Lola and the Boy Next Door (Anna and the French Kiss, #2) in The Wide Web of Friends in YA Books

May 29, 2012 Ifrah rated it liked it · review of another edition

I really like Lola and Cricket. They're really cute together! Through the first half of the book I loved them soooooo much more than Anna and Etienne. I like Anna and Etienne too but I prefer Lola and Cricket more. I still like Lola and Cricket more but by the end of the book my love for them had toned down a little bit. Mostly because at times their relationship reflected Anna and Etienne's, because they moved really fast towards the end and because of the cheese. I rarely ever like cheese and ...more

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Aug 28, 2012 Inah (Fueled By Chapters) rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: owned, recs, contemporary, signed

I cannot believe I waited a long time before reading this book.

Eccentric as the protagonist may be, I loved the way she expressed herself, not that I would do it to myself.
I loved Cricket so much. He was just one of the few literature guys that I loved because of his "shy" persona.

I don't know what else to say, because I'm too overwhelmed with the book. Haha! ...more

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Jan 19, 2012 Maddie rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: contemporary-romance

More like 3,5 actually. I just couldn't connect with the characters that much, and I didn't always see the spark between them. Maybe it's just me, maybe I just missed something. It was a nice read though. ...more

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Sep 23, 2013 Szidonia rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: will-read-asap

Perfect ending, like so good I can't even express how warm it made me feel inside. :) ...more

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Mar 20, 2017 Rachel (aka Ms4Tune) rated it really liked it

Shelves: young-adult, romance, series-read, contemporary, a-paperback, bought, 2013

My review can also be found on our blog Paein and Ms4Tune

As I’ve come to expect, Lola and the Boy Next Door is another of Stephanie Perkin’s books that leaves me all warm and fuzzy inside. There’s something sweet and natural and beautiful about her characters and I can’t help but love them!

Lola is a teenager who loves to design and create costumes that she wears every day. To those on the outside she seems out going, different, a unique and glitzy individual but inside, Lola is just like every description

My review can also be found on our blog Paein and Ms4Tune

As I’ve come to expect, Lola and the Boy Next Door is another of Stephanie Perkin’s books that leaves me all warm and fuzzy inside. There’s something sweet and natural and beautiful about her characters and I can’t help but love them!

Lola is a teenager who loves to design and create costumes that she wears every day. To those on the outside she seems out going, different, a unique and glitzy individual but inside, Lola is just like every other teenage girl. She’s insecure, she’s emotional, she’s unsure of what she wants… and that makes her the perfect character to read about. Lola has dreaded the return of her neighbours, the Bell family. Calliope Bell has always been mean to Lola, shutting her out of her glamorous figure skater life no matter what Lola did to be friends with her, and then there’s Cricket Bell… the boy who broke Lola’s heart and then left without a word. Now they are back and Lola would do anything to avoid them, but somehow she just can’t seem to stay away from the oh so sweet and nerdy Cricket Bell.

This book tackles that period in a teens life when they are unsure of who they are and what they want. I loved watching Lola try and figure this out and how her family were so supportive of her. The family dynamic, for me, was perfect.

The romance, as you can expect, wasn’t that straight forward. Lola has a boyfriend already, when Cricket storms back into her life, Max. Max was perfectly fine in most circumstances and yet, things between them weren’t quite right. Sometimes its hard to admit to yourself that something doesn’t work, especially when there isn’t a really obvious reason why its not working. Yes I think Lola could have handled the situation a little better but I feel Stephanie Perkins wrote it well. Sometimes there is just someone better and more suited waiting right there for you but it takes courage to take that jump.

I really loved the quirkiness of the characters and at times I actually preferred Lola and Cricket to Anna and Etienne! I know shocking right! Speaking of Anna and Etienne, I was so happy they had a little cameo in this book. I’ve missed them loads. It’s lovely to see that their relationship is still as strong as ever and they are even more in love :)

I can’t wait to read Isla and the Happily Ever After as I’m suffering from withdrawals of the cuteness already! I’m hoping for more cameo appearances and even quirkier characters! All in all the perfect teen romance to bring in the start of Spring! ...more

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