Monday, August 18, 2014

Mark This Book Monday: Isla And The Happily Ever After by Stephanie Perkins!!!

Hello everyone! What best to start Monday than with a wonderful & swoony book as the first entry of this week's Mark This Book Monday?

I'm starting this week's Mark This Book Monday with the next book in the Isla Is Coming readalong hosted by Andi from Andi’s ABCs, Jamie from The Perpetual Page Turner , Judith from Paper Riot, Lindsey from A Bookish Sinister Kid and Meg from Cuddlebuggery!





 Isla and the Happily Ever After (Anna and the French Kiss, #3)Isla and the Happily Ever After by Stephanie Perkins

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I'm rightly chuffed that I finally decided to join the #IslaIsComing readalong, because I've absolutely loved reading Anna and Lola, and I'm happy that I didn't have to wait as long as most people for Isla to come out.

It's quite hard to decide which one of the books is my favourite, but if I had to choose... I'd be probably leaning towards this one. Isla and Josh are a fantastic couple and their struggles and relationship progression really captured my heart.

I had noticed both Josh and Isla while reading Anna's book and I was quite excited to read how their relationship will progress, and thankfully it was as absorbing and heartwrenching as I was expecting.

Isla is a tiny sweet and geeky girl with an inseparable best friend with high functioning autism, both setting themselves apart from the rest of school. She's had a crush on Josh since they started high school together in Paris but their interactions have always been sparse and awkward, but that changes during summer break in NYC once she's high on painkillers and they meet by chance on a cafe (Kismet, quite appropriate I'd say!).

Their relationship is a joy to read about, and even when things get tough for them and even when it breaks our hearts, it's so beautifully written and woven! I was cheering for them since page one even when I felt like shaking one of them, or both.

As always, there is much more in the book than just their relationship and romance, there's family issues between Isla and her younger sister Hattie, and between Josh and his political-centered parents. There's also the adjustment between friends of Kurt and Isla. Even if Josh does go through quite a lot in the book, I'd say that the most character development and growth is Isla's, not only she learns how to accept herself and being loved, she also has confront her own flaws and shortcomings and accepting that some of what she thinks as shortcomings, aren't really so.

We also get plenty of travelling and get treated to wonderful descriptions that make us want to be there and enjoy all that Josh and Isla are discovering! I have already been to Barcelona and Paris but after reading Anna and this one... I feel like I really need to go back there as soon as possible!

I missed having some of the rest of the gang appear a bit more for most of the book, but all those wishes were fulfilled by the end of the book when we see Anna, Etienne, Meredith, Cricket and Lola, and get treated to even more emotional swooning and tears and make us turn the last page with a huge grin, even if you have some tears still lingering!

A wonderful read, very much deserving of 5 stars!



View all my reviews

14 comments:

  1. Isla sounds wonderful! I liked Anna but Lola wasn't my thing, and the reviews for Isla have convinced me to give it a chance. Isla and Josh sound wonderful, and I love that they travel. Until I'm able to tour Europe, I'll live vicariously through my favourite characters :p

    Thanks for the lovely review Pili!

    -P.E. @ The Sirenic Codex

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    1. If you liked Anna, I think Isla is more like it, so you'd probably enjoy this one a lot!
      Thank you, P.E.!

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  2. WELL DANG. I suppose I'll have to binge-read this series at some point. Everyoneeeeee loves the cute romance in this book and the previous ones. Next summer!!

    Fabulous review, Pili!

    Alyssa @ The Eater of Books!

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    1. YES! Yes, you do! These are the perfect summer reads! =D

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  3. I have just bought this on kindle! :)

    Yay for happy tears! :) I am glad you liked this one so much! :) I love that there is travelling in this one! it sounds like so much fun! :D

    I cant belive you see all of the couples at he end. It is like the author is giving us a wave for reading the other books! :D

    Thanks for sharing & I am glad you have enjoyed this companions series so much! :D xxx

    Alex @ The Shelf Diaries

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    1. I loved the whole series so much, and I wasn't expecting to like them at all!
      I do hope you'll love it too, Alex!

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  4. Aw, I'm so glad you loved this book sweetie :) It do sound sweet. But still not my kind of book :p I didn't like book one :( and I have heard bad things about book two. Ugh. So not reading these. Sigh. But maybe one day :) They are quite pretty, hih. <3 Thank you for sharing :)

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    1. This one might be more the kind of book you'd like, I think!
      Thank you sweetie!

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  5. Acck, I did ship Josh with Rashmi in Anna, but I know Perkins is fantastic and she will make me love Isla, too! I chatted with her about Rashmi during her signing here in the PH, and she did mention wanting to write her story some day. ;D Anyway, I'm rambling again. So excited to get my hands on this pretty! Glad you loved this one, Pili! <3

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    1. I liked Rashmi but I didn't think her dynamics with Josh were good for each other, too much confrontation! But I would love to read more about her too! I hope we will, Aimee!

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  6. I only skimmed, b/c I haven't read this yet, and I'm sure you didn't have any spoilers, but I'm trying to go blindly into reading my most anticipated books these days ;) I'm so glad you loved it though! I really hope I do too.

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    1. I so can relate to that Jessica! I've been doing the same thing with reviews of Isla and Heir of Fire and Sisters Fate myself!!

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  7. I can't believe I don't remember Isla and Josh from where I read Anna! It's been a long time, it seems.
    So glad you loved it! I can't wait for my copy to arrive.
    Great review!!

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    1. I think in my case since I read Anna knowing there was a book about Josh and Isla, it was easier to keep an eye for them while read! Hope you'll love it, Lis!

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¡Muchas gracias por vuestros comentarios, leerlos me alegra el día!/ Thanks a lot for all your comments, reading them brightens my day!!