Review: Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins

Title: Lola and the Boy Next Door
Author: Stephanie Perkins
Publication Date: July 9th, 2013
Publisher: Speak
Source: Bought it
Where to find: Goodreads / Amazon / Book Depository

Summary: Lola Nolan is a budding costume designer, and for her, the more outrageous, sparkly, and fun the outfit, the better. And everything is pretty perfect in her life (right down to her hot rocker boyfriend) until the Bell twins, Calliope and Cricket, return to the neighborhood. When Cricket, a gifted inventor, steps out from his twin sister's shadow and back into Lola's life, she must finally reconcile a lifetime of feelings for the boy next door.

“I know you aren't perfect. But it's a person's imperfections that make them perfect for someone else.”

Even though I had only ever read Anna and the French Kiss, I knew when I picked this up I was picking up a book I would fly through and really enjoy. I got more than I expected with this book. I loved Anna and the French Kiss, especially Anna and Etienne and I loved seeing them in this book. They had a much larger role int he story than I thought they would which was a pleasant surprise.

For me, Lola and the Boy Next Door definitely had a more important message to me than Anna and the French Kiss did, however, I still prefer Anna and Etienne, as a couple. Lola and Cricket are important though because their story focuses on finding and believing in yourself regardless of what other people think or believe. I loved how both Lola and Cricket had their quirks that made them different and unique. 

My one issue with this book that was also somewhat present in Anna is the borderline cheating that goes on. When Lola and Cricket start to get close, Lola has a boyfriend and I'm still slightly bothered by this because it is not fair to the boyfriend when Lola suddenly falls for someone else. While this may be realistic with regard to what really happens, I do not care for it in the book.

I also definitely picked up on the foreshadowing for everyone being present for Isla and the Happily Ever After. This book was exactly what I needed at the time due to its cute story and ease of reading. There is something about reading a book where you know the characters end up together that really lets me fly through the book.