There's Someone Inside Your House by Stephanie Perkins | Rating: ★★★★☆

The very first thing (the most important thing, really) you should know about There's Someone Inside Your House is that its entire storyline is a mix of genres. At its core, it's very much so a typical Stephanie Perkins novel--with a lot of thrills, chills and twists sprinkled in for good measure.

This seems to be some level of confusion or distress for some readers, due in part to the way it was marketed (as a full on slasher novel) and the manner in which we--as readers--take upon ourselves to build up an image of what we believe the story will be before picking it up. At the end of the day, this is what brings in the disappointment afterwards... our inability to understand that a story isn't always our first impression of it.

Truth is: in There's Someone Inside Your House, Perkins pens a wickedly delicious thriller, slashed deeply with romance, wit and lovable characters. The novel itself is exactly how you might picture a horror novel by her to be--and I found it thoroughly entertaining. So, no. In my eyes, it didn't feel quite as frustrating for me as many other readers have seemed to say. There's Someone Inside Your House is not a full-blown horror novel but it still twists the reader in their seat from suspense and is far from a letdown.

My True Love Gave to Me edited by Stephanie Perkins | Rating: ★★★★☆

Spinning back around to my original focus of the month–damn health got in the way, didn’t it?–Christmas. Or rather, holiday themed stories. It would seem that the most obvious pick of recent releases would be My True Love Gave to Me, a collection of some of the most delightful holiday stories told by the best of today’s young adult authors, but the truth was I didn’t actually finish it until…

FIVE MINUTES AGO? Okay hear me out, I have a good reason!

I bought myself a copy of the book last year and read the first three or four stories only to find that one of my best friends couldn’t afford to get himself something that year (he spent his money on family and friends and of course his bills and such) so I asked him, “Is there anything else you would want?”

(I, of course, already had a present for him and gave it to him earlier that week with strict orders not to open it until at least Christmas Eve. I played it off that I wasn’t about to buy him more so it wouldn’t make him feel bad. He probably didn’t buy it all that much but is a good sport… sometimes.)

The list was pretty short considering his varied taste but it did include this little guy (he is a massive fan of Gayle Forman and David Levithan) and given the bad news that there is only one book store in my area (and no way was I driving to Chicago a week before Christmas–imagine the traffic!), all leading up to there not being any copies left in stock, I decided to wrap up my copy with the rest from his list as opposed to giving up on completing his want list.

Isla and the Happily Ever After by Stephanie Perkins | Rating: ★★★★★

“I’m…getting there. I’m beginning to think that maybe it’s okay to be a blank canvas. Maybe it’s okay that my future is unknown. And maybe,” I say with another smile, “it’s okay to be inspired by the people who do know their future.”

Isla's story is the final installment in the Anna and the French Kiss series and I'm so sad to see it go. I've really grown attached to these couples and I'm still in the process of a major book hangover. That being said, Isla has all the charm of Anna and Lola, but feels a bit more sexy and angsty -- in all the right ways. Once again, we're back in Paris for the ending to this series. It's the perfect place to end it all because it's where it began for other characters.

We've glimpsed Isla in the first book but this story is her chance to shine through. Isla is a very different voice than Anna and Lola, but for me she is the one I see myself in most. She's very lost, she's very in love, she's very fun. There's a lack of self esteem in her that makes her easy to connect to. Although Anna's my favorite of the series, reading from Isla -- about her -- is a true gift; she certainly gives Anna a run or her money.

Seriously, she's just an interesting narrator. And there's something about her that makes me wan to wrap her up in a blanket, snuggle her and protect her from harm.

Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins | Rating: ★★★★★

He couldn't bring the girl with him, so he brought the stars. When he'd look out his window at night, he would start with one. One star. And the boy would make a wish on it, and the wish would be her name.
At the sound of her name, a second star would appear. And then he'd wish her name again, and the stars would double into four. And four became eight, and eight became sixteen, and so on, in the greatest mathematical equation the universe had ever seen. And by the time an hour had passed, the sky would be filled with so many stars that it would wake the neighbors. People wondered who'd turned on the floodlights.
The boy did. By thinking about the girl.

If you're looking for the next sweet, perfect for sunshine, tale of first loves rekindled and something to follow up Anna and the French Kiss with, I have some good news for you! Lola an the Boy Next Door is immensely charming and definitely the perfect followup to the incredibly popular first installment to this series. It has all the wonderful qualities Anna had and we're fortunate enough to have a glimpse or two of Anna and St. Clair; though the sequel doesn't follow them exclusively we get to see the two lovebirds frequently in Lola's story.

Lola's life is interesting and quite fun to read about: her birth mother is a mess, her two fathers are overly strict (sometimes, rightfully so!) and her boyfriend is far too old for her. Seriously girl, he's too old for you right now. Luckily for us readers, she has that something -- that sparkle, that makes you love her instantly. She's very stylish and creative in her own unique way. It's easy to see yourself or someone you know in Lola because she is special and fun and the perfect narrator.

Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins | Rating: ★★★★★

"I wish friends held hands more often, like the children I see on the streets sometimes. I'm not sure why we have to grow up and get embarrassed about it."

STEPS TO ENJOYING THIS NOVEL:
1.) Grab yourself a hot beverage
2.) Hunt down some yummy French macarons (I'd go for the violet ones, personally)
3.) Snuggle up and dive into this adorable story

Reading Anna and the French Kiss is like falling in love for the very first time. Time stops and the only thing you see is the world through new eyes; your heart pounding. It's like the moment you discover something so important to who you are. When you hear your favorite song. Reading this novel is like exploring the world on your own for the very first time. It's like a warm hug. It's... indescribable. I loved every minute of it -- the good, sweet, swoon worthy moments and even the 'bad moments.

Beautiful setting? Check. Beautiful and flawed friendships? Check. Swoon worthy love interest? Double check.

There's a certain level of passion in this novel that can't be beat. It's charming, it's smart, it's fluffy and cute, but it's passionate. Perhaps it's in the setting, perhaps not, it's just so captivating that I didn't want to put it down. It's real. And even though the ending was a good one... I never wanted it to end. I would have been content reading a thousand more pages. I felt like I was saying goodbye to a good friend by the time the last chapter rolled around.