Contemporary romance has a new queen and her name is Stephanie Perkins. She masterfully concocted swoons in Anna And The French Kiss and manages to kick it up a notch in Lola And The Boy Next Door.
Lola And The Boy Next Door
So, Lola wears these outrageous outfits and sees every day as a costume opportunity, which is awesome because many of us know the pleasure of a makeover and Lola gets that all the time. She dates this older guy named Max who wears glasses and is a totally a douche which is totally obvious to everyone except Lola. So, she’s going about her daily life and comes home one day to discover her former neighbors, the Bells, are back in town. Twins Calliope and Cricket played a huge role in Lola’s past and broke her heart, so naturally she isn’t thrilled by them being back.
GUYS there is a magical Easter egg in Lola And The Boy Next Door in which some awesome characters coughAnnacoughEtiennecough show up and we see that they are still in LOVE and together, but in boring old America, and they show up a lot, not just for two pages. It’s so rad.
OH and and and this has one of my favorite tropes. The one where the girl is with the wrong boy and the right boy is standing right in front of her and oh my goodness it is fun to watch this play out. Also, the nice boy, Crickett, is not a douche or mean or rude. He doesn’t treat Lola like garbage which is awesome and we need more of.
“And his laugh. I’d forgotten how easy it is. The four of us are laughing about something dumb in that silly way that happens when you’re exhausted. Cricket tells a joke and turns to see if I’m laughing, if I think he’s funny, and I want him to know that I do think he’s funny, and I want him to know that I’m glad he’s my friend and I want him to know that he has the biggest heart of anyone I’ve ever known. And I want to press my palm against his chest to feel it beat, to prove he’s really here.” -pg. 136 from the ARC
Can I get a whoop whoop for awkward, scientifically inclined boys. As a person who dates one, I am glad to see them represented in non-pest roles, because science is sexy. Yes, even geology to an extent (hi Tony! ILY <3 <3 ).
I think that Lola And The Boy Next Door is as well written as Anna And the French Kiss. However, it took me longer to connect with Lola. While I liked Anna better, this is a worthy second novel and Stephanie Perkins is definitely on my list of awesome authors to watch out for.
Disclosure: Received for review via Library Thing Early Reviewers.
Other Reviews of Lola And The Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins:
The Perpetual Page Turner
Chick Loves Lit
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Love this review, love the quote, love Anna, love all around apparently. I can’t wait to read this!
I’m going to pre-order this one tonight, together with Daughter of Smoke and Bone. I saw the excerpt that Penguin posted and I love how quirky Lola and her parents are. 🙂 Can’t wait to read the entire book!
Oh Lola.. LOVE her! I think I may have enjoyed this book more than Anna. Stephanie Perkins is so the queen of YA right now! I completely agree with that. This woman knows her stuff. Great review April! and yes to the nerdy dudes!!!
Loved this review. I’ve heard a lot that some people took longer to connect with Lola but this book was (maybe) even better than Anna!
Is his name really Cricket? It’s not a nickname? I just feel that “Cricket” is the name of a bug, not a person, and certainly not of a guy who I’m supposed to swoon for.
I have to read Anna and the French Kiss (going to get it tonight!) and then I can’t wait for Lola!! I keep seeing all these wonderful things about it.
I just read Anna and loved it, glad to know this one is also full of awesome! I like quirky & nerdy 😀
I just read both Anna and Lola and I adored them both. I completely agree with every part of your review. I can’t wait for more! =)
Everyone needs to STOP talking about Lola until I cant get my hands on it! haha! I do want more boys to be awkward and/or nice in books! I love a bad boy, but a good boy is nice at times as well! 🙂 Great review April!
This seems to be the book that all the cool kids are reading right now!
I must be the only one left on the planet who hasn’t read Stephanie Perkins’s books. Your review makes it seem super sweet, thanks April! 😀
well I guess you know how I felt about Anna, BUT I still want to read this one SO BADLY because well i love the way Perkins writes, i just sometimes don;t like the people she creates, which is cool but it would be nice to be able to board this train as a fan and not the social outcast that doesn’t like St Clair and would like to kick him in the goulies.
Oooh. So many rave reviews for this! I just preordered this from Book Depository. 🙂 Can’t wait!
I’m going crazy insane for this book! How amazing is it that Anna and Etienne pop up? *SWOON* Thanks for the review!
Love this review! 🙂 I just finished Lola and I loved it! Such a great companion to Anna! Which is awesome, because this isn’t my normal type read. Glad you are a fan too!
I can’t wait to read about Lola!