About a month ago I received a box from Penguin. In this box were 16 arcs. One of these arcs was Stephanie Perkins' debut novel ANNA AND THE FRENCH KISS. I'd heard of this book and I had read Stephanie's blog, so I was excited to get a copy. I had (have) loads of review books to read, so I put in on my bookshelf with all my other review copies, since it isn't released until December. A week ago, I was in the mood for a love story, so I picked up ANNA and slipped it in my bag. I was having a busy week, so I basically ended up carrying it around with me for days and didn't have a chance to actually start it. Two days ago, at midnight, I decided I was going to read a few chapters before I went to bed. I convinced the lovely Erica, of the Book Cellar, to read it with me, despite the fact that our review copy piles were glaring at us menacingly. Three hours later, bleary-eyed, I read the last few lines. And now, two days later, I'm still carrying it around with me. And no, I don't mean in my head, I mean LITERALLY. This book is so full of awesome that I can't let it go. I unable to stop talking or thinking about it. Which explains this fangirly post. If you aren't jealous that I've read this book, you should be. I'm not bragging, it's simply FACT. It's too early to write a review of ANNA, but I will give you 10 reasons this book should be on your to-be-read pile, if not
- Etienne St. Clair. I never thought this would happen, but St. Clair may have stolen my heart from John After (of Going Too Far by Jen Echols). The best part about St. Clair? He's flawed. And that just makes him more irresistable.
- Anna. St. Clair is lusted after by nearly every girl at their school, but Anna doesn't compare herself to all those other girls or put herself down. Sure, she has flaws, she just doesn't focus on them constantly.
- The characters make mistakes. And then they acknowledge and learn from them. So many characters never actually acknowledge that they've screwed up. Acknowledgement is good.
- Anna's best friend has a penchant for big words. Like callipygian. Look it up.
- The romantic tension made my heart beat ridiculously fast. And my head almost explode. I live for romantic tension. Stepanie Perkins is my hero.
- It's funny. Laugh out loud funny. There are books that make you say, 'Oh, haha' and then there are books that make you laugh aloud and turn to the person next to you and say 'Oh my gosh, listen...' ANNA is the latter.
- There's a love rhombus. Even better than a love triangle.
- It's real. There's happiness, sadness, anger, embarrassment... It's a love story, but it isn't all sunny days and rainbows, you see the storm too.
- Etienne St. Clair. I think he deserves two spots on this list. Need more reasons to love him? He's an American who lives in France and has an English accent. I think that's reason enough.
- I'm obsessed.
"Very sly. Very funny. Very romantic. You should date this book."
— Maureen Johnson
(Truer words have never been spoken.)
"Imagine a mug of rich, thick hot chocolate. Now add a swirl of sweet whipped cream. Yummy? Oui. Well, Anna and the French Kiss is richer, sweeter, and—yes—even hotter. You're in for a very special treat."
— LAUREN MYRACLE, NYT bestselling author of Peace, Love, & Baby Ducks and Let It Snow
(I second that.)
So. Don't take my word for it... take theirs.
For more information about ANNA AND THE FRENCH KISS see Stephanie Perkins' website! Be sure to check out her blog too, which is hilarious.
And hop over to Erica blog, The Book Cellar, for her fangirly post. (If you aren't already reading Erica's blog, you should. She's amazing in real life and online!) EDIT: Oddly enough, Erica and I didn't know what the other's post would look like. So the fact that we cite many of the same things only further proves this book's awesomeness.
Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to go pet my copy.
