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Summary: Beyond CUTE! I personally guarantee that you will agree!
Review: This book was the first of Kelly's picks that I read. I was not by any means disappointed. The boy next door is easily one of the cutest books you will read. To be honest without sounding like a geek, I thought that the concept of using emails throughout the entire book was such a creative and innovative idea. I never really realized how expressive people are in their emails until now. Each character that Cabot used was so distinct, and even quirky at times. I can honestly say that I was laughing out loud in some points of the book. The ending was....oh so perfect. You begin to feel as though the characters are your close personal friends. The (description of) love scenes are not obscene, they are just appropriate. The ending was perfect. It was like apple pie at the end of thanksgiving. Exactly what it needed to be.
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Summary: A More Grown Up Meg Cabot
Review: Sick of reading the same old thing in every Princess Diaries book? Or are you just a little old to be reading that type of thing? In either case, pick up the Boy Next Door, in which Meg (or should I say, Meggin) Cabot shows us that she can write more than just teen romances. This funny, original novel, written all in e-mail form, is perfect for anyone who is a little more mature and loves a good romance. Go read it!
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Summary: Classic Chicklit
Review: I just loved this book. I liked the author's concept of writing everything in emails. It was a definite reflection of our society these days and how we're communicating with each other. And if you're busy like me it made it easy to read as much or as little as you wanted to at each sitting.
I give Meggin Cabot credit for her first adult fiction novel. I loved it and hope she continues to write more romance in the future.
Rating: 
Summary: Fun Light Reading
Review: Meggin Cabot's The Boy Next Door is a triumph of light reading--an amusing breezy novel that thankfully does not take itself too seriously. I admit, I was a bit hesitant when I discovered the format--a novel told completely in email--would that work? Well, it works and it works very well. The novel concerns a young, single New York woman who falls in love with a man pretending to be her next door neighbor's nephew. Not the most original plot in the world, but so what. The Boy Next Door is a lot of fun to read, very entertaining, lots of fun. If you are looking for a light, chick-lit-ish read, this is the perfect candidate. Enjoy.
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Summary: Charming, Engaging and Unique
Review: This charming story is told entirely through Email correspondence between Mel and her friends, coworkers, parents, and her interesting and attractive new next-door neighbor, John. Though there are some character-insight hurdles inherent in an epistolary novel, Cabot overcomes them creatively and successfully, in my opinion, and creates a delightfully entertaining story.Mel is the Page 10 gossip columnist for a modest New York newspaper. She's a smart and moderately successful midwest girl working in the big city with charming character quirks like habitual work tardiness, an obsession with weather anomalies, and a somewhat misplaced but profound sense of responsibility to her neighbor's pets after finding their elderly mistress unconscious on the floor. She's a loyal friend and a secret romantic with a wry sense of humor who enjoys simple things in life like drinking beer and wearing silly pajamas. John is a criminal-investigation writer for a competing newspaper who reluctantly agrees to return a favor to Max, an old-college-buddy-cum-hollywood-photographer-playboy. Max wants John to assume his identity and temporarily move into his aunt's apartment in order to take care of her pets while she is in the hospital so that Max can romance his latest supermodel in Key West. John doesn't like the premise, but it seems relatively harmless, and Max did once save him from potential disaster. As far as paybacks go, it could be worse, right? John happens to be from well-known wealthy family, but, to his Grandmother Mim's chagrin, he has opted to make it in the world on his own merit and hard work, get a real job, and live like a regular fellow. John -- a charming, likable, all-around-good guy, who is rendered powerless by proximity to attractive red-heads, loves the Grateful Dead, and appreciates a good weather catastrophe himself--is charmed by his new (red-headed) neighbor, and the two begin to fall for each other. In the meantime, it looks like Mel's former neighbor (whom she believes to be John's aunt) may have been the latest victim of the Transvestite Killer who has been terrorizing the neighborhood of late, yet she doesn't fit his usual victim's profile. Could it be that Mel was his real target? And what is Mel going to do when she learns the truth about John's real identity? He just hopes she'll hear it from him first... A very sweet and entertaining, lighthearted novel. Read it. You'll like it. ;)
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Summary: mindless no brainer--cute at first--then annoying
Review: I really enjoyed reading this when I first began because it was written in "email" format between all the main and supporting characters. It began as a fast, couldn't-put-it-down read and then it just got to the point where the supporting characters were just annoying, nosy and didn't give me a reason to care for the storyline. While it was unique to formulate the story in email form, the length and details of the email conversations (most of the time took place at the characters' place of employment) were at times ridiculously long and too detailed-no one usually has that much time to write emails like that unless they really want to jeopardize their job standing! The motives for the actions between the two main characters at times made no sense---it was very drawn out. But if you like no brianer, romance novels then try it out. COnsider borrowing it from a friend and don't waste your money!
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Summary: Great way to tell a story - with e-mail - and it works well!
Review: This is a cute & funny selection from Kelly Ripa's book club. It's fun and easy to read - the fast-paced story will keep you intrigued at all times. The unique part about this book is that it is written in all email format - I found this to be a nice break from the norm and such a timely concept! The story and characters still come through loud & clear this way!
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Summary: Great if your on vacation but otherwise don't bother...
Review: If your looking for an easy read, buy this. It's cutesy but thats about it. Not a whole lot to this one. My book club read it and we spent more time talking about life than this book during out meeting. Not a lot of depth. But on the other hand, if your looking for a mindless, cute book. Buy it and don't expect much.
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Summary: The Boy Next Door by. Meggin Cabot
Review: The Boy Next Door was awesome! After reading All American Girl I had fallen in love with Meggin Cabot. The characters in this book grab your attention from the second you start reading it. Mel is a gossip columnist who has recently been confronted with a situation. She found her neighbor unconscious in her apartment. Mel e-mail's her neighbors only living relative, Max Friedlanderand, and informs him that his aunt is in a coma and he should come see her immediately. Mel has been taking care of her dog, which has caused conflict with her job. Max, however, is a little tied up. He asks his old college buddy ,John, to do him an owed favor,go to N.Y. and pretending to be Max, while taking care of the dog. Now Mel and John will be temporary neighbors and begin to form and interesting relationship. This book has the perfect amount of romance, mystery and comedy a great book needs.
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Summary: Entertaining fantasy but predictable ending
Review: Mel has fallen in love with a boy whom she thinks is the philandering nephew of her elderly neighbor. Said boy is really the super-rich college roommate of the philandering nephew who couldn't be bothered to come back to New York to take care of his aunt after she was attacked in her apartment. The nephew convinced the friend to pose as him so that the aunt wouldn't write him out of the will for frolicking with a supermodel while she was in a coma. By about page 50, you can completely predict the ending. You might even be able to predict the ending from my little plot summary. The book is enjoyable enough to read though. The email format reminds me of similar conversations with friends. Even though the extra characters (the boss, the gay co-worker, the slutty co-worker) are stereotypes, they add humor and interest to the plot. If you want something light and fun to read but don't want to be seen with a romance novel, read this.
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