[Review] Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins

Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins
Series: Anna and the French Kiss, #2
Publisher: Dutton
Publishing Date: Sept. 29, 2011
Format: hardcover
384 Pages
Links: Goodreads | Amazon | B&N

Synopsis 

Lola Nolan is a budding costume designer, and for her, the more outrageous, sparkly, and fun the outfit, the better. And everything is pretty perfect in her life (right down to her hot rocker boyfriend) until the Bell twins, Calliope and Cricket, return to the neighborhood. When Cricket, a gifted inventor, steps out from his twin sister's shadow and back into Lola's life, she must finally reconcile a lifetime of feelings for the boy next door.

My Review

I read Anna and the French Kiss a while ago and absolutely loved the story. From that point on, I knew I wanted to read the rest of the books in the series. It's taken me a long time to get here, but I finally read the second one, Lola and the Boy Next Door! I actually didn't know anything about this book when I picked it up; I just knew it was the second in the series. And I have to say, I will definitely be reading the third!

This was a really cute book. I loved Lola because she was so different from a lot of other YA characters. She has her own style and doesn't really let anyone change that. And Cricket was a neat character too. I liked that he changed his ways and made things up to Lola. And I also loved that Lola's parents are gay men; it really made the story fun and interesting. Obviously they aren't any different from straight parents, but I have to say that I don't think I've ever read a book with gay parents before. I really just love seeing diversity in books, so I was happy to read this. 

Overall, really fun book. I loved Lola's personality and Cricket was a great supporting character. I even liked Calliope because I could relate to her a bit. I do think this is a great YA series and I'm on the bandwagon with all the other fans! (: 

If You Liked Anna and the French Kiss...

I'm always looking for book suggestions when I find something I really love. So I wanted to share with others books that I think are similar. I haven't read This Song Will Save Your Life, but I've heard such great things about it, and it's on my TBR list. Just a disclaimer, in this little series of "If You Liked This..." I'll be posting, I won't have read all of the books, but I've read a lot about them to think they're similar. I hope you all enjoy! I'm always open to suggestions, so if you think other books are similar to these, please comment!! 

Wishlist Wednesday 3.26.14

Wishlist Wednesday is a book blog hop hosted by Dani @ Pen to Paper where we will post about one book per week that has been on our wishlist for some time, or just added (up to you), that we can't wait to get off the wishlist and onto our shelves :)

I read Anna and the French Kiss a month or two ago and really loved it. Now I want to read the next in the series! I almost bought it last night from Amazon, but then I told myself I didn't need any more books until I get through some more that have been on my TBR pile for quite some time... So hopefully by the summer I'll have it! These fun YA romances seem like the perfect summer read, too! 

It's Monday! 2.17.14

It's Monday! What are you reading? is a weekly meme hosted by Sheila @ Book Journey, where we share what we read last week, what we're currently reading, and what is next for us! 

Just Finished

Anna and the French Kiss

Review HERE

Currently Reading

Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden

So good so far! Beautifully written; can't believe it's taken me this long to finally pick it up!

Up Next

 AND 

[Review] Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins

Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins
Publisher: Speak
Publishing Date: Dec. 2, 2010
372 Pages
Format: paperback, purchased
Buy Links: Amazon | B&N

Synopsis

Anna can't wait for her senior year in Atlanta, where she has a good job, a loyal best friend, and a crush on the verge of becoming more. So she's not too thrilled when her father unexpectedly ships her off to boarding school in Paris - until she meets Etienne St. Claire, the perfect boy. The only problem? He's taken, and Anna might be, too, if anything comes of her crush back home. Will a year of romantic near-misses end in the French kiss Anna awaits?

My Review

I bought this book because of all the hype that has been going around. I wasn't sure if it was going to be as amazing as everyone else said it was, but I love young adult books, and I love romances, so putting the two together is bound to have a good turnout :) Thankfully, it did! I read the entire book in ONE day! I'll have to admit, when I started it and was about halfway through, I liked it, but I didn't think it was amazing or the best book out there. But then I kept reading and just fell in love.

The characters are fun. Anna doesn't want to be in France, away from her friends, school, and new crush. But she's stuck there, so why not make the most of it. I love that she has a passion for movies. I think it added so much to her characters and wasn't just another girl who lusts after a boy. She has an identity outside of her relationships, and I love that! Etienne is also a great character. He has so many struggles going on in his life, between his controlling father, a mother who lives across the country, and a girlfriend that he isn't sure he wants to be with. These two characters compliment each other so well. And I thought the supporting characters, Rashmi, Mer, and Josh, were great as well. They all add a little something to the story!

I was worried this would be just another teenage love story, that in reality, probably wouldn't last past high school. But it was just different enough that I loved it. Stephanie Perkins is a very talented writer, and I cannot wait to read the next books by her as well!

Stacking the Shelves 2.10.14

Stacking the Shelves is a weekly meme hosted by Tynga @ Tynga's Reviews. Its all about sharing the books you are adding to your shelves, whether physical or virtual books. This means you can include books you buy in physical stores or online, books you borrow from friends or the library, review books, gifts, and of course ebooks! Tynga posts this meme on Saturdays, but you can post on any day that works best for you! Check out the guidelines by visiting Tynga's blog!

Usually I post this on Saturday or Sunday, but since I was gone over the weekend, I'll just post now :) Small week for receiving books, but that is definitely ok! I have so many already that it's probably a good thing that I didn't get many. 

Purchased

I've been waiting to get a copy of this book for some time because I keep hearing how great it is! I searched at my local used book store, but could never find it, so I finally broke down and bought it new (which I almost never do). Probably going to be the next book I start! 

I read this book years ago, but since there is now a movie out, I really wanted to reread it. Again, I couldn't find it at the local used bookstore, so I bought it new. One thing that bothers me -- the book store was selling this as "new fiction" and therefore, the price was much higher. But it's NOT new!!! It's actually quite old, so I'm kind of irritated that they're doing that. I understand since it's now a movie, they are expecting to sell more copies, but seriously, it shouldn't be marketed as new! I searched around the store to find the smaller paperback because I wasn't going to pay $15 for the larger sized "new" book.

 I have to say though, I like this cover much better than the original! 

Wishlist Wednesday 1.29.14

Wishlist Wednesday is a book blog hop hosted by Dani @ Pen to Paper where we will post about one book per week that has been on our wishlist for some time, or just added (up to you), that we can't wait to get off the wishlist and onto our shelves :)

Well, I've mentioned this book many times on my blog within the past couple weeks because I really, really want it!  It's.... Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins! I've read so many great reviews and blog posts about this book, and I cannot wait to get it! I looked for it at my local used book store, but they didn't have a copy at that location, so I'll have to look elsewhere. I'm really hope to get this soon and hopefully I'll like it as much as everyone else does! I worry that I'm setting high expectations for it, but how can I help it after all the reviews I've read?! :) 

Feature and Follow Friday! 1.24.14

Feature and Follow is a blog hop hosted by Parajunkee and Alison Can Read. The purpose is to meet new people and gain more followers in the book blogging community. If this is your first time here, welcome! You are about to make some new friends and gain new followers. But you have to know, the point of this hop is to follow other blogs also. I follow you, you follow me. 

The general rules are: 

- Follow the Feature and Follow Hosts (Parajunkee and Alison Can Read)

- Follow the Featured Bloggers

- Put your Blog name and URL in the Linky thing. You can also grab the code if you would like to insert it into your posts. 

-Grab the button up there and place it in a post. This post is for people to say hi and that they are now following you in your comments. 

-Follow, Follow, Follow as many as you can. The whole point is to make new friends and find new blogs. Don't just follow, comment and say hi in the post! Another blogger might not know you are a new follower if you don't say 'hi'

-If someone comments and says they are following you, please follow back! 

This weeks question: 

What books are you looking forward to reading in 2014? 

That's a loaded question because there are SO many books I can't wait to read! I recently posted about the 31 Days of Reading contest that I won here. There are so many great books in this pile that I can't choose what to start first! Below is a picture of all those books that I'm looking forward to reading. It includes the book one of The Infernal Devices series, Uglies, Let the Sky Fall, Letting Ana Go, and so, so many more! 

I also really want to continue reading A Song of Ice and Fire series, and since I've only finished the first, that would mean reading A Clash of Kings this year! As well as Anna and the French Kiss (I've heard such great things!) and Fever and Sever from The Chemical Garden Series. There are obviously so many others I want to read, but if I listed them all, we'd be here all day! (: 

 

    

What books are you looking forward to reading in 2014?