Don't Forget Me: A Best Friend's Romance (Ridgewater High Romance)

Don't Forget Me is one of those rare general market YA romances that doesn't include any sex or foul language, which was a pleasant surprise. Eliana and Jess have loads of chemistry, and, overall, I enjoyed reading this book. I mean, I read it all in one sitting, so that says something, right?A few things did bother me about the book, though. 1). Jess was a jerk when it came to dealing with his feelings for Eliana. He stayed in a dysfunctional relationship far too long, and then he acted more like a 7th grader than a college freshman when Eliana hurt him. 2). There are sooooooo many twists in this novel that it really felt like it should've been twice the length or split into two books.Those gripes aside, I did enjoy the novel. It's deeper than many YA romances, yet it never becomes dark or depressing. Corry is a good writer, and I'll definitely be looking for more of her books. She (along with others like Kasie West, Shari Tapscott, and a bunch of Christian YA writers) proves that YA romance can sizzle without the sex and profanity, and I so appreciate that. 3-1/2 stars.

Wow, what passion these two had for each other. Eliana and Jess were best friends growing up. Part of that time Eliana was crushing on their other neighbor boy and Jess was a flirt that couldn’t seem to settle on a girl. But through it all Eliana and Jess were close. What Eliana didn’t realize was that Jess started to see her as more then a friend much sooner then Eliana’s feelings started to change for Jess. But Jess was bidding his time to really open up his vulnerabilities to his best friend. And life for Eliana was also very difficult with her dad being accused of embezzling money and going on the run. Not to mention her mothers alcohol addiction. Lots of emotions were brought out in this book.

This was a really sweet book. The Main characters are high school students (and newly graduated seniors) so it’s definitely geared toward the teenage reader. It started out kind of slow, but once it got going I was hooked, even though I’m a little older than the target audience.Eliana is going through a rough patch in her life, but the one constant is her two best friends, Ashlyn and her brother Jess. When Eliana realizes she has feelings for Jess, she has to decide if she’s willing to risk their friendship for her desires.Book was very well-written, with no noticeable typos or mistakes. The characters were very believable, with some of the immaturity of teenagers. Eliana’s resilience and strength through her challenges was incredible, yet I totally believed it. I would highly recommend this book to anyone, preteen to adult!

This series has rooted itself in a place in my heart and although I read the books out of order, they were each so good with a depth that always surprised me. In this story, Eliana and Jess are best friends who deal with a lot of blows to their long relationship, causing it to capsize in the storm of life. Eliana, especially, has a lot to deal with, as her personal life has blown up, changing everything she's known, yet she still remains the sweet, loyal, and kind person she's always been.Honestly, Jess was pretty much a jerk for most of the book, allowing misunderstandings and pride to cloud his view. I was so worked up over him and it forced me to realize just how good of an author Ms. Corry is to evoke those strong emotions in me.The relationships are complicated and tightly woven together in a tangled up ball of yarn, making it difficult, but not impossible, to unravel and I enjoyed the process. I love how these young adult stories have substance to them, yet aren't whiny and too angsty.Content: mild romance; alcohol abuse, very mild physical abuse and neglect

I enjoyed reading Jess and Elaina’s story. I have read 3 others books by Judy and this one, though not my favorite, is still good. I love how she can create the swoony kisses and slow burn type feel and still be clean. My only issue that I had was with Jess. I don’t want to give out spoilers, but I felt there were situations where he should have done things way differently than what he did. I felt Elaina was more forgiving and less questioning than I would have been in those scenarios. But also, I felt that Jess should have been able to control his actions better to show he actually cared. Hopefully, that was not a spoiler, but was still able to give enough insight to help others. Overall, the book is well written and I would recommend it.

The relationship between Jess and Eliana was surprisingly complex. I liked how the author weaved in the story of her family's difficulties and layered it over timr to show that what she and Jess had was something that would stand the test of time.

The story was sweet -- The only complain would be that a lot of the times we were only told things happened -- we didn't get to experience them. The drama was underrated in spite of the subject matters (alcoholism, abandonment, jealousy, etc). I couldn't really feel their pain, because again, we were mostly told about it without feeling it with them. This book would be more geared towards younger readers even if the characters were in high school/college. The guy love interest didn't have much of a backbone. He went along with the flow. The girl didn't share any of her troubles with him or his sister (her other friend) so I really don't understand the "best friends who know each other well" concept.I think this writer has the chops to write better - that's mostly the reason I gave it 4-stars - maybe something that would make us connect to the characters more, and get to experience their pain and joy in more detail.

I feel like i have waited forever for these two to be together. While reading Ashlyn and Luke's story, i wondered what would happen between Jess and Eliana, i loved this book.

Was a well written teen story. Lots of ups and downs. Lots of trauma and angst. Added to this, some solid friendships and an eventual happy ending. Not a bad read😊

This is a wonderful book. Well-written, good plot and very enjoyable. I really loved it.