The Next Door Boys

By Jolene B. Perry

With her body still recovering from last year's cancer treatments, Leigh Tressman is determined to be independent. Despite the interference from her overprotective brother, physical frustrations, and spiritual dilemmas-- not to mention the ever expanding line of young men ready to fall in love with her-- Leigh discovers what it actually means to stand on her own and learns that love can be found in unexpected but delightful places.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Cedar Fort Publishing & Media
• Release date: Oct 8, 2011
• ISBN: 9781462101276

Reviews for The Next Door Boys

[l_manning · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Leigh is ready to move on with her life. Having been declared in remission for cancer, she can't wait for things to get back to normal. When Leigh goes back to school, things don't run as smoothly as she plans. As frustrating as this can be, Leigh gets some small amount of comfort from her "next door boys," the boys living in the house next door to her house. Leigh's brother and his roommate are amazing guys who help her out even when she doesn't want them to. As Leigh experiences the ups and downs of college life, her next door boys help her see things in a whole new way.I really enjoyed this book. There are a couple interesting aspects to this story, making it stand out from your typical romance-type book. The first involves Leigh's healing process, both physical and mental. This puts her in a unique position in a couple ways. She doesn't want people to know about her run-in with cancer, because she doesn't want them to see her as frail or weak. Of course, this is an issue with her family as well. On the other hand, she actually does have to take it easy as she is still healing. Trying to find a balance between what she wants and what her body can take is hard for Leigh, and I found this very interesting to read. I also enjoyed Leigh's gradual friendship with her neighbor. Watching her learn to be supportive and supported by others was great.Overall I enjoyed this book a lot. I thought it was sweet and romantic without being overly cheesy. It was also interesting to see Leigh's perspective as a slightly "older" student at BYU. I thought this book was very fun. It didn't really surprise me plot-wise; you'll basically know where this is going from the start. That doesn't make it any less interesting. The journey to the end is where all the enjoyment is. Leigh is one of those characters that helps to pull you into her story and make you care all of those around her too.Galley provided for review.

[jumpintobooks · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This was an excellent book from start to finish in which I received from netGalley and the publisher. I jumped right into the book and didn't even realize that it was a Christian book right away.This book has good Christian and family values and touches on those moments very frequently throughout the novel. As for myself, coming from a Christian background, I could relate quite easily with some of the family closeness and traditions. This book made me want to pull out my Bible again and start reading it.The author did some amazing research into ovarian cancer, touching some of the feelings Leigh was going through and what she had to go through with the cancer and the challenges she could still face.I loved Leigh. Her self struggles to overcome what she went through and to get to where she was. Her stubbornness and independence very likeable, even the little knowledge she had for guys, made this leading character amazing.Leigh's brother, Jaron, was simply one of the best brothers someone could ask for. Very understanding and a rock for his little sister, but also very protective.The story dealt with a lot of social situations from dating to love, marriage and children. It had touched on many good points. Some of the situations had brought me to tears, not at all bawling like a baby tears, just slight tears because of either experiences I went through myself or the sympathy I felt for the character.This is again, a very excellent book. Even if you aren't a Christian, I still recommend the book. I recommend this book to any young adult 16 and over, Christians and non-Christians alike. I had to give this book 5 of 5 stars for the great writing, research and how this story comes to life with the great emotion put into this wonderful story.

[bookswithbite · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This book took my breathe away. If anything bad were to happen to me, I would want faith like this. To hold on to something and not loose sight of it. To just be comfortable with how I am and where I am going is something I adore. I love that Leigh's faith didn't waver. She is beyond her years and I can learn so much from that.I am going to start with the ending. Yes, I am going backwards. I loved the ending. Not because it was a happily ever after, but a new beginning. Hope after something greatly lost. I loved that the ending gave a great defining that if you keep your faith, pray consistently, what you pray for will come to pass.The love in this book gave me many happy tears. I loved that it not only grew over time, but became so much more than what is expected. Leigh knows wants what she can't have, yet God answers her prayers to something better. Something more. I love that Leigh learn a great lesson in faith and in love.The plot line gave me such great chills that I just wanted to start from the first page and read again. I just can't explain how much this book really touched my heart. I adore everything in it. Plus, really I am this type of person. I love to see happy endings and dreams come true.I recommend you read this book if you love a book with a tragedy but a hopeful ending. Ms. Perry did a great job in capturing the characters feelings and letting the reader feel them. This is a book of a kind of faith I want to have. Read it. You'll love it.

[zoey_talbon · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Okay. So this usually isn't the type of book I read, and the beginning had a fair bit of religion - nothing too intense, but a lot of you know I'm not a fan of reading about religion in books.However, for some reason I was okay with it here. It seemed like it was necessary for the plot but it wasn't being shoved in my face. And while I'm not going to say I loved it, after the beginning it didn't come up as often so it was rather easy for me to pretend there was no religion involved :P Leigh is recovering from ovarian cancer and finally moving out of her parent's house and going to college. Of course, her family won't let her be on her own completely, so she ends up living right next door to her brother. I loved the relationship between Leigh and her brother, Jaron, but at the same time, I feel like he wasn't developed enough. I know next to nothing about him other than he worries about Leigh, and sometimes I found myself waiting to find out more about what he likes to do and then being cut short.The relationship between Leigh and Brian, though, was awesome. I love how you get to watch their relationship grow and change through the book - first Leigh is intimidated by him, then he becomes basically her best friend, and then something more. And Brian was a well-developed character to me =)And then there was Leigh's relationship with herself. She wants to be independent so badly, to forget that she was "The Sick Girl," that sometimes she forgets that she still needs to take care of herself, that her body is still recovering. I thought that was very realistic; I feel like a lot of people would have done the same thing. Actually, Leigh herself was a very realistic character, and all her emotions in the book came through so clear. AND SHE HAD A HOBBY. She sewed. That made me ridiculously happy, since YA authors seem to forget that their characters do other things besides stare at pretty boys. I think the only real complaint I have is the ending. It felt too abrupt to me, like maybe there should have been another chapter or two before it really ended.Overall: The Next Door Boys is a realistic, enjoyable novel about a girl recovering and realizing that she's still alive. The secondary characters are just as interesting, and I loved reading from Leigh's perspective. The relationships were fun to read, the emotions rang through loud and clear, and I honestly finished this in one night. 4 stars.