Kissing The Boy Next Door (Sweet Water High, #3)

by Judy Corry

[phyllish]

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.


Read my full review with a Preview at Among the Reads


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.