Book Review – Anna and the French Kiss

Synopsis:

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 Étienne St. Claire: 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: Usually, when I start drafting my reviews I make a list of all the things I like about a book…and all the things I didn’t quite adore. When I sat down to compose my list of things I didn’t love about this novel, I couldn’t think of a single thing. With maybe one exception….for a novel with French Kiss in the title, I could have stood to have a little more of it in there. But more on that in a minute….

Anna and the French Kiss is definitely one of the best books of 2010. In a year of an overwhelming slew of great paranormal YA novels,  Perkins’ Anna and the French Kiss is such a well-done, refreshing change of pace that I literally read it one sitting. I turned down hanging out with friends and playing in snow to follow Anna to the end of her French adventures.

What are some of the best things about this book?

1. It’s simply well-written. The dialogue is witty and realistic. As an aspiring writer myself, writing the teenage voice is a lot more difficult than it may seem, but Perkins does it splendidly.

2. Sometimes I feel Contemporary YA novels get bogged down in pacing issues or force their characters into crazy and dramatic situations just to be crazy and dramatic. This novel DOES NOT do this. While a certain character’s family issues seemed to at first be heading down this path, Perkins deals with it in a subtle and natural way. I didn’t stop to question it. I was consumed by the conflict.

3. Talk about tension! I have rarely seen a relationship build between two characters in a more exciting and giddyness-inducing manner. You really root for these characters. And can relate, hopefully, to all the awkward moments between the two. My only complaint, and I complain about it a lot concerning novels, is that it takes a long time for the two to come together, and you’re just left wondering what next…. what would their relationship be like? In real life, getting together is fun, but the relationship is the real work. I wanted to see it. I wasn’t ready to give them up.

Lucky for us, Perkins is writing two more companion novels to Anna and the French Kiss. While these novels won’t focus on Anna and St. Clair (sad face), I’ll buy anything Perkins writes. This is one darn good read!!!!!