P.S. I Still Love You is the follow-up to To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before. Lara Jean is now dating Peter, the boy she pretended to be dating in the previous book, but he is still very close friends with Genevieve. Their relationship doesn’t seem to be going quite to plan and Lara Jean wonders whether Peter really is the boy for her, when in walks a blast from the past.
I love Lara Jean. She’s so beautifully innocent and earnest, I just want to crawl inside the book and hug her. She kind of reminds me of a cross between a kid (naive, dresses cute) and a little old lady (loves crafts and baking, fusses over everyone). I read a lot of YA and Lara Jean is such a unique character; when very nearly every other YA author portrays teens as sixteen in age but about 68 in cynicism and worldly-wisdom I think it takes guts as an author to step outside that trope and write someone completely different.
The two boys she is in love with (Peter is one, but I won’t say who the other is) balance each other out nicely. Peter is basically the same as he was in To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before - kind of self-centred, but very funny and charming and he obviously adores Lara Jean.
The plot isn’t what I’d call a wild roller-coaster ride. It basically centres around Lara Jean and Peter trying to make their relationship work, Lara Jean’s jealousy of Peter’s relationship with Genevieve and her blossoming friendship/relationship with another boy. Despite the lack of gun fights and car chases, things tick along at a decent pace and the book never feels like it's dragging. Kitty and Margot are still around - in fact, the lovely dynamic between the Song girls and their dad is another thing I love about these books.
This book is a really fun summer read. It’s perfect for taking to the beach or the park and deserves a good four-star rating.
4 stars