Book Review: Isla and the Happily Ever After by Stephanie Perkins

Isla and the Happily Ever After

Isla and Josh have gone to the same school for years but have never really known each other. That all changes their senior year, after a random meeting in a coffee shop in New York sparks something that follows them to school in Paris.

I would say this was my favourite book out of the series(but I might be biased by how Isla got her name). It took everything I loved about the first two books and combined them into something I spent all night reading.

I liked the little glimpse we got of Isla in Anna and the French Kiss, but now, in her own book, she really stood out as a character I loved. She was shy and a little awkward, protective of her friends, and she had no idea what she wanted to do after high school. I really liked that this was an ongoing issue throughout the book and the school year instead of being glossed over. I loved Josh in Anna and the French Kiss, I felt for him being younger than all his friends and having to do senior year alone. The more we found out about Josh in this book, the more I felt for him.

I really did enjoy everything about this book. The characters had depth and flaws and struggles and all those things were reasons why Isla and Josh worked so well together, and why Isla’s friendship with Kurt was so memorable, why I can remember Isla’s sisters names(besides the cute name story) even though they played pretty minor roles. If Anna was discovering the touristy Paris, Isla was all about the secret spots only locals know about.

This book could easily stand on its own so a reader doesn’t have to read Anna or Lola to understand the story(but should because they’re awesome). Unlike the first two where the struggle was more about the couple actually getting together, Isla and Josh’s struggle was more about the work it can take to make a relationship last, the accepting of other friendships, past relationships, any and all outside forces that wish to keep them apart. I loved it all.

One last note: beware, this book could cause a book hangover. Proceed with care.