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Zoe is used to taking care of herself and has long ago accepted that if anything bad was going to happen, it was going to happen to her. So when she loses her job over something most bosses would probably be happy with and her life starts going down hill from there she doesn't expect it to get any better. She certainly didn't expect any help from the loud jerk next door, but then again she has nothing to lose so puts her trust in him and hopes for the best. What she didn't expect was the once in a lifetime opportunity that he offers her through an arrangement where they both benefit and no one is supposed to get hurt, but she should have known better because her luck has never been that good.

Like most Bradfords, Trevor has a soft spot for food, but that's about all. He leads a pretty straightforward life and likes to keep things simple and that includes his relationships. He wants the perfect woman and knows exactly what she'll be like. So when he discovers much to his horror that he's thinking about his frumpy little neighbor he decides the best way to get his head straight is by working her out of his system. He'll keep her around, but only until he finds perfection.

247 pages, ebook

First published August 26, 2011

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About the author

R.L. Mathewson

67 books15.4k followers
New York Times Bestselling author, R.L. Mathewson was born in Massachusetts. She’s known for her humor, quick wit and ability to write relatable characters. She currently has several paranormal and contemporary romance series published including the Neighbor from Hell series.

Growing up, R.L. Mathewson was a painfully shy bookworm. After high school she attended college, worked as a bellhop, fast food cook, and a museum worker until she decided to take an EMT course. Working as an EMT helped her get over her shyness as well as left her with some fond memories and some rather disturbing ones that from time to time show up in one of her books.

Today, R.L. Mathewson is the single mother of two children that keep her on her toes. She has a bit of a romance novel addiction as well as a major hot chocolate addiction and on a perfect day, she combines the two.

In 2019/2020, R.L. Mathewson will be publishing Devastated, the first Anger Management novel, Tall, Dark & Furious, the 6th installment to the Pyte/Sentinel series, Irresistible, the long anticipated novel for the Neighbor from Hell Series as well as many more books throughout the year, paranormals, contemporaries, and YAs.

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Displaying 1 - 30 of 3,062 reviews
Profile Image for Samantha.
531 reviews91 followers
March 14, 2017
Meet Trevor, he's a jerk. He's looking for a dream woman he can flaunt around town and rub in other men's faces. Aside from being drop dead gorgeous, dream woman must also be a gourmet cook, come from a large family, and basically be willing to be Trevor's love puppet. Meet Zoe, Trevor's slightly over-weight and plain looking neighbor. Zoe is not having a good day. She just lost her job after exposing that one of the owner's wives was stealing money, her car's window broke, her obnoxious neighbor took up both her and his parking spots forcing her to park on the street. He then proceeded to use the last of her laundry detergent after tossing her clothes off of the communal washing machine and, to top it all off, confiscated her pizza. Having enough of being walked over that day, Zoe tries to reclaim her food only to have Trevor tell her "Its not like you need it." Feeling mildly guilty for saying that out loud, Trevor decides to make amends by getting Zoe a job at his uncle's construction business. He also decides to pay her to do his laundry, grocery shopping, and clean his apartment. Slowly over the weeks, Trevor and Zoe find themselves becoming friends. However, Trevor is mortified when he finds himself attracted to Zoe. After all, she's the complete opposite of his dream woman. She's plain, can't cook, and worst of all (to him) she's fat. Thinking it's just a phase that he'll eventually get over, Trevor proposes a friends with benefits relationship.

I loathed Trevor in this book, to me, he had no redeeming qualities. The only reason why I didn't stop reading is because I enjoyed the first book in the series, Playing for Keeps, so I kept hoping that Mathewson would somehow save the book... but it never happened.

Trevor's demeanor is supposed to come off as humorous and endearing, as in "Oh ha-ha, he has no regard for other people's feelings except his own. Oh tee-hee, he thinks everyone around him should be grateful for anything he does while he completely ignores all the things others do for him." This did not work for me. Trevor thinks he's god's gift to women and that Zoe should be grateful he's even deigning to talk to her because she's not up to his normal exacting standards. For her part, Zoe does everything for him except assist him in the bathroom and instead of acknowledging all that she does, Trevor completely writes it off as his due. Yes, he's paying her to clean his apartment and get his groceries, but what she does for him extends well beyond that. Somehow this attitude is supposed to come off as endearing and cute, but it just worked to frustrate me. Especially at the end, when Trevor begins to show some character growth by thinking that maybe he's been taking Zoe for granted. Of course that immediately goes down the drain when two seconds later he basically thinks, "Screw that! How dare she not believe I really want to be with her?!" Trevor is just an awful human being.

And oh my god, the body hate in this book! There are so many malicious throw-away comments about Zoe and her weight that I lost count. Even Trevor hops on this band wagon by constantly thinking Zoe is too fat to be with him. In fact, he goes out of the way to avoid associating with her in public, even in a friendly sense, all she gets is an aloof head nod when they see each other. Trevor also constantly hears people saying disparaging things about her and just shrugs it off. Like, "yup, she's fat. Its not my problem that she keeps over-hearing co-workers malicious comments about her weight and that its hurting her so much that she's starving herself in the attempt to get to a super-model size, just so they'll stop." Seriously? He can't say one thing in her defense, even as a friend because the guys might get the impression that he actually has feelings for a woman that doesn't look like a Victoria's Secret model? God, I hated this. By the end of the book I wanted to give Zoe a cookie and tell her to jump ship on this relationship.
Profile Image for ♡Karlyn P♡.
604 reviews1,265 followers
August 12, 2016

Oh, I loved it! Another really funny, over-the-top, steamy HOT Neighbor From Hell romance. IMHO, this was just as good (if not a wee bit better) than Playing for Keeps.

Trevor wants the PERFECT WIFE:


So Trevor is a typical Bradford male, a guy who is completely full of himself and darn right clueless about women, but who is also considerate (when he tries), loyal and sexy as hell. He could eat you out of house and home, but he is also a hard worker and a devoted family guy who will be there for you in a pinch.

Trevor:


Zoe shares a town-home with her landlord’s nephew, a converted building where the top and bottom half are their own units. The walls are thin, the driveway small, but the rent is cheap. And the guy living upstairs is going to drive her insane! So when he steels her pizza delivery on the same day she lost her job and her car window broke, she lets him know what a terrible neighbor he is – only to find out he owns the building (and is her real landlord) and is the biggest jerk alive.

Zoe:


Feeling like a total cad for insulting Zoe’s weight problem and making her run away crying, he goes about trying to make amends. He helps her get a job at the Bradford’s construction site as the office manager, offers to repair her car, and even offers her a part time job working as his personal shopper and house cleaner. Keeping the refrigerator full might just be the hardest part of her job.



But as Zoe starts to get her life back on track, and is even losing weight, she can’t help but feel lonely. And horny. Really horny! So could she really do a friends-with-benefits with her hot neighbor? Why not.



~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

My final thoughts
This was such a great addition to the Neighbors From Hell series. I can't wait for the next. I loved Trevor and Zoe, even when he was being a jerk and she was pushing his buttons, they really worked for me. They were smoking hot together too, and I really felt the sexual tension between them. It kept me laughing until the end, and the ending made me a believer in these crazy Bradford guys.

I think why I might like this one a bit more than Playing For Keep is that Trevor wasn't quite as obnoxious as Jason, and I could relate to so many of their situations. Zoe's weight problem was a big part of this story, and with that comes a woman who doesn't feel beautiful or worthy of a hot guy like Trevor. It does take him a while to see past her weight issue, but I liked that he got to know her as a person first anyway. As he fell for her as a person, his opinion of her body morphed into total desire and wild lust. I also enjoyed the ending in Perfection too as it wasn't overly angsty like in PFK. When he decided Zoe was going to be his, he holds nothing back. You have to love a guy who is willling to go to such lengths for the woman he loves. Sigh

We also get to see lots more of Jason, Haley and their little rug rats!

Look! A baby Bradford, ready to chow down:


Perfection was...well, perfection. :-)
Profile Image for Bibi.
1,287 reviews67 followers
April 24, 2022
Perfection is a funny book, with tonnes of good-natured banter and sly flippant humour but as Bill Maher recently discovered, great comedy is a trifecta of timing, content, and delivery.I think we know that even a great comic can and has been derailed by the content of their act.

This book, for me, was let down by Trevor, what with the constant derision of Zoe's looks, hair, weight, clothes etc. Yes, he eventually sees the error of his ways but by which time I had lost all interest.

Oftentimes, I found myself laughing AT Trevor rather than with him; just as I felt overwhelmed by the constant reference to the "Bradford appetite for food" or the "Bradford looks" then my favourite, the "Bradford studs". 🙄🔫

Oh for the love of all that is holy and snickers ice cream, I wanted to bludgeon someone (preferably myself) but happily, I sailed through with no injuries. To avoid even the possibility of girl slapping myself, I'm refraining from the other books in the series.
Profile Image for UniquelyMoi ~ BlithelyBookish.
1,097 reviews1,697 followers
March 6, 2014
Full review now posted...

5 ‘damned near perfect’ stars!!
"Does no one care that she just manhandled me?" Trevor demanded, facing the men who should be properly outraged on his behalf.

Jason snorted. "As long as brings me food, she can bitch slap you and call you spanky."

Trevor narrowed his eyes on the men who dared laugh at his pain.

Betraying bastards.
Perfection is the second book in R.L. Mathewson’s Neighbor From Hell series and again, one helluva funny read. Like the first book, this one has laugh out loud dialog, romance, holy hell it's hot in here heat, and I couldn’t put it down!

Description…

Zoe is used to taking care of herself and has long ago accepted that if anything bad was going to happen, it was going to happen to her. So when she loses her job over something most bosses would probably be happy with and her life starts going down hill from there she doesn't expect it to get any better. She certainly didn't expect any help from the loud jerk next door, but then again she has nothing to lose so puts her trust in him and hopes for the best. What she didn't expect was the once in a lifetime opportunity that he offers her through an arrangement where they both benefit and no one is supposed to get hurt, but she should have known better because her luck has never been that good.

Like most Bradfords, Trevor has a soft spot for food, but that's about all. He leads a pretty straightforward life and likes to keep things simple and that includes his relationships. He wants the perfect woman and knows exactly what she'll be like. So when he discovers much to his horror that he's thinking about his frumpy little neighbor he decides the best way to get his head straight is by working her out of his system. He'll keep her around, but only until he finds perfection.

My review…

At the risk of repeating myself… this is one of the funniest books I’ve ever read. The humor is silly humor, but still laugh out loud comical when you ‘hear’ what’s going through Trevor’s head. At first I was a little put off by the ‘fat’ comments from him and his friends, but the author does a great job of making them look like such moronic douche-waffles that I was actually giggling at their cluelessly callous remarks.

And also, just to say… this is one helluva hot story, too. The sexual chemistry between Trevor and Zoe burns up the pages and gives them a spot on my ‘sexiest couple’ shelf that I created with them in mind.

The bottom line…

This isn’t a tragic, compelling, tormented hero read. There are no deep, dark secrets, and no emotional rollercoaster rides. What this is, is a light, sexy romance, and more fun than I can find the words to express. Entertaining, start to finish, and I am soooooooo looking forward to reading more!
Profile Image for peachygirl.
291 reviews840 followers
July 27, 2020
So Trevor is basically another food obsessed weirdo in the long line of Bradfords and the second neighbor from hell. But unlike Jason, this guy is a jerk who thinks he is God's gift to womenkind and doesn't give a damn about anything except eating and fucking. He keeps bragging (thankfully, in his soliloquy) that he has done a favour to Zoe by asking her to sleep with him. And that he'll only carry on this "arrangement" with his plain, frumpy tenant till he finds the perfect wife for him, who would make every guy around a 10 mile radius burn with jealously and cook like a Master chef contestant. All the while thinking, he'll never be pussy-whipped like his cousin i.e. have loving feelings for his wife. As if this wasn't enough to make me want to give him several swift kicks in his ass, he keeps rambling about how a generous and giving person he is. Such a douche!

Zoe, on the other hand was so bloody sweet and deserved better than this miserable jerkwad. I hated how she was body shamed throughout the book and her being so accepting about the whole scenario. Wish she had taken a bat to Trevor's and his buddies' heads and taught them a lesson.

Trevor does try to make up for all the shit he put her through, but never does it feel enough. The ending was all sappy and shit like the previous book with food obsessed 'cute' kids and large, happy family gatherings, but there could have been a bit of grovelling for the guy before Zoe agreed to marry his sorry ass. Considering the over the top humor and okayish romance, I'd probably give this book 3 stars. Definitely a let down from Playing for keeps.
Profile Image for Searock.
147 reviews1 follower
February 10, 2012
Kissing my kindle
Muah
Smack
Smooch
Peck, peck, peck
I love this fluffy little story. When you get past the slightly corny beginning, it becomes...
Wonderful
Quirky
Lighthearted
Laugh out loud funny

Better review when I get to an actual computer!
Profile Image for Cristina.
342 reviews332 followers
September 12, 2015
I really needed a pick me up and this book was just perfect for that. The funny dialogue, the unusual characters and the fact that there was no instalust or instalove made it all better. :D

Not to mention the weird relationship with food that all the Bradford men share...it was definitely a treat :P

description

Ohhh...I almost forgot...loved the fact that the main female character was a woman with curves and not "the most beautiful thing he's ever seen". It made this crazy unbelievable story just a little more real :D

description

But when Trevor called her fat (true...not in so many words) I just wanted to pull him out from my Kindle and smack him around a little...he deserved it...

description
Profile Image for Jae.
693 reviews178 followers
February 19, 2012

Don't you just lurve it when a non-conventional heroine (who was not tall, slender and willowy) bagged the hot Hero? And in this case the short and plump girl totally brought the wicked stud to his knees.

Trevor was not as bad as his cousin Jason, but a Bradford is still a Bradford, known for their love for all that is food. And Trevor's antics were equally juvenile in this book too. Love for another Bradford in the future books.
Profile Image for Sonia.
1,110 reviews1,615 followers
January 26, 2023
4.5 stars a nostalgic read

2015 REVIEW
This is my second book from Mathewson and I have to say that I absolutely love the writing style!!! There's romance and sexual tension yet so many comedic moments that I find myself laughing out loud. I can't wait to read more! I absolutely loved Trevor and Zoe's story!

CURRENT REVIEW
Rereading this took me back. It’s been over 8 years since I read it 😬😱

Also… I didn’t realize how much sex is in this book. Dear LAWD. These two put bunnies to shame!!!!

Zoe’s (29) having the worst day ever. Not only did she get fired for DOING THE RIGHT THING, but her car window breaks, in the middle of the rain, along with her heel, she gets stuck in the mud, and her food delivery is taken by her neighbor.

Her very VERY annoying and loud neighbor 😑 (who she finds out is ALSO her landlord 😬).

Travis enjoys his life, except for the fact that he can’t order ANY delivery food from anywhere because he’s been banned 😅😬. He’s a Bradford and they’re all known for their LARGE appetites and willingness to get aggressive when it comes to food 😅🤣. So when a delivery guy accidentally knocks on his door instead of Zoe’s, well he does the only respectable and gentlemanly thing.

He takes the food and pretends it’s for him 😅 and gives no f’s about Zoe 🤣🤣🤣.

She finds out and confronts him… and then he says the only thing that could hurt a curvy/big girl- that she doesn’t NEED the food 🫣 😬😅 (don’t worry… Zoe doesn’t commit murder 😬).

He feels terrible after and finds out that Zoe’s in need of a job. Good thing his uncle needs someone to help them out with their construction business.

And that’s how Zoe begins working for the Bradfords. All seems well until Zoe decides she wants to get over her 5-year dry spell. When she goes out to try to find ANY guy to f, Travis gets jealous and propositions that they have a sex-only, friends-with-benefit type of relationship.

And Zoe accepts 😈.

What I liked:possible spoilers
—how Travis and Zoe decided to beat all bunnies out there, because they f better than them 👀😅. Like. Seriously 🔥 how the hell does Zoe still have a vagina???? Even I was sore. Like. Girl. Zoe. Are you alive??? Blink twice if you need help. Jeeezus Christ 🥵🔥. Viagra needs to study Travis and find out what they need to do to add to their magic blue pill, because Travis is king in that department. Refractory period where??? It doesn’t exist for him 🔥. Zoe, you lucky lucky girl… you need to live off ice baths 🤣. It’s hard not to be jealous 💅.

—how “convincing” Travis is when he wants something 👀.

—the way body insecurities are addressed. Zoe’s a bigger girl, which means, she knows and is VERY aware of what people think. I felt this. I’ve known people that do what Zoe did- which was restrict her calories to be in such a deficit that she lost a lot of weight quickly. It’s not just there where her insecurities come in, but in the bedroom as well. Again, I understood her feelings and struggles. It can be tough 🤷🏻‍♀️ especially when we’re being spoon fed images of the perfect body ALL. THE. DAMN. TIME! 😐 I know people wanna make it seem like once the HEA happens, all insecurities are gone, but the reality is that for many of us, it doesn’t happen. Luckily, we need to find partners that love every single part of us ❤️ and Zoe found that in Travis.

—the obsession with food 🤣🤣🤣. Omg. These men are O B S E S S E D!!! If only we could get men to look at us like these men look at pizza, chicken wings, and sandwiches 🤣🤣🤣. But also… SAAAAME!!! 😅🤣 #thestruggleisreal

—the 🔥. Look. I know I mentioned this above, but this is me commenting on how O B S E S S E D Travis is with Zoe, her body, her beauty (even though she’s described as a plain Jane). He gives no F’s and just wants her. There are scenes were there are beautiful, thin women around and he has NO REACTION . His dick ain’t stiff 💅💅💅. His addiction is Zoe and she’s all he needs 👏🏻👀🔥. That’s a real man right there.

—the cute stuff. I love that Zoe read to Travis lol (brought me back to my Twilight obsession years) or how *accepting* Travis was to the dog(s) she adopted 😅. Even them talking through the wall was cute (and smart 🤷🏻‍♀️)

—Jason and Haley make lots of appearances 🥹. Omg Jason trying to get Haley fired for sexual harassment had me DYING 🤣🤣🤣💀💀💀

—Jason defending Zoe. When his “friend” calls her fat and ugly, Jason takes care of his ass 💅🤷🏻‍♀️👏🏻

—the audacity. Oh gawd. Jason gives no f’s and does things without Zoe’s permission. She should be happy he moved her in without her knowing 🤷🏻‍♀️ less stress on her 💁🏻‍♀️

What I wanted more of/didn’t like:
—the fat shaming comments were 😬. Even Jason’s thoughts at first weren’t the most positive, but it showed his growth and obsession with Zoe as he started to change his way of thinking and viewing her. It was an obvious dichotomy between the beginning and ending (or more like middle) of the book. But still …😬😅

—I wish we had seen more of them dating. I know their relationship was a secret, but once he decided to commit, I wanted to see more.

—although his dyslexia is a huge insecurity for Travis, we don’t see it come into play as much. There was potential for some angst here

Overall, I loved it ❤️

⚠️safety squad ⚠️
-no cheating/sharing
-neither mc have had sex in a long time (5 years for her/1.5 years for him)
-H has dyslexia
-fat shaming/body dysmorphia/eating disorder (counting calories)/death of parents mentioned
-OMD- when the h tries to go to a bar to find a guy to have sex with, the H scares all of them off; the H goes ballistic thinking of her with OM; anytime men gawk at her, he loses his ish
-OWD- the H’s friend sets him up on a date. The H accepts but then realizes he doesn’t want the ow. There are girls that constantly flirt with him when they go out. The H puts them all in their place, politely
-condoms, but 😈
-HEA/epilogue 8 years later
Profile Image for Suzanne (Under the Covers Book blog).
1,745 reviews558 followers
August 25, 2022


October 2013 Reread- This book once again rocked my world!!


WARNING! Do not read this in public areas...people think you are crazy when you laugh hysterically for seemingly no reason...assholes

This has got to be the best 72p I have EVER spent and has now sparked off a teeny tiny obsession with buying every book that R.L. Mathewson has ever published.

Zoe has had the worst day of her life. Ever. Attacked by the bosses wife, unfairly fired from her soul destroying job, her car window breaking and then the final straw her arrogant neighbour from hell stealing her pick-me-up pizza. She can't take any more. But the confrontation with her neighbour the handsome, arrogant food obsessed Trevor leads in to unexpected directions as they set up a little arrangement to benefit them both.

I bought this on impulse as I love plain Jane stories, I am ashamed to say I thought it would be a quick enjoyable but ultimately forgettable read, I was wrong, I LOVED this book. It was funny and sexy and it reminded me alot of Shelly Laurenston's style, it has the same foul mouthed, sarcastic humour THAT I LOVE! Trevor also reminded me alot of an SL hero (Briec!) he was adorably arrogant, completely self centered most the time but also hot as hell. Zoe was good as well, funny and I loved seeing her come out her shell, watching her wind up Trevor was hilarious.

The romance between them as well as being funny, was also sweet and steamy, they slowly went from fuck-buddies to being in a relationship without either of them really noticing. The other characters around them were also great, the whole Bradford Clan were completely food obsessed and a little insane and I can't wait to read more about them!

This was a great book, I loved every second of it am now off to Amazon to loot the rest of R.L Mathewson's books...!
Profile Image for Katie(babs).
1,838 reviews532 followers
March 2, 2012
Perfection is the second book in A Neighbor from Hell series showcasing Jason’s cousin Trevor. I disliked Trevor immensely. He’s boorish, selfish and when it comes to the heroine, Zoe, he treats her poorly. Poor Zoe is a former foster child who has no family and ends up losing her job for doing the right thing. She lives in the same building with Trevor, who’s the landlord. It’s only him and her who live there. He’s a horrible neighbor, both greedy and selfish, only thinking of his own needs, and after Zoe gets fired, all she wants to do is eat her pizza she orders. Trevor steals the pizza, because he’s been banned from most restaurants and take out places for some unknown reason. Trevor is scary obsessed with food, and when Zoe confronts him, he says she doesn’t need to eat the pizza, implying she’s fat. Zoe is what you would call a bigger woman weight wise. Trevor then feels guilty for what he has done and offers her a job as his personal housekeeper of sorts and getting her job as his uncle’s secretary.

Things are looking up for Zoe and she decides she wants to have more of a social life and that means dating and sex. When Trevor finds out she’s on the prowl for a man, he volunteers to help her out, although they must keep their relationship a secret because she’s not the right woman for him. The fact that she’s overweight and his friends and work buddies will make fun of him makes Trevor wary in letting anyone know what Zoe means to him. Zoe is fine with the friends with benefits thing and Trevor really makes her happy in bed. He’s a big giver and doesn’t mind her curves at all, even as she starve herself to lose weight, which to her surprise Trevor is angry about. Soon Trevor can’t stop thinking about Zoe and wants much more from her. He decides she must stay with him and make him happy until he tires of her, which may be another few decades or so.

I have a love/hate relationship with Perfection. It’s pretty much the same tone as Playing for Keeps, but Trevor is a major asshat. My dislike for him grew during one scene when his co-workers are making fun of Zoe’s weight and calling her rude names. Trevor allows it because he feels if he comes to her defense, they’ll figure out he has feelings for her and in turn make fun of him. There were many instances where Trevor would put down Zoe in his mind while wanting to have sex with her every which way. Toward the end he was somewhat redeemed, but he’s pretty much selfish until the end. Also the non-stop obsession with food for him and the amount he eats is so over the top and unrealistic. Zoe has very little backbone and I felt so bad for her, even though she has many orgasms thanks to Trevor.

I was at odds with Perfection overall because it was too zany and Trevor is just too selfish and I wanted to chuck him over a cliff. But even with my issues with Trevor, I did enjoy this one but with some reservations.
Profile Image for Karla.
987 reviews1,105 followers
February 22, 2012
A delightful, crazy romp with another food obsessed, bossy, obnoxious Bradford. This book had me laughing out loud at all Trevor’s crazy antics. What a scrumptious nut job. Zoe needs someone to be her champion and Trevor is just the man for the job. She’s his tenant and they’ve never spoken, but he still manages to annoy the HELL out of her. The first time they have a face to face encounter he insults her, over food of course, and regrets what he says the minute it comes out of his mouth. So, he tries to right the wrong by helping her out and along the way, he falls in love with her.

See, Zoe’s a plump girl, and Trevor has a list of standards that his future wife needs to meet. Zoe meets none of them, but it doesn’t matter, because even though in Trevor’s head she’s not perfect, his heart has him feeling differently…only it takes him FOREVER to realize it. I cracked up as Trevor kept convincing himself that she is nothing that he wants, but being he’s such a “giver”, this is what drives him to take care of her. He also helps satisfy her sexual needs, his way of protecting her from all the evil men out there who will just take advantage of her...yeah right Trevor!!! Oh and the two of them were insatiable, and did “it” six ways to Sunday…very HOT! Zoe held her own against Trevor and as much as he played her, she played him right back. They interacted so well and made an amusing couple.

Initially I thought that since the first book ended 10 years in the future that this book would continue from that point. What a pleasant surprise, when I realized that it was only 2 years later and that Haley and Jason were expecting their second child. So, not only did we get Trevor and Zoe’s story, we got crazy Jason and the lovely Haley too. Jason hasn’t changed much and fatherhood has made him nuttier and even more arrogant, didn’t think THAT was possible, but he is. When Jason and Trevor were together it was like Laurel and Hardy on testosterone. Food is what drives this family and they ate so much I started to get a stomachache, although I think some of it was from laughing so much.

Just another fun well-written book from this talented author, with witty dialogue, crazy antics and charming loveable characters!

Photobucket


We are currently having a Giveaway at Swept Away By Romance-R.L. Mathewson is giving away ALL of her published books to 2 very lucky winners (ends on February 23, 2012)

http://sweptawaybyromance.blogspot.com/
Profile Image for [~Ami~]♥Sexy Dexy♥ .
501 reviews475 followers
December 16, 2013
5 stars



This book has hearts and flowers written all over it. Zoe is jobless and alone. Her landlord, Trevor, helps get her a job. A start of a great frienship turns into friends with benefits.

I really liked Zoe. I thought she was a strong heroine considering her background. Trevor's character was over the top and hilarious but such a sweetie.

You're a Bradford... We always fuck up


It was predictable but entertaining. A fabulous light and funny book that left me with a fat grin.
Profile Image for Alice.
342 reviews79 followers
May 19, 2015
3-3.5 stars!

In this case, the 3-3.5 star rating means that I enjoyed the book! I was suffering from a book hungover and I was looking for a cute, light and funny book and this was exactly what I needed.

Some scenes made me LOL so hard, especially because of Bradfords obsession with food! LMAO!

The Bradford appetite was a disability, damn it and should be treated as such.

I couldn't rate it higher because

Overall, it was an entertaining and enjoyable story and I'm looking forward to reading the next books in the series!
Profile Image for Elise ✘ a.k.a Ryder's Pet ✘.
1,314 reviews3,030 followers
February 9, 2017
This was shockingly a huge disappointment of something that could have been very good. I adore friends to lovers books, adore it even more when they start off as enemies... however I hate it when the characters ruins what could've been a good story. Though not much happened in this book, it would still be interesting enough to enjoy if it weren't for the characters. I didn't mind Zoe O'Shea (29) so much, simply because she was a plain character (ironic, really, considering that's how our male character found her as a woman) and you just wouldn't mind her as she just is.
“We all fuck up when it comes to our women and you will too. The key is to make her love you more than you piss her off,” Jason added. “It’s a very delicate balance.”

Trevor Bradford (30+?) on the other hand... damn, I can't tell you how many times I wanted to slap his face, roll my eyes, or stab him. He was not just arrogant (I don't mind an arrogant man, but there's a line, and if you cross it...big no), he was rude, mean and weak. If you know me, then you know the male character is a huge deal to me. If I don't like the man, then the book is over for me. I simply need to love the male character in a book. It's just that simple. Though Trevor pick himself up in the end, it didn't make up for all the shit he did for the rest of the book. He had his cute moments, but for the most part, I really disliked him. Might even had hated him at some point. So overall, the story got destroyed because of the characters, aka Trevor. Also, I wasn't a fan of the food 'issue' the people had in this book...
She also wasn’t the type of woman who made men drool, besides him, and got the attention of every guy in the room, but that was okay because none of them should be fucking looking at her anyway.


Quick basic facts:
Genre: - (Adult) Contemporary Romance
Series: - Series, Book Two
Love triangle? -
Cheating? -
HEA? -
Favorite character? - Toby and Max
Would I read more by this author/or of series? - I'm stupid, who knows.
Would I recommend this book/series? - No, not really.
Will I read this again in the future? - No.
Rating - 2 stars.
Profile Image for K.
302 reviews674 followers
November 3, 2016

5 "perfectly imperfect" Stars.



Changed my rating.
I'm just going to bump it up to 5 stars since I keep rereading it, and it gets better a better every time. I don't see a reason why it shouldn't get 5 stars. This book was fucking perfect! Everything i look in a romance. Both characters are wonderfully flawed, i just adore their imperfections. I actually didn't care for rest of the books in the series. Many, many 1 or 2 star reviews are coming, I'm afraid.

4.5 Stars!
“She also wasn’t the type of woman who made men drool, besides him, and got the attention of every guy in the room, but that was okay because none of them should be fucking looking at her anyway.”



I know, i need to catch up on my reviews but i just don't have the time. :(
I enjoyed this book a lot more than i thought i would. Many people love the first book, i just couldn't get into that one so i started this with very low expectations, it totally caught me off guard. Trevor and Zoe really surprised me. I could relate to both of them, and i loved that! Might have a little something to do with them not being "perfect" and cliche. I appreciate authors taking risks with their characters/plot.

Overall thoughts;
Profile Image for Zasha.
42 reviews72 followers
February 6, 2017
Really funny , really cute but the only thing was
Profile Image for Mitch C..
465 reviews45 followers
July 2, 2020
I love food. I love eating. I’m not on a diet. I don’t even count my calorie and carb intake just for the hell of it. And I simply don’t care if I gain or lose weight with all the food I stuff in my mouth. But that doesn’t mean I should worship a man who doesn’t give a shit about those too. Especially if that man is gluttonous, er, fixated about eating. I simply don’t find it adorable.

You see this book have marked me as the hero food obsessed, the heroine a big dull dud. I skimmed some parts because I constantly find myself in the kitchen either fixing a meal or hors d'oeuvre. Then I asked my sister-in-law to make me some dessert (mango graham cheesecake – yummy!). To top it all off, I threw in some cocktail drinks and voila, complete course of meal. In short, Perfection. LOL.

As I finished this book, my belly is full, I had a wonderful time with my sister-in-law while she’s baking my dessert and I got reacquainted with my favorite cocktail drink. So this cookbook novel, in some way, helped me enjoy my reading. Hence, 2-star.

About the story?



H is the owner. h is the tenant. H is kinda pervy with specific type of girls. h is sex-deprived for years who is completely the opposite of H’s type. They became friends with benefits. Fell in love. Fought about some stuff. Kissed and made up. HEA.

Like I’ve said, skimmed.

Profile Image for Emily.
5,509 reviews527 followers
October 2, 2017
Trevor Bradford has his ideal wife in mind and she is perfect from head to toe, in fact he has a list with the traits that they need to possess in order to maintain perfection. His quiet little tenant in his townhouse has a few of those traits but she is hardly his type and she is a full figured woman and his plans to have a svelte wife who cooks like a goddess is more important.

Zoe has had it with her neighbor, he is loud, dirty, and inconsiderate. After the day from hell where she promptly lost her job after uncovering a thief, she had car troubles and is a sopping wet mess due to the weather. What she really needs is comfort food and to curl up in a ball, what she gets is her neighbor stealing her takeout order and insulted all in the same breath.

What starts out as a tolerable relationship ends up leading to a friends with benefits but no commitment arrangement, but to think it will be easy to maintain a distance is proving to be harder than both of them thought.

I would have given this a five, but Trevor is a bit of a dick for awhile. He is funny and charming in his own weird way but it took him awhile to man up. However I give this a 4.75 I was laughing out loud repeatedly, the Bradfords and their food habits crack me up. Great book.
Profile Image for Saly.
3,434 reviews568 followers
February 13, 2012
Rating 3.5
This didn't work that well for me since I didn't love Trevor as much, he came across as shallow and for a long time I didn't like his treatment of Zoe, his tenant. Yes, he gets her a job after she is fired and also employs her to clean up his place, what I didn't like was that in the beginning he had a lot of negative thoughts about the way she looked, yes she was overweight and even when he sees her starving herself and knows it is wrong, doesn't intervene since they are keeping it casual.

He is arrogant enough to want the perfect woman, slim, who can cook etc so it was fun to seem him fall for someone who is the complete opposite. Though it took him too long to get his head straight and realize that he was bonkers over her and that their arrangement about being friends with benefits in secret was not working for him and he wanted more.

Profile Image for Christy.
4,238 reviews35.1k followers
July 6, 2020
Loved this one! Just as good as the first :-) Zoe and Trevor were great, emotional moments, hilarious moments it had it all! Enjoyed their story and I loved how Jason, Haley and the other Bradfords were back! Can't wait to read book number 3 in this series.
Profile Image for Mimi Smith.
570 reviews117 followers
July 17, 2014
3 stars

Another great installment in the series! A really fun book.

So, we're back with the Bradfords and their food obsession. This time the dastardly neighbor is Trevor, Jason's cousin. His little tenant is Zoe.

Zoe has had a bad day/year/life. She's survived foster care, a shitty job and termination. She is now jobless and pissed off. And she will not let her neighbor still her food too! She is an interesting character. Really smart, but with a low, low self-esteem, because she is overweight, she has a hard time accepting compliments...

"You're beautiful, Zoe," he said, realizing at that moment just how beautiful she really was. From her beautiful soft brown hair to her stubborn little chin she was beautiful.
"No, I'm not," she said with a snort and an eye roll as she averted her eyes.
His eyes narrowed dangerously on her. "Are you calling me a liar?"
"More like delusional," she said with a snort.
"How dare you question my taste, woman?" he demanded. "If I say you're beautiful then you're beautiful so get the hell over it!" he snapped.
"Look, I appreciate the compliment, but-"
"Out," he said, dropping onto his back and folding his arms over his chest as he stubbornly looked away from her.
"But-"
"I said out, woman!"
"This is my apartment," Zoe pointed out, sounding close to laughing.
"Then you know where the door is. Now get out, woman, and don't you dare come back until you're ready to apologize to me," he said, waving a dismissive hand in the direction of the door.


I did like how the extreme dieting that Zoe is doing is not portrayed as ok. Trevor actually sees and comments it's wrong for her to starve herself. Other than a very, very assholish comment at the start he doesn't try to belittle her or make her feel less.

Trevor is unbelievably arrogant. Kind of like Lothaire, but without the excuse of being a millenia old vampire. He can do no wrong and the little people are around so they can feed him. For his wife he wants perfection and Zoe is not perfect, so... I had a problem with his thoughts at a certain point. Thinking she's not in his league(not pretty enough) is just wrong all around. Still, it was sweet watching him become the Adoring Disciple of Zoe. The Bradford obsession with food and Trevor's arrogance (which is a consequence of an unhappy childhood) are scary...

"Of course he could order food, except for the fact that he was still on the banned list for most of the delivery places.
Bastards."

"He'd never had a problem convincing anyone that doing something for him was actually to their benefit."

""I.....don't want......you," she said, sucking in a breath. "Go...away."
Instead of getting mad, which under normal circumstances he probably would have done, he leaned over and pressed a kiss to the back of one of the hands that was holding her head tightly. If he didn't know that she had a head injury and was obviously out of it, he might have taken that personally, but he knew she loved him.
How could she not? He was so damn giving after all, he thought as he ducked out of the way before her blind swing could connect with his jaw."


I loved this book, but I preferred the first one. Trevor's disparaging thoughts, her low self-esteem and the friends with benefits storyline lessened my enjoyment a bit. Still, a great read.
Profile Image for Milica's Bookshelf.
968 reviews265 followers
May 17, 2016
Ljudi, ja obožavam ovaj "Neighbor from Hell" serijal. Mada mislim da je prvi deo za nijansu bolji od ovog, baš me briga, jer su oba dela jako zabavna. :)
Bredfordovi i njihova opsednutost hranom je zaista urnebesno smešna. :D


"Would it have killed you to keep it a secret between us?" Trevor asked as they stepped in line.
"It's a buffet Trevor. They would have found out about it within a week," Zoe replied.
"Yes, but that would have been a week that I could have enjoyed this place before those greedy bastards got us all banned." Trevor sighed.
"Gee, I hadn't thought of that," she mumbled, trying not to laugh.
Trevor slowly looked down at her. His eyes narrowed dangerously on her as she did her best to bite back the smile, but lost that battle several times.
"Oh my god.... You sold me out!" he said looking shocked.
"I wanted to see how a whole family gets banned from a restaurant" she admitted with a shrug.



Profile Image for Sabrina.
3,809 reviews2,320 followers
November 29, 2018
Audio re-read 11/29/18
I still like this story but I skipped around on the audio a lot. I forgot just how much Zoe doubted herself and how prevalent Trevor's asshole behavior was in the story and it got a bit much to listen to for so long.
Profile Image for Leila.
411 reviews78 followers
November 25, 2020
11/23/20
Still enjoy reading this one...and around Thanksgiving too...told you! ;)
It does take Trevor much to long to realize that his idea of the 'perfect' woman is total bull$h!t.
This wasn't going to last anyway. He'd have ended things in another fifty or sixty year with her. He'd never wanted anything permanent with her so this really didn't bother him. This was fine.

_________________
1/4/19
I can’t believe that I’ve never written a review for this book before.
Well, this has been about my fifth read of this book, I usually get a hankering to reread it around Thanksgiving/Holidays.
I know that many of you will probably be turned off by Trevor’s inner monologue and his view of what the perfect woman is, but I think that’s what most attractive men believe...call me naive.
Always feeling like I’ve never been pretty enough, or skinny enough, or just enough, I could totally relate to Zoe. Although, thankfully I haven’t had her horrible string of bad luck.
This is an fun, witty take on the enemies-to-friends-with-benefits-to-lovers story. Had me laughing at the absurdity of the Bradford men and their obsession with food, crying with Zoe and the life she’s had, melting at the sweetness of Uncle Jared towards Zoe and Trevor. Loved seeing the returning characters from the first book.
I’m sure I’ll be rereading this one again the next time Thanksgiving rolls around.
Profile Image for Grace.
97 reviews14 followers
May 23, 2015
The plot:

Zoe: My life is a mess

Trevor: Mine's great. I'm awesome. You're fat!

Zoe: Oh my, you're right. *starts dieting*
*checking calendar* whoa, I haven't had sex for five years. I need it now

Trevor: Life's good. The only thing missing is wife with Victoria Secret model body, whose cooking skill leveled Ina Garten and can find something to do when I don't need her, with... Hey, is Zoe losing some weight? look at those delicious curves. Zoe, be my fuck buddy. *eat*

Zoe: Um, I'm not sure. It's been five years. But why not. I've been waiting for five fucking years.

Trevor:You're beautiful now *eat*

Zoe: I don't believe you.

Trevor: How dare you call me a liar, woman! *eat*

Zoe: I'm pregnant.

Trevor: Yay! Now let me handle everything and just do as I say. *eat*

Zoe: Okay




Calling Trevor a jerk would be the understatement of the year. Be dominant, in the alpha-way is okay. But Trevor is not alpha-male type. He's over-controlling, selfish domineering asshole. Yeah, he's the main reason for the one star rating.
September 27, 2019
3 get a little self-respect (& esteem) please stars

Trevor is Jason's cousin, one of the Bradford men who seem to have bottomless pits for stomachs (seriously --- I have never heard of people eating this much in my life - feels a SMIDGE overdone with that aspect), who works for his uncle in construction. Trevor has always felt a little overshadowed by Jason who was always good at everything, but he doesn't fault his cousin for that because he has been super supportive all of their lives. One of Trevor's perceived short-comings is that he is extremely dyslexic - he didn't learn to read until age 15. In addition, he had a major a-hole of a father who abused him and his mother (she is the Bradford but passed away 10 years before the start of this book, so he was taken in by his uncle). Now Trevor makes good money and flips houses on the side that he often rents out but leaves the management of them to his aunt because he doesn't want to deal with his tenants. He has a vision of his perfect future: a nice house, 2.5 kids, white picket fence, and the hottest woman on earth as his wife who will be the envy of all. There is no need for love in his idea of perfection - he just wants to be admired and envied.

Zoe came up in the foster system and has never really felt like she fit in anywhere. She found a duplex at a good rate: the only problem is that the landlord's nephew lives in the other unit and is a total jerk. He flushes the toilet when she is in the shower which scorches her, then jumps in and cuts her water pressure and heat to practically nothing. He parks his truck so that it blocks her spot (she has gotten 4 parking tickets because she had to park on the street so many times), and he tracks mud all over her favorite door mat. But because she knows that tenant's family members get away with whatever they want in her experience, she has put up with it to this point, but after the day from hell she just had which included getting fired for doing TOO good of a job, and when her inconsiderate neighbor did all of the things above and then STOLE HER FOOD ORDER, she has had enough! And then, to make things worse, when they are fighting over her food, the gorgeous man dares to tell her that she "doesn't need the food anyway!" Last straw!

Trevor regretted the words as soon as they came out of him mouth, so he makes it up to his plain and plump neighbor by telling her that his uncle needs a secretary. When Zoe goes for the interview, she is surprised that she is hired on the spot, and she decides to make some changes to her life, the first being going on an extreme diet. After about 2 months, she has lost a significant amount of weight and is feeling much more confident - so confident, that she goes out one night looking to get lucky. She doesn't need a relationship because she feels she still has some work to do, but she has been celibate for 5 long years and really wants to get back in the game. When Trevor comes across a drunk Zoe announcing she's out for sex, he immediately gets her out of the bar, and when she tells him on the way home that she wants a no-strings arrangement, he volunteers himself for the job. After all, he has been having some interesting fantasies about her and feels it would be a great way to get over those and get back to focusing on his perfect life. But why not get laid without the drama in the meantime?

What I liked:
--- Steamy goodness!
--- Having some of the characters (especially Jason with his antics) back in this story
--- The angst was relatively low in terms of the miscommunication aspect, and when there were issues towards the end of the book with this, they were resolved relatively quickly which I appreciated as unnecessary angst is a pet peeve for me

What I didn't like as much:
--- GET OVER IT!! It was soooo annoying that Zoe couldn't accept that Trevor found her attractive - she kept insisting she was fat to the extent that it became obsessive and downright annoying
--- Trevor's character was so shallow for most of the book that it made it hard to like him
--- Even after the extreme diet, Zoe is still considered "curvy" so wtf is up with this cover art? Another pet peeve is putting skinny people on covers of BBW romances - ugh
--- It was entirely obvious that... BIG

Overall, it was a decent read but the main characters were pretty irritating at times with their issues.

Plot --- 3/5
Main Characters --- 2/5
Supporting Cast --- 4/5
Steam Level* --- 4/5
Violence --- nothing graphic
Language --- not egregious
POV --- 3rd

*Note that steam level is not a rating so much as a how hot was it: 0/5 - clean; 1/5 - mild; 2/5 - sensual but nothing descriptive; 3/5 - now we're getting somewhere; 4/5 - yes please! ; 5/5 - they did EVERYTHING in this one, y'all
Profile Image for Crazy About Love 💕.
266 reviews97 followers
August 15, 2022
⭐️⭐️ two stars -

* update and change to rating, including explanation - 4/29/22

* Reread, and I have to say that I have no idea what must have been going on in my life at the time of original review to have given this its original four star rating, because that is not what this book warrants from this reviewer 💁‍♀️😂

While I did like this book better than the first installment in Matthewson’s Neighbor From Hell series, I definitely feel as if it’s too problematic for me to recommend it as a four star read. It also ends my reading of this series, as I didn’t find either of the two books that I read (series books #1 and #2) enjoyable enough to be wowed by this author to compel me to read any more of this series.

So, why the downgrade? Well, it’s the lack of concise story fulfillment. It’s a pretty superficial plot, while cute for the most part, and it is fairly short, it’s not something that was completely fulfilling for me. The plot potential, and the creativity of the unique plot is what makes this story, but it’s the overall execution that fails it.

The reason for the execution failure lies in the surface character development. While the story is mostly cute enough to pass the time, and the new two star rating falls under my own convoluted two star category of “two star reads that I somewhat enjoyed”, I can’t say that I loved it or even wholly enjoyed it 💁‍♀️

Would recommend as a two star read if you’re looking for a quick, easy to read, won’t tax your brain story. Cute enough as a fairly competent romance.

* original review follows:

Surprisingly, I liked this one. Especially since i didn’t care for the first book in this series at all.

In fact, I didn’t finish that one and gave it one star. Now I’m wondering if I should change it to two stars, since I was obviously willing to give this author another chance….
Update: I’ve actually just changed this to four stars, and am going back to take another look at book #1.

I’m glad I decided to see what all the hype was about and pick up this second book in the Neighbor From Hell series. This one is much better than the first book imo. I enjoyed it, and the things that bothered me about the writing style didn’t bother me as much here because I liked these characters better.

It’s a fairly cliche read, but it’s cute with a believable storyline. I can actually picture the entire cast as real people (I kept picturing real people from Staten Island here lol). Granted, it’s real people times 10, as a lot of traits are super exaggerated, but it works here. I mostly enjoyed these characters - minus all the ott food obsession from the H. The fact that they seemed believable as living people really helped the story.

The heroine here is relatable and I liked her, and I especially liked the development of the romance in this story. I like it enough to reread it as the characters here are fully developed, and that makes this story interesting.

I enjoyed this one enough to give this series another go, and will look for another book from this author.

A solid four star read.
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