So as many people know, I really liked Anna, but I didn’t love it as much as so many people did. I didn’t give it five stars. But I thoroughly enjoyed the story. And I had heard that book two was even better than the first, so I was excited to read this.

Lola is the girl next door. But she’s anything but average. She’s quirky and fun and dresses the part. And her family is not traditional, which I absolutely adored. She’s also had immense heartbreak which she never seemed to be able to get over both with amorous relationships and with family. So when she meets Max and finally has a boyfriend, she thinks she can put the past behind her. But then the past shows up and she’s thrown for a total loop! She becomes awkward and makes rash decisions. And she becomes torn by her feelings. And this makes her untruthful at times, not only to others but also to herself. I love Lola. She’s so relatable. And she is well developed as she scrambles through the changes that have been thrown in her lap. Love, friendship, and the constant reminder of having to make the right decision weigh heavily on her for the entire book.

Cricket is an interesting character. First I was thrown by his name. Honestly, I thought it was a girl’s name. So when Lola first talks about him and Calliope, his twin, I think he’s a girl. But that is quickly dispelled. Cricket is torn, though. Torn for his loyalty to his family and his love for a girl that he has never gotten over. He’s unsure of himself in tons of aspects, and he has demons he’s battling that slowly leak into his relationship with Lola. I love how he is not perfect. He’s a bit of an eccentric inventor who seems to following in his ancestor’s footsteps (he is related to the one and only Alexander Grahm Bell). If there’s one word to describe Cricket, it is loyal. He has this almost to a fault as he allows he loyalty for others to overshadow his very own needs.

Talk about Lola being torn. Here’s Max, this hot rocker who loves her. He’s older but wants to win the approval of her parents and even wants to make future plans with her. Then there’s Cricket, the boy she’s always loved. The boy she had her first kiss with when they were just 5 and 6 years old but that she could never forget. And the boy who broke her heart. She has this undeniable attraction to him. And despite how hard she tries to convince herself that there’s nothing there, that they will just be friends, her love for him overshadows it all. And the attention he pays her shows it’s obvious that he, too, has more than just friendship in mind. I love how Perkins writes these contrasting relationships. Where Max is all hard and puffs himself up to claim Lola, Cricket is more relaxed and willing to be laid back and wait. And Lola sticks herself in between trying to figure out who “the one” truly is.

Perkins even builds the worlds in a way of complete contrast. We see Lola and Max’s shows, in his car or van, with his friends. And while she tells herself she wants to be there, she feels almost out of place in this setting. Like she’s trying to fit in because the alternative, the heartbreak and overwhelming fear of what lies behind it is too much for her to handle. Her time with Cricket, on the other hand, is soft and refreshing. Their interactions as sweet and endearing. and unlike Max, Cricket is willing to give her the moon at the stars (and you'll understand why the stars are important when you read the book!). And of course there is conflict that tears the main characters apart and you truly wonder how they will overcome it.

And Perkins knows how to write her insecure characters that learn to come into themselves. It’s great to watch them develop and grow. And I love that we get more Anna and St. Clair in this book. They make the perfect friends for Lola. Especially St. Clair with his no frills attitude and confidence. They are supportive while giving Lola just the push she needs to do what will make her happy. There’s a great deal of support from her best friend, Lindsey, to her parents, and even from her birth mother who has only been a burden to Lola until now. Even the dog, Heavens to Betsy, has a personality that you just want to hug!

For me, this book was so much better than the first. More substance, more heartache, more development of characters, more of everything. Fans of Kasie West’s The Distance Between Us will want to pick this one and dive right into it. And fans of Anna will not be disappointed with where Perkins takes her characters next!