BOOK REVIEW : THE CUL-DE-SAC WAR BY MELISSA FERGUSON

TITLE : The Cul-de-sac War

AUTHOR : Melissa Ferguson

GENRE : Contemporary Fiction, Romance

FR RATING : ⭐⭐⭐⭐( 4 Stars)

DATE OF PUBLISHING :  November 10th 2020

FR REVIEW

DISCLAIMER : Thank you, Netgalley and Thomas Nelson for providing me with an ARC of this book. I am leaving this review voluntarily.

The Cul-de-sac War by Melissa Ferguson is a fun, lighthearted, and the slowest-burn romance. It’s a clean romance with my favorite rom-com trope – hate-to-love. When I saw this title, I just couldn’t resist requesting it. So I initially started reading this book long back, but never finished it because I had already planned it for November. I am sad that I didn’t start over, but I simply continued from where I stopped because of my crappy scheduling. And it was over before I was ready for it to be.

The story is told from the two perspectives of our main characters. Bree is a struggling stage artist and is hopping from one career to another without any success. Chip is running a construction company in his hometown, struggling to keep his business stay afloat. The fact that his family runs one of the most successful and well-known construction company makes his journey even harder. Chip and Bree meet at The Barter where Bree has a wardrobe malfunction before her scene, and Chip helps her out. They have an instant connection, and their meet-cute was just cute. It feels a bit insta-lovey where the characters are infatuated or crushing on the other after their first meeting. But it was not an issue for me. Bree later finds out that he has a girlfriend and she is disappointed. She then is followed home by a guy who she assumes is loud and rude, who also happens to be her next-door neighbor. It turns out that the new neighbor is Chip, and she takes an instant dislike to him. From then on, they start these pranks and other games to get under each other’s skin leading them on the path to falling in love.

I loved Chip and found him to be a sweet, caring, and vulnerable guy. Bree has an outgoing personality, and she is a hardworking and lovely person. The two of them start with instant attraction, and then Bree freezes Chip out. Her personality change confuses him. I did not understand myself why she had such a strong reaction to the driver of the vehicle to bring so much animosity into the equation. It seemed unnecessary and immature. If there was an event that cemented the hate part, then it wouldn’t feel confusing for the readers to understand Bree’s side.

I loved the pranks and the messages on the windows. It was sweet and cute. I wished, we had more time to get used to them pranking and building their relationship. The two of them, the other side characters, and the dog brought a lot of hilarity to the situation. I loved the funny and sweet clean romance. But man! The wait for them to come together was so slow. It was the slowest burn that I have ever read. I felt like I would have loved to see more of their cute banter and messages and also see some great scenes after the two of them got together. The epilogue was confusing, and I felt like I missed something.

Overall, it was a fun and entertaining read. It’s a quick read with a good set of characters and a simple and clean romance. If you are a fan of hate-to-love romances, then definitely check this one out. I gave it 4 stars. I really enjoyed this story and highly recommend checking out this lighthearted and engaging rom-com.

SYNOPSIS

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 can’t 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.