with her house-bound mother only to spend their days spying on her grumpy, mysterious, and sexy new neighbor.

Zona never thought her life was headed this way, but here she is, newly divorced and moving back in with her mom, Louise. After her gambling addicted ex-husband lost all of their savings, including their daughter's college fund, she doesn't really have a choice. She's cutting every coupon she can, and she's going to help put her daughter through nursing school, even if it kills her.

This wasn't Louise's plan, either, laid up at home with a broken leg after one unfortunate tumble on the senior singles cruise she'd been looking forward to for months. But if she's going to spend all her time at home, at least she's got her daughter there with her. And there's some hot new eye candy next door to distract them both from their troubles. He appears to be single and just around Zona's age. Could his arrival be the universe making amends for everything it's put her through?

Maybe the universe isn't feeling as generous as Louise hoped. There’s something lurking under that man's surface charm, something…dangerous? And who's the woman they can hear him in all-out shouting matches with on the other side of the fence? When the woman seems to disappear without a trace, imaginations run wild. Or at least, Zona hopes it's just her mother's imagination...

COVER: This is not the typical cover I expect on a book by Sheila Roberts, but it is a perfect fit for the plot and reminds us of the movie that inspired the novel. 

FIRST CHAPTER: A disgruntled Zona is eating lunch with her friend and real estate agent, Gracie. Forced to sell her home and now penniless, Zona isn't thrilled about moving in with her mother. But her ex-husband's gambling addiction left her without another option. 

Louise knows her daughter needs time to get back on her feet, and she can't help but wonder if the new neighbor might be a new chance at love for Zona. Meanwhile, Louise is excited about a singles cruise she has been planning for months. 

KEEP READING: It's Sheila Roberts. Of course, I will keep reading. After an intriguing prologue whose theory I totally agree with, the reader moves swiftly to Zona and Gracie at lunch with a smattering of Zona's backstory worked in, followed by the introduction of Louise and her ideas of how the new neighbor might be good for her daughter. In many ways, I feel like I am in familiar territory. The cover and the back cover blurb, however, give me a sign that we are charting new paths. Looking forward to finishing this one.

• Publisher ‏ : ‎ MIRA
• Publication date ‏ : ‎ October 14, 2025
• Edition ‏ : ‎ Original
• Language ‏ : ‎ English
• Print length ‏ : ‎ 368 pages
• ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0778305724
• ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0778305729

I received a copy of this book from the author. This First Chapter Review contains my honest opinions, which I have not been compensated for in any way.

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? & Mailbox Monday - Jul 28

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is a place to meet up and share what you have been, are, and about to be reading over the week. It's a great post to organize yourself. It's an opportunity to visit, comment, and add to that ever-growing TBR pile! So welcome, everyone. This meme started with J Kaye's Blog and was then taken up by Sheila from Book Journey. Sheila then passed it on to Kathryn at the Book Date.

Happy Monday on a Sunday! Tomorrow morning, I will be up and out the door early, so it makes sense to get this posted first. Can you believe this is the last Monday of July? In case you were wondering, there are only 150 days until Christmas. 

Thought you might like a peek at more of the wedding photos. Beyond My Lens Photography, LLC, out of Wallingford, Connecticut, did an amazing job! She truly went above and beyond in so many ways. 

Our girls

The Lil' Diva and Sammie

The kids and the rents

Not a ton of reading is going on, but that is not stopping me from buying books or blogging. I'm also keeping up with my journal app most days. 

My review of Stop That Witch! was posted today at The Children's and Teen's Book Connection.  

I didn't read Behind the Scenes by Elizabeth Hobbs Keckley on my Kindle this week. 

I snuck in a few more pages of The Bible Simplified by Zach Windahl on NetGalley. 

I didn't touch The Sea Captain's Wife by Tailar J. Mazzeo this week, but I only have 29 days left to read it on NetGalley, so I'd better get back to it.

I didn't touch Like Driftwood on the Salish Sea by Richard Levine. Since the review is in September, I have some time.

My First Chapter Reviews of Whispers by J. Herman Kleiger was posted on Wednesday.

On Audible, I listened to Generating Business Referrals Without Asking by Stacey Brown Randall. Great book! 

I started listening to the next two books, but since one is meditations and the other devotions, I opted not to continue with them while driving. I will get back to them.

How to Train Your Mind by Chris Bailey

God's Purpose for Your Life by Charles F. Stanley

These First Chapter Reviews are coming in August and September. 

Gone to the Ground by Morgan Hatch

What Lies We Keep by Janet Roberts

Whatever It Takes by Alan Benham 

Need to read Old Flames, New Beginnings by Lea Schizas soon. 

Mailbox Monday is a gathering place for readers to share the books they added to their shelves the previous week. This weekly meme is now hosted by Vicki at I'd Rather Be At The Beach. 

Author Sarah Hamaker has been running a Christmas in July Reader Extravaganza. As a result, I am grabbing some free e-books and using my credits to buy others. I scooped up A Sleigh Ride for Ruby by Donna Schlaghter for only 45 cents! 

Because I subscribe to Lyssa Lund's newsletter, I was able to grab a copy of The Witch's Inheritance while it was free. 

Some book swag arrived this week from Carolyn Bennett Fraiser, author of M is for Mason Jar. I'm on her book launch team. Need to read this one soon.

Karen White's new book, The Last Carolina Summer, which I had pre-ordered, arrived the same day as the book swag from Fraiser. 

Upcoming Events

• Arabesque by M G da Mota - Jul 31 (Book Spotlight)
• Gone to the Ground by Morgan Hatch - Aug 7 (First Chapter Review)
• Like Driftwood on the Salish Sea by Richard Levine - Aug 12 (Author Interview)
• What Lies We Keep by Janet Roberts - Aug 20 (First Chapter Review)
• Whatever it Takes by Alan Brenham - Sep 2 (First Chapter Review)
• Like Driftwood on the Salish Sea by Richard Levine - Sep 15 (Review)

The latest Christmas... in the news post is up at Christmas Year Round. You can read all the seasonal good stuff here. 

The Children's and Teens' Book Connection has my review of Stop That Witch!. (link above). 

Nothing new at Laura's Little Houses, but the ideas are brewing. 

Lots going on as you can tell. I have a closing this Friday (woo-hoo!), and I am working on several other things. Hoping to take one day of the coming weekend off. We shall see. Enjoy your day!

Interview with Anne Shaw Heinrich, Author of Violet is Blue

Since she fell in love with writing in high school, Anne Shaw Heinrich has been a journalist, columnist, blogger, and nonprofit communications professional.   She’s interviewed and written features on Beverly Sills, Judy Collins, Gene Siskel, and Debbie Reynolds. Anne’s writing has been featured in The New York Times bestseller The Right Words at the Right Time, Volume 2: Your Turn (Atria 2006) and Chicken Soup for the Soul's The Cancer Book: 101 Stories of Courage, Support and Love (2009).  Anne's work has also appeared in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, St. Louis American, Midwest Family Magazine, Writer’s Digest, Education Week and Ms. Magazine. She and her husband are parents to three grown children. Anne is passionate about her family, mental health advocacy and the power of storytelling.  

Follow Anne Heinrich on social media:

Instagram: @anne_shaw_heinrich | Threads: anne_shaw_heinrich

BlueSky: anneshawheinrich.bsky.social 

Website: anneshawheinrich.com

Where did you grow up?

I grew up in Cuba, Missouri. It’s a small town just over an hour’s drive from St. Louis. 

When did you begin writing?

I started writing in high school. I give a great deal of credit for this to two former teachers. Both women really turned me onto a more thoughtful approach to reading, and it was while in their classrooms that I discovered I could be the one writing stories. It really was a turning point for me, and I’ve been writing in one way or another ever since. I dedicated my first novel, God Bless the Child, to these two teachers and established a scholarship in their honor. 

Do you write during the day, at night, or whenever you can sneak a few moments?

I still work full-time as a communications professional at a university, so all my fiction writing takes place wherever I can fit it in. I do have to be intentional about my time. I get a good amount of writing done in the evenings and on the weekends. Fortunately, this never feels like a chore because writing is my jam. 

What is this book about?

Violet is Blue is the second novel in a three-book series published by Speaking Volumes, The Women of Paradise County. It follows the first book, God Bless the Child. Violet is Blue can be a stand-alone book, but the story is even richer for those who read the first book. The through line for all three books in the series is the small-town setting of Poulson and a swath of time in that place shared by characters whose lives are connected in ways big and small. Some have everything they want in the world and some do not. They aren’t perfect, but the characters seem to understand the unspoken rules in a small town. Some wounds get tended and others are left to fester as these complex characters navigate their way toward redemption and acceptance. I’m told that the characters are quirky, and I consider this a compliment!

 

What inspired you to write it?

I started writing the first book in the series 19 years ago. I was a mother with three young children, and when I had any kind of free time, I’d pull out a yellow legal pad and pencil and start scratching things out. I started this after I’d been encouraged by two editors of The New York Times bestseller The Right Words at the Right Time, Volume 2: Your Turn (Atria 2006). My essay about learning that my grandmother was a lingerie model was selected to be in the collection. During that process, one of them said, “Why aren’t you writing more? You need to be writing more.” I took the advice and got busy, working with David Tabatsky as I wrote the first draft of God Bless the Child. I’d started pitching to agents, but life kept getting in my way, so I tabled it. About two years ago, I found myself still sneaking away to write for fun when I could. I’d reached back out to David to see if he’d take a look at my new pieces. He read them and urged me to pull God Bless the Child out of my drawer. After some back and forth, we agreed I might have the makings of a series. Before too long, I had an agent, a publisher, and a contract for a three-book series. Book One was released in 2024. Violet is Blue is set to release June 17, 2025, and I’m knee-deep in getting Book Three, House of Teeth, finished. 

If you knew then, what you know now, is there anything you would have done differently?

Just be patient. Don’t give up. Keep writing and connecting with people when the timing feels right. The universe will let you know when it’s your time to move forward. This is also what I would tell aspiring writers.

What is up next for you?

The last book in the series, House of Teeth, will be released in June 2026. I think it brings the characters from books one and two back into focus, and hopefully, some satisfying closure for readers. The narrative will demonstrate how time marches on, even in small towns like Poulson, but show the ripple effects that all our actions and inactions can have on generations to come. I’m having a really good time writing it, and just like the other two books, showing how closely goodness, badness, and indifference tug at us in unexpected ways.

Purchase links: 

Bookshop.org

https://bookshop.org/p/books/violet-is-blue/90f2cca8bc7cce37?ean=9798890223159&next=t 

Amazon:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CZBSVLM4?binding=kindle_edition&ref=dbs_dp_sirpi 

Barnes and Noble

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/Anne%20Shaw%20Heinrich

Library Book Hold: Joy for Beginners by Erica Bauermeister

 

The Prairie Pages Book Club over at Modern Prairie is reading Joy for Beginners by Erica Bauermeister this month. I haven't been reading with them lately because my schedule conflicts with our monthly Zoom meeting, but I requested a hold on this book from my local library. 

At an intimate, festive dinner party in Seattle, six women gather to celebrate their friend Kate's recovery from cancer. Wineglass in hand, Kate strikes a bargain with them. To celebrate her new lease on life, she'll do the one thing that's always terrified her: white-water rafting down the Grand Canyon. But if she goes, each of them must promise to do one thing in the next year that is new, or difficult, or scary—and Kate gets to choose their challenges.

Shimmering with warmth, wit, and insight, Joy for Beginners is a celebration of life: unexpected, lyrical, and deeply satisfying.

Doesn't this sound wonderful? It's currently available in hardcover, paperback, audiobook, and on Kindle. 

First Chapter Review & Giveaway: Scandalous in Huntington Beach by Melody DeBlois

 

I am reviewing this first chapter of the women's novel, Scandalous in Huntington Beach, by Melody DeBlois.  

BLURB: Politician and senate hopeful Bennett Browning knows nothing about babies. When his former girlfriend dies and leaves him with a daughter he knew nothing about, he’s left scrambling until he meets Emma Kuan, his daughter’s aunt, who volunteers to be the nanny. Emma is used to keeping secrets. She and her sister have always hidden their tragic past, but she’s stunned her sister hid the baby even from her. Meeting her niece captures her heart, and she would do anything to be with her, even living with a stranger. Worried about potential scandal, Bennett and Emma juggle jobs, living arrangements, and parenting until a doctor gives them bad news about their baby girl. Then their priorities change drastically.

COVER: Love this vibrant cover that shares the setting perfectly! The subtitle gives you a hint of what the book might entail, and the script writing is a nice touch. 

FIRST CHAPTER: Bennett Browning meets Emma Kuan at the funeral for his former girlfriend, Rachel, who is also Emma's half-sister. Having recently learned that he is the father of Rachel's daughter, Madelynn Grace, he has been awarded custody. Since he is totally clueless about babies, Emma offers to help him out until he hires a nanny, but it's clear from the beginning that they are attracted to each other.

KEEP READING: DeBlois drops the reader right into the thick of things with a tense meeting between Rachel's former lover and her half-sister, both of whom knew nothing about the baby. There is a hint of an attraction between them, but this opening chapter deals with the sadness of loss while introducing the hope of the future when Madelynn Grace is dropped off by the social worker. Definitely worth continuing with this story to learn more about all the main characters and see how far the author pushes them. 

EXCERPT: 

Bennett was having a hard time believing any of this was real. But it was, and his baby girl would depend on him for everything. He leaned against the chair and did what Emma told him. “Better?”

She nodded and handed over the wiggly Madelynn Grace. Bennett tried his hardest to hold on, afraid he’d drop her. With that in mind, he let Emma readjust his position with a nudge of his arms that had been too far apart and a lift of his right elbow to tilt her head a little. He intuitively lowered his face and sweet-talked the baby. In turn, she blew bubbles at him.

“I think she likes me.” He allowed her to poke him in the nose.

“Looks that way.”

His heart swelled. “I promise to give you the best life I can.”

When he glanced up, all smiles, he noted Emma’s quivering lower lip. Was she thinking of Rachel? Something in the hunch of her shoulders and lowered chin made him realize he knew so little about her.

PURCHASE THE BOOK HERE! 

IMPORTANT LINKS...

https://www.melodydeblois.com

https://twitter.com/Melody_DeBlois

https://www.facebook.com/melodydebloisbooks

https://www.instagram.com/melody.deblois

https://www.pinterest.com/deblois0181

The author will be awarding a

 $25 Amazon/BN gift card to a 

randomly drawn winner.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

I received a digital copy of this book from the author through Goddess Fish Promotions. This First Chapter Review contains my honest opinions, which I have not been compensated for in any way.

Book Review: Hollywood Underworld by Lindy S. Hudis

 

Hollywood Underworld by Lindy S. Hudis dives into the dark and seedy underbelly of the land where dreams are made. Unfortunately, for many, it's more like the world of nightmares.

Dani Foxx is a former actress who now runs a management company in the San Fernando Valley. Sexy and determined, she's eager to meet Nick Savage, a handsome actor who she is sure will be a star. When Nick is a no-show, and then is found dead days later, Dani, her daughter Dale, and partner A.J. Tarentella are drawn into a world of sex, drugs, and crimes that swirl beneath all the glitter and gold of Tinseltown where lethal secrets and ruthless ambition run wild.

With Hollywood Underworld, Hudis has crafted a sinister and believable tale of the dark side of Hollywood. Dani is a strong female lead that isn't afraid to tackle work and life head on. She's got a spirited teenage daughter that gives her a run for her money. Dani and A.J. make a nice team. 

As I thought about how I would describe this novel, because I liked the premises and the main characters, I read a review that captured what was rambling through my brain--it felt disjointed. They meant it as a compliment, because it harkened back to a certain movie genre they enjoyed that gets snippets from multiple points of view. For me, popping into and out the heads of so many characters left me grasping to fully focus on the main characters' arcs. When Dale is in danger, I felt rushed into it, and then before I knew it, the issue was resolved. I needed more build up. And the editor in me struggled with a book that felt it could have lost 100 pages and still been a great story. 

Hollywood Underworld holds promise as a potential series, which is what seems to be the plan. There are more adventures for Dani, A.J., and Dale that I look forward to reading. The author writes what she knows, giving this series a touch that only she can provide. 

If you enjoy gritty thrillers, give Hollywood Underworld a shot.

• ASIN ‏ : ‎ B09BYPQSD4
• Publisher ‏ : ‎ Independently published (August 4, 2021)
• Language ‏ : ‎ English
• Paperback ‏ : ‎ 409 pages
• ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 979-8450037851

I received a copy of this book from the author. This review contains my honest opinions, which I have not been compensated for in any way.

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? and Mailbox Monday - Jan 30

Welcome to It's Monday! What Are You Reading? and Mailbox Monday.   

 

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is a place to meet up and share what you have been, are and about to be reading over the week. It's a great post to organize yourself. It's an opportunity to visit and comment, and er... add to that ever growing TBR pile! So welcome in everyone. This meme started with J Kaye's Blog and then was taken up by Sheila from Book Journey. Sheila then passed it on to Kathryn at the Book Date.     

Welcome to the end of January. I hope your year started off well. It has been a great year so far. I'm learning new things, focusing on professional development, and eager to see what 2023 brings. We already know we will be facing changes, but change can be a good thing... even if it doesn't seem so at the time.

Thanks to Audible, I finished listening to this book and started my latest download. You can read my review of Creating Magic here.

I am nine chapters into this one.

Last week, I reviewed this thriller. You can read my review here!

I also posted a First Chapter Review of the coming of age novel, Alchemy, by Mike Wood on Friday. You can check the review out here.

I have started Charlotte Hubbard's new book and these other two are next. 

Upcoming virtual book tours:

• Dead Heat to Destiny by J. B. Rivard - Feb 7
• Family Gatherings at Promise Lodge by Charlotte Hubbard - Feb 20
• Kiss My Boots by Jennifer Learmont - Feb 23
• The Code by Sean Keefer - Mar 6
• Path of Peril by Marlie Parker Wasserman - Mar 13

Mailbox Monday is the gathering place for readers to share the books that came in their mailbox during the last week. Warning: Mailbox Monday can lead to envy, toppling TBR piles and humongous wish lists.

Most of that mountain of books I ordered with a gift card from Barnes & Noble arrived on Saturday. Which ones of these have you read? 

Now, I just need to fit some of these into my reading schedule. Which do you think I should start with first?