Is your nextdoor neighbour your soulmate? (The Boy Next Door - Josie Lloyd, Emlyn Rees)

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Product:	The Boy Next Door - Josie Lloyd, Emlyn Rees
Date:	17/03/02 (25 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: great style of writing, characters came alive, funny and romantic read

Disadvantages: nothing

I didn't read the book first written by Emlyn Rees and Josie Lloyd 'Come Together', so I didn't know what to expect from this novel 'The Boy Next Door'. I thoroughly enjoyed this book because it was shown from the boys and girls point of view, and it was strange to know how boys think about things and then girls, obviously the girl worrying more because we are all do. Anyway to get back to talking about the book.

PLOT
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Mickey Malone and Fred Roper grew up together in Rushton in the 70's/80's am not too sure what one again. They were very good friends but one day Fred moved a way and Mickey always wondered what had happened and why Fred had never tried to talk to her. Years later Mickey is in a small flat in London, owning a flower shop and also with a child. Fred is also in London and about to get married. In a Toy shop they both meet again and then they start to remember the good times from their youth and they both seem to be scared to bring up the subject of why they were broken apart from each other. They once went out, but they don't know if what they had when they were younger can be the same now after all they are older and don't know eachother recently as they did in the past.

FRED ROPER
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Fred is about to get married to his fiance Rebecca, but when meeting Mickey again his life in Rushton comes back. Throughout the book you learn about his childhood and how his father died when he was quite young, he knew him but they were never very close. While young Fred was very adventurous but when grown up he is a bit more mature but Mickey still seems to find the bit of Fred Roper she always knew although when he moved. After his father died Fred moved away from Rushton his mother wanted him to forget Mickey and Rushton and so she made him change his name to Fred Wilson.

MICKEY MALONE
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Mickey is not really what you would call the average girly girl, sh
e is more of a tomboy but always liked Fred, and as she grew up boys were an interest to her. Her parents and Fred's never wanted them to keep in touch once Fred moved away, Mickey was always annoyed that Fred hadn't kept in contact with her and then she finds out what had happened when they meet again. Mickey has a son and is a single parent having to look after her son Joe, with a successful flower shop.

I liked the style of this book the way it was written. One minute the chapter was about Fred and what he was doing at that moment, then it was talking about an event that had happened back in Rushton in his childhood day, it was the same with Mickey's chapter all leading up to when Fred leaves.

The chapters are very long in this book there are only eight in total but there is 293 pages.

I recommend this book to anyone looking for a funny but romantic story. It is a nice book to read, some parts funny and the characters are so easy to relate to, obviously for me I could relate more to Mickey because she is a girl but I am sure men could relate to Fred. The authors made an excellent job at making the characters come alive.

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