Review: Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins

Summary/Cover Image from Publisher's Website:

Anna is looking forward to her senior year in Atlanta, where she has a great job, a loyal best friend, and a crush on the verge of becoming more. Which is why she is less than thrilled about being shipped off to boarding school in Paris - until she meets Etienne St. Clair: perfect, Parisian (and English and American, which makes for a swoon-worthy accent), and utterly irresistible. The only problem is that he's taken, and Anna might be, too, if anything comes of her almost-relationship back home.

As winter melts into spring, will a year of romantic near - misses end with the French kiss Anna - and readers - have long awaited?

Review:

I'm super embarrassed to admit that Anna and the French Kiss has been sitting on my bookshelf for close to three years. I'm not really sure why I didn't pick it up prior to this month. I mean, I had heard nothing but AMAZING things about it. Plus it was something I had been dying to read. Anyhow, I'm so glad I finally gave it a chance, because Anna and the French Kiss was everything I had hoped it to be and much, much more! It was romantic. It was funny. It had so many "AWWWW!" moments that I lost count. Basically, this book was the definition of a great, romantic contemporary book!

One of the aspects I loved the most about Anna and the French Kiss was the characters. I adored Anna from the start. She was funny and smart. Plus I just loved her take on life and people. The part that I loved most about her, though, was how easily I could relate to her. I understood the pain that could come from wanting the one person you couldn't have as well as how easy it is to forgive and move on at times. Moving on, I LOVED St. Clair. I had heard from other people that he is a pretty memorable YA boy, and they were completely right. Every time he entered a scene he always managed to steal the show with his wit and overall St. Clair-ness. And as much as I wanted to rip him a new one at times for certain things, it didn't detract from me liking him one bit. I also enjoyed the variety of side characters introduced. From Anna's Nicholas Sparks like dad, to her Paris friends, to her friends and family all the way back home, each and every one brought something special to the table.

The plot in this was also a ton of fun! Paris was such a fabulous setting, and it's one I really wish we saw more of in YA. I loved how Stephanie managed to intertwine little tidbits and descriptions in about it, as it really managed to make me feel like I was right there with Anna the whole time. However, it also makes me want to travel there even more now! I also enjoyed seeing Anna transition into Paris living. It wasn't the easiest of transitions, and I loved how Perkins made it that way. Plus it was just great to see Anna evolve as a character because of it. Lastly, the ROMANCE. There's not much to say besides the fact that I ADORED it! There was so much tension and "WILL THEY OR WON'T THEY?!" moments I always enjoy, so I was pretty darn happy about it all.

In all, Anna and the French Kiss is a new favorite YA contemp of mine, and if for some reason you haven't read it yet, go out and read it ASAP. Seriously, you don't want to wait another second.

Grade: A+

Anna and the French Kiss is now out in paperback and hardcover.

Source: Bought

It also has an awesome new cover. However, I have to admit: I like the original a lot better.