4 stars

I have thus far really enjoyed Gloria Chao's work, so I was THRILLED to receive this arc; my high expectations were not only met but exceeded.

This is a charming new adult (I'm not sold on the YA part because these folks are a little older than that) romance. Chloe's parents are something to behold, and she resorts to renting a boyfriend - An/Drew - from an agency that provides this service to get them off of her not-interested-in-being-engaged back. While it's clear from the cover, summary, and everything else that this is meant to be a romance between the aforementioned characters (and does not disappoint in this way), the more compelling aspect of the novel is the cultural elements, highlighted by Chloe's parents, their expectations, and the maniacs in their community. There are some truly wild insights on this front, and I felt like I learned a lot more about references that friends have made. It made me want to do some gentle follow-ups in my own circles!

I really enjoyed this and am already looking forward to whatever Chao writes next. This is a fun - and for me fresh - spin.

I really enjoyed this book. I was excited to receive an arc and it was a really good read. I love the characters and their relationships.

Mini Review: The fake dating trope is my favorite, so as soon as I read the summary for this book, I knew I had to read it! I'm happy I did! I really enjoyed this book! Chloe and Drew were so cute together, and I loved reading about them. There were moments that made me laugh, and also a lot of heartfelt moments. I really liked the ending. If you're looking for a good YA, I definitely recommend reading this book!

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. When I first heard about this book I was really excited. The story premise was good but I had issues getting into it. I didn't like that it had a lot of cussing in the book. Some people won't mind it but it was a turn off for me. I liked that the book was about fighting for what you want out of life and letting no one stand in your way including yourself. I give this book 2 out of 5 stars.

First published September 1, 2020 (Booklist).

While home from college for Thanksgiving break, Jing-Jing “Chloe” Wang implements a plan for dealing with her status-obsessed family, her hypercritical mother, and an unwelcome marriage proposal from Hongbo Kuo, the rude, repulsive, most-eligible-bachelor son of the wealthiest couple in the Wang’s social circle. She employs Drew Chan, a Rent for Your ‘Rents fake boyfriend trained to wrap traditional Taiwanese immigrant parents like Chloe’s around his finger. What starts out as a lie snowballs as Chloe and Drew fall for each other and give support in finding the strength to stand tall against adversity. With Chao’s signature humor and lovable characters, she once again offers insights into Taiwanese culture alongside scads of delightful rom-com ordeals, mishaps, and kisses. Like a YA version of an American Crazy Rich Asians, this spirited novel is perfect for fans of Sandhya Menon, Jenny Han, and the fake-dating trope, as it entertainingly explores embracing life’s challenges, navigating strict cultural viewpoints, and learning to be the person you know in your heart you should be.

Glorida Chao suprised me with a multi-layered book of family, identity, and following one's dreams. In Rent a Boyfriend, Chloe, who goes by her Chinese name Jing-Jing when she's around her parents, feels suffocated by the expectations of her parents and community. When she's "promised" to the local eligible bachelor, who's actually a huge slime ball, Chl;oe fights back the only way she knows how: lie to her parents and hire a boyfriend from Rent for your 'Rents to get her parents off her back.

What starts as a way to break her engagement with fake-Lamborghini owning Hongbo without disappointing her parents turns into a journey of self-discovery, love, and confronting the cultural expectations of her childhood. Chloe, with the help of her fake-boyfriend Andrew, finds a way to accept and appreciate her Asian heritage while still being true to herself. Along the way, Chloe helps Andrew see the beauty and strength within himself and accept who he is; and artist named Drew.

I was expecting a light and fluffy rom-com, but ended up getting so much more. I'll definitely be adding this to my school library when it comes out in November!

*I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

There were so many things I was excited about when I began this book. Fake dating, yes. Falling in love while fake dating, yes. A female lead who struggles to speak her mind, yes. I loved it all. However, there were a few things that I didn't enjoy as much. For one, parts of the story dragged. It kind of felt like the book could have been shorter and still gotten the message across. Many parts of the plot felt dragged out. I also felt like the romance was a little quick for me.

However, the characters were what kept me interested. Chloe and Drew were so fleshed out and complete. They grew in their relationship and themselves. Chloe, at first, fell flat for me, but as she grew throughout the book I felt more interested in how she would fix things with her relationship. Drew had me from the first few pages. He was so compassionate while struggling with the same things that he helped others with. I loved being able to see them grow into better versions of themselves.

I also loved the blending of Mandarin words and phrases with the English text. It showed how important that language and culture connected to it is to Drew and Chloe as well as her family. All in all, it was a great read about a culture that I didn't know much about.

*I received an e-arc from Netgalley and Simon Pulse in exchange for an honest review*

After reading and loving American Panda, I knew I wanted to read this one. I’m so glad I did, as it was so cute! It was the perfect blend of a rom com and a story that dealt with family struggles. Gloria just has this great writing style that makes it work.

Chloe’s traditional Taiwanese parents are pressuring her to marry Hongbo, who is quite wealthy and well known in their tight knit community. After a disastrous “date” with Hongbo, where he took her to a strip club, Chloe gets quite desperate. She feels that the only way out of marrying Hongbo is to hire a fake boyfriend from Rent for Your ‘Rents.

Drew has a passion for art, and unfortunately his parents disown him after he drops out of college to pursue his dreams. He works for Rent for Your ‘Rents to pay the bills as he’s supporting himself completely. Thankfully for him, learning the protocols for work come naturally to him. For this job, he just needs to convince Chloe’s parents that he’s right for her, and he’s golden.

Chloe and Drew start to fall for each other, but Drew is quite different than Andrew, the character he has been portraying to her parents. As they fall for each other, the lies to Chloe’s parents keep on coming, and things get pretty complicated. Will Chloe be able to figure things out after the mess that’s been created?

I adored these characters, and they definitely made an impression on me. If you enjoy rom coms and fake dating, I definitely think you’ll enjoy this one!

*** Thank you Netgalley for approving me in exchange for an honest review!

This book was so adorable! Chloe's parents are pushing her to marry Hongbo, the most eligible bachelor, but for reasons Chloe has no idea. She despises Hongbo after he takes her on a date to a strip club. When her parents invite her home she panics and decides to hire a boyfriend to try to get her parents to understand how much she does not want to marry Hongbo.

Chloe "rents" a boyfriend to temporarily deter her parents intentions but the more time she spends with Drew the more she starts falling for him. They genuinely just click but as time goes on and the lies pile up things start to get messy.

Drew's job as a "rented" boyfriend is lucrative. His love for Art has led him to drop out of college which has caused tension with his family. When he meets his client Chloe and things start getting more and more serious despite their "fake relationship" he starts to worry what she'll think if he tells her what his dreams really are.

In a world where higher education is important to gain status in the community both Chloe and Drew keep their true dreams to themselves but over time they realize they can't continue hiding their true selves. These two are definitely meant for each other but can they get out of the mess their fake relationship has created for them? Will they be able to wipe the slate clean and have a true relationship together?

If you love Gloria Chao's previous books than you'll definitely love this one! I recommend it to anyone who loves a good romance!

Firstly, I love the cover and the representation it shows (I’m Asian). The cover and author is also what drew me to this book (loved American Panda). It was fun and heartwarming , just as the cover suggests. Jing-Jing/Chloe was a great representation of the struggles many Chinese Americans face and I loved seeing the Chinese words. It made me feel so seen.

This book was so cute and was your run-of-the-mill fake dating love story. It was full of drama, "dragon parents", and a horrible boy trying to get Chloe/Jing-Jing to marry him. Drew was incredibly likable while Chloe took some getting used to. It was really well-written and it was super sweet.

I can’t quite tell who this book is for. The premise seems like it would be better with a slightly older protagonist and geared towards a slightly older audience.

This book in a nutshell:

- Girl needs a reason to decline a proposal from the most awful person ever
- Hires professional as a fake boyfriend who should get her parents' approval
- But... are there feelings, maybe?
- Bonding over mooncakes at midnight
- Baking cookies together at Christmas
- Drama, struggles, but also Fluff

This book has such a perfect balance between being a fun romcom and dealing with deeper issues, like how the main character struggles in her relationship with her parents and in her cultural background because of her parents' expectations of her and the way her community judges her and the focus on needing to save face.

This book was exactly what I expected, in a good way. I went into it expecting a cute and funny rom-com, and it lived up to those expectations! It was a relatively quick read, and a fun one too. I loved how real Chloe's relationship with her parents was portrayed. While I may not be a part of the culture this book is based off of, I can relate to the difficulty of relating to your parents while simultaneously wanting to love them no matter what. I think it was really important to show Chloe merging her two cultures in the way she eventually did. Those looking for a happy book to get lost in should definitely pick up this one!!

This book really brings to light the complications of being a child in a household that is deeply emerged in a specific culture. I loved Chloe’s rebellion to find her own way in her life but felt the pain that came from a cultural respect and understanding of her parents. I loved getting a glimpse into the balance of Chinese/Mandarin culture in an American setting.

Gloria Chao's books are always so cute. I love that I get a cute romance while learning about a culture I am not familiar with. This one addressed the pressure felt in early adulthood by parents for so many reasons. The characters were lovely, their feelings were valid and relatable, and the development of the relationship was swoony.

I always enjoy a fake partner to real partner trope. I also LOVE books that integrate Mandarin Chinese / Taiwanese into them so reading this for me felt really fun. Some of it got a bit long and I think it could’ve been wrapped up a teensy bit shorter/ sharper, but overall the writing was solid. The pain and anguish from family dynamics came through really clearly. I actually might’ve liked that best because all sorts of kids can relate to some version of this type of tension and anger/love towards their families, and I’m glad that type of theme is being put forward more for young people since they grapple with it all the time so alone.

This would definitely be a YA book over MG. Sex and virginity get discussed a bit but it is otherwise very tame, but just meant for the older/ middle school crowd (MCs are 18,21).

More Chinese in books! Oh also there’s a glossary. I love a glossary.

Thanks to the publishers and Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The rom-com meet cute trope gets turned on its head in this one & it’s completely engaging. Girl meets fake boyfriend & hijinks ensue is the easy way out of writing this review—except it’s not wholly accurate. There’s a more complex & heartfelt plot that makes this a page-turner.

Gloria Chao writes the cutest romances that mix culture and love in the best way. I have to say that her books have truly opened me up to eastern culture and I have learned a lot reading them. The premise of this book seems silly but it’s cute and it works well. I am incredibly impressed with how she took a unique plot and made it something that I didn’t expect. I enjoy a cute contemporary now and again between all of the fantasy I read and this was a completely perfect book to fit that bill!

*Thank you Simon and Schuster Children’s Publishing for the eARC from Netgalley.

2.5 / 5 stars

Chloe Wang is tired of being pressured to accept Hongbo’s proposal. Chloe knows that love will never happen between Hongbo and herself. However, her parents are determined for their precious daughter to take the path that they have chosen for her. Chloe knows that her only chance of happiness will have to come at a price. Chloe decides to introduce her parents to Andrew, a cover for Drew who works for “Rent for Your ‘Rents.” Chloe hires Drew to play the role of her new boyfriend so that her parents will stop pressuring her to accept Hongbo’s proposal. Chloe helps create Drew’s persona of Andrew so that her parents will adore him, but Chloe herself finds that the real Drew is who she is beginning to adore.

This book was so hard to read at times. I know that I have no information and experience with arranged marriages. This book does explore this topic at times with the marriage of Chloe’s parents as well as the potential marriage between Chloe and Hongbo. I believe that the author is writing this as own voices, but I do not know if the subject of arranged marriage is being written with own voices familiarity. It is hard to convey my wording with this, so I apologize if I am a bit unclear. I know that I do not know much about this and I recognize that. I know that arranged marriages happen and they can be good and bad. I know that daughters can often not have much choice, or any at all, in arranged marriage situations. I know that this subject is different for different cultures as well as how it is expressed. Please recognize that I understand this.

However, I still cannot fathom how Chloe’s parents continuously chose to put her in a toxic situation with Hongbo. As the plot moves forward, more information is revealed about Hongbo’s situation with his family and Chloe’s. Based on my understanding of information and interpretation, I just cannot see why Chloe’s parents have constantly pushed their daughter to marry him and accept all the deceit with this situation. I know this is seen as a potential arrangement of marriage of sorts, but it honestly frustrates me that they hid so much from their daughter. Do not misread my words. I know that her parents care about her and love her, but goodness this just was not it. Also, there was a lot of shaming in this that tied in with the entire situation and my interpretation.

As i read more of this I just could not fathom why the same conversations came up continuously. It honestly feels like this book repeats so many elements over and over again. I do like the characters at times and how some topics were addressed, but I feel like a good amount was still a bit weak and not explained as well as it could have been. The reader can see how old world and new world elements are being brought into the conversation in many good ways, but overall I was disappointed by how some topics were presented.

Chloe and Drew were okay. The relationship seemed a bit too quick to me, but overall it was alright. I wish Chloe would have stood up for herself more. We saw some good moments of strength, but I wish they would have expanded more. I think we had some great character growth potential, but it just was not fully there in my opinion.

Overall, this is hard to review. I know I am not own voices for this. I do still think that there was too much deceit with this situation and it just did not ever really make sense in the end.