#aatfk

@projectliterature​ event 02 : underappreciated   —  [ anna and the french kiss ]

to all the books I’ve read in 2020: [8-10/?] → anna and the french kiss, lola and the boy next door, and isla and the happily ever after by stephanie perkins

I'm late to the party on this one. I remember seeing Anna in my high school library, but I bypassed it and never gave it a second glance because I was firmly in my YA dystopian phase at the time. But after seeing these beautiful covers popping up now and again all over booklr, I decided it was about time I read them myself.

Danielle Babbles About Books - Isla and the Happily Ever After (Anna and the French Kiss, #3) by Stephanie Perkins

Rating: 5/5 stars

Adult content: sex, etc. 16 and up

Review: I think when I actually sit down and read a book I tend to enjoy it more with the exception of those books that are better formatted as audiobooks and that are just really well done. There were a lot of things I loved about this book. I loved the characterization and how Isla and Josh work together. Their relationship felt organic and right. I wasn’t completely put off by Josh being a disgruntled jerk most of the time but actually being depressed and upset over some real problems in his life. That trope has bothered me before because I felt it was being used to excuse a person’s bad behavior because “well they’re actually suffering and only the love interest is deep enough and sensitive enough to see that this person is hurting! See, they’re made for each other!”. It’s a complex situation in real life and I don’t subscribe to purity culture and the demand that everything in books be crystal clear and right or whatever but the trope still bothers me. Anyway! I really appreciated that there wasn’t a love triangle and that Isla got to keep her relationship with Kurt, and that she got called out for how she was treating Kurt while she was with Josh. I loved the character growth and that the lessons Isla learns come about naturally. This book was just fantastic overall and a great ending to the series.