Talking to him is forbidden, so why can’t I stay away?It’s been five years since Wes and I have spoken. Five years since he decided our friendship was less important than our parents’ fight. So when we’re forced to practice a duet together, I expect him to keep our contact to a minimum.Instead, he’s telling me the feud between our parents has gone on long enough. That he misses me and wants to … misses me and wants to fix things between us.
But I’m not going to fall for it. I won’t fall for his charms like so many other girls have in the past.
If only my stupid heart would listen to my brain. Because kissing the boy next door is no way to fix a family feud.
Or is it?
1 town. 1 high school. 12 sweet romances.
Kissing The Boy Next Door is a standalone novel in the Sweet Water High multi-author series. If you like sweet romance with ballad-worthy chemistry, swoony kisses and endearing characters then you’ll love Judy Corry’s latest book.
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Adorable, G-rated, YA romance with a touch of Romeo and Juliet
Lauren and Wes are both seniors in high school. Their families have been next door neighbors their whole lives. Both families are equally prosperous millionaires, rich enough to have their own sprawling mansions on a lovely private beach in North Carolina, and each family owning their own plane. Their mothers were best friends throughout high school up until 5 years ago when Wes and Lauren were 12 years old. Unfortunately, at that time their mothers suddenly became enemies, and Wes and Lauren were forbidden to play with each other anymore. Lauren has never fully understood why two such good friends would abandon each other, and over the years she has frequently missed the fun and affectionate friendship she used to have with Wes.
Then comes the day that a seemingly entirely unrelated event begins to turn the family feud around. Lauren discovers that she doesn’t have all the PE credits she needs in order to graduate from high school, and her least objectionable option is to sign up for the cross-country team, in spite of the fact that she’s not a very good runner and actually dreads having to run. To her dismay, she discovers that Wes is on the team. She doesn’t tell her parents he is on the team, for fear they will pull her off of it. Instead, she does her best to avoid him, but it proves to be impossible. He’s the most talented runner on the team, and Coach assigns him to give her pointers. Suddenly, after 5 years of estrangement, they are starting to talk to each other, and not only while at practices for the cross-country team. They also bump into each other on the beach behind their homes and at the school choir, where they are assigned to perform a duet together at a major school function. In the process of these frequent encounters, Lauren and Wes are both finding it impossible to continue shouldering the burden of their parents’ fight, because each admits that they would really like to re-establish their former friendship.
I really enjoyed this cute YA romance. Both Lauren and Wes are very sympathetic characters, and I was rooting for them to get together. Though this novel is told solely from the first-person point of view of Lauren, through her eyes we get to know Wes very well as a kind and decent guy.
This romance novel involves three very popular tropes of the romance genre: reunited friends, a non-tragic homage to Romeo and Juliet, and a G-rated version of “friends become lovers.” There is a strong, secondary plot of family drama connected to the romantic conflict of the family feud. There is a satisfying HEA for both the romance and the family drama, with all loose ends believably and fully tied up.
All in all, this is a quick, enjoyable read which is suitable for all ages.
I rate this book as follows:
Heroine: 4 stars
Hero: 4 stars
Subcharacters: 4 stars
Romance Plot: 4 stars
Family Drama Plot: 4 stars
Writing: 4 stars
Overall: 4 stars
This was a great story. I enjoyed seeing how Lauren deals with the conundrum she is stuck in; cross-country running to get her PE credit. Lauren and Wes have been next door neighbors for years. I liked how the couple were best friends when they were growing up, but then separated suddenly due to a feud between their families. Lauren and Wes are thrown together for a duet in choir and in the cross country team. I enjoyed watching their friendship re-ignite as they work together secretly on their duet. Lauren finds her mother’s journal and her eyes are opened to several skeletons that are in her mother’s closet. Wes is there to help her navigate the information that Lauren finds. I loved the plot twist, it certainly added a depth to the story. I recommend to anyone that loves teen romance and finding one’s identity.
I received a copy of this book. This is my honest and voluntary review.
Lauren and Wes had been best friends for years until five years ago when their parents decided there was a feud and they could no longer spend any time together. Even though they were next door neighbors, they weren’t allowed to be seen together. Lauren was hurt that Wes had valued their friendship so little that he could no longer be her friend.
During Lareun’s senior year, she discovered she was short a PE unit and had to take up a sport in order to meet the requirement to graduate. So, cross-country it was, even though she was so not a runner. Wes just happened to be the best runner on the men’s team. They also had choir class together and were asked to sing a duet at the concert. The more time they spent together, the more Lauren began to see that Wes was still a wonderful person and she began to have feelings for him and he seemed he might have feelings for her, too.
In order to practice, they had to sneak around behind their parents back and during this time, they decided that they wanted to put an end to the feud. As they discovered secrets that might have led to the feud in the first place, they realized the secrets could destroy Lauren’s family. Was it worth the risk to find the truth? When the dust settled would it be possible to put the pieces back together?
This was a sweet, clean YA romance and the third in the Sweet Water High series of books. I appreciate it when an author takes the time to right a book concentrating on the story and not littering the book with foul language or sex scenes. I enjoy a story that is swoon-worthy but clean and this author accomplished just that.
I was given an arc copy to read and I willingly offer my honest review.
Because kissing the boy next door is no way to fix a family feud. Or is it?
Despite living next door to each other, Wes and Lauren never spoke. Their families even went so far as to make sure they weren’t on the beach at the same time.
When Lauren showed up at cross country practice, Wes, as the captain of the team, was designated to show her the ropes, breaking their five-year silence.
Wes was super sweet. It was so obvious he was glad to spend time with his one-time best friend. I loved the way he had noticed so much about her during the years they were prevented from seeing each other.
When the two decide they are going to solve the mystery of the origin of the ir families’ feud, they had no idea the things they would learn or the grief it would cause. Once the dust settled, Lauren’s dad’s confession was extremely touching and unexpected. I love her dad!!
I do confess that I struggled with writing this review. I am (still) torn in my opinions of the story. As an adult reading it, I loved it. Yes, the kisses were a little more passionate than I am used to reading, yet they were still clean.. It’s just one of them may have gone on for two pages.
The difficulty I have with this is that the story is written for young adults. High-schoolers. The whole premise of the story is Lauren and Wes sneaking around together when their parents have forbidden it. And Lauren reads her mother’s private journal, which is how they learned what had happened. They spoke of the parties she sometimes attended with her friend at which there was underage drinking. Yes, she said it wasn’t “”her thing””, but there was nothing indicating that there was anything wrong with that.
If the story was for adults, I would have given it a full five stars. I loved and enjoyed it. But I would hesitate to let my nieces read it without having discussions about the subject matter to make sure they realize that though these things make for a sweet and swoony story, Lauren and Wes’ behavior was simply unacceptable.
So, if you are reading this review to decide if it is right for your daughters, I’ll leave that judgement to you. If you are considering reading this for yourself as an adult – I encourage you to read it. And if you are a young adult, do keep in mind that while you are under your parents’ roof, you need to respect them, even if you don’t agree with their choices.
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I was given a copy of this book. I was not required to give a favorable review nor was any money received for this review. All comments and opinions are my own.
I really enjoyed this YA romance. Another great book by Judy Corry.
An enjoyable well written good clean fun romance. The characters are great, interesting, relateable, and well developed. This amazing storyline has forbidden love, mystery, family secrets, and intrigue while trying to solve the mystery of what drove the wedge between their two families. I honestly and voluntarily reviewed this ARC.
Lauren and Wes have suffered the fallout because of the feud between their parents – UGH. Loved how they finally started talking after way too many years apart. Like how their friendship progressed. They teamed up to solve the mystery of the feud. It doesn’t end on a cliffhanger but I would love to read more of their story.