Book Review: Isla and the Happily Ever After by Stephanie Perkins

Cuteness. Overload. *shutting down*
Hello bookworms, guess who just finished Isla! Let me tell you, this book was everything I was waiting for. Let's break it down, shall we?


I. The Characters: 
   A. Isla: Isla Martin is a girl who usually doesn't get in anyone's way. She's shy and quiet. Ever since her only female friend Sanjita stopped being her friend, Isla only had her autistic childhood best friend, Kurt. She and Kurt did a good job of being each other's friends only. They stayed out of the way and were perfectly fine, but Isla usually comes off as a character with low self-esteem. She underestimates her importance in everyone's lives. She doesn't believe that she can matter or be loved, and that is pretty realistic these days. We have millions of girls around the world feeling like this, and it's nice to watch her character develop from a scared, shy girl to a girl that can take risks. She makes a lot of realizations and grows remarkably. The scene in the car was stupid, but she manages to fix hr mistakes and all was well.

   B. Josh: I loved Josh. Not as much as St. Clair and Cricket, and that's for one main reason: why did he like Isla? That part still seems a little sketchy to me. But I do love how he shows us all his "ugly" parts. He ignores high school. He doesn't care because he knows his heart lies in art. He knows what he wants to do and doesn't care about what anyone thinks of his career path, and that is an amazing thing: to be able to do what you love, no matter what it is. 

   C. Kurt: There was so much more room for Kurt's character, but sadly, he wasn't really important. I wish he played a bigger role in Isla's development. For such a long-lasting friendship, the bonds didn't seem as strong as the one between Anna and Meredith for example. And Anna and Meredith hadn't known each other at all. So I wish we had gotten more of Kurt and Isla. 

   D. Side characters:
      1. Josh's parents: Now Josh's parents are a bit absentee, but in the end, Isla realizes that they do support him, even though he's always busy. They support his art. They don't call it a hobby; they know it's what he wants. In the end, Isla was invited to meet them which shows that despite everything they do care for their child, and that's beautiful.

       2. Gen and Hattie: There was nothing really important about the relationship between Isla and Gen. The one I want to talk about is the one between Isla and Hattie. It was so real. Their last interaction in the tree-house was just perfect. The development between the sisters was amazing. A+

   E. Recurring Characters: I was so happy to see everyone again, and that scene between Etienne and Anna *squeals*. It wrapped up beautifully.

II. Paris: In Anna, Paris was always there. There was so much talk about the city and the culture and the people. In Isla, not so much. I believe Stephanie Perkins didn't want to write the same book twice, and she'd already written enough about Paris. It can also be the fact that it isn't Isla's first year in France and her mom is French, so she's actually familiar with the culture. So I understand why the city wasn't stressed on so much which is also why we felt that spark in Barcelona -she hadn't been there before. 

III. Plot:
        A. Fluff: Lots of fluff. Sometimes it was a bit much, but it was the good kind of fluff. Perkins should have toned it down a bit at a certain point, but really, it was good. 

      B. Melodrama: The conflict wasn't really this ginormous problem that can't be solved. But isn't that how all teenagers are? We, teenagers, stress about things that adults could view as minor. We want to live our lives and go to other countries. We think that a relationship is all that matters. It's melodramatic, yes, but it's realistic.

      C. Humor: Even though this book wasn't as good as Anna and Lola, I think there was more humor in this one. All three of them were funny, but this book, especially before all the angst. 

     D. Growth: I love how Isla's growth doesn't only come from her relationship with Josh. Everyone helps her grow -Kurt, Hattie, even Sanjita. 

IV. Overall: I still prefer the first two, but this book was beautiful. You can't go wrong with Stephanie Perkins. 4.5/5 stars.

What did you think of Isla? Was it as good as the first two? Did you like it? Leave a comment below!