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The People Next Door
Having taught the history of art for more than four decades, Madelyn finds she is a voyeur of life. She watches as a new, young couple moves into the house next door once inhabited by her dear friend, Carole.
The new neighbors ignite something within Madelyn, a curiosity that she finds she cannot shy away from.
The new neighbors ignite something within Madelyn, a curiosity that she finds she cannot shy away from.
384 pages, Kindle Edition
Published October 10, 2024
20 people are currently reading
375 people want to read
About the author
Anna Woiwood
5 books65 followersAnna Woiwood is a writer of mid-century Sapphic stories. Her debut novel, The Veracity of Lies, was a finalist for a 2023 Golden Crown Literary Award in historical fiction and A Tiger in Suburbia was a 2024 Golden Crown Literary Ann Bannon Popular Choice finalist. She lives in Kansas City with her small cat son, Walter. Find her on Instagram @anna.w.writes
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
October 14, 2024
5 Stars
The writing was brilliant. I could picture each scene as if a film was silently playing in my head. The setting was vivid, characters were solid, the feelings stirred by the conflicts were visceral and uncomfortable. It’s very much a slow burn type of story.
If you’ve been in the sapphic bookstagram scene for a while, a reader can gauge pretty much if a book plays by the conventional rules of today’s sapphic stories. The People Next Door was very much not in the realm of today’s conventions. It’s very different, uncomfortable and the reader couldn’t help but root for the characters to wake tfu.
The writing was brilliant. I could picture each scene as if a film was silently playing in my head. The setting was vivid, characters were solid, the feelings stirred by the conflicts were visceral and uncomfortable. It’s very much a slow burn type of story.
If you’ve been in the sapphic bookstagram scene for a while, a reader can gauge pretty much if a book plays by the conventional rules of today’s sapphic stories. The People Next Door was very much not in the realm of today’s conventions. It’s very different, uncomfortable and the reader couldn’t help but root for the characters to wake tfu.
October 10, 2024
Another wonderful book from Anna.
I've read three books from Anna and each one of them shows a profession of writing style, character creations, and aesthetics that all come together perfectly in this book. The midcentury setting and themes remind of us a time that feels so far away but still so close as we experience it through Madelyn's eyes and we are reminded of how far we've come socially but how much work still needs to be done. Anna shows you this in subtle yet impactful ways that makes the reader come to these conclusions as we are experiencing the world treatment, pressures, and expectations of Madelyn, our main character.
Madelyn is a character that all throughout the book I kept pulling back more and more layers to learn about her and the world she is trying to navigate. I love Anna's books because I think her character development has mastered the cycle of rising and falling as we following Madelyn's desires and fantasies about another life, relationship, and so much more only to be brought to that edge and come crashing back down into the reality that Madelyn finds herself in. This cycle is paced well in the book which makes everything feel earned and even the smallest of details feel like they are the weight of the world.
I love Anna's books and the combination of aesthetics, character development, and setting have created a well rounded world that feel so familiar as we experience the desires and feelings of someone who we can see ourselves in even if we are not from this time period or even queer. I highly recommend this books, Anna has a true talent for bringing to life characters that we feel for in a narrative that grips you until the last page.
***Thank you to Anna for an ARC copy!***
I've read three books from Anna and each one of them shows a profession of writing style, character creations, and aesthetics that all come together perfectly in this book. The midcentury setting and themes remind of us a time that feels so far away but still so close as we experience it through Madelyn's eyes and we are reminded of how far we've come socially but how much work still needs to be done. Anna shows you this in subtle yet impactful ways that makes the reader come to these conclusions as we are experiencing the world treatment, pressures, and expectations of Madelyn, our main character.
Madelyn is a character that all throughout the book I kept pulling back more and more layers to learn about her and the world she is trying to navigate. I love Anna's books because I think her character development has mastered the cycle of rising and falling as we following Madelyn's desires and fantasies about another life, relationship, and so much more only to be brought to that edge and come crashing back down into the reality that Madelyn finds herself in. This cycle is paced well in the book which makes everything feel earned and even the smallest of details feel like they are the weight of the world.
I love Anna's books and the combination of aesthetics, character development, and setting have created a well rounded world that feel so familiar as we experience the desires and feelings of someone who we can see ourselves in even if we are not from this time period or even queer. I highly recommend this books, Anna has a true talent for bringing to life characters that we feel for in a narrative that grips you until the last page.
***Thank you to Anna for an ARC copy!***
October 20, 2024
4.5 Stars
October 29, 2025
The mix of yearning, spice, & heartbreak ugh a wlw historical fiction is gonna do it for me every time
February 20, 2025
Maybe best book I’ve ever read???????? I was like omg everyone’s obsessed with this women and I was like yeah but I know how that feels obvi hehehehahaha. I hoped for this ending. I just thought all of the characters were so well done and her life was depicted so complicated but so beautiful and I’m just like in love w this writing. 10/10 GAYYYY.
August 15, 2025
I feel I would’ve maybe loved it more had I not dragged this read. Story line was ok, kinda upset the ending just… ended. I truly thought there was more to it and tried to find more pages lol
January 9, 2026
I went into The People Next Door really wanting to love it. The premise had so much potential and I was excited for a sapphic story centered on complicated neighbors, secrets, and emotional tension. Unfortunately, the execution fell flat for me. The first 150 pages felt deeply repetitive, spending a lot of time circling the same thoughts, interactions, and observations without meaningful progression.
The dynamic between the narrator and the people next door was set up to be intriguing, but many of the conflicts and emotional beats never fully developed. Several plot threads were introduced, hinted at as important, and then left unresolved, which made the story feel incomplete rather than subtle. By the time the book reached its conclusion, I was left more confused than satisfied, not because it was ambiguous in a thoughtful way, but because it didn’t feel fully formed.
I truly appreciate the sapphic representation and the quiet, introspective tone the book aimed for, but the repetitive writing style and lack of payoff made it a frustrating read overall. I wanted to connect with these characters and their story, and I just never got there.
The dynamic between the narrator and the people next door was set up to be intriguing, but many of the conflicts and emotional beats never fully developed. Several plot threads were introduced, hinted at as important, and then left unresolved, which made the story feel incomplete rather than subtle. By the time the book reached its conclusion, I was left more confused than satisfied, not because it was ambiguous in a thoughtful way, but because it didn’t feel fully formed.
I truly appreciate the sapphic representation and the quiet, introspective tone the book aimed for, but the repetitive writing style and lack of payoff made it a frustrating read overall. I wanted to connect with these characters and their story, and I just never got there.
February 26, 2025
I really loved this take on a couple of women in the
1950’s discovering sexual pleasures that they’d never found in marriages with their husbands.
The book was told from Madelyn’s POV.
The writing was so real with the description of the time and the attitudes of the women as the housewives who cooked, cleaned and took care of their husbands.
I’d like to share a couple of quotes from the book that are brief but say a lot.
“I suppose one can live a whole life inside one’s head without ever expressing it in the physical world.”
“It’s a rotten thing sometimes, to be born a woman.”
Now, a brief summary so that I will remember what this is about!
Madelyn and Arthur were professors at the local college. They lived next-door to Carol and Frank. Arthur was impotent, with no interest in sex. Madelyn was allowed to wander, as long as it was discreet, and he didn’t know about it.
Carole tolerated Frank’s sexual requirements.
Frank retired. He and Carole moved out of town so Frank could enjoy his retirement activities. Carol was not happy, but continued in the role of the wife who takes care of the husband’s needs.
Rick and Billy were a young couple who moved into the home vacated by Frank and Carol. They didn’t close their bedroom shutters, so Madelyn became a voyeur, enjoying the sexually active new neighbors.
Madelyn soon found some pleasures with the couple, separately and as a threesome. When Carole returned, Madelyn gave her the strength to find the courage she needed to find happiness.
My summary sounds cut-and-dry, but this was a beautifully written book that explored the minds of the characters.
1950’s discovering sexual pleasures that they’d never found in marriages with their husbands.
The book was told from Madelyn’s POV.
The writing was so real with the description of the time and the attitudes of the women as the housewives who cooked, cleaned and took care of their husbands.
I’d like to share a couple of quotes from the book that are brief but say a lot.
“I suppose one can live a whole life inside one’s head without ever expressing it in the physical world.”
“It’s a rotten thing sometimes, to be born a woman.”
Now, a brief summary so that I will remember what this is about!
Madelyn and Arthur were professors at the local college. They lived next-door to Carol and Frank. Arthur was impotent, with no interest in sex. Madelyn was allowed to wander, as long as it was discreet, and he didn’t know about it.
Carole tolerated Frank’s sexual requirements.
Frank retired. He and Carole moved out of town so Frank could enjoy his retirement activities. Carol was not happy, but continued in the role of the wife who takes care of the husband’s needs.
Rick and Billy were a young couple who moved into the home vacated by Frank and Carol. They didn’t close their bedroom shutters, so Madelyn became a voyeur, enjoying the sexually active new neighbors.
Madelyn soon found some pleasures with the couple, separately and as a threesome. When Carole returned, Madelyn gave her the strength to find the courage she needed to find happiness.
My summary sounds cut-and-dry, but this was a beautifully written book that explored the minds of the characters.
October 30, 2024
I'm so glad I found this author.. absolutely fabulous.
November 4, 2025
Oh I really enjoyed this! This is a weird reference, but it feels like the white 1950s version of Katrina Jackson’s Neighborly Accommodations series, LOL. It’s a bit quiet at the start, but I think that’s intentional—we want to see the loss of Carol in Madelyn’s life before the new couple enters, and feel the smallness of her world.
Even as the most thrilling sections of this book were the romantic intrigue, Anna Woiwood still doesn’t shy away from the real issues of the time. We see the copious substance abuse that many characters are using to ease social difficulties and numb the dullness of their everyday lives, and there are quiet remarks made about the financial desperation of women in this time period. Betsy’s sections were really moving, and just go to show that when people try to pathologize the growing rates of autism/etc., they’re ignoring our country’s long history of disappearing millions of people due to their disabilities. Mental health institutions were long used as receptables for “problems” we don’t want to deal with, and it’s so challenging to see Rose treat her daughter in the same way that society does. I think her growth by the end of the book feels realistic, if still deeply upsetting. (Side note: for more on this topic, I highly recommend Madness: Race and Insanity in a Jim Crow Asylum by Antonia Hylton.)
Okay so speaking of the romantic intrigue—the sections and growing awareness of the various connections are delicious. Each scene is just the characters wiggling their eyebrows back at each other, and you as a reader being like it could go further, but we’ll have to wait and see!! I loved the many surprises and unraveling we have in this story, and all of the hunches that eventually paid of. Even the title is more expansive than we thought…which is exactly right, because it was always her!!! 💚 In general, Arthur and Carol were my favorite characters. They both had such moving ways of supporting Madelyn, and I wish we could’ve seen more of both of them.\
The final note is that I think this book will become instructive in my growing desire to understand WHAT people mean when they’re talking about lesbian pulp fiction. There’s even a story-within-a-story here that might fit the bill, but I still need to investigate. More on this to come after I finish a collection on this very topic!!! In the meantime, I would recommend this book, and I would definitely read other work by this author.
Even as the most thrilling sections of this book were the romantic intrigue, Anna Woiwood still doesn’t shy away from the real issues of the time. We see the copious substance abuse that many characters are using to ease social difficulties and numb the dullness of their everyday lives, and there are quiet remarks made about the financial desperation of women in this time period. Betsy’s sections were really moving, and just go to show that when people try to pathologize the growing rates of autism/etc., they’re ignoring our country’s long history of disappearing millions of people due to their disabilities. Mental health institutions were long used as receptables for “problems” we don’t want to deal with, and it’s so challenging to see Rose treat her daughter in the same way that society does. I think her growth by the end of the book feels realistic, if still deeply upsetting. (Side note: for more on this topic, I highly recommend Madness: Race and Insanity in a Jim Crow Asylum by Antonia Hylton.)
Okay so speaking of the romantic intrigue—the sections and growing awareness of the various connections are delicious. Each scene is just the characters wiggling their eyebrows back at each other, and you as a reader being like it could go further, but we’ll have to wait and see!! I loved the many surprises and unraveling we have in this story, and all of the hunches that eventually paid of. Even the title is more expansive than we thought…which is exactly right, because it was always her!!! 💚 In general, Arthur and Carol were my favorite characters. They both had such moving ways of supporting Madelyn, and I wish we could’ve seen more of both of them.\
The final note is that I think this book will become instructive in my growing desire to understand WHAT people mean when they’re talking about lesbian pulp fiction. There’s even a story-within-a-story here that might fit the bill, but I still need to investigate. More on this to come after I finish a collection on this very topic!!! In the meantime, I would recommend this book, and I would definitely read other work by this author.
October 16, 2024
This story was a bit different from Anna’s previous novels, but just as amazing! And like with all her other books, I didn’t want to put this one down! Anna has a way of writing these beautifully flawed, messy human beings that are easy to connect and relate to, even though I have no idea what it is like to live or be queer in the 1950s. She does a phenomenal job of pulling you into the context and time period of the story. You can picture yourself there, sitting with the characters having a drink.
I absolutely loved Madelyn. She was so just uniquely her and as the story progresses we learn more and more about her and her husband’s relationship, including their special arrangement. And as the layers get peeled back on her marriage, we also learn more about her family, her past, about what makes her who she is. It is clear from the start that she is a sexual being, but as she observes the new neighbors next door, new desires and needs get awakened inside her.
The new neighbors are eccentric and different, free in their affections toward other people. They are intriguing and attractive and Madelyn gets pulled into their orbit in ways she can’t explain or understand. And the farther she gets pulled in the more she realizes about herself, and harder it becomes to go back to who she was before.
I don’t want to say too much, because I don’t want to share spoilers, but there are so many different people and points of awakening on Madelyn’s journey to discovering her queerness. There is also so much in this story about family relationships and there are parts that will just crack your heart open.
If you love queer historical fiction stories with flawed and messy characters and plenty of spice - you should definitely read Anna’s books!
Thanks for the ARC, Anna! So excited to be an early reader as always!
🏳️🌈Rep: Bisexual FMC, other queer SCs
📝Tropes/Themes: Queer Awakening, Historical Romance, Pulp Fiction, Threesome, Open Relationships, Age Gap, Friends to Lovers, Strangers to Lovers
⚠️TW/CW: sexual content, smoking, drinking, alcoholism, ableism, cancer, death of loved one, consensual non-monogamy, minor mention of child abuse
I absolutely loved Madelyn. She was so just uniquely her and as the story progresses we learn more and more about her and her husband’s relationship, including their special arrangement. And as the layers get peeled back on her marriage, we also learn more about her family, her past, about what makes her who she is. It is clear from the start that she is a sexual being, but as she observes the new neighbors next door, new desires and needs get awakened inside her.
The new neighbors are eccentric and different, free in their affections toward other people. They are intriguing and attractive and Madelyn gets pulled into their orbit in ways she can’t explain or understand. And the farther she gets pulled in the more she realizes about herself, and harder it becomes to go back to who she was before.
I don’t want to say too much, because I don’t want to share spoilers, but there are so many different people and points of awakening on Madelyn’s journey to discovering her queerness. There is also so much in this story about family relationships and there are parts that will just crack your heart open.
If you love queer historical fiction stories with flawed and messy characters and plenty of spice - you should definitely read Anna’s books!
Thanks for the ARC, Anna! So excited to be an early reader as always!
🏳️🌈Rep: Bisexual FMC, other queer SCs
📝Tropes/Themes: Queer Awakening, Historical Romance, Pulp Fiction, Threesome, Open Relationships, Age Gap, Friends to Lovers, Strangers to Lovers
⚠️TW/CW: sexual content, smoking, drinking, alcoholism, ableism, cancer, death of loved one, consensual non-monogamy, minor mention of child abuse
March 3, 2025
This is the second book of Anna Woiwood's that I have read. I believe the seduction is complete. Her slow, scenic route to self-discovery had me loving every minute of this book. My heart is still beating out of my chest and my brain won't stop thinking about this story. Who knew the 1950s rocked so hard? My Grandma has some explaining to do. 5+ stars for a very well told tale of the mundane life of a college professor and the new neighbors next door. Also a little something for the neighbor that used to live next door.
October 18, 2024
Illuminating!
I came back to review this book because it has stayed with me since finishing it. I’ve read all 3 of the author’s books and this one did not disappoint. She has a way of writing that puts you right in the room with the characters. Madalyn was my favorite character and I was deeply moved at how she handled every situation she faced in life. I quite literally didn’t want this book to end. It is well worth the read and will hold you captive from beginning to end.
I came back to review this book because it has stayed with me since finishing it. I’ve read all 3 of the author’s books and this one did not disappoint. She has a way of writing that puts you right in the room with the characters. Madalyn was my favorite character and I was deeply moved at how she handled every situation she faced in life. I quite literally didn’t want this book to end. It is well worth the read and will hold you captive from beginning to end.
January 10, 2026
This book felt like a fever dream for the first half. I couldn’t tell where it was going and even if that was the authors intention. The whole time I felt like I was on a gummy not sure if it was a romance or some indie book that would have a crazy ending. But then it just….ended. Truly at a loss on how to rate this book.
October 20, 2024
This felt very different to Anna’s previous two books but the twists and turns were just as good. The book kept me intrigued right to the very last page!
May 4, 2025
the writing was beautiful and the story itself was even better, so much raw emotion - i’ll definitely be checking out more reads by anna woiwood
October 7, 2025
Okay middle aged bicon diva!!!!
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews