Sooo what was this book even about? Like I understand the blurb, but when I got to the book I was greeted with a very bland, plotless, pointless book. Let's start with the plot. Where was the plot? This book progressed but there was no clear plot in sight, I didn't feel any big conflict or resolution as the book just felt like a threadbare patchwork quilt of writing. Another gripe I had was that the author seemed to be attempting to ride from the point of view of a teenager, but as a teen, I can tell you that the writing was very out of touch. It felt like Melissa de la Cruz just googled teenage pop culture and stuffed as many outdated references as she could and it all it did was make me cringe.
Character development in this book was also very dissatisfactory. The only character remotely given any depth was Jisu and the rest of the characters were like cardboard cutouts. The author gave them a brief character description and then didn't build on their character, making it hard to build any type of connection with the book.
One thing I did like was the romantic aspect of the novel, because I did felt that it was an accurate model of how relationships today tend to go, and I thought it was very genuine and cute.
One thing I found odd was the author was writing about Korean culture and at some points even criticizing it but she wasn't actually part of the culture, so I just thought it was clunky and odd at some points. It seemed a bit disingenuine and it read like someone who did a bunch of research on Korean culture and less like someone who experienced it.
I received this book on NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is really more like 2.5 stars, but it was a quick and enjoyable read in its own way, so I’m rounding up. I had heard of Melissa de la Cruz before but never actually read any of her books, and honestly, this one disappointed me. The writing wasn’t super strong, and the story was kind of predictable. I usually love YA, but this was a teen book that didn’t translate for me. But my bigger concern was about the culture piece. It’s really hard to write a culture that isn’t your own, and I’m not sure de la Cruz quite hit the mark with this one. I know she has a Korean friend who helped her out, but this examination of Korean culture just felt kind of... jumbled? And surprisingly critical, from someone who hasn’t lived it first-hand. It seemed clear that the author had a bias in favor the more American attitudes toward values and family, which is fair enough... if you have a real, personal experience with both cultures, which she doesn’t. So I found that really frustrating. I also found the end of the book sort of fragmented and confusing. Overall, it just felt self-conscious and not quite on point for me. I did read the whole thing in one night, though, because I wanted to enjoy how I knew it was going to play out - and it did play out the way I expected, but wasn’t as enjoyable as I thought it would be. Just not the book for me.

Okay I get that people are upset that she wrote about Korean when shes not, but no one is saying she protruded them wrong. Adults write about kids or teens people without mental health write like they know what it feels like to have mental health issues all the time. Melissa Did wonderful writing this book about a Korean girl who is shipped to America by her parents in hopes she will focus on school more than boys but they may have done her more of a favor. At 17 in new country all new people new world.

I love a good YA romance and that is what this is. Good. Not great.

Jisu lives in Seoul, South Korea and is a dutiful, hard working daughter. Her parents have arranged for a matchmaker to send her on seons (dates) in order to fund a suitable husband. When her grades slip and she misses a date, her parents send her off to America to live with a host family. Now Jisu needs to navigate a new school, a new city, her interest in photography, and the continuation of the required dates. There is some predictability because it is named 29 dates for a reason. The concept is interesting and there are some cute snippets within the story. While marketed as high school YA, it can read to lower grades. My #1 issue with the book though, is that the author is writing about a Korean culture while not being Korean herself. While I do not think that is a requirement, she self-admittedly took a lot of liberties with the story to fit her narrative. I'm not convinced that an author can take "liberties" with a culture that's not theirs, but even if that is not some great faux pas, I don't think this author does a great enough job showing the Korean culture to an audience that otherwise might not know about it, while also taking such liberties.

*Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me a complimentary arc of 29 Dates by Melissa de la Cruz in exchange for my honest review.*

First of all, the cover is sooo cute. I love seeing beautiful and happy covers girls of color. This book reminded me of early years in middle school reading books, sweet, not too serious, sometime dramatic. Like Meg Cabot Princess Diaries.

The MC is a senior, but the writing/voice does feel a little younger. which isn’t bad at all, just feels like it would hit better with MG readers/early high school. As the story went on with all of the seons, some were so bad, but i was also glad to see Jisu stay true to herself and what she believes. Along with when Alan called her out of her being rude. I also enjoyed the very last one and the ones where her and her date hit it off as friends.

I was a little confused with Jisu switching her thoughts up. She was very into photography and going after her own passions and not super school minded, but then other times she would call out others for also not liking school. She would switch it up, and was very self-involved a lot of time.

Jisu was vocal about calling out her dates and some people for sexist, racist, or wrong thinking, but there was a few scenes for she would call a girl basic and judge her without having any reason or even knowing her, which was frustrating, consider this would be really good for younger girls

I did love that Jisu continued her old friendships and missing her family, along with making new friends. I also loved all the rep for Asian men, all of Jisu's love interests were Asian men!!! Loved it. I also loved who Jisu ended up with. Even though the story does leave with some loose streams surrounding college, which could have been purposeful given that's life.

It wasn't super for me, but I think it's a good fit for the age range I mentioned earlier!

Cute and light but also predictable teenage romance. Jisu is a very hard-working and diligent senior in high school in South Korea. She is in the process of dating to find "the right boyfriend" to please her parents. She screws up a bit by skipping a date and failing a test, and her annoyed parents freak and send her to boarding school in San Francisco of all places.... Jisu does pretty well with the changes in her life but the story is really predictable and not super-interesting. Story was kind of slow but a fluffy cute. Aimed at little younger audience I thought too. I did liked Jisu--she dealt with change and parental pressure well. Quick read.

This book features an international student as the protagonist which I found really unique. There are lot's of YA that feature an American student studying abroad. This felt like a fresh take on the idea. I thought this led to some interesting observations about life in Korea vs. life in North America. I found the family and school struggles very believable. I wasn't as convinced by the romantic subplot. I didn't feel like the relationship was built up very much.

When reading this I didn’t even get to 50% of the book. This book was just not for me. The synopsis of the book and the cover of it made me think that this was going to be a great read.
I know that the author has other books out that everyone seems to be loving, after reading this I don’t think that this author writing style is for me. I just couldn’t connect with the characters it was kind of a bore for me.
There may be people that end up loving this book, but I just wasn’t one of them.

Mini review:

DNF

Trigger warning: None till the point I read.

I received this E-ARC via Inkyard Press and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I liked the synopsis for this book. And decided to request it. Unfortunately I didn’t like it.

I did not like the main character at all. I felt that she was a bit too judgmental. The writing style didn’t help either. It was jarring which made it difficult to read.

Overall this wasn’t for me. Still recommend.

This book was received as an ARC from Inkyard Press in exchange for an honest review. Opinions and thoughts expressed in this review are completely my own.

This book was the ultimate teen dating book and every teenager can relate to the trials and tribulations Jisu is going through with her adventures from moving to Korea to finding the right friends and then finding the right soul mate. This book is definitely relatable from society which made it even more better to read and understand. This reminded me a lot of the Jenny Han books To All the Boys I've Loved Before and how that phenomenon has sparked and Melissa De La Cruz is a well known young adult author so I can definitely see this book becoming popular or even on the best-seller list.

We will consider adding this title to our YFiction collection at our library. That is why we give this book 5 stars.

Great book if you are looking for a simple read to pass the time between fantasy novels...which is what I used it for. Otherwise, it is a bit predictable and the characters don't have a ton of depth to them. It would make for a good summer read.

29 Dates tackled racism and racial prejudice, but overall just fell flat for me. I think a contemporary can tackle serious issues while also being lighthearted and funny ( i.e. Jack of Hearts and The Birds, The Bees, and You and Me).

Jisu was a relatable MC and I think it's important for teens to learn that it's alright to do things for yourself. Senior year is one of the most stressful years in anyone's life and overbearing parents don't help at all. I'm not sure how I feel about an overbearing pair of Asian parents from a non own voices author. That coupled with her obsession with skin care rubbed me the wrong way. Both are stereotypes of asian cultures (more specifically Chinese and Korean) but I'm not sure how true they are. I love having more Asian rep in contemporary, but I wasn't sure how to feel about the rep in this book.

The tackling of racism, however, was phenomenal. The insults and racist assumptions thrown at Dave and Jisu were directly challenged on page. The racist remarks were also a lot of the things commonly said to or assumed about Asian people. I think this helps everyday people realize a bit more what is appropriate to say/ask. Jisu had her own prejudices against Dave and the fact that he was Korean-American. She didn't see him as actually Korean and I wish we got to see him challenging her more. Racism and prejudice can be towards your own race and I think we need to see more of that.

The love story was cute but predictable. We know who she ends up with on page 1, though. This book just needed more for me. I didn't quite get any of the side characters, like her host family, and there were a few big plot issues that weren't resolved.

Overall, it was okay.

*Thanks to Netgalley for this review copy*

My Review: This book was so adorable. I thought that the middle snippets of her dates were going to take away from the story at large but after a few chapters, I was actually looking forward to reading how each one went. This book was unlike anything I have ever read and it felt very diverse with the characters. I loved learning more about Korean Culture (even though the author notes that she took liberties with the matchmaking dates) and I really hope that De La Cruz does another story set in another culture soon. I loved all of the characters and the pace of this story.

The one thing that I wish would have been really touched on in this story was the fact that Jisu's parents were very hard on her. It would have been nice for her to sit down with them to have a real talk about how they were pressuring her to not only to do her best but to surpass that. Kids these days are under so much stress during school, especially being a senior. It would be better for parents to support their children vs. stressing them out more. Although Jisu does talk to her mom about the issue its never really talked about at large and is never really resolved.

In the end, I think was a very cute and at times funny story. I am really glad that I got the chance to read it and I could see this one being a great summer read. To grab a copy and layout at the beach and get a tan while watching the waves and reading.


Go Into This One Knowing: Korean Matchmaking (with liberties), Romance, Humor

This was a very fast and fun read! The main character was likeable and the plot was entertaining, despite being kind of predictable. This felt like the perfect summer read with romance, a bit of drama, and a lot of humor!

I think Melissa de la Cruz is a fantastic author who has done wonderful things to bring more diverse books to teens.. But I'm not sure how I feel of her writing a Korean (not even Korean-American) MC with a detailed Korean background. I'm not Korean so I can't speak on how well of a representation this book was so I'm not going to. A lot of moments did feel a bit jarring for me as a reader, though. It was like watching a kdrama but without the heart and love poured into the story.
(One of the characters is Filipino-American, and honestly that one chapter spent with his family, THAT was the heart and love I wanted to feel from Jisu and her family.. But I just didn't?)

"Don't ignore your passions. Don't ignore that voice in your head. You know, the one that talks with your heart. If you ignore something like that long enough, it'll eventually explode and just make a huge mess!"

This book is light, fun, and a quick read.
I DID enjoy the main character a lot. She's the reason why I read until the end.
The friendships were fun. The romance was kind of a mess, to be honest. One was unnecessary and the other felt rushed. It was kind of a bummer since I think as an author it was supposed to come across as a romantic comedy, but sadly the romance just didn't work for me. I was only rooting for Jisu to fall in love with herself above everything else.

This book just wasn't for me. I believe some readers will definitely enjoy it, though! <3

29 dates is the story of a Korean high school student named Jisu. Her parents are not happy with how she is doing in her Korean school, so they send her to San Francisco, in hopes that she will do better. Jisu's parents have her work with a matchmaker in attempts to meet the perfect boyfriend who will help her have a secure future.

I really liked this book. It was an easy read and Jisu was a very likable character. It gives you a bit of an insight into Korean culture, although I am not sure how much is accurate, as I know little about the culture.

I would give this a solid 3 stars.

29 chances to drive yourself crazy!
29 ways to learn your dislikes!
29 dates but what about...love?

29 Dates is a cute story. I will admit to wishing for a little glossary though. Never having indulged in Korean culture, I felt a little left behind -at first. Eventually, you pick up the lingo and start craving the restaurant experience. (Maybe don't read while hungry?!😆) I think the most fun though was reading the play by play of these seons. Some are perfectly terrible! Like award winning terrible! Laugh, want to cry, and cross your fingers through the awful experience with Jisu because in the end you will be smiling just as hard!

What I most enjoyed about this book is that it allowed me to learn more about Korean culture through the lens of the dating misadventures of a teenage girl.

The 29 dates referred to in the title are seons, meetings set up by a matchmaker to see to introduce a couple with proper social backgrounds in hopes that they will hit it off. Jisu doesn’t really want to spend time looking for a potential boyfriend; she’s got enough on her plate with finishing high school and applying to college. However, her parents insist that she needs to both excel in school and make an advantageous match. When Jisu does poorly on an exam and skips a seon to hang out with her friends, her parents ship her off to San Francisco in hopes that she will do better in a good but less academically rigorous school. Jisu begins to spread her wings a bit in her new environment, but she still feels a lot of pressure to be what her parents expect in a good daughter. And that includes continuing to go on the dreaded seons, even though she already is interested in another boy. Or maybe two boys . . .

The author isn’t Korean, but she consulted with a Korean family member who came to the US as a freshman(!) in high school, and it shows in the book. Jisu’s experience coming to the United States and adjusting to a very different culture felt real to me. It was interesting to see the similarities and differences between the two countries through Jisu’s eyes. (De la Cruz does admit to fudging on one aspect of Korean culture, though; the people who participate in seons are typically in college or older.)

In a nice touch, transcripts from the seons are included between other chapters. Some of them are hilarious disasters, while others are just examples of the awkwardness of a blind date between two people who are only compatible on paper.

Readers looking for a diverse YA rom-com should give this book a try. It’s a fun light read.

Date number 29 is Kang Dae Hyun ,Dae Hyun already has a gf his mother hates. Kim jisu study ed hard for a history test and got a 79. School doesn’t always come easy to her even when studying.Jisu is done with dates.Jisu’s parents are disappointed at her grades so she can get into a college.They also want her to find a nice young man.Jisu gets in trouble for skipping a date. Jose is sent away to San Francisco due to her bad grades.I liked the dialogue showcasing some of the dates jisu went on.Jisu likes photor a physical away takes pictures for school project.I thought Kaylee was annoying. Jisu misses her friends back in south korea.There was a guy Jisu spends time with I was hoping to be her boyfriend but things were complicated . Quick read but slow in parts . Would love to read the sequeal.



#29 dates #netgalley

Perfect chick lit! I loved the premise and the characters were well developed! I recommend this for anyone looking for a light and fun read!