Isla and the Happily Ever After

By: Stephanie Perkins

Narrated by: Grace Experience

Falling in love in the world’s most romantic city is easy for hopeless dreamer Isla and introspective artist Josh. But as they begin their senior year at the School of America in Paris, Isla and Josh are quickly forced to deal with 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.

Critic reviews

“Fans of literary heart flutters will love it.” —Booklist

★ “Realistic characters, spot-on dialogue, and a truly delightful romance make for a novel that will delight the author’s fans and win her legions of new ones.” —SLJ, starred review

“Engaging characters with page-turning love lives offer ample vicarious pleasures.” —Kirkus Reviews

“Dazzling and full of raw emotion.” —RT Book Reviews, Top Pick

Great book ruined by a terrible narration.

Would you consider the audio edition of Isla and the Happily Ever After to be better than the print version?

Absolutely not.

What didn’t you like about Grace Blewer’s performance?

This book was read in a flat monotone. The same voice was used for every character making it difficult to keep up with who was talking.
She did not attempt to make the characters sound like young adults. I kept picturing Isla as a uptight middle aged woman. Very frustrating.
Blewer was unable to capture any emotion which is such a huge part of why this series is so popular. Again, very frustrating!
This book deserved better.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

I was home sick with the flu and was excited to remember this book had just been released! The thought of spending the entire day listening to this story made me feel much better...then I heard it. I had to take many breaks because I had to escape that voice! I want to know what comes next, I just can't bring myself to listen.

Any additional comments?

I'm about half way through and I will probably be returning it to buy the print version.

Listen to the sample before purchasing!

Teen Romance

If I had to order my favorites of this series it would be
1) Anna and the French Kiss
2) Isla and the happily ever after
3) Lola and the boy next door
so it is obvious that I liked Anna's story better than the other but this one was decent and I actually enjoyed the relationship between Josh and Isla .. so I finished this well-written triology and I sure do recommend it to all of you romance junkies out there :)

Such a perfect ending to the series

This book was adorable from start to finish. It kicked off with what is one of the cutest scenes and the cuteness just did not end throughout the entire book. What a great ending to the series!

I loved this book for a combination of reasons: the love story, the characters, the interactions. I swear I had tiny little hearts floating all around me as I read this book.

I want to say that Isla is my favorite heroine in this entire series, but I think it is more Isla and Josh together that made me love her so much. Then again, I’ve loved Isla since her brief appearance in Anna and the French Kiss. When I initially saw she had her own book, I was super excited about it.

The pacing in this story was perfect. It absolutely flew by for me, yet it didn’t seem rushed at all. It didn’t take any time at all to pick up. I was hooked right from the start and there were zero lulls as I was reading. I constantly wanted to know what was going to happen next.

I really enjoyed many of the other characters in this book, though not as much as I did in the previous two books in this series. Likely because this was so Isla-and-Josh-centric, that we didn’t really get to know Isla’s family too well. It didn’t really bother me too much, not getting to know her family as well, but I do wish there was a little more about Kurt, Isla’s autistic best friend. I really wanted to learn more about him and their friendship.

Anyway, If you are in the market for a classic story about an epic love, I highly recommend Isla and the Happily Ever After.

Audiobook Performance:

It is a wonder that this audiobook reader didn’t ruin the entire book for me. And that is something to be said for the book itself since the reader sounded like a robot and I could rarely differentiate between Isla and Josh through many scenes!

I'm a little biased

I'm a little biased because this series means so much to my best friend and I, who is expecting her first child, a daughter, and she's going to name her Isla. this book does take a little longer to take off, but when it does, oh boy. I like that we don't have to wait for them to get together until the end like first 2. the narrator wasn't the best.

Enjoyable

Such a sweet story. Fun characters in Paris. Plus a visit from past characters. Loved this series.