Lola and the Boy Next Door

By Stephanie Perkins

4.5/5

Although Anna and the French Kiss can be read as a standalone novel, Lola and the Boy Next Door is its sequel. Set in San Francisco, the story follows Lola as a boy from her past comes back to complicate her life (in the best possible way). Anna and St Clair also appear in this book, though they do not have a prominent role in the story.

I gave this book a 4.5 purely because I didn’t like it as much as Anna and the French Kiss. However, that isn’t to say I didn’t like, I loved it but not as much. I found Lola to be rather irritating and immature at times and I really didn’t like how she led Cricket on. Yet she was a fun character, very different from Anna but also similar in some aspects too. Speaking of Anna, I loved how she and St Clair made an appearance in this book and I really enjoyed seeing how their relationship had developed and how it was developing. Cricket was utterly adorable and the complete opposite of his twin sister, Calliope, a character I really did not like. I loved Lola’s dads and her relationship with them, and also her relationship with her biological mother as this answered some questions about Lola’s personality and why she thinks the way she does. Again, the writing was honest and simple, portraying the story beautifully.

I am a huge fan of this trilogy and I only wish that the books were a little longer as I read each one in only a few hours.