Review of Her Neighbor

[Laney K]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Her Neighbor" by D. A. Olivier.]

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5 out of 5 stars

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Her Neighbor by D. A. Olivier is the story of two neighbors and their relationship over time. Julienne was a quiet child who bonded with Daniel, her childhood neighbor. They remained close friends though each married and had separate lives. One day, Julienne gets a call from Daniel and bails him out of jail. She decides to take him to her beach house to try and help him with his latest crisis. Daniel had a pattern of binge drinking and getting into trouble whenever something bad happened in his life. During their week on the beach, both Julienne and Daniel are forced to come to terms with the unspoken truths of their relationship.

My favorite part of this book was how Olivier weaved together different parts of Julienne and Daniel's relationship. The story jumped around in time. This allowed the reader to get more of their story as opposed to just the events in the present. I especially liked the juxtaposition of younger Julienne, who didn't talk, and adult Julienne, who had found her voice and place in the world. Seeing how people grow and change over time is fascinating to me.

The time jumps also allowed the characters to feel more well-rounded. Both Julienne and Daniel had family issues; Julienne's parents had died, and Daniel's mother had abandoned him. However, they both dealt with their trauma in different ways. Julienne didn't talk, and Daniel was angry. These simple differences really brought the characters to life and set up conflicts.

The only minor issue with this book was the time skips were not always clear. I was sometimes a bit confused as time would change between paragraphs, and it would take me a bit to realize. This happened more at the beginning, and it might just be because I didn't know that's how the book was formatted.

I rate this book 5 out of 5 stars. The minor issue I noted was not enough to take away a star from the rating. I also did not notice a large number of grammatical errors; I believe this book was professionally edited. I would recommend this to adult audiences, as there is strong language and slight sexual content. If you enjoy reading about relationships that stem from childhood, then this is the book for you. This is the perfect book for an afternoon at the beach; it is short enough to be read in a few hours.

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Her Neighbor
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[zynnyx_]

This sounds like an amazing book. Everyone is subject to change as they grow. Nice review.

[Night Reader 1]

Great review. Looking forward to reading it.

[Nqobile Mashinini Tshabalala]

Childhood friendships are genuine and usually mutually beneficial. Julliene and Daniel had a special relationship.