Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins

Review:

I have been wanting to read this for so long, after reading Anna and the French Kiss in the summer, but have only just got round to reading it.  But now I'm so glad i decided to!  I loved Anna and the French Kiss, so it was inevitable that I would have the same reaction to this; in fact, i may have loved this even more!  I like the way it's written, the story- line and adore all of the characters, and i now can't wait to read Isla and the happily ever after.

Firstly, for some reason i loved the realistic setting of this book.  Paris was such a beautiful place for the first book to be set, and i think it really helped the romance, but the typical and very everyday atmosphere here allowed this to be so much more realistic and show romance in a very normal setting.   Plus I think the next door neighbour window thing kind of created a romantic setting in itself!

I also loved the story-line.  I liked the simplicity of it and the lack of life-changing events.  I think it fitted well with the setting, and allowed everyday problems and romance to be shown well.  I liked how what might be seen as a small fight in this book affects the whole story-line in this book - it makes everything a whole lot more realistic.  I also liked the falling for a friend thing again, as i found this relatable in Anna and the French Kiss, so liked this coming back.

And the characters - i loved them!  I fell in love with Lola's originality and loved how individual she was.  I also found myself liking Lindsey as well, as she balanced Lola's boldness quite well and was always the voice of reason when it came to Max (the only character i didn't like).  I liked how involved Anna and St Clair were in the story  and thought it was clever how they fitted into this story as well.  Finally, Cricket.  As you could probably guess, i loved him.  His individual and intelligent nature worked so well with Lola's personality, and his shyness definitely helped!  I even liked how he stood up for his sister and supported her.

Overall, I just love this book!  It's such a beautiful romance, yet still realistic, and i can't wait to finish off the series!

Quotes:

(Due to the number of quotes i loved, i had to put more than three in, so sorry there's so many!)"When two people are in love, it's supposed to work.  It has to work.  No matter how difficult the circumstances are... We'll both be a success, and it'll be because of each other.                       Our love should make us a success.""Need. What a powerful, frightening word. It represented my feelings towards him but every night, my dreams placed it inside his mouth.""Our hearts beat the same wild rhythm.  They're playing the same song.""Life isn't about what you get.  It's about what you DO with what you get.""Just because something isn't practical doesn't mean it's not worth creating.  Sometimes beauty and real-life magic are enough.""I'm a child playing dress-up who can't even recognize herself under her own costume.""I know you aren't perfect.  But it's a person's imperfections that make them perfect for someone else."

Songs: 

She Will Stay Beneath the Moon - Adam Barnes How You Get the Girl  - Taylor SwiftTalking to the Moon (acoustic piano version) - Bruno Mars 

Other Books:

The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E. Smith - Another romantic one that i feel relates to Stephanie Perkins books, as it centers around travel.Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell - A story about two teenage with very unique personalities so i feel it relates well to this.Forgotten by Cat Patrick  - I'm afraid I can't say why i recommend this, as I would give away major spoilers - but trust me it's romantic, mysterious and just overall amazing!