Playing for Keeps: A Neighbor From Hell Novel by R.L. Mathewson

R.L. Mathewson is the master of writing hilarious conversations between characters. I don’t know how many times I laughed out loud throughout the whole book. All the characters are so vibrant and real, I could see myself hanging out with them on any given night. The storyline itself is filled with situations that anyone can imagine themselves going through. Who hasn’t been embarrassed by a friend or irritated with their family at one time or another?  There are some minor editing errors but nothing too bothersome and Mathewson’s conversations between characters are fast-paced as in real life, which makes for exciting yet slightly confusing dialogue at times.

While this is not the type of book I would normally pick up, I loved Mathewson’s  paranormal romance Tall, Dark, and Lonely so much I wanted to see if her other books would be as good. Playing for Keeps did not disappoint! I would highly suggest this book for anyone who likes a good book full of witty banter and believable fun characters. The romance is just sweet enough and the emotional struggles that come from falling for one’s best friend makes this book a keeper. I can’t wait to see what she does next with this series!

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From R.L. Mathewson’s website: http://www.rlmathewson.com/more.html

Done with being the world's biggest pushover, Haley decides that things are going to change starting with the aggravating neighbor who has too much charm and not enough restraint. What she didn't expect was to be sucked into his world, but Haley has a game plan and she won't let herself forget just what the bad boy next door is capable of.

The last thing Jason expected was for his little shy neighbor to go Rambo on him over some ruined flowers. After he decides to take her under his wing he can't help but that notice that she fits very nicely in his life. Now the only left is to convince her that this is anything but a game.

Tall, Dark & Lonely by R.L. Mathewson

R.L. Mathewson’s Tall, Dark & Lonely had me hooked from the first page. When Ephraim wakes up chained to a bed with the maid calling him the devil, I was intrigued and wanted to know more. It just got better after that. The events of Ephraim’s immortal beginnings, in the first 20 pages of the book, happened so quickly that I was breathless by the time the story jumped 200 years to the present day.

The relationship between Ephraim and Madison develops quickly after a rough beginning. There really wasn’t much of a reaction from Madison upon finding out Ephraim was a vampire. The vampire issue becomes more of a humorous part of their relationship problems than a serious obstacle.  The dialogue was excellently written and I found myself laughing many times throughout the book because of the sarcasm and exasperation the characters displayed with each other. There were parts of the story towards the end that felt rushed, but not enough that it took away from the overall enjoyment of the book. I felt there could’ve been more information given to us about the “Sentinels” and “Pytes”. The end of the book was left pretty open so I’m hoping that means we will learn a lot more when the author continues the series. In whole, this book was a great read. I look forward to reading any future work from Ms. Mathewson.

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From Pyte Series Webpage: http://www.rlmathewson.com/pyte.html

Things are finally looking up for Madison. After years of scraping just to get by she lands her dream job and finally has a decent down payment for a house so she can move her brother and sister into a real home. It's too bad nothing ever goes the way it's supposed to. When the mother that abandoned them years ago suddenly shows up and moves them to New Hampshire Madison has no choice but to go or lose the siblings who are more like children to her. Shoving her dreams aside yet again Madison tries to make a life for her siblings only to find that nothing is going the way it should. It's really cold, her fifteen year old sister acts like a hooker in training, men act funny around her, her boss is a real prick, she feels like an outsider, her best friend turns out to be a sixteen year old smartass and the incredibly handsome guy renting the room adjoining hers not only hogs the bathroom taking three showers a day and leaving her with cold water, but he also has a secret. A secret that she becomes a bit obsessed with and can't let go no matter how many times she's warned off.

Ephraim learned long ago not to show any emotion or allow himself to get attached to humans. What was the point? They came and went and he remained. This time wouldn't be any different or so he thought. When his land lady told him her grandchildren were moving in he didn't expect much, well other than to be left the hell alone. What he didn't expect was to have to fight bloodlust every time he so much as caught a whiff of his delectable neighbor's scent or her bombarding him with questions every time she cornered him. If that's not bad enough a Master from his past has found him once again and is demanding his blood and is willing to do anything to get it, even using the beautiful pain in the ass neighbor that makes him feel more than pain for the first time in centuries.