3/5 stars
Anna and the French Kiss is not a bad book. Loads of people like it and there plenty of people that I can recommend it to. But I'm just too jaded (or something) for a book this sugary. Loving a romance book is a very rare thing thing for me.
This book felt too repetitive and a little contrived. It's exactly like a romantic comedy, only in book form. It cycled through Anna liking St. Clair, her having the epiphany that he likes her, he really likes her, then awkward passive aggressiveness, rinse and repeat. It happened at least three, maybe four times.
I couldn't deal with the repetitiveness. She'd already realized St. Clair liked her, like a grand epiphany, then she keeps realizing it again and again. How many times can she be surprised to learn that?
But Anna is relatable. When she talks about old movies I could've been best friends with her in high school. The book mentions one of my favorite movies, It Happened One Night. But Anna cries way too much, whined about her parents (who weren't that bad) and complained about being sent to Paris. PARIS!!!! I would've given ANYTHING for that experience in high school. Heck send me now!
St. Clair was charming, short (a plus as a fellow shortie), British and intelligent. I loved his passion for history. But his indecisiveness drove me crazy. There's only so much I can forgive for the sake of a British accent before wanting to yell at him. I liked him well enough, but I think I'll like him more when he quits letting his father emasculate him all the time.
But I will admit that this book is sweet, the characters are likable and The School of America, Paris is an excellent backdrop for a YA novel. For me it's a tolerable romance, which means for others it will be excellent. For those romantically inclined, this book is great. For a tomboy like me? Probably not.
4 comments:
Despite being one of the fangirls for this book I can see why you wouldn't fall as hard for it. I think you did a really good job of explaining that while still getting the recommendation out there to people who would. :]
Thanks! That's good to hear. When you don't like a book sometimes it's not because it's a bad book but because it's not a you book. Those reviews are always hard to write.
I also gave this three stars because I found it quite annoying! I hated the way Etienne couldn't just break up with his girlfriend...it was like he wanted the easy life of having 2 women desperate for his attention. I have known men like this in real life and they are not good people. I found Anna too emotional and annoying as well- she was pining for stuff way too much.
I did enjoy it and read it quickly but everyone seems to love it and I don't get the big deal! x
The cheating thing bothered me too. The book never seemed to actually deal with the fact that Etienne was essentially a cheater.
Once I posted my 3 star review on goodreads a couple of my friends popped by to welcome me to the club. Apparently we're not alone in our "I don't get it" perspective.
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