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3.92 AVERAGE
3.92 AVERAGE
I met Stephanie Perkins at Leaky Con and I was so sad that I wouldn't be able to come to Brazil with my copy of Isla. Good thing we have ebooks!
But at the time, Gayle Forman told me this was the best one. I was like "Ok, sure", because I thought I would like Isla, but nothing would top Anna, because I was soooo like her.
But then I spent the last 6 hours hooked on Isla and I can say Gayle Forman was right.
This is the best one.
I could say more about it, but I don't want to spoil it for you - nor I want to open my heart too much about it because it became a lot personal from the middle onwards. But, trust me, it's good.
But at the time, Gayle Forman told me this was the best one. I was like "Ok, sure", because I thought I would like Isla, but nothing would top Anna, because I was soooo like her.
But then I spent the last 6 hours hooked on Isla and I can say Gayle Forman was right.
This is the best one.
I could say more about it, but I don't want to spoil it for you - nor I want to open my heart too much about it because it became a lot personal from the middle onwards. But, trust me, it's good.
Very different from the other two books, but not in a bad way at all. I like this soul searching Isla had to do, and how much of it was without her beau. So sad to say goodbye to these characters -- like almost gut-wrenching sad -- but so happy they will live on in our re-reads.
Joint review with M live @ Rather Be Reading Blog.
Joint review with M live @ Rather Be Reading Blog.
This book was lacking in plot, as other reviews have mentioned, but I didn't mind. More than the other books in the trilogy, this book reminded me of being a teenager when I was all-consumed with my boyfriend. (Some have said Isla is a stalker for Googleing Josh's family but he's the son of a Senator. And even if he wasn't, doesn't everyone Google everyone these days?)
Anyhow, like many other books I've read this year, I may not remember much about this one but it made me happy and it was a quick read.
Just like Jenny Hans' To All the Boys trilogy, this trilogy, too, would make a fun trio of movies.
Anyhow, like many other books I've read this year, I may not remember much about this one but it made me happy and it was a quick read.
Just like Jenny Hans' To All the Boys trilogy, this trilogy, too, would make a fun trio of movies.
So this is it. It's the end of the Anna and the French Kiss series. Technically. I mean, we all know I'm going to reread them all forever so it's never really over. Honestly, this book was a bit of a disappointment. I still enjoyed it, hence my rating of "I liked it" on goodreads, but I didn't love it, and it doesn't stick out in my mind like Anna does, or even Lola.
Plot- I'll admit, I was a little creeped out by how obsessed Isla was with Josh. I'm soooo glad that in this one, we didn't have to deal with one of the love interests having a boyfriend or a girlfriend, because I hate when it creates the kind of love triangle but not really because we all know that the significant other is going to be dropped eventually. With that being said though, I could have used for a little bit more of some friendship between Isla and Josh before they became a couple, I feel like I lost some chemistry between them. I wish we had more of the building of the relationship, I didn't really feel satisfied with "well we've just always liked each other" explanation. I did love the little things in this plot that made it unique, such as Josh's graphic novel project, just to name one. A lot of the moments they shared together in this book were really adorable though, and I liked the trips they took, and the moments they had. I liked how there was subplot of sibling relationships, I wasn't expecting that and I think it was a nice touch. Also, I wanted to commend Perkins for putting sex in a YA novel, because I don't really know why it's so tip-toed around with, it's not like only college kids are having sex.
Writing- I love Perkin's writing. I forgot how much I loved it, and remembered when I read Lola earlier. It's funny, and the internal dialogue sounds real, and the parts where a character is talking to them self, and realizing a "truth about themselves", sometimes that can be written really badly, where it doesn't seem like natural internal dialogue, but she does it wonderfully. She can write settings beautifully. You really feel like you're there, and I would look up pictures of the things she mentions, and looking at the picture whilst reading her descriptions makes you realize how well she writes the descriptions. The settings of her books are a huge part of it for me, and in contemporaries usually setting isn't a big factor. Although, I do wish there was a little bit more description in Paris.
Characters- I'm always so conflicted on her characters, like I absolutely love them for the most part, but then sometimes I just want to strangle them. As for Isla and Josh as a couple, I think they're my least favorite couple of the three, but I still thought they were adorable. I just didn't feel the same chemistry I did with Lola/Cricket, and Anna/St.Clair. I think it's due to them getting together so early in the book. As of 8/26/14, I've been stewing over my feelings on them, and the result: I have none. While reading I thought they were cute, but I didn't think twice about them after finishing it, where as I am still constantly thinking about Anna/St.Clair and Lola/Cricket. The couple just didn't make an impact on me. Josh on his own though: I loved him. St.Clair is still my all-time favorite, but oh Josh, what a tortured artist. He was just so lovable, with his brooding exterior, and his tattoos, and torn soul. I think him being a graphic novelist was an awesome thing to put in the story, and I thought his quirks with him having ink on him, or just needing to stop and draw were just so endearing. I don't think I was the biggest fan of Isla. For the most part, I think I liked her? She never really made an impression on me until I started to not like her. I could relate to her insecurities, and being fearful of taking risks-to a point. I got really frustrated with her at one point near the end, if you've read the book you know what point I'm talking about. I understand that it was a crucial point in her character arc and development, but I was still so pissed off and angry. I thought she was being histrionic, and irrational. She seemed the most immature out of all of our main female protagonists, and I think she might be my least favorite. While I had issues with Lola during her book, it was all a part of the plot, and as a character I liked Lola a lot better. The character development was done well though overall, and I do appreciate that. I thought it was awesome how Kurt was a part of the story, and how he had high-functioning autism. Perkins always is good with putting in diversity in her books, so kudos to her. Kurt was really interesting to read about, and I did really like him. I do wish he was more developed though, I'm glad she put him there, but I didn't feel like she did anything with him. I was SO happy to see all the characters from the other books at the end, and it just made me so happy to see the "more" that I always want at the end of the other books. Although, as Ariel mentioned, if the best part of the book for you was seeing OTHER characters from OTHER books, that may be a bad thing, and I do see her point. Character-wise, I just couldn't connect like I could in her other books.
Overall- I think this was a good conclusion to this companion trilogy. I think the whole trilogy wrapped up very nicely, and this book itself wrapped up very nicely. At the time of reading it, it was super cute, and gave me all the happy feelings; but looking back on it, it's by far the least memorable out of the three for me, and I really think it has to do with the characters. Even though I enjoyed the overall plot of this book more than Lola, I really liked Cricket and Lola as protagonists a lot more, so I was much more invested in their story. I think this book was still a nice read, and I am very glad I read it, but I do think it's the weakest one in the trilogy. As I let my thoughts on the book simmer, new things came to light, and I've refined my opinions. While I still think this series is a GREAT fluffy and cute contemporary series, that is definitely one of my favorites, it's not without it's flaws. I would recommend them to literally anybody I know though, because even with the flaws, I still think anybody can and will enjoy them.
Worth the wait. The amount of absolute respect I have for Stephanie Perkins knows no bounds, so this is probably a biased review, but she did a lovely job crafting this unique romance between characters that we only thought were minor before.
I adored it. Simple as that.
I adored it. Simple as that.
Also posted on Rally the Readers.
4.5 Stars
Anna and the French Kiss was one of the first YA contemporary romances I read shortly after I’d begun reading in earnest again as an adult. I remember being pleasantly surprised by how it told a sweet story that had substance to it. There’s a fine line between sweet and cloying, and with Isla and the Happily Ever After, Stephanie Perkins delivers another winning novel that warms your heart without getting sappy or melodramatic whenever the characters face conflict.
Two things that I’ve especially loved about Anna, Lola and the Boy Next Door, and now Isla are the main characters’ interesting backstories and how engaging they are as narrators. They also strike an excellent balance between being characters you can’t help but root for and being realistically flawed. Even as some of Isla’s actions made me go, “No, no, no!” I couldn’t fault her for them because I completely understood her reasoning behind them. It’s just that I so badly wanted to see Isla’s fairytale romance with Josh reach an equally fairytale ending that it pained me whenever insecurity got the better of her.
I think “fairytale romance” is an apt description of Isla and Josh’s relationship. It’s epic and sweeping and swoon-worthy. It’s about falling totally, absolutely, madly in love. It’s not fleeting teenage infatuation, either; what Isla and Josh have is the real deal, complete with the very real problem of what happens to them when they graduate high school. Josh is ready to take his drawing talents further, but Isla is unsure of what career path she wants to pursue. Perkins wields an expert touch with her writing whenever her novels take on a more serious tone, and I think that’s what sets her books apart from other YA contemporary romances. They’re just believable, from the characters to the story lines. Even contemporary fiction is, well, inherently fictional, but some books succeed better than others at immersing you so thoroughly in the story that at times you forget that you’re reading a work of fiction. Isla is that kind of book.
Isla’s descriptions of Paris, Barcelona, and my beloved New York were absolutely beautiful and just one more reason to love this novel. Love stories don’t always agree with this stony heart, but all three of Stephanie Perkins’s novels have been notable exceptions to that.
4.5 Stars
Anna and the French Kiss was one of the first YA contemporary romances I read shortly after I’d begun reading in earnest again as an adult. I remember being pleasantly surprised by how it told a sweet story that had substance to it. There’s a fine line between sweet and cloying, and with Isla and the Happily Ever After, Stephanie Perkins delivers another winning novel that warms your heart without getting sappy or melodramatic whenever the characters face conflict.
Two things that I’ve especially loved about Anna, Lola and the Boy Next Door, and now Isla are the main characters’ interesting backstories and how engaging they are as narrators. They also strike an excellent balance between being characters you can’t help but root for and being realistically flawed. Even as some of Isla’s actions made me go, “No, no, no!” I couldn’t fault her for them because I completely understood her reasoning behind them. It’s just that I so badly wanted to see Isla’s fairytale romance with Josh reach an equally fairytale ending that it pained me whenever insecurity got the better of her.
I think “fairytale romance” is an apt description of Isla and Josh’s relationship. It’s epic and sweeping and swoon-worthy. It’s about falling totally, absolutely, madly in love. It’s not fleeting teenage infatuation, either; what Isla and Josh have is the real deal, complete with the very real problem of what happens to them when they graduate high school. Josh is ready to take his drawing talents further, but Isla is unsure of what career path she wants to pursue. Perkins wields an expert touch with her writing whenever her novels take on a more serious tone, and I think that’s what sets her books apart from other YA contemporary romances. They’re just believable, from the characters to the story lines. Even contemporary fiction is, well, inherently fictional, but some books succeed better than others at immersing you so thoroughly in the story that at times you forget that you’re reading a work of fiction. Isla is that kind of book.
Isla’s descriptions of Paris, Barcelona, and my beloved New York were absolutely beautiful and just one more reason to love this novel. Love stories don’t always agree with this stony heart, but all three of Stephanie Perkins’s novels have been notable exceptions to that.
The ending was sweet and heartfelt, but the beginning was too rushed. This would be every girl's dream to find out her crush has always been crushing on her, but the 'I love you' came out too quickly, and it lost all its meaning, honestly.