When I started reading Anna and the French Kiss, I thought it was too YA. I couldn’t connect with the characters at first and felt like they were too young. Worse still, a tragedy occurred in my personal life before I reached page 50 of the book. Frustrated,I set it aside and didn’t look at it for a whole week. My second attempt at reading this book had me staying up late at night turning pages until I got to the last page.
One of the things that I absolutely liked about Anna and the French Kiss was the setting. I have always loved Paris. It just looks so beautiful and enchanting in every movie that I have watched. Paris also seems like the most romantic place on earth. Anyway,I digress. The setting of this book was wonderful and I felt like I got to know more about Paris through the pages. The beautiful culture and art was well portrayed through the adventures of the characters. It was also wonderful to see the city through Anna’s eyes as she was new in Paris.
I liked the characters in the book. Anna reminded me of what it was like being young and in love. My heart broke for her each time she was let down by Toph or Etienne. However, Anna was such a great female protagonist. She was funny, strong, open and generally endearing. I also liked Etienne. He reminded me of Chuck Bass(Charles Bartholomew) with his English accent and amazing hair. He was an adorable character.Another thing that I loved about the book was the friendships between the teens.
What I didn’t like about the book was probably Etienne’s indecision at times. I felt as if he strung Anna along for quite some time. At some point, Etienne was no better than Toph. I know he explained his reasons but still, I didn’t like that bit about him having a girlfriend and staying with her even when he feel for Anna.
If you are a fan of YA and haven’t read this one yet then you need to do so. If you have never read any YA, then you should start with this one. I expected it to be the usual teen romance novel but I was pleasantly surprised by how much I ended up enjoying the book.
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