{Review} Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins

Lola and the Boy Next Door
Author: Stephanie Perkins
Release Date: September 29, 2011
by, Dutton Books
Source: provided by my blog sista!! <3  (bday present)
Pages: 338

Budding designer Lola Nolan doesn’t believe in fashion . . . she believes in costume. The more expressive the outfit -- more sparkly, more fun, more wild -- the better. But even though Lola’s style is outrageous, she’s a devoted daughter and friend with some big plans for the future. And everything is pretty perfect (right down to her hot rocker boyfriend) until the dreaded 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. {Goodreads}

~Review:
  So you know those books where you completely lose track of when you started and when you ended? Those books that leave you giddy and smiling during the WHOLE book and for DAYS after you have finished the book? Those books where you are at a complete loss for words? Ya, well, Lola and the Boy Next Door is one of those books!

  I loved Mrs. Perkins first book, Anna and the French Kiss, it is easily my favorite contemporary book!! So when I finally got a chance to read this one, after hearing all the greatness about it, I was scared. When I get hyped up about a book and expect it to be as great as everyone says it is....I end up really not liking the book. And I wanted to like this book. I really did! And guess what? This book lived up to its hype and actually managed to exceed it!!

  I wasn't sure about Lola at first but she quickly became a favorite fictional character of mine! She is so quirky and cute and absolutely likeable! I loved all her crazy costumes and her family and her thoughts! And Cricket!!!!! Omf(reakin)g!! This boy....he is...wow! I didn't think he could have ever been as amazingly adorable and freakin fantabulous as he was and is! I am in love with this boy! And 6' 4"??? Yes please! Being a 5'9" girl..finding tall guys who are as cute and nice and smart as Cricket is a hard package to find...and this boy is the whole package! <3 

 (I think I still like Etienne more...idk! These boys are too amazing!) And as amazing as they are....Mrs. Perkins has a way of making these boys she creates flawed...and that is absolutely GREAT! They are flawed in a way where they are believable. real. not too fictionally perfect! <3 <3 And holy crap!!! I think my favorite part of the whole book was how Stephanie added Anna and Etienne to the book's mix. And not just a quick glimpse but actually making them important side characters! I LOVED that!!! I wasn't reading and missing them 'cus they were THERE...in the story....friends of both Cricket AND Lola!!! :O :D

  Lola and the Boy Next Door is a great and fun read. A perfect dose of laughs, swoons, tears, gut wrenching drama/suspense and butterflies! This book was incredible! Definitely in my top 5 of favorite contemporaries! I really hope I never have to say "Awe I wish Stephanie Perkins still wrote Young-Adult contemporary". Because she better never stop writing! I will throw a temper tantrum and cry my eyes out! ;) She is such an amazing writing! She knows how to draw in readers and create the most adorable yet believable love stories for teens! If you haven't read one of her two books you better get on it..these are some books you DONT want to miss out on!

~Rating:

Sadly, I don't have a 1,000,000,000 star button but hell! This book deserves every star in the galaxy! And the moon ;) Yes, this book is THAT good! <3

Thanks for stopping by! :)

~Jaiden

{Review} Matched by Ally Condie

Matched
Series: Matched Trilogy (#1)
Author: Ally Condie
Team: Ky
Release Date: November 30, 2010
by, Dutton Juvenile
Source: Bought
Pages: 366

Cassia has always trusted the Society to make the right choices for her: what to read, what to watch, what to believe. So when Xander's face appears on-screen at her Matching ceremony, Cassia knows with complete certainty that he is her ideal mate... until she sees Ky Markham's face flash for an instant before the screen fades to black.

The Society tells her it's a glitch, a rare malfunction, and that she should focus on the happy life she's destined to lead with Xander. But Cassia can't stop thinking about Ky, and as they slowly fall in love, Cassia begins to doubt the Society's infallibility and is faced with an impossible choice: between Xander and Ky, between the only life she's known and a path that no one else has dared to follow. {Goodreads}

~Trailer:

~Review:
 I wasn't too sure about this book. I had heard and seen so many different things about this book varying from "amazing! This book is great. A favorite for sure." to "I really wanted to like this book. Unfortunately I couldn't. I was bored." But when Christmas and my birthday cam along I had all this book money....what should I buy was the question and I decided. I'll give this book a try. And so I bought book 1 and 2. And you all know...I have a huge To-Read pile and I am soo far behind on it because of school so I  just got to read it. And again...I was hesitant. It wasn't until my book-sharing-cousin texted me and and told me that she absolutely loved it! So..what the heck!

 There are so many dystopian books these days and it's hard for the greats to stand out. And even though I don't particulary agree with the "amazing! This book is great." reviews....I don't necessarily agree with the "I didn't like it all. I was bored." reviews. You can say I was in the middle...leaning a bit more towards the great reviews. I liked it. I liked it a lot! At times I felt that there was a lack of depth in the story, the Society, and the characters. Even though the world made sense...stuff was missing. A Society with no past, no reason of being. All of a sudden there was an unspeakable War. An unexpected peak of interest in an experiment..involving Ky and Cassia. A lot of questions that never got answered....


 Cassia was an interesting character. She was clueless. One of the Societies robots. she does what she is told and doesn't ask questions. She truly believes that the Society only wants the best for her. That is until she gets a malfunction in her microcard. Two Matches? Not normal. Heck! It shouldn't even be possible! The best way I could describe her was a candle. One spark and....she went out in flames. She started to see clearer. She got a spark of rebellion....a spark produced from her grandfather and love. True love. Ky. He was adorable! He wasn't the bad boy I was expecting. He was probably the only character...the only thing that had depth in this story. I loved him. 

 And back to no depth....Xander and Cassia...what was it? For being her match and best friend..by the end of the story. I had no freaking idea about him! She said that she never needed to look at his microcard because she already knew him so well but never gave us anything about him!! I wanted to like him but his lack of any character building...I didn't get to even know him. Which made me deeply sad. Hopefully we get to see more....I sure hope so. All I want is more depth...more insight.

 Altogether, this book brought a unique idea to the dystopian world. I don't regret buying this book and can't wait to start the second which...btw....is told from alternating POV's ....Ky's and Cassia's!!! :D Miss. Condie did an excellent job create the guessing game and  a gorgeous poetic romance that left my heart aching for the doomed couple. When it comes down to it...this book didn't disappoint. Slow at times, yes. Horribly bad and not worth the read. No. Do what I did...give it a chance. Borrow it..buy it...just read it. You might be pleasantly surprised. :)
 

~Rating: 

 

 3.5 stars! :)

Thanks for stopping by! 

Have a great day!! :)

~Jaiden