lola and the boy next door – Zakiya N. Jamal

*Spoiler alert: I don’t think I can do St. Clair justice without spoiling all the books in the Anna and the French Kiss trilogy. Therefore, read at your own risk.*

I can’t believe I haven’t talked about St. Clair yet. He’s amazing!

Admittedly, he’s not the best at first. When he meets Anna, who’s perfect for him, he’s in a relationship with someone else and he doesn’t handle that whole situation well at all. But once he does work that out he’s a great boyfriend to Anna. I honestly believed I loved Lola and the Boy Next Door more than Anna and the French Kiss because we got to see Anna and St. Clair being so coupley and it was adorable.

The way he tells Lola that Anna’s the one and he knows that he’ll marry her one day made my heart sing. Or the fact that he works in the movie theater with Anna even though he doesn’t have to (his dad is rich) just so he can buy Anna an engagement ring with his own money. *happy tears*

And then when he proposes at their spot in Paris and has all their friends there too. So cute! St. Clair is seriously boyfriend goals and I absolutely love him. Honestly, you should too.

Swoonworthy Line:

“My fiancée and I are headed out for a celebratory dessert. I’d ask you all to join us, but I don’t want you there.”

Dreamcast: Tom Sturridge

Synopsis from Goodreads.com:

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 absolutely loved this book. Not only did I love Lola and Cricket but I loved seeing Anna and Etienne again. I definitely liked this novel even better than Anna and the French Kiss because seeing Anna and Etienne already together and happy kind of just made Lola and Cricket’s romance feel inevitable.

Moreover, I found both Lola and Cricket to be interesting characters. I loved how eccentric Lola was with her crazy outfits and costumes. More than that though I liked that she was daring. She never stuck to the status quo and although her adventurous attitude got her into trouble at times it was also a big part of who she was. I really liked her character a lot and I think all the mistakes she made were fair ones for any teen.

Additionally, the Bell twins have an interesting relationship. I’ve always found twins, in general, to be cool and I kind of wish I had one. Calliope and Cricket are very close but Cricket often gets pushed back into the shadows because his sister is an elite figure skater. I loved watching Cricket come out of his shell and put himself out there when it came to Lola. He was so cute and adorkable that I couldn’t help but cheer for him.

I also loved Lola’s family dynamic. Her birth parent’s were teen parents so her birth mother gave her up to her older brother, Nathan who had been wanting to have kids with his partner, Andy, for a while. First, it’s rare that I read a novel where the main character’s parents are queer. I think there’s a lot of novels where the main character themselves are queer but the last time I remember reading a novel with queer parents was Naomi and Ely’s No Kiss List. Therefore that aspect of the novel itself, interested me.

Overall, this was a cute, short romance novel that I totally want on my shelf so I can reread it whenever I please. Definitely a must read!

Borrow or Buy: Buy!

Stars:

Favorite Line:

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

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Tag: lola and the boy next door

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Book Review: Lola and the Boy Next Door