Ashlyn Chase - Strange Neighbors

The concept of this book is great. I loved the idea that the apartment building seemed to attract kindred souls, even if some of them didn’t realize the others were there. However, the execution of the story fell short in my estimation, but I’ll save that for later. Let me share a little about the eclectic assortment of inhabitants so that you can get to know them.

First, there’s Jason Falco, All-Star pitcher for the Boston Bullets. He just bought an old brownstone apartment building and remodeled the top floor into his private penthouse suite. He has his aunt Dottie manage the building during the season and his uncle Ralph to do the handy-work. Life was good, or would be if his aunt would just mind her own business. But it was her job to rent out the apartments and be a buffer between him and everyone else. He was trying to stay out of the public eye in his private life. He just couldn’t deal with stress, which included a personal relationship. Then Merry MacKenzie moved in on the 1^st floor. Above all, she could never know his secret!

Merry was on her own for the first time in her life! She had just got a job as a nurse at a hospital in Boston. Finally away from her family, she could make decisions on her own… she was going to date! Play the field! But why oh why was she falling for her landlord so fast? You couldn’t trust a professional athlete! She really didn’t know who or what to trust anymore. The apartment building was filled with people… or beings that were only found in the romance books she read.

There was Chad, the ghost of apartment 3A who patrolled the building. A vampire named Sly who resides in the basement, a pair of witches named Morgaine and Gwyneth who are phone sex actresses “to earn their keep”. Then there is Konrad, the werewolf on the 3^rd floor, Nathan, a shifter who works at the morgue at the hospital with Merry and of course the busybody, snarky, troublemaking Aunt Dottie and laidback Uncle Ralph. Quite a bunch I’d say.

I had a challenge throughout the entire book. There was no depth to any character; I really didn’t end up liking anyone.  Both the male and female protagonist had such severe mood swings I thought they were on drugs, but the author kept saying PMS was the problem. I’ve never used that as an excuse and I don’t think a fictional character should either. Merry’s younger brother apparently had a medical problem, diagnosed as A.D.H.D. which I as a reader couldn’t tell. I felt that Merry was written as condescending as she explained that his disease was the reason for his non-apparent actions.  Some things happened when Jason tested Merry, to see if she would get jealous of other women; let’s just say I was ready to put the book down then… but I finished it. It doesn’t matter what species you are, arrogance is not an acceptable behavior, male or female. I also didn’t like that there was no justice served to snarky aunt Dottie. She wasn’t written like a “nosey neighbor”, she was written as mean, bordering on evil.

Will the next book be on my auto buy? I assume that there will be books for each of the residents in the building. But no, I’m afraid not. I just did not fall in love with the characters. Like I said above, the idea is great, the execution was not.

Until Next Time!

xxoo Terree


Book:  Strange Neighbors
Author: Ashlyn Chase
Others in the Strange Neighbors Series:  The Werewolf Upstairs, The Vampire Next Door