Synopsis: 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: Boy, oh boy… does Stephanie Perkins ever know how to write great contemporary YA. This rarely happens, but I actually liked the second book in this series just as much as the first! This was a great story that I’m sure will come alive for a lot of readers. You hear a lot about the stereotypical “girl next door“, but Lola shows us that maybe there is something to be said about falling for the boy next door. *swoon*

The first thing that jumped out at me as the cover. Not only is it extremely cute, but as you read the story there is no question that this cover was designed for THIS story. Even the houses in the background fit with the setting of San Fransisco, so bravo to a well thought out cover.

Lola is not your typical teenager, and she doesn’t come from your typical family and well, I just love her so much. She is a true individual but throughout the book you get a great sense for the people and experiences that made her who she is. By the end of the book I felt like I had known Lola for a long time and should just be able to pick up the phone and see how she’s doing. Some authors can’t accomplish this with an entire series of book, and yet Stephanie Perkins had me within just a few chapters.

On top of that, the plot is anything but simple. Sometimes real life just feels so complicated, and that really comes across. There isn’t always a simple or easy solution to your problems and it was a real treat to watch Lola work through everything she had going on.

So, if you feel like reading what comes off as a genuine teenage experience, with characters you can really root for then I highly recommend Lola and The Boy Next Door. I am not a huge reader of contemporary YA books, but if there were more out there like this, you would never be able to stop me from reading.

Buy the book @Amazon (US) @Amazon (CAN)

Rating:

Second Opinions:
@Tabitha’s Book Blog
@Almost Grown Up
@Falling For Books