Adriana Locke can expertly weave tales of humor, heart , and a touch of swoon-worthy romance and she does just that with her new neighbors to lovers romantic comedy, Between Now and Forever. Gabrielle is a single mom who is determined and strong and a bit clumsy which has her falling into the arms of her neighbor. The grumpy yet undeniably handsome neighbor, Jay. He tries to resist the chaotic mom of two but he just can't seem to resist the chemistry between the two. Even though Jay's past seems to haunt him how can he resist Gabrielle and the witty banter they seem to share not to mention the CHEMISTRY (again)! But trust comes hard to both of them but will love eventually win out? Well grab this book and find love and laughter on every page!

Between Now and Forever is a single mom, neighbors to lovers romance. I'm not quite sure why but this book was just OK to me. The way they met was funny and I liked both Gabrielle and Jay, but, I don't know, to me it was just fine. Overall it's a cute easy read, and If you like small town, single mom, grumpy/sunshine tropes you might enjoy this book.

Single mom falls (quite literally) for the man next door. Gabrielle and Jay come loaded with baggage they're working through from past relationships.

I loved the way this book highlighted the struggles of motherhood and dating while also being a parent. The chemistry between the characters was palpable from the start, the "meet-cute" was literally so funny and the side characters were so good.

This book saved me from a book slump, I feel like with most books you get either bombarded with angst or no angst at all and Adriana Locke did a wonderful job balancing a good amount of angst making it a quick, enjoyable read and a good length.

This is a standalone about Gabrielle and Jay. This book was definitely an emotional Rollercoaster that pulled at the heartstrings. Helps you to understand & to move on with grief & hurt. This was a good read even if it's a story I wouldn't normally read. But this author has a way with words & there hasn't been a story of hers I didn't like.

Adriana Locke… writes incredible love stories of real people and Gabrielle and Jay are amazing!! They are neighbors, he wants to do life alone. Both have pasts affecting them. Gabrielle and her boys move next to him… I loved her, her love of her family! Watching fall for each other was a great read!!

5 ⭐️
Why you’ll love this book!!
Single Mom
Blue Collar Hero
Neighbors To Lovers
Grumpy X Sunshine
Small Town Romance
Past Trauma
Love After Death


This book had me laughing and giggling and kicking my feet at the moment and character and at other wanting to hug them through all they had been through both Jay and Gabrielle boys had been through huge losses that broke me heart.
This book had my emotions all over in good way I loved this book.. I loved how at first Jay tried to stay away but the pull to Gabby was to strong they really are prefect for each other Adriana Locke killed it when it come to how well the characters flow together not just the main but the side characters and how they make the the others better in their own way a true found family way and I am a sucker for a good found family!!

I found this quick read to be very cute and a little spicy. Both MCs are overcoming their own challenges, Gabby is a single mom whose ex-husband has passed, Jay is overcoming leaving behind a surrogate daughter from his previous relationship was becoming too manipulating. They both have reservations about starting a new relationship together.

5⭐️
3🌶️

Holy crap, another banger by the amazing Adriana! I continue to be amazed by her books! It's been a while since one of her books has made me ugly cry (I'm looking at you Written In The Scars 👀) but man was it worth it! The pasts these two have are so heart breaking and seeing them come together is so beautiful! And Carter? OMG that boy made me laugh! He's so precious! And poor Dylan, he really had a lot on his young shoulders. This book will certainly tug on your heartstrings, especially if you're a parent, but it will also make you laugh and make you feel love. If you're looking for a place to start your Adriana Locke journey, this is a good one! Also... I really want to read more about Della 👀👀👀.

Thank you to NetGalley and Montlake for this opportunity to read and review Between Now and Forever. Thank you @adriana for the physical copy 💚

In Between Now and Forever Gabbie and Jay have one of the funniest and most embarrassing ‘meet cute’ beginnings I’ve read when she lands at his feet wearing nothing but a towel. Talk about making a lasting impression especially when the hunk next door then has to rescue you from a snake and no, that’s not a euphemism for something else. This was a fun filled romcom with a healthy sprinkling of spice as Jay can’t help himself falling for the widowed mom of two, but after being hurt in the past he’s determined to keep her at arms length and friendship is all he can offer despite his heart aching to take a chance. I enjoyed this romcom even though some parts annoyed me. It was a light hearted and easy read with likeable and engaging characters and the overall story was well written. I loved the secondary characters especially Gabbie’s sons but there seemed to be a vibe that a boy needed a man in his life which I felt a little demeaning to boymoms everywhere who have managed to bring up their sons all on their own.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
🌶️ 🌶️ 🌶️🌶️

💜 small town romance
🖤 grumpy sunshine
💜 single mother
🖤 neighbors to lovers

OMG Adriana you are amazing. This book was just too adorable. The way she literally fell into him when they first met. Gabrielle is a single mom with 2 kids that moved back home after her husband passed away, but she is a mess not just because she lost her husband but in general, she is clumsy and likes to do all the home repairs herself even though she has no idea what she is doing (which I think is just perfect). Jay is her grumpy neighbor that wants nothing to do with kids after his previous relationship left him devastated. I love their banter and her sassiness when he tried to boss her around. So cute.

Love this stand alone from Adriana Locke. While I love Adriana's series with big families full of big personalities, this one is a little different, but just as loveable if not more. Gabrielle and Jay are regular people with regular baggage which makes them not necessarily ready for each other but perfect for each other at the same time. Their chemistry is there from day one, but I love the push pull type relationship that keeps it sizzling until they finally act on their feelings. Both characters are so lovable -- Jay is the grumpy man who finds himself rolling his eyes as he gets involved in things he'd prefer to avoid. Gabrielle and her make lemonade out of lemons and try anything attitude is irresistible to a certain hero who feels the need to protect her. Together their stories make for a fun and steamy read. Whether this is your first or fifteenth or more by the author, I hope you love it as much as I did.

“Between Now and Forever” by Adriana Locke is an absolute must read of love, loss, family, friendship, and the magic of second chances.
Gabrielle, a divorced mom of two boys, Dillon and Carter, moves back to her small hometown to start fresh after her ex-husband’s passing. Enter Jay, her next-door neighbor and the town’s resident grumpy carpenter. Jay wants zero drama and even less interaction with his new neighbors. But when Gabby—wrapped in nothing but a towel—takes a swan dive off her back deck, Jay has no choice but to come to the rescue. It’s awkward. It’s funny. It’s the one of the best meet-cutes ever!
Jay’s got a history—one that makes him swear off single moms—but Gabby is impossible to ignore. Watching her slowly chip away at his walls while he fights their sizzling chemistry? Perfection. They’re both carrying baggage, yet somehow, they find themselves stumbling—quite literally—into love. Jay is everything you want in a book boyfriend: rugged, broody, and secretly soft on the inside. And Gabby? A rockstar mom who juggles chaos with as much grace as possible, even when life keeps serving up emotional curveballs.
Now, let’s talk about the boys. Carter? An absolute scene-stealer with his cuteness and his interactions with Jay. Adorable. But Dillon? He’s struggling with his dad’s loss, and that grief causes some serious tension. Will Dillon ever warm up to Jay? Or will his pain keep their family from moving forward? Will Jay manage to let go of his past and step into something real? And can Gabby finally put herself first and grab the happiness she deserves? You’ll have to read to find out!
Oh, and the side characters? Chef’s kiss. Gabby’s new gal pals are squad goals, and their cocktail nights had me wanting to pour a drink and join in.
The journey “Between Now and Forever” is messy, but packed with heart, humor, and just the right amount of steam. Adriana Locke, you’ve done it again! Now I’m officially out of your books. Guess I’ll be rereading The Brewer series and revisiting my favorite Jason Brewer moments while I not-so-patiently wait for my next fix.

Thank you @authoradrianalocke, NetGalley and Montlake for the free ebook arc. All opinions expressed are my own.

3 🌟
Spice: open door

This missed the mark for me. From the beginning, I felt disconnected from the characters. Our FMC comes off super desperate, and I'm not a fan of the way she deals with her disrespectful teenager.
I waited for the audio to be able to get through it, but honestly should have been a dnf.

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

Gabrielle and Jay's story in this neighbor to lovers, single mom romance was a fast-paced and quick read for me. While the characters were written pretty well, I felt as though the story line at times was too rushed and not developed not quite enough. This book had the angst and the pulling of the heartstrings that this author's books tend to have, which did make tears stream down my face. All in all, another great read with some memorable characters, especially the youngest son, Carter.

I always love this authors small town romances and this book is no exception!! In this story we get single mum + grumpy hot neighbour so it’s a definite yes please for me.👏👏

Gabrielle and Jay had chemistry for days and when they finally give in to each other it was 🔥🔥

I loved the banter, the supporting characters and the ending made me smile. Definitely recommend.

Between Now and Forever is a new small-town romance standalone from Adriana Locke and published through Amazon Publishing's Montlake imprint. Thirty-eight-year-old Gabrielle Solomon has just moved back to Alden, Ohio, ready to begin a new chapter after some major life-altering events in her life. She and her husband, Christopher, divorced a few years back, but they remained the closest of friends, which is why his sudden passing devastated her. Now, she's moving forward, raising their two sons, Dylan, fourteen, and Carter, seven, the best she can. She's not quite sure, however, that tumbling into a flower bed while covered with nothing but a bath towel was the best way to make a first, albeit lasting, impression on her new neighbor. Forty-year-old Jay Stetson is hot and single, and as much as he's attracted to the single mom next door, he can't afford to be anything more than friendly with her. He can only resist for so long, but can Jay let go of the past and fight for a future with Gabby, Dylan and Carter?

I love the romance genre in general, but I confess that being the age that I am, there's something about having the main characters be older than the usual twenty-somethings that calls to me. Gabby was a great female main character, what with her independence and her protective nature, especially when it came to her sons, Dylan and Carter. I know that quite a few readers adored the younger of the two boys, but Dylan was someone I could relate to, empathizing with what how he was dealing with the recent changes in his life. Could he have handled some things better? Definitely, but he was also a teenager who had gone through his parents' divorce and his father's death. As for Jay, I admit that I was surprised to how he was during his first encounter with Gabby, but it certainly caught my attention. I understood why he made the choice that he did near the end of the book, but I was really hoping there wouldn't be the dreaded third act break-up here. Still, Between Now and Forever was heartwarming, four-starred read.

Love can be complicated and Gabrielle and Jay have a lot to figure out.

She has just moved back to her hometown with her two kids into a home that needs a huge amount of renovations. Jay is her next door neighbor and they have an awkward first meeting when Gabrielle is checking him out. Despite initially just being friends and neighbors, they share an undeniable chemistry. Adriana did a really nice job developing their relationship as they worked through their issues. The story moved at a nice pace and I really loved the small town setting. Gabrielle and Jay were both likeable characters and I was hooked from the very first chapter.

I enjoyed every minute of Gabrielle and Jay's story and loved Gabrielle's group of friends. It was always so entertaining when they got together. I really hope Della gets her own story!

4.5 ⭐️
2 🔥
Small Town Romance
Neighbors to Lovers
Single Mom
Grumpy/Sunshine
Banter
Great on Audio! 🎧
Adriana always manages to fit some of the best love stories into short novels! They are short, sweet, spicy && this one definitely pulls on the heart strings. Gabrielle is moving back to the small town of her childhood, after the death of her ex husband & her sons’ father. This is when she falls hard, like toppling over a flimsy porch railing hard, for her new sexy neighbor. Jay is a scorned, grump of a man. He is closed off due & doesn’t do relationships, especially with single moms. But Gabrielle & even her sons somehow keep showing up & surprising him. They all have things to work through; they are all scared of loosing another person. Can they all face their fears to love again?

Thank you Adriana Locke for the ARC!

Small town charmer that had everything my grumpy sunshine loving heart could want! This is quintessential Adriana, all the cozy vibes and plenty of spice! Add it to the list ASAP!
I would be remiss if I didn't mention the hilarious meet-cute, beware the bush, haha!