Would I recommend this book? Probably not.
It was a good enough read, I definitely wanted to find out what happened, but along the way, some of it was just kinda stupid.
I did really like some of the characters, maybe they should have been in a different book. ( )

4,25 stars

There are two possibilities: either I'm rating the books I'm reading way too high at the moment, or my book year just happened to get off to a really good start. Either way, I found this a very enjoyable read. And unexpectedly funny. I think it may have been a really good idea to listen to this in audiobook format, because I don't think my inner narrator would have done anywhere near as good a job as Steve Carlson in capturing the voices of all the characters.

As a story, this was a pretty light one, as YA books often tend to be. Often, I found myself thinking about what the current scene would have looked like in movie format, and the humor of the sixteen-year-old Annie Collins was right up my alley (so I'm juvenile, sue me). There might have been a slight Juno-effect in that Annie wasn't entirely believable as a sixteen-year-old, especially in relation to adults in the book. The again, this was a book about a spaceship landing in a small town in the United States, so I guess realism wasn't really the main goal of the story to begin with. ( )

I enjoyed every moment of this fast-paced, fun, and funny book. The characters really came to life in the audiobook narration, and I particularly liked the main character. Definitely recommended for YA readers! ( )

The Spaceship Next Door is a fun story I would never have discovered without Evelina's glowing recommendation, so before I go any deeper into this review, I want to shoutout my thanks! Book bloggers do make a difference. :)

Sorrow Falls, Massachusetts feels very much like where I live - a small New England town with more cows than people. Where everyone knows each other, and there's one small diner, and nothing interesting really ever happens. Except, in the case of Sorrow Falls, a spaceship lands in an empty field.

Just, lands.

Then does nothing.

For years.

The Spaceship Next Door is a delightful twist on a first contact story. Gene Doucette's take on intelligent life from other planets is clever and thought-provoking, but more fun than profound. Doucette sets a slow, meandering pace that - while not my personal preference - is so well-suited this this story and the atmosphere. He takes the time to awaken each character slowly and allows each one to speak in their own voice. Lines are blurred, unusual pairings form... it's honestly all a delight?

But this book is also very comfortable. It's a comfy read to tuck into, nothing that will make your heart race or keep you up late at night. No, it's more like something you look forward to settling in with. One for lazy afternoons in a hammock or cozy evening wrapped in a fleece sweater and with a mug of cocoa. The Spaceship Next Door is, simply put, a nice book.

However. Keep in mind that even nice books aren't all happy endings and sunshine and rainbows. In the case of Annie, she has to worry about her mother's cancer, and reminding people that she's sixteen and watching out for some of the creepier men (mentioned in the beginning, not a theme in this book). Also, um zombies. While triggers in this book are minimal, it's still something to watch out for as there are some sad underlying themes in certain aspects of the story.

The Spaceship Next Door took me in all sorts of directions I didn't expect and I had the best fun reading this one and breathing in the little world of Sorrow Falls. It's a book I would read again, and one that I would easily recommend to even the more casual sci-fi fan. ( )

My initial thought about this book was that the pacing was slow in the beginning. However, by about 1/3 of the way in, I appreciated the pacing, and by half-way the pacing had gradually picked up while still maintaining the "deliberate" feel it had at the beginning. Something about the pace completely matched the story for me.

There are some spoilery things that may come up in reviews of this book. Here is the one you're most likely to run into (or to have issues with): About half-way through the book, you could be forgiven for thinking this is a book about a zombie invasion. You would be wrong. If you are against zombies, do not let this put you off the book. It's really worth the read. (If you do like zombies, this is close enough to zombies that you may continue to think this is about a zombie invasion.

I really enjoyed this book a lot. The 16-year-old main character did often seem older than her years, but given the situation (it's explained early on that she's been taking care of her mom for a few years) and the fact that adults continually acknowledge the fact that she seems old for her age, it doesn't make anything unbelievable. If you can believe the spaceship in the yard, you can believe Annie Collins. ( )