Isla and the Happily Ever After by Stephanie Perkins

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.

Okay, so of all the three books so far in this series (Anna and the French Kiss, Lola and the Boy Next Door, and this one), I liked Isla and the Happily Ever After the most. Isla was by far the most likable leading lady that Perkins was able to come up with. It's a pet peeve to me that all her guys seem to be perfect nice guys (ugh), but perhaps it's because we're reading it from the lady's rose-tinted and infatuated point-of-view.

I liked this book a lot because there was less bullshit. It's a slice-of-life story, and Isla is a breath of fresh air. She's shy, patient, and understanding... and even if we're reading it from her point of view, its obvious from the conversations and inner turmoils she has. Josh, on the other hand, is quite endearing. He's sweet but also oblivious to Isla's insecurities, which is where most of the book's conflict comes from.

And my favorite part of the book? Kurt. Kurt is Isla's childhood friend who has high-functioning autism. He's blunt and rude and can't tell a lie (which gets Isla and Josh expelled), but he's just so incredibly sweet and caring. I think he's actually the reason I like Isla a lot more than I liked the other leading ladies of Stephanie Perkins. Through him, you can actually see how good a person Isla is because she refuses to keep relations with people who don't care for Kurt's company.

As for Isla and Josh's relationship, it was more of chance that they got together, but they did appear to complement one another. Isla's conversation with a friend later on in the book explains why Isla and Josh work. It's simply because Josh is brash and Isla is gentle, and rather than push, they listen.

I'm giving this book a 3/5. It's no literary masterpiece but it makes a good, light read.

Review: Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins

Budding designer Lola Nolan doesn't believe in fashion... she believes in costume. The more expressive the outfit – the more sparkly, more wild – the better. And life is pretty close to perfect for Lola, especially with her hot rocker boyfriend.

That is, until the Bell twins, Calliope and Cricket return to the neighbourhood and unearth a past of hurt that Lola thought was long buried. So when talented inventor Cricket steps out from his twin sister's shadow and back into Lola's life, she must finally face up to a lifetime of feelings for the boy next door. Could the boy from Lola's past be the love of her future?

Fall in love with the international bestseller from queen of young adult fiction, Stephanie Perkins.

Unfortunately, I'm giving this book a 2/5. I enjoyed the book before this one (Anna and the French Kiss), but I found the main characters of Lola and the Boy Next Door too eccentric to be relatable. Don't get me wrong -- Stephanie Perkins writes light-hearted stories that you want to be able to relate to. This one was about a typical "first love never dies" story about the boy-next-door. It tugs at your heartstrings and all, but... I feel as if the quirkiness of the characters seemed too force.

I loved everything else, though. I like how Lola had two overprotective fathers, and I liked how Cricket had a matching bitchy, protective sister. Max, Lola's older and rebellious boyfriend, added a good conflict to the story as well -- though I'm sensing that a recurring theme in Perkins's books is being torn between 'two lovers' and ultimately having to make the hard decision of letting go of a difficult relationship and realizing that someone else 'sees the real you'.

And... Lola, our leading lady. She insists on being seen as mature but nothing about her decisions (or personality!) were mature. At all. It was frustrating because Cricket seems genuinely nice, but here's Lola, who I have a hard time liking because she's just downright immature. It's not even just the strange costumes. That was more a quirk that anything else. It's the infatuation with the OLDER guy, the lying to her parents, the leading Cricket on, etc etc.

In summary, the overall premise (boy-next-door first love) was sweet and endearing, but the two main characters were not. Not a fan.

Review: Will Grayson, Will Grayson by John Green, David Levithan

Will Grayson, Will Grayson by John Green, David Levithan

Genres: Young adult, contemporary, romance, glbt, realistic fiction

One cold night, in a most unlikely corner of Chicago, two teens—both named Will Grayson—are about to cross paths. As their worlds collide and intertwine, the Will Graysons find their lives going in new and unexpected directions, building toward romantic turns-of-heart and the epic production of history’s most fabulous high school musical.

Hilarious, poignant, and deeply insightful, John Green and David Levithan’s collaborative novel is brimming with a double helping of the heart and humor that have won both of them legions of faithful fans.

John Green and David Levithan did a good job on this collaboration. What I liked best about it is just how much it captures the reality of teenage drama. Really, this book is all about Tiny, and the two Will Graysons in his life. Tiny is an amazing character, he's hilarious and confident, with all these insecurities that he tries to hide.

Another character that I ended up liking a lot if Jane. She's the type that just grows on you, alongside Will Grayson (the straight one).

Green writes in his typical manner, with wit and sensitivity. In contrast to Levithan, I found that Green's chapters had a more upbeat feel to them, which can possibly be attributed to the fact that Levithan's Will Grayson was suffering from depression. Levithan's writing was... unique. No words were capitalized and dialogues were done in chat/script form. It took a while to get used to but once you did, you kind of see that it's probably the way his Will Grayson really would have done it anyway.

Truth be told, the ending appeared a bit lacking to me. I enjoyed how they tackled the depth of Tiny and straight Will's friendship, but the ending seemed to lacking and, sorry to say, corny. It was done in a flashy way that I guess Tiny appreciates because it's Tiny, but from the reader's perspective, there could have been more to it.

Rating: 3.5/5

Review: On The Count Of Tree by Maureen Johnson

On the Count of Three by Maureen Johnson

Genres: Young adult, glbt, romance, contemporary, realistic fiction

What happens when your two best friends fall in love...with each other?

"Their friendship went so far back, it bordered on the Biblical -- in the beginning, there was Nina and Avery and Mel." So says high school senior Nina Bermudez about herself and her two best friends, nicknamed "The Bermudez Triangle" by a jealous wannabe back on Nina's eleventh birthday. But the threesome faces their first separation when Nina goes away the summer before their senior year. And in ten short weeks, everything changes.

Nina returns home bursting with stories about Steve, the quirky yet adorable eco-warrior she fell for hard while away. But when she asks her best friends about their summer romances, an awkward silence follows.

Nina soon learns the shocking truth when she sees Mel and Avery...kissing. Their friendship is rocked by what feels like the ultimate challenge. But it's only the beginning of a sometimes painful, sometimes funny, always gripping journey as three girls discover who they are and what they really want.

I've mentioned it in a previous post, but I've been wanting to read a Maureen Johnson book ever since I was introduced to her writing in Let It Snow. Fortunately, On The Count Of Tree (also titled The Bermudez Triangle) did not disappoint. It was not as hilarious as Johnson's short story in Let It Snow, but I liked it just the same. The characters are all realistic and lovable, and the emotional scenes tug at your heartstrings. I actually teared up once. It's unlike some novels which try too hard to make you feel for the characters. This one was a good read and it built up their issues well to the point that you can understand what they're going through. It's got comedy, romance, friendship, and battles with the self. 

Really, my own qualm was that the ending left me wondering, 'that was it?'. Nina, one of the three main characters, suddenly solved her problems and made a major decision without any explanation or build up. There was just mention of it in the last chapter. Just... okay, there could have been more to it. 

 Despite that, I loved the book. Maureen Johnson is now a favorite author. 

 Rating: 4/5

Review: Ten Things We Did (and Probably Shouldn't Have) by Sarah Mlynowski

Review: Ten Things We Did (and Probably Shouldn't Have) by Sarah Mlynowski

Genres: Young adult, romance, contemporary, chick lit, realistic fiction

Summary: 2 girls + 3 guys + 1 house - parents = 10 things April and her friends did that they (definitely, maybe, probably) shouldn't have. If given the opportunity, what sixteen-year-old wouldn't jump at the chance to move in with a friend and live parent-free? Although maybe "opportunity" isn't the right word, since April had to tell her dad a tiny little untruth to make it happen (see #1: "Lied to Our Parents"). But she and her housemate Vi are totally responsible and able to take care of themselves. How they ended up "Skipping School" (#3), "Throwing a Crazy Party" (#8), "Buying a Hot Tub" (#4), and, um, "Harboring a Fugitive" (#7) at all is kind of a mystery to them.

This is your average chic lit, young adult (more specifically, teen) book. I found it funny though the plot was not anything extraordinary. What stood out best in the book were the characters... they all seemed very real. Each of them had their own issues and personalities (yay!).

At first, I found it confusing that the author kept going from the present and then showing snippets of the past. It was a lot of back and forth, and it was also quite difficult to remember who's who, because suddenly there's just this myriad of characters in your face. But once that passes, you get into it, and you actually start rooting for someone. What I found nice about it is that I could actually empathize with the characters, though there came a time when it got tiring that all the protagonist did was be depressed and selfish and punishing. And also, oblivious. I do feel for her because it's true that she was going through some tough stuff, but for a reader, it became redundant to read the same musings again and again.

Anyway, I recommend this to people who like slice-of-life books with impressive characters who don't mind a plot that doesn't go that deep.

Rating: 3/5

Review: Let it Snow: Three Holiday Romances by John Green, Maureen Johnson, Lauren Myracle

Let it Snow: Three Holiday Romances by John Green, Maureen Johnson, Lauren Myracle 

Genres: Young adult, romance, short stories, holiday 

Summary: An ill-timed storm on Christmas Eve  buries the residents of Gracetown under multiple feet of snow and causes quite a bit of chaos. One brave soul ventures out into the storm from her stranded train and sets off a chain of events that will change quite a few lives. Over the next three days one girl takes a risky shortcut with an adorable stranger, three friends set out to win a race to the Waffle House (and the hash brown spoils), and the fate of a teacup pig falls into the hands of a lovesick barista.

Aside from the famous John Green, I have never (unfortunately) heard of Maureen Johnson and Lauren Myracle before. But I didn't buy this book because of John Green's name, I bought it because it's the holiday seasons and I wanted to read a holiday feel-good book. At least I assumed it was a feel-good book. Also, I was correct.

Let It Snow is a collection of holiday short stories. Each one are interconnected to the other and cameos show up in each story. It's not a new idea as it has been done so many times before, but it was also interesting to see the main characters of one story from the point of view of another.

The first story, written by Maureen Johnson, was my favorite. The lady is hilarious, and I am definitely going to look into her other books. The characters that she wrote were refreshing and it made me root for them. The second story was written by John Green, and was written in his familiar fashion of long monologues by characters who all seem to be too quick-witted. It's funny, but not very believable. It was a mixture of romance and friendship and while the characters were hard to believe, it was still fun to read about them. The last story, written by Lauren Myracle, was also amusing to read but the underdog in all three stories. It was fast-paced and focused more on self-realization than anything else.

All in all, I liked this book. There's no profound plot in here, but the way they executed everything was done in such a nice and humorous way that it's definitely a good read.

Rating: 4/5