Sneak Peek Review: Isla and the Happily Ever After

Review: Isla and the Happily Ever After by Stephanie Perkins sneak peek
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Release date: August 14, 2014
Publisher: Dutton (Penguin)
Series: Yes-ish, #3 in Anna and the French Kiss series
Source: Publisher via Netgalley
Length: Five chapters
Rating: Whyyyy do you have to end after five chapters? Shippy things were getting good!



From the glittering streets of Manhattan to the moonlit rooftops of Paris, falling in love is easy for hopeless dreamer Isla and introspective artist Josh. But as they begin their senior year in France, Isla and Josh are quickly forced to confront the heartbreaking reality that happily-ever-afters aren’t always forever.

Their romantic journey is skillfully intertwined with those of beloved couples Anna and Étienne and Lola and Cricket, whose paths are destined to collide in a sweeping finale certain to please fans old and new.

Okay, so a review of a sneak peek--five chapters, to be exact--is a bit out of the ordinary, but it's Isla, for crying out loud! When I heard that I had access to the first five chapters, I knew I'd be reading it, because I'm a terrible masochist and I just can't resist torturing myself. But you can torture yourself too! You can request it on Netgalley here and then sit in agony until August 14th, when the rest of the chapters (i.e. the whole book) is released. Oh, and you can read the first two (really, one) chapters here.

Isla goes back to where it all began: Paris. The School of America in Paris, to be exact, where Anna met Etienne and this whole magical journey began. Red-haired, introvert Isla is about to start her senior year. But oh, this is a tale of two cities, so before the action can move to Paris, Isla and Josh need to meet cute in their hometown: New York City!   

Isla is a shy, nervous, adorable spaz who seeeriously needs to break out of her shell. She's so caught up in her head and burning with embarrassment that she only manages to break the ice with her long time crush/obsession, Josh, because she's loopy on pain killers after getting her wisdom teeth pulled. I adore Isla, even while I pity her greatly. She's not as energetic as Anna or as self-assured as Lola, but she's got her own awkwardness that's very endearing, if a trifle pathetic. And she looooooves Josh. She's loved him for years, but she's barely spoken to him. It's a very all-consuming, crippling crush, and so far, it's pretty fun to see her struggle with how to finally turn this long-distance mooning into something real life.

And JOSH!! Poor lonely Josh. I loved him in Anna and the French Kiss, but things have changed since then. All his friends--Anna, St. Clair, Meredith, and ex-girlfriend, Rashmi--have graduated, leaving poor sensitive slacker artist Josh all aloney on his owney. Well, Josh, I know a certain shy redhead who would loooove to fill the friend (and girlfriend) void in your life...

Oh, and there's a really cute scene where Josh flirt-sketches. Be still my heart.

There's plenty of other storylines building in IatHEA. Isla's younger sister is a brand new freshman at SOAP, and Hattie is a brattie. Isla doesn't know what she wants to do with or life, or even which country she wants to go to college in. There there's Kurt, Isla's long time platonic best friend (who I really hope they don't turn into a possible love interest, but... maybe? I trust Perkins when it comes to ships, but I can't tell where this friendship is going to go.). Kurt has high-functioning autism, and I love him. WE SHALL SEE. (In two months. Arrrrgh. Sneak peeks are the cruellest.)