Our first kiss was a lie. Our second was a mistake. And the night we spent tangled up in each other? Hot as hell but a complete disaster.
Because now Sutton Sinclair—the sharp-tongued troublemaker who left claw marks down my back and a dent in my self-control—is living in my backyard cottage with her teenage daughter. And I’m her goddamn landlord.
I like things quiet. Controlled. She’s neither. Sutton’s chaos wrapped in sunshine, a temptation in scrubs I can’t seem to stay away from.
When her ex shows up acting like Sutton’s still his to lose, I claim her on instinct. The kiss? Hot. The fallout? Immediate.
Now my family—and the entire town—thinks we’re a couple.
Fake dating Sutton wasn’t in my playbook, but if being a pro-footballer turned high school coach has taught me anything, it’s how to pivot. All I have to do is keep my hands to myself.
Then her cottage floods.
Now we’re sharing a roof…and a bed. The line between real and fake is blurring faster than I can redo the guest house.
This is supposed to be temporary. But Sutton doesn’t just crash into my life—she rewrites it. She’s in my home, moaning my name, breaking every rule I’ve ever lived by.
And I’m starting to want something permanent with the woman who’s already got one foot out the door.
| Title: | The Grump Next Door |
| Author: | Brighton Walsh |
| Series: | Steele Brothers of Starlight Cove (Book 1) |
| Pages: | 327 |
| Category / Genre(s): | Contemporary |
| Trope(s): | One Night Stand Close Proximity Small Town Romance |
| Point of View: | First Person, Past Tense, Dual Viewpoint (H & h) |
| Location: | Starlight Cove, Maine, USA |
| HEA: | ✔️ |
| Release Date: | 5 June, 2025 |
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Such a small-town delight
Ah, Starlight Cove – we meet again. This time for the first in a new series about the Steele Brothers – Atlas, Lincoln, Declan and Xander. If you’ve read the original Starlight Cove series, featuring the Mackenzie siblings, then you’ll be happy to return to this charming town and have a few of the original characters pop up in cameo roles. But if you’re a newbie to the town – or Brighton Walsh – then you’ll understand and enjoy this one without having read anything else.
Sutton – alongside her teenage daughter, Laurel – are moving to Starlight Cove to start the next chapter of their lives. As a travelling nurse, Sutton is used to moving around and never staying in one place for too long. But all that changes when she finds out that her new landlord is her sizzling one night stand from days before her arrival in town. And she finds herself in a fake-dating relationship with the hot, mountainous grump.
Single mum, Sutton, is a really likeable character. It’s always been her and daughter Laurel against the world – but this is more about Sutton as a woman in her own right. She was strong, sassy, a little stubborn and, as Atlas likes to say, a little bit of a brat. I loved her relationship with her daughter and also her interactions with her friends. But it’s her interactions with Atlas that really made my heart happy. They balance each other so well and I loved that she just accepted his grumpiness as an adorable part of him.
“And if you ever thought you’d read a grump before, you’ve not met Atlas. He is their king.”
Who’d have thought that I’d find something in 6’6”, grumpy mountain of a man, Atlas, that reminded me of myself? But the way he puts everyone above himself, being that reliable point person – even to the detriment of himself – was like being seen. And if you ever thought you’d read a grump before, you’ve not met Atlas. He is their king. But of course he has that soft, gooey centre – especially with the demon kitten and Laurel. With Sutton, he’s unsure and a little broken, but I loved that, too, masochist that I am.
Together, Atlas and Sutton are on fire. I’m normally not one for a couple that are together almost from page 1. But with this pair, it worked. They had a chemistry even before that time, and it only built as the book went on. And so did the sex scenes. Get your hand fans at the ready. If I had one criticism, it’s that I’m not much of a fan of everyone adding anal tinkering to their sex scenes these days. No kink shaming but I might start a protest group. But it’s not really that big of a deal and the scenes are still sizzling hot.
Having read – and loved – the original Starlight Cove series, I am so happy to be back in this delightful town. It’s the kind of place that small town romances dream of. And that I dream of living in. “…it also felt like the culmination of every small-town Hallmark movie ever created.” I could cry with how much I wish Starlight Cove – and its residents – was real.
Having finished the book, I feel the satisfaction of a fabulous romance; blind fury that I now must wait for any length of time to read the other brother’s stories; but also a lovely hopefulness. It’s wonderful to read about flawed people finding the perfect person for them and finding that happiness they, and we, have always dreamed of. 5 stars.
* I received this book in exchange for my honest review
Award-winning USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestselling author Brighton Walsh spent nearly a decade as a professional photographer before taking her storytelling in a different direction and reconnecting with her first love: writing. When she’s not lost in her own made up worlds, she’s probably either reading or shopping—maybe even both at once. She lives in the Midwest with her real life hero of a husband, her two kids—both taller than her—and her dog who thinks she’s a queen. Her boy-filled house is the setting for dirty socks galore, frequent dance parties (okay, so it’s mostly her, by herself, while her children look on in horror), and more laughter than she thought possible. Visit her online at brightonwalsh.com.
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