Publisher: Dutton
Publication Date: September 29, 2011
Source/Format: Library book!
Page Count: 328
Goodreads & Amazon
Lola Nolan lives a life that seems pretty awesome: she's a budding fashion designer with a flair for unique style and costume living in San Francisco with her two fathers who run a pie company and has a cute and older punk rock boyfriend who's in a band. Of course her dads hate her boyfriend, and he doesn't start to look any better to them when the Bell family moves in next door--again. Calliope, a world-class figure skater, has been Lola's mortal enemy for years. And then there's Calliope's twin brother, Cricket Bell, a quirky inventor who Lola swears she is over, but isn't quite so sure she believes herself. Lola has to juggle her boyfriend and Cricket all while keeping her ultimate goal in sight: to walk into her school dance in the craziest Marie Antoinette costume San Francisco has ever seen.
Oh-em-gee, Stephanie Perkins did it again! I actually think I liked this one better than Anna and the French Kiss. Lola is talented and vibrant, and I found myself continuing to read even just to see what new and crazy costumes she would come up with. Perkins is a pro at creating unique characters that don't fall into a box of cliches. Lola's voice was strong throughout and I adored her passion for off-the-wall outfits and disregard of what people thought of her. Cricket was also a strong character, very sweet, and in the same lineage of Alexander Graham Bell! And of course, Perkins integrated Anna and St Clair, even though I found St Clair to be a little more clingy and too-present in the scenes he was written into.
And of course, Lola and the Boy Next Door was not short on squealy squishy cuteness. Like in Anna, there was a fair share of drama and conflict to keep it from being too overbearing, which is a good thing because as cute as cute is, it can become overwhelming in just a few words. The conflicts were also realistic and true to the life of a seventeen-year-old girl trying to navigate her way to senior boys and around the mysterious world of boys and men.
Now, I am good and excited for Isla and the Happily Ever After, which is expected to come out this fall!
Rating: 5 / 5
Have you read this series? Am I super far behind on this?
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