4.5 stars

i went into this book expecting a romance but go so much more. not only did i get a cute romance, i also got complex familial relationships and fleshed-out characters. this book isn't a romance, it's a book about self-discovery and overcoming life.

this book follows our main character, jasmine, a year after she's graduated college. we see the hardships she faces, especially when it comes to her professional life and her love life. a good chunk of the book focuses on her relationship with alex but it also shines light on jasmine's complicated relationship with her parents.

+ this book had amazing characters. julie was such a realistic main character. it was easy to step into her shoes and tieu did a good job of conveying julie's inner struggles. the side characters were also fleshed out, i could almost imagine each character jumping off the page. the characters all had meaning to them and they weren't just surface-level. tieu developed them in a way that was both realistic and attention-grabbing.

it also depicted a complex relationship between julie and her refugee parents. this delicate topic was handled SO well. the writing did an amazing job of showing us this unique relationship. we got to see julie's feelings firsthand and it was easy to empathize with her. it captured the essence of this unique family dynamic beautifully, while also conveying that it's still a heavy topic for those that experience it first-hand.

- it was a little slow. the dinner mentioned in the synopsis didn't occur until about halfway through and the chapters prior to that were hard to read due to the pacing. however, it did pick up quickly shortly after the dinner

i'd recommend this book to everyone. while it's a fictional story, it paints such a realistic picture that i wouldn't be surprised if this book was taking place right now. the book opens your eyes to this topic of parental expectations and trying your best to achieve them, while also keeping this charm to it that makes it easy to digest, this was an amazing debut novel and i'm looking forward to more from this author! :)

A cute story about finding yourself.

Jasmine graduated a year ago and is still working full time at her parents' donut shop. She feels stuck and frustrated, but isn't sure what to do. She meets Alex and they hit it off, until everything goes wrong when their parents meet. Jasmine has to stand up for what she wants and start sharing honestly with her parents.

Overall, I enjoyed this new adult coming of age story. Of course, Jasmine was quite frustrating at times, but I think it goes with the territory of being young and not knowing what she wants. I enjoyed seeing the slice of life of her immigrant parents and her and her brother being born and raised in the US. The challenges of navigating those relationships were very apparent and it was great to see in an otherwise relatively light-hearted book.

The Donut Trap by Julie Tieu is an OWNVOICES novel that most Millenials can relate to. Our story follows Jasmine Tran, a recent college grad that has returned to her parent's home and their small, struggling donut shop. Like so many post-college adults today, Jasmine is trying to figure out what her next step in life is while under the critical gaze of her parents. In the midst of all this, her old crush Alex Lai reappears in her life and love slowly blooms. The romance is a bit on a slower side so don't expect too many romantic moments because most of the story focuses on Jasmine. Overall I really liked Jasmine's complex character, but some of the other characters in her life fell flat in comparison- even her own parents.

The Donut Trap is a very interesting coming-of-age debut novel.

Fair warning - this is more of a contemporary than a romance, though I'll happily accept the classification as a romantic comedy. Just know that there won't be much steam and PLEASE don't let that /bar/ you from reading, because this book is so /hole/-some (yes, the donut puns are coming... brace for impact)

I loved following Jas as she tried to modernize the store, traverse the dangerous waters of LA dating, and navigate a tumultuous job market, all while maintaining a sharp wit that had me reeling. I know that I'll be on the hunt for a donut after this /matcha/ made in heaven of a book.

*Thank you to NetGalley and Avon for an ARC in exchange for an honest review*

I loved this book and all the characters! I feel like Jas was so relatable and her story made you feel connected to what she went through. This book reminded me of a fun doughnut- it was sprinkled with love, family, and laughs. The perfect romantic comedy combo that you’ll want to eat up all the way until the last bite.

A cute story.
I liked how this was targeted more toward new adult because the mc is out of college but she also seemed very young. She acted more like a 16 year old in certain ways. Her parents definitely treated her that way but I'm not going to speak much on that part of the story because it stems from their heritage and morals and I won't ever speak on Asian rep so I'll leave that alone.

One thing that eked me so much was the invasion of privacy from Alex in the scene where he is hiding in her bedroom and logs into her laptop and changes her preference and settings around 😳 like that is not ok and is a huge red flag. I also didn't really enjoy Alex's character, he seems super clingy and cringe but I understand he's been through some shit so it made him that way.

The story was cute overall but idk maybe it'd be better off as a ya book.

This is not a YA romance nor an adult romance - it's something in-between. Perhaps an "adulting" romance.

Jasmine Tran, a Chinese Vietnamese American college grad, is still living at home after her sociology degree landed her exactly no jobs. Instead, while she's trying to figure out her next steps, she's been helping her parents at their donut shop, which is struggling to meet the demands of a raised rent with customers who are literally dying off (from old age, not donuts).

Yes, there is a love interest - a college crush, Alex Lai, a Chinese boy who can actually speak Mandarin. Their courtship is rather sweet, with both parties still trying to assert themselves with their parents, as one does if you are the second generation of immigrants.

While this has some romance, it really is Jasmine's story about learning self-reliance and autonomy after having made mistakes in college that led to her not trusting herself. She's rather funny and self-deprecating and holds to traditions like Thirsty Thursdays where she streams movies and shows starring hot guys.

It's also about the diaspora experience of parents and children learning to speak to one another about their needs and expectations. It's about incorporating some lovely Asian flavors into donuts! It's one of the best Asian American novels I've read that didn't really overexplain being Asian, if that makes any sense.

"The Donut Trap" is a light read that is more about coming of age than any intense romance. There is yearning all around, and in the end, I felt this was just the beginning of Jasmine's story.

This review is courtesy of an ARC provided by Netgalley

Fair warning, make sure you are fully stocked on donuts beforehand. Jasmine is at the point in her life where she's trying to find her footing. There’s the weird transition person one goes through after graduating college and fully becoming an adult and I think the author did a great job describing this transition in all its glorified awkwardness.

Part of this story felt so relatable and hit so close to home. I enjoyed the mix Asian culture colliding with a young adult living in an American society. As a child of Filipino immigrants, I understood the family expectations to “make something of yourself” and how parents tend to measure their success by how successful their children are. The tension and at times daunting conversations between Jas and her parents were captured perfectly and showed the disconnect that occurs in that relationship.

There were parts of the story that were really slow at times and it seemed to be lacking. It got very repetitive in topics like Jasmine's lack of career, her parents' disappointment in her choices, and the family guilt and obligation which became exhausting to read. There was a spark in the story that was missing and overall Jasmine was a hard character to enjoy because one moment she would be the strong independent woman I knew she could be to the girl lacking self confidence and who is constantly down on herself. The back and forth emotional tug of war became tiresome to read.

I think the parts that shine made this book special, but at the same time I wanted so much more. I think it would have helped if either one of the story lines felt like the main objective rather than having multiple themes trying to be the center of the story. Thank you to NetGalley and Avon for this ARC

I love the premise of this book, but I just didn't finish. I think it would be good for someone else, just not me. The characters were great. It would be an entertaining TV show! I just did not connect to the story, and I found the pacing to be slow.

loved this romance and finding love. I loved jasmine and her friends. I loved that while she loved working at a donut shop she wanted something else. I loved that she found love and found her place in the world. I loved that she seemed so real and normal with life and parents.

At first, I wasn't sure if I was going to like this ron-com, because the author was doing an info dump in the first chapter. She was also doing the looking-into-a-mirror to describe the narrator. But once I got through those two cliches, I was able to have fun with this romance that is also a first generation with immigrant parents story.

Jasmine, known as Jas for short, was expected to go into medicine, but she just couldn't get into it, so got a different degree instead, and now is aimless, working in her parent's donut shop, not sure what to do with her life.

Into which Alex, the love interest, comes in, as well as Micheal, her ex.

But I wouldn't say this is a love triangle, because she was never attracted to her ex.

I guess I like romances that don't have a heck of a lot of romance in them, because, unlike a lot of reviewers who felt there should be more, I thought it was just fine. I liked seeing how she related to her parents, and how she tried to improve the donut shop to attract more customers.


Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review.

The Donut Trap was my first book by Julie Tieu and I actually found it cute. Sometimes one just needs a cute and fast read and this is exactly what this book was. Both characters were cute together and also had a lovely banter that held my attention. The overall plot of the story also connected well with the characters and the entire setting as well.

A cute little rom-com that was entertaining and enjoyable to read. The Donut Trap by Julie Tieu is a cute romance between two young characters who, again, prove that "will they, won't they" agenda. While slow at times, it was enjoyable overall.

Julie Tieu's The Donut Trap is a delight to read! What drew me in most is the main character, Jasmine Tran, a young twenty-two year old still trying to figure out here way in life. Unsure of what she wants to do or can do--familial obligation is strong in this book--she feels stuck working in her parent's donut shop. And I think the strength of the book lies there. I was expecting a romance--and the reader gets that--but the book is so much more. It's complex, layered, nuanced, and full of goodness (and I'm not just saying that because of the donuts.). This coming-of-age story with a romantic arc will fulfill many readers cravings for cute,

This book was a mixed bag which ultimately led it to being only an okay read. It felt like two separate plots with one overpowering the other and not meshing together as well as they should.

Jasmine Tran is an Asian American who is not sure what she wants to do with her life. Currently she helps out at her parent’s donut shop. This book made me hungry because of that. I love donuts and I definitely craved them. Her parents and even those around her want to know what she is going to do for a job. I can understand the frustration that she faced when it came to these questions because I got them a lot after not finishing college and even now being married and having a child I still get asked if I will ever go back. What is fulfilling to others or what others find successful doesn’t mean other people will feel the same. I really did like the plot with her family and finally getting them to realize that a perfect job or man won’t make her any happier. Family is important to me and I love reading about them.

This is supposed to be a romance but I just wasn’t feeling that part of the book. The romance was slow but also felt rushed and since Alex is always busy most of their interaction is through the phone. I’m not opposed to that but it has to be done right and I still don’t feel like I know anything about Alex or why they are even together. Their relationship does come with struggles and it blew up big. I kind of had to roll my eyes because again, there wasn’t much communication between them to begin with. The author tries to throw in a semi-love triangle that didn’t work because I just didn’t care about the relationships that were forming.

Overall, this was an okay read. I liked one plot point more than the other so at least there was some good with the bad but not enough to like the book overall.

3.5 stars rounded up to 4

Although the book is labeled as more of a romance, to me this felt just like a regular fiction book. I wasn’t too invested in the romance between our hero and heroine, and I felt like their relationship was secondary to the main story line of Jas feeling trapped in this life that her parents have created for her.

I definitely could relate to Jasmine’s life and how her parents placed expectations on her, yet they never felt satisfied or appreciative of her. So I liked that part of the story, but overall the other parts of the book fell kinda flat. The characters, other than Linh, I felt didn’t have much personality. The romance wasn’t anything to get worked up about; I felt like I wasn’t even rooting for them to be together. And even discussion on growing up in an Asian American family felt kinda shallow to me. I understand that the burden of explaining Asian American issues shouldn’t fall on our shoulders, but I felt like more conversation about how Asian parents’ expectations for their kids to marry another Asian person are sometimes backed by racist ideals would’ve been a really interesting part of the story, especially since Jasmine being embarrassed to have a relationship with her past partner did play a big role in the plot.

But yea, even though this was a mediocre read to me, I think the author did a really good job in conveying the kind of relationship that Asian, immigrant parents have with their kids in America.

This book went in an unexpected direction - I definitely went into it with completely incorrect expectations. Jasmine was a delightful and relatable protagonist. I enjoyed her journey - not just her romantic one because weirdly, that doesn't feel like the main focus but it still had every part of a traditional love story that I enjoy: a meet cute, a re-meet awkward, a relatable protagonist, and a love interest who's cute and witty. If you enjoy coming of age tales, rather than a an easy, breezy, romantic comedy this might be for you.

I really wanted to like this book more than I did. Jas is an American Born Chinese who is at a crossroads in her life. She’s struggling to plan her next step as everyone around her seems to have it all figured out. This book deals with the expectations her family has for her livelihood, romantic interests and the future in general.

The story itself was fine, but at times it felt like the author was trying to cram too much in. It was hard to connect with any of the characters, even Jas at times, and it felt like most were introduced to move the plot along. The romance felt a little too convenient and unbelievable as well.

I did really enjoy the relationship with Jas and her family. At the end of the book it seemed like everyone got what they wanted and they were finally able to communicate well with each other.

Thank you to NetGalley for the eARC.

The Donut Trap was adorable. I'd categorize it as contemporary romance, new adult or even simply romance. I enjoy the multicultural perspective because I think the themes of traditions and familial expectations bring depth to the narrative, which a lot of other published romances often lack.

This was so cute! I absolutely loved it. The MC is working in her family’s donut shop while trying to balance her life and in comes a cute guy from college and they hit it off. She tried to balance finding her own path, being a good daughter, and possibly dating to her plate. I loved this rom-com. Definitely what I needed to pull me out of my slump.