Review: Isla and the Happily Ever After by Stephanie Perkins (Anna and the French Kiss, #3)

Publication date: August 14th, 2014
Publisher: Dutton
Links: Goodreads | Amazon US | Amazon India
Stars: 3.5/5
Source: Bought

Love ignites in the City That Never Sleeps, but can it last?

Hopeless romantic Isla has had a crush on introspective cartoonist Josh since their first year at the School of America in Paris. And after a chance encounter in Manhattan over the summer, romance might be closer than Isla imagined. But as they begin their senior year back in France, Isla and Josh are forced to confront the challenges every young couple must face, including family drama, uncertainty about their college futures, and the very real possibility of being apart.

Featuring cameos from fan-favorites Anna, Étienne, Lola, and Cricket, this sweet and sexy story of true love—set against the stunning backdrops of New York City, Paris, and Barcelona—is a swoonworthy conclusion to Stephanie Perkins’s beloved series.

REVIEW

I don't think I've waited for anything as long as I waited for Isla and The Happily Ever After to release. With the release date being pushed back by a year and everything, I thought I'd never get to read it. In a nutshell it's about:

- Isla Martin (the redhead who has about maybe two minutes worth of screen (scene?) time in Anna and the French Kiss)

- who has a brief albeit completely loopy encounter with Josh (the other half of Joshua and Rashmi as well as St. Clair's best friend in Anna and the French Kiss)

- It's an encounter that might just be her "in" with him (she's been crushing on him since Freshman year) and a possible Happily Ever After

It's an extremely simple and sweet story, really; much like Perkins' previous books, Anna and the French Kiss and Lola and the Boy Next Door. I liked how most of the conflict was self-created. You do not need a love triangle or love unrequited to turn a relationship upside down. You just need the insecurities that eat you up inside your head all day long. I think Perkins brought that out beautifully in these two wonderfully vulnerable characters.

The secondary characters, from the best friend, little sister to the ex best friend, have their quirks and flaws and an equal impact on the course of events. Much of Isla takes place in Paris, though there's a good bit of Manhattan and Barcelona. While there's the magic of Paris we experienced in Anna, there's less of the excitement and freshness to it since it's Isla's senior year and Paris practically feels like her second home. The story culminates at a much-awaited-reunion of favorites from Anna... AND Lola... with a surprise follow-up to an old story that will have you swooning!

If you are yet to read any of Stephanie Perkins' books, I suggest you start with Anna and the French Kiss. If you liked Perkins' previous books: Isla and the Happily Ever After, while lacking a little of the pep and quirk that made Anna... tick, definitely completes the series. Whether you had an unstomachable crush on Etienne St. Clair (!!) or want to know where Cricket and Lola are right now... whether you wanted to know more about Josh or that soft spoken redhead, Isla and the Happily Ever After gives you all of it!

Rating: ★★★1/2

Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins

To say I had high expectations for Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephenie Perkins is an understatement. Stephenie Perkins' (author of Lola and the Boy Next Door) debut novel, Anna and the French Kiss had reawakened my urge for fun, quirky and clever young adult fiction (a void that only Sarah Dessen had been able to fill). Anna and the French Kiss took place in PARIS and Anna's love interest was called Etienne (!!), who had an English accent (!!!)! Her father bore an eerie resemblance to Nicholas Sparks and the novel had its share of cute, hilarious and swoon-worthy moments!

Is Lola and the Boy Next Door as good as its companion novel Anna and the French Kiss? Does it live up to the deservedly high expectations?

WHAT IT'S ABOUT
(from goodreads.com)

Budding designer Lola Nolan doesn’t believe in fashion . . . she believes in costume. The more expressive the outfit -- more sparkly, more fun, more wild -- the better. But even though Lola’s style is outrageous, she’s a devoted daughter and friend with some big plans for the future. And everything is pretty perfect (right down to her hot rocker boyfriend) until the dreaded Bell twins, Calliope and Cricket, return to the neighborhood. When Cricket steps out of his sister's shadow and back into Lola's life, Lola must finally reconcile a lift her feelings for the boy next door?

WHAT I THOUGHT
heartfelt dialogue . lovable characters . CRICKET IS ALL KINDS OF AWESOME . wasn't as good ANNA AND THE FRENCH KISS for me but was still really, really good

The good news is that Lola and the Boy Next Door has its share of cute and heartwarming moments. The characters are as lovable (Lola gives 'unique' a whole new spin to it) as the characters in Anna and the French Kiss. Anna and Etienne also make appearances in the novel- which felt a little forced but is still great. Etienne still makes you swoon!

And Cricket, the guy who comes back into Lola's life- oh boy! Cricket is the regular boy next door- inhibited, dorky and completely lovable. He makes your heart melt! As does Lola's extended family- including her two overprotective dads and her homeless biological mother, all of whom really, really make this book work as you warm up to most of them. Even characters you don't care for in the beginning eventually win you over- they are just so genuine, each of them justified in their own way.

On the whole, Lola and the Boy Next Door was an easy novel to read. The characters were very real and the dialogue was heartfelt. Still, it did not rival Anna and the French Kiss. Lola and the Boy Next Door wasn't necessarily unputdownable and Anna and the French Kiss was just more entertaining and engrossing. Nevertheless, I will definitely pick up the third and final companion novel (Isla and the Happily Ever After) when it's out!

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars