[Portia’s Review]:The Hustler Next Door (Polson Falls #2) by K.A. Tucker

From the international bestselling author of The Simple Wild and Ten Tiny Breaths comes a new stand-alone enemies-to-lovers, small-town romance.

Justine MacDermott is in what she would call a transition period: squatting in her best friend’s house and working in an appliance store in Polson Falls while the man she was supposed to marry starts a new life with someone else.

She’s definitely not thinking about slashing his tires and wishing his vital extremities would fall off.

When newcomer Garrett Harrington strolls into Murphy’s looking to buy a refrigerator, Justine convinces herself she’s found her rebound. Or the next love of her life. Either works. But a chance encounter leads her to discover that Garrett isn’t who he made himself out to be, and he’s more interested in hustling her kindly old boss out of his family business—and using her to do it.

Furious at being fooled by yet another man and itching for retribution, Justine enlists the help of unlikely townsfolk to battle Harrington Group’s big-city development plans for Polson Falls.

It’s all going to plan … until Justine finds herself crossing enemy lines.

The Hustler Next Door is set in the Polson Falls world. Books in this series can be read in any order.

Hi, K.A. Tucker super fan here. Back with another review! I always love the news that she is releasing a new book.

The Hustler Next Door is the 2nd book set in the Polson Falls series (The Player Next Door was first, and they can be read as stand alones, but its so much better read in order!). This book follows Justine (who we met in the first book as Scarlet’s best friend) who is still recovering from a bad breakup. She is loud, funny, and not afraid of her sexuality. I absolutely love her vibe.

Then we have Garrett. SWOON. He may give off a little bit of the scheming, cold, business man vibe…. but don’t let that fool you. He is hot, and also not one but afraid of his sexuality…. or afraid of Scarlet.

The banter and the tug and pull between these Garrett and Justine is fantastic. Every time they were on the page together I got so excited, you can just feel the sexual tension jumping off the page.

This book is HOT. But without focusing too much on sex. It was the perfect amount for this story, and just executed so well.

As much as I love these two, there are also so many lovable townies that are present in this novel. I feel like this book has done a much better job than the first one of making Polson Falls really feel like that small town where everyone knows each other. It also created a past for the town and made it important, and brought so many people and story lines together. This makes it feel like more than just a romance novel, it makes it feel like home.

I really enjoyed this book more than The Player. It was funny, heart warming, sexy, and the characters and town felt so vibrant. The way we got so much more plot and characters just made this book feel so much fuller than the previous. I cannot wait for more time in Polson Falls!

ALSO! I need a book for Dean! He deserves his own story. Fingers crossed!

Portia

Hi, I’m Portia! I’ve been an obsessive reader and pop culture addict my entire life, with a particular passion for horror and thrillers. I love being a part of the book community and can regularly be found working various book events. I’m an admin here at Ideally Inspired Reviews!

When I am not binge reading or obsessing over true crime podcasts and shows, I am a bar manager by night and a mom and wife by day. If I find any time after that, I love to travel, spend time outdoors, and fit as much live music into my life as possible. You can find me on Instagram @Ideally.Portia or TikTok @itsportiabitch.