Rating: ★★☆☆☆To start, I read Anna and the French Kiss in about seven hours (a cute read, honestly) and I couldn’t put it down. I was somewhat paranoid about going onto Lola and the Boy Next Door, since it’s quite well known that sequels are often not as great as the first book. Agh, the satisfaction one receives when they’re right, and yet the utter disappointment at having bought the book. The book is similar in style to Anna and the French Kiss, with the character’s voice playing an active part in the story-telling process, etc. However, the characters that were oh-so-cute-and-compelling in the first book were not reciprocated with the second. Allow me to divulge. Lola is an eccentric, snarky, somewhat-rebel with a taste for odd fashion. Cute. Unfortunately, I went into the book thinking that such a unique character would pique my interest. I was wrong. I found myself dreadfully bored, and at times, incredibly annoyed with her. This is not to say that Anna didn’t annoy me, because, oh yes, she did. But, I appreciated how she annoyed me, it kept me reading, it added a little ‘zap’ of something. Lola, on the other hand, was undeniably a frustrating character to read about.It’s the decisions she makes, I believe. Of course, everyone makes bad decisions. But, it’s the fact that she continually throws everyone she cares about under the bus that got on my nerves. It was awful, actually. She complained about the whole Cricket incident, and yet she herself was no better. I really would not care to elaborate on the atrocity of her character and the amount of how much I couldn’t connect to her. Maybe it’s just me, I don’t know. I guess her uniqueness was a little too much for me.And then Cricket Bell comes parading into the story. Not to be redundant, but Étienne sent flutters through my body when I read Anna and the French Kiss. Cricket is just a disappointment. He’s so lackluster, so undeveloped, so seemingly-great-but-not-so-much. Should I judge? No, I could never develop a character. But, hell, Cricket is just sad. They describe a spark between Cricket and Lola, but honestly, I don’t get that feeling.Max pisses me off. Kudos to Perkins for creating a character that supremely made me hate bad boys. He was just so incredibly horrifying to me that it was hard for me to read passages with him in it. Perkins almost had some dramatic irony going on in the fact that the reader definitely realizes how bad of a choice Max is, but Lola never does. Like shit, girl, honestly. Can you not see how much of a sell-out he is? Is that attractive to some people? Sure, I guess it is. But, to me, it was just another factor that made me despise turning another page.I must say, I loved her parents. Andy and Nathan (and I mean this with no sarcasm) were such a pleasant surprise. How often does homosexuality come up in YA novels? Not as often as one might imagine. And even then, it’s only lightly dusted over. In this novel, it’s set as almost a focal point. Her parents and her birth mother add a surprising element to Lola. It adds to her growing list of “problems”. Superficial problems, yes, but problems nonetheless. I have to add, however, that I did enjoy Stephanie Perkins's style, as always. And, beyond her gay parents, I was also ecstatic (I seriously squealed) to see Anna and St. Clair. Because, let’s be honest, my heart belongs to them.So, yes, I did something I rarely do and I stopped reading the book halfway through. I was too aggravated, too disappointed, and too unimpressed to continue. Nor do I ever plan on picking this book back up. Happy to say that I was able to return it. Hallelujah. Stephanie Perkins knows how to write a teen romance with well-developed and relatable characters, great dialog, an engaging story, and absolutely fantastic settings. I loved exploring Paris in Anna and the French Kiss. San Francisco was brought to life in Lola and the Boy Next Door. I can't wait to read Isla and the Happily Ever After to finish this series. Fans of Sarah Dessen will enjoy these stories as well.
Do You like book Lola And The Boy Next Door (2011)?
Cricket Bell is definitely my type of guy- awkward and nerdy.
—britenycannon77
3.5 for this bookGod i feel like in a fairytale.
—james
