“A sweet, sexy read, featuring a couple that feels both true-to-life and aspirational.” Kirkus Review, Starred Review American Angie Donovan has never wanted much. When you grow up getting bounced from foster home to foster home, you learn not to become attached to anything, anyone, or any place. But it only took her two days to fall in love with Australia. With her visa clock ticking, surely … clock ticking, surely she can fall in love with an Australian–and get hitched–in two months. Especially if he’s as hot and funny as her next-door neighbor…
Jace Walters has never wanted much–except a bathroom he didn’t have to share. The last cookie all to himself. And solitude. But when you grow up in a family of seven, you can kiss those things goodbye. He’s finally living alone and working on his syndicated comic strip in privacy. Sure, his American neighbor is distractingly sexy and annoyingly nosy, but she’ll be gone in a few months…
Except now she’s determined to find her perfect match by checking out every eligible male in the town, and her choices are even more distracting. So why does it suddenly feel like he–and his obnoxious tight-knit family, and even these two wayward dogs–could be exactly what she needs?
Each book in the Patterson’s Bluff series is STANDALONE:
* The Aussie Next Door
* Her Aussie Holiday
more
The Aussie Next Door by Stefanie London is book One in the Patterson’s Bluff Series. This is the story of Jace Walters and Angie Donovan.
Angie grew up in one foster home after another foster home. So she learned quickly to not get attached to anything or anyone pretty fast. Then she traveled to Patterson’s Bluff a small community in Australia that she fell in love with and had the first feeling of having a home. But her Visa is denied for extension in Australia so she thinks maybe a marriage of convince would fix her problem. Jace has had the opposites type life. Jace came from a very large family of seven who where very close but he always didn’t feel like he belonged. Jace has been diagnosed with a high functioning end of the Autism spectrum. Jace was once engaged to be married but the women couldn’t put up with his odd behavior and they broke up. Thinking that he wouldn’t be able to find any women to look past his issues he focuses on being a comic strip artist. Jace and Angie becomes friends of sort and he sees her trying to implement her plan for a husband and ends up helping her. Angie also ends up helping him when he is roped into looking after some dogs and along the way their friendship starts to feel like something more.
Easy enjoyable read.
3.75/5 stars
This is the first book that I have read from this author and I am glad that I took the chance. This was a wonderful and fun read that will have you feeling all the emotions with each page flip. The characters of Jace and Angie were so realistic. The chemistry between the characters was great. They each had their own issues and struggles to work through but they were able to so they can get the HEA that they deserved.
I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley and I am voluntarily leaving an honest review.
Different spin on this storyline with a 90-Day Fiancé-type twist! Angie had an extremely difficult childhood, and because of those experiences, had a tough time in adulthood trying to establish some anonymity and decides to move to Australia. While there she stumbles upon a small town and falls in love with the country and the people. But when her visa is up and is denied an extension, she desperately does anything she can in order to stay and not go back to the memories of her past. Jace had the perfect childhood, but being diagnosed with autism made him feel like he didn’t belong and something was missing. When he finds out that his renter Angie has two months to marry or leave the country, he logically offers himself through his way of thinking. While both of them are attracted to each other, neither know much about the other and it’s like the relationship is set up to crash. As time runs out, Angie realizes that she has to face her past head on rather than hide behind Jace’s offer, even though real feelings have formed. Overall I enjoyed this storyline, although parts of it were drawn out and a little over-staged (premise of a 90-Day Fiancé-type twist).
I voluntarily read and reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book.
A alright book. I think it is a sweet story and love the characters. There is some awesome stuff going on. There is a bunch of stuff that doesn’t need to be there. It seems t be just filler. It took a little bit to get into. I recommend this book to someone who wants to have a nice romantic read.I received this book from Netgalley for a honest review.
3.5 Stars!
The Aussie Next Door is about two people who struggle to fit in with the outside world find comfort in each other. For the first time they find someone who can accept them for who they are if they don’t let their own securities get in the way.
Jace has high functioning Autism. He functions better with a routine and occasionally needs alone time to recharge. He’s from a big, loving family that can be too loud at times and he feels like he is constantly compared to his brothers. When his one and only relationship fails, he doesn’t believe he will find someone who will adjust to his quirks.
Angie grew up in foster care, moving from family to family and sorely mistreated. She still struggles with a need to please people due to her abandonment issues. When lawyers exposed her troubles in the states in the foster care system, she moves to Australia to get away from her problems.
I felt for both Jase and Angie’s characters. I liked both of them and wished their insecurities didn’t stand so much in the way of finding love. I was a bit surprised to find that this was a heavier story than I was expecting, but it was also very heartwarming. These two were very easy to root for love to conquer all.
The small towns setting and the side characters brought a lot to the story. I could see hints of possible couples for future books in this series. I even loved the two dogs!
Small town romances are always bound to be super sweet and a great read. Stefanie London did not disappoint with this book. The Aussie Next Door was a great book about a girl finding her new start in a new country, determined not to go back to her home country, but when her visa runs out too soon, she is faced with trying to figure out how to stay in the one place that makes her feel safe, loved, and at home. She sets out to not just find a man who will marry her in a short amount of time, but she searches out love. She doesn’t want to just marry someone, she wants to marry someone she loves and will love making a home with them.
What she doesn’t expect is her very attractive Aussie neighbor, who she is renting her house from, to grow on her even more than he already has in the short time she has been in Australia.
Jace Walters is what they call ‘High Functioning Autistic’. He is very strict about keeping to his daily schedule, and keeping to himself most of the time. But when his mother warps him into a task of watching a friend of the family’s dogs for two months, he swears they want to kill him.
Said dogs, end up bringing him closer to his tenant next door, the beautiful, american who sees to talk way too much and looks so sexy it should be illegal.
But she isn’t going to be around much longer and for some reason he can’t quite get is why it aches him.
Sexual tension flares and when it comes to true feelings coming out, they both want to make everything right and perfect for the other. But they also both question whether they are good enough for the other.
This book was a great easy read and it will make you laugh.
I’m on the fence with how to feel about this book. The slow pace as well as the tentative and lukewarm connection between the main characters in the beginning made the story lag, for me. However, the second part of this book brought about the angst and a crazy amount of feels. It definitely tugged hard at my heartstrings.
Both characters have been hurt in the past. This makes Angie yearn to please everyone in the hopes that she will find a permanent home where she will be loved. Whereas Jace pulls away from everyone in the hopes of never having to feel lacking, like he is not good enough or that he is disappointing those he loves.
Can Angie and Jace find love being who they truly are?
Overall, this book has its cute moments. It creates a deep and abiding love between the main characters. When the sparks fly, they EXPLODE and the story becomes good, so very good!
I received an ARC via NetGalley of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.