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When small-town engineer Amy Sharpe inherits a house in Toronto, she decides it’s the perfect opportunity to start over and go back to school. Away from the family that takes her for granted, away from the ex who expected so much and gave little in return.
The new Amy enjoys wandering around the city and frequenting bubble tea shops, German beer halls, dim sum restaurants, and coffee bars serving Japanese pastries. She has a roommate with the same name as her favorite fictional character, and a group of friends who meet at a cider bar every couple of weeks.
The new Amy is also in lust with her brooding, tattooed next-door neighbor, Victor Choi, who is far from friendly but looks really hot cutting the grass without a shirt. Too bad the grass doesn’t grow faster.
As she starts telling him about her daily adventures—and as a little kissing in the garden becomes a regular activity—Amy begins to feel more than lust. But she fears she’s falling into her old patterns in relationships and refuses to let herself be underappreciated again.
Is Victor really more than a hot fling? And what’s he hiding behind that grumpy exterior?
Source: borrowed; audiobook from Hoopla
It's been one of my goals to get to a Jackie Lau book and let's just say that I now understand why she posts so much about food!
I picked Her Big City Neighbor because I wanted something light-ish and also adventure-ish, and its blurb fit into what I was looking for. I loved Amy's wide-eyed, open to all possibilities attitude and I found it uplifting, something else I realized I needed as I listened along. Moving from a small town to having her own place in the big city is a bit of a culture shock in some ways but her excitement at exploring her new neighborhood and trying new things just made me smile constantly. Having a hot neighbor who's not bad to look at while he's out mowing the lawn is a definite bonus. I was amused by Amy's attempt to befriend Victor who only ever responded to her non-stop cheery commentary with grunts and monosyllables. Her good nature eventually wears him down and before you know it he's sharing beer with her in the backyard. Chatting turns into kissing which turns into ....
So here's what I most loved about the story - Amy's liberation. While she lived at home she was the reliable daughter and aunt who never said 'no' and did everything for everyone. No one in her family could understand or support her decision to move away and go back to school. She was so taken for granted and it was frankly annoying. Living on Toronto and having these new experiences showed her what she had been missing and more importantly, what she had every right to do. She also left behind a an ex boyfriend who didn't bring much to their relationship. In fully enjoying her single life and making new friends, she garnered the strength to set aside any lingering guilt to declare out loud exactly what she wanted and deserved whether it was family or a burgeoning relationship with Victor. For his part, Victor was learning to come out of his self-imposed bubble after suffering a loss that hit him hard. Numbness was his cure to life carrying on. Amy's enthusiasm and energy simply renewed his interest in things around him and gave him the courage to feel again.
The second thing I loved about the story - the food! Oh.My.God. I learned a hard lesson in the first chapter and that I should never read or listen to a Jackie Lau book on an empty stomach. The story is filled with serious food porn which made me ravenous half the time! There is serious joy in someone excitedly trying new things and gaining such pleasure from those experiences. I kind of wished that I was the one trying some of these new foods for the first time again. From pastries to bubble tea to dim sum ... it was all so delicious and I pretty much lived vicariously through Amy.
I thought the audiobook narration by Emily Woo Zeller was well done. She was animated and captured all of the characters nicely. I especially liked how she captured Victor's mom. It was perfect and so very familiar to me. Her Big City Neighbor was a fun escape for me and I know for the next time I listen to a Jackie Lau book to make sure I have some delicious snacks on hand.
~ Bel
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