I just adore found families and I haven't experienced all of the dynamics and social constructs identified in this book, but I appreciated them. 

Hara Wilson was raised in Iowa and since the first book she has moved in to live with her biological mother in Seoul.

Her romance with Yujun who she met and fell for out of context is now off limits. She doesn't fit in at her biological mother's company where she is seen as a nepotism hire. She doesn't know the language and everyone speaks behind her back.

This is a theme I've seen in other books, where she didn't fit in in Iowa cause of racism then she goes to her birth country and she doesn't fit in cause she's American. It feels so unfair there seems to be no place and I hate that the world is set up that way. How do we change that? It's only a couple of millenia of conditioning. I feel so simple when I say things like this but it just hurts my heart that there are so many populations that feel on the fringe of acceptance and society.

I had fun with the growth of Hara's cooking and food journey and her experience with her food truck lady.

Also the second chance, forbidden romance between her and Yujun which all of a sudden was her step brother, was steamy. Ugh what do you do if you fall in love and you aren't blood related or raised together but like everyone is hating?

I mean she eventually stands up for herself, finds a place for herself and leaves the toxic workplace behind. Luckily, she had a group of solid friends to lean on or else this journey would have been ten times harder.

Thank you berkleyromance and netgalley for the e-ARC for my honest and voluntary review.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐💫

Seoulmates is the conclusion to the story begun in Heart and Seoul. I strongly recommend reading the books in order, since events in this volume build upon what happened in the first novel.

When Hara travelled to Seoul, it was with the sole intent of finding her birth mother. As a Korean adoptee, she had long been made to feel like an outsider in her mostly white midwestern community and she longed for that sense of belonging conferred by looking like everyone else around. She steps off the plane and falls in love with the first man she meets, Choi Yujun. He is everything she has ever wanted in a lover - intelligent, gorgeous, kind, decent, wealthy, hardworking, compassionate. He is also her step-brother. Finding her mother turns out to be something of a disaster since it means the relationship she has built with Yujun needs to end. A love affair between step-siblings is deeply frowned upon in Korean culture and they will face nothing but opposition if they try to stay together.

But Hara and Yujun are deeply in love, so they determine to weather the disapproval of all Yujun’s friends and family. That determination is being put to the test at the start of Seoulmates since Yujun works for Hara’s birthmother Wansu, who is opposed to their connection and sends Yujun on a long international sales trip in order to get him away from Hara and force them to break up.

Hara is miserable without Yujun. Not only does she miss him because he’s her beloved but she’s unhappy in her situation in general. She doesn’t speak Korean very well and working at her mother’s huge, successful IF Corporation means people hate her, not just because of the language barrier but because she is a nepotistic hire who can’t work as part of the team and has a highly coveted position which should have gone to a “worthy” Korean. Hara and Wansu aren’t really making progress in growing closer and getting to know each other. Wansu buys Hara many gifts and eats dinner with her most nights but she also makes it very clear that she expects the relationship with Yujun to end., which has put a pause to any growing intimacy between them. Hara has three good friends - Jules, Bomi and Ahn Sangki, aka DJ Song, a Korean pop star- who make life more bearable, but who also assure Hara that Wansu is right and she and Yujun will never be accepted into Korean society.

When Yujun finally comes home, all is well in Hara’s world. Or would be, but it turns out that love does not conquer all and some of Yujun’s friends start to snub him as a result of his relationship with her. Certain family members make it clear they want nothing to do with either of them. Hara’s co-workers grow even colder and meaner and Wansu is increasingly determined they should split up. Hara finds herself questioning all her choices. She loves Yujun with all her heart and soul but she wants to bring joy to his life, not trouble; she wanted to develop a strong relationship with her birth mom and that’s not what’s happening. Should she just go back to the States and forget all about her Korean adventure? Or should she fight for what she wants?

While Seoulmates is billed as a romance novel, it is more chick-lit or women’s fiction in style because there is less of a an emphasis on the relationship with Yujun and more of a focus on the pivotal decisions facing Hara. She has to determine where she wants to build a life - Korea or Iowa -, what kind of life she wants to build, and who she wants to people that life with, The author does a really great job of showing us why these decisions aren’t easy for her and taking us through all the steps Hara goes through to figure out just what she should do. The novel perfectly captures Hara’s very real desire for a sense of belonging, something she has never quite had. Her adoptive mother Ellen loves Hara deeply and is a great support, but her adoptive father’s family has always made it clear Hara isn’t their kin. Now a different but equally painful type of rejection is happening with Yujun’s family and Hara isn’t sure she wants to put the two of them through that.

Hara also adores Korea and the author does a nice job of showing us why, The beauty of the nation - its food, customs, geography and culture - are all very lovingly depicted, The author’s greatest feat is showing us the dark side of the country - racial prejudice, rejection of the LGBTQ+ community, the emphasis on bringing honor to the family - while still helping us fall in love with it,

Hara and Yujun’s love story is a bright spot in a tale that could easily be lost to all the problems Hara is facing, but while it is sweet and joyful it is also a bit unbelievable. There is never a clash of cultures between the couple, and Yujun never struggles with the many sacrifices he will be making to be with Hara. It feels too pat and saccharine and practically screamed ‘fiction!’ while I was reading it.

The story also has a very trite and contrived ending. Many threads - especially one between Hara and a coworker - are resolved with absolutely no buildup to that resolution. Everything concludes in a manner needed for an HEA and none of it feels true to life.

In fairness, many readers pick up romance novels/women’s fiction/chick-lit in search of an escape from reality and Seoulmates definitely provides that. It also does a lovely job of capturing falling in love in and with Korea and excellently captures that sense of being torn between two cultures and not being a perfect fit in either, yet finding your home in the people you love.  I would recommend it to someone looking for a light read that has a lot of heart to it.

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Seoulmates continues to deliver heart, drama, and warmth. The second book of the heart-warming and wrenching Seoul series ties up loose ends, but makes you hope for a happy ending for Hara and Yujun. Not only that, Hara continues to learn her place in her birth country, while juggling all the emotions and feelings of belonging that people of a diaspora often face. Jen Frederick does a fantastic job of bringing the outsider struggles of the nuances of Korean culture, especially for someone who looks like they should belong but doesn't feel like they do.

Hara has been living in Korea for 6 weeks. She is working at her birth mother’s company and living in her home while trying to navigate living in Korea and figuring out her relationship with Yujin.

When I reviewed the first book, I said that if you had expected a romance novel you would be disappointed. That book was much more of a contemporary fiction that happened to have romance. This one is definitely more of a romance novel. The relationship struggles between Hara and Yujin are much more central since the fact that they’re step-siblings and this is illegal in Korea. Wansu, Hara’s birth mom and Yujin’s stepmom is very against their relationship and spends a lot of time trying to keep them apart, but not in an evil stepmother kind of way.

I enjoyed reading abut Hara’s difficulty adjusting to Korean culture and fitting in. I can’t imagine moving to a country where I don’t speak the language. Add in the fact that it appears like everything she is getting (her job, clothes, etc) is a privilege afforded to her by her mother.

The romance side I didn’t enjoy as much. I never felt like Yujin and Hara wouldn’t end up together, even though that was the biggest obstacle. I also should’ve counted how many times the word “dimple” appeared in this book. I would bet it was close to 100. Every time Hara mentioned Yujin she would mention his dimple and it got to be very irritating.

I appreciated how the book ended but it felt a little like the author was trying to make up for the fact that the first book didn’t have a Happily Ever After. Everything magically worked out in the last 10% of the book.

These books felt very different to me, not at all like a duology. They had very different styles and vibes and I think I preferred the first one a little more. While I enjoyed reading more about Hara and Yujin, it felt a bit boring. They were already in love and their obstacle wasn’t really an obstacle. I appreciated that nothing stupid came between them to temporarily make them break up but I didn’t quite feel any stakes in this story. I enjoyed the education on Korea again in this story and I look forward to reading more by this author in the future.

If you are looking for more of a romance, you could definitely just read this one without the first because it repeats a lot of what happened in the first story. You wouldn’t be lost at all. But if you prefer something that’s less romance-y I would recommend the first book and then just don’t worry about it after that.

First off the cover and title are absolutely adorable. Love it. This was an awesome story and conclusion to a great duology. I really enjoyed learning even more about a culture I don’t know much about. So thank you for that. The secondary characters were amazing in this one as well which kept it very interesting throughout.

SEOULMATES, the sequel to HEART & SEOUL, was a book I enjoyed very much. (Thanks to @berkleypub for the e-galleySEOULMATES continues Hara’s journey in Korea, her birth country, primarily focusing on navigating her relationship with her birth mom. I know many were upset with HEART &SEOUL, stating that there wasn’t enough romance or a HEA ending, but that’s what I loved about this series the most, that this follows Hara’s journey as she navigates her identity and her quest to belong.

To be honest, I loved everything about SEOULMATES except for the romance. I didn’t think Yujun and Hara have much chemistry, but there’s another reason I just found it to be a bit icky, IYKYK!

The author continues to do an incredible job capturing modern Seoul, even more intimately in this one. I was proud of Hara’s improvement with her Korean and her understanding of cultures and customers (even though some are so outdated). While some might feel like it was too much info dump, I didn’t feel this way at all. We got to read Hara’s observation as she learned about her birth country.

In addition to reading about the ups and (mostly) downs Hara faces as an outsider in a homogeneous and strict society, Frederick does an incredible job portraying the sexism and old traditions steeped from Confucianist beliefs (especially in the workplace). While Hara’s journey was fun to read, I also loved Hara’s friends: Jules, Bomi, Sangji, and Yang Il Hwa ajjumma.

While the ending might have been a little too neat for my taste, I also couldn’t imagine it ending differently.

I see myself reaching for SEOULAMTES when my heart longs for Korea. The scenes of Hara and her friends walking the bustling streets of Seoul, all the food mentioned throughout the book, the city jam-packed with small businesses, coffee shops, and the slice-of-city life scenes had me desperately longing for my motherland❤️

I really enjoyed this continuation of Hara's journey to self-discovery and love in her birth country. Raised in America by her adopted parents, Hara traveled to Korea to find her birth mom and ends getting a job working for her company. She also is struggling to adjust to the Korean culture and language while waiting for her boyfriend Choi (who is also her step-brother) to return. The story really picks up when Choi and Hara get to finally be together and start fighting for the chance to have an open relationship (something that is very taboo in Korean culture even though they aren't related by blood). This book was also full of lots of amazing food as Hara starts a food truck business which I loved for her. This was a fun, feel-good #ownvoices romance. Much thanks to NetGalley and Berkley for my advance review copy!

THIS BOOK IS SO CUTE! Seoulmates is perfect for fans of Sweet Mongolias. I really enjoyed reading about Unfortunately, there was no HEA. I liked the plot and it's very compelling, but I was disappointed by the wedding.

"Family is about the people you love and the people who love you back and in that circle, you are never an outsider, a person with no name. You always belong."

This story is so much more than a love story. It's a story about finding family. It's a story about finding yourself. It's a story about discrimination, prejudice, racism, South Korean culture, international adoption, and the power of language or lack there of. Honestly, in my head the love story took a backseat for the greater story and I didn't mind it one bit.

This is the second story of the series, and while the author gives some backstory to the first so you don't have to read it in order? I HIGHLY recommend it. I think it makes this second story even more powerful (I read them back to back).

I think what stuck with me the most is the MCs loneliness. In the first book, the MC talks a lot about the Asian hate/discrimination she faced in the United States and the comments she'd get about being adopted. Now, with her birth mother and people who look like her she thought maybe she'd find home, a place to belong, instead of when she was in America and always stood out and was other-ed, she finds herself facing a different kind of othering.

This was a great read and opened my eyes to a culture I haven't read a lot of before and an adoptee story to top it off!

I would definitely recommend this book.

Yes, the first thing I did after finishing this book was look up the menu at the Korean place down the street. Food is such a big part of this story and I'm here for it. It makes me want to visit Seoul and eat my way through the city.

It's the second half of a story of an adoptee finding herself and what family means to her, with a dash of forbidden love mixed in too. It's beautiful and sweet (with some semi-spicy moments), and steeped in Korean culture.

I am obsessed.

Do not read this book hungry!
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Now that I got that out of the way this was a fun one! Picking up right after the ending up Heart and Seoul we continue on with Hara’s story as she heads to Seoul to find her birth mother.
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She soon comes to find that no matter where home is, Midwest in America or Seoul it doesn’t matter what state, country or continent home is where her people are.
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Thank you @berkleyromance for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

A wonderful second instalment to the series! I was so happy to see what happened with Hara/Yujun (as well as the side characters). This one was still full of travel, food, romance and drama, just like the first was. These were my first books by Frederick, but I promise you I’ll be reading anything she writes in the future, because she has a real knack for making me feel for all of the characters that she writes (even if I disagree with them).

My only critique of this book is that it spent a lot of time referring back to the first book - this was only jarring to me because I read them right in a row, and would maybe serve as a good refresher for someone who read the first a long time ago!

Trope: insta-love, forbidden love
Romance: ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
Steam: 🔥🔥🔥 (a little more than book 1)
TW: adoption throughout this book as well (but not as heavy as the first)

I absolutely loved this book. The first book hit my heart so hard and it’s cliffhanger ending had me salivating for the second installment AND IT DID NOT DISAPPOINT.

Watching Hara navigate her new life and connecting to her culture was beautiful, but the romance (while not necessarily the main part, it was prominent) was *chef’s kiss* SWOONY!

I’m so sad that this story is over and I cannot wait to see where Ken Frederick takes us next!

Let me preface this by saying I intentionally didn't read "Heart&Seoul" even after receiving an ARC for it. (Sorry Berkley & Jen 😭) I heard about the devastating cliffhanger that I knew I had to wait and boy was I glad I did. My heart would not have been able to take it.

First of all I want to say kudos to Jen for creating such a raw character like Hara. She jumped out of the pages and really grew into her own through the course of these books. My heart burst for her as she truly discovered who she was despite having to navigate an unfamiliar world coupled with struggling with her path to self identity.

I don't want to give much away for anyone who hasn't read either books but YUJUN. Like if you've ever watched a Kdrama where the hero is determined to do everything he can to be with the heroine - then you know what I mean. He was steadfast, loyal and downright the sweetest when it came to his love for Hara. He made me melt, swoon and fan myself!

This book was more than just a love story, it's about how family isn't what your born into but one you make. It's about loving yourself before you can let anyone else in. It's about finding who you are and loving the person you've become.

After reading Heart & Seoul, which ended with such a great cliffhanger, I was so excited to read Seoulmates. It ties in perfectly and it was the perfect conclusion for book #1. I would say that it was more of a women’s fiction with some romance, and even a steamy scene or two. I would’ve definitely enjoyed more romance, BUT all in all it was a lovely read. I grew to really care about Hara, and I got to see all of her ups and downs. It was definitely a treat to see her explore, & discover who she is and where she comes from. This book took me on an adventure around South Korea, and I felt as if I was a part of Hara’s journey. It taught me about friendships, self discovery, and love. I definitely recommend to read “Heart & Seoul” (book 1) before reading this one.

You can expect:

* Based in Seoul, South Korea
* Korean Culture
* Forbidden Romance
* Family Drama

|| 𝐑𝐄𝐕𝐈𝐄𝐖

Seoulmates
Jen Frederick
★ ★ ★ ★ ☆

|| 𝐒𝐘𝐍𝐎𝐏𝐒𝐈𝐒:
Can Hara find out who she is? As a Korean American adoptee, Hara struggles struggles with her self identity after her father’s funeral. She ultimately decides to visit Korea to find her birth parents with struggles of family, friendship, and love along the way. Set in the beautiful Seoul, Korea you will be craving to try all the Korean food and looking up this beautiful city with all the descriptions Jen laces into the story

Much quicker pace than book one. We continue to talk about Seoul and discover more things about Korean culture. Hara is struggling to find her place still. She has family, friends, and someone she loves. But how can she make all this work? Hara struggles with how to balance her life in Iowa, her new relationship with her birth mom, and her love Yujun.

Thank you to @berkleyromance and @netgalley for an E-ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Seoulmates is the conclusion to the Seoul Series duology. This series is women's fiction mixed with romance.

I absolutely loved Heart & Seoul. When I read it I had no idea that there was going to be a second book. But once I found out about Seoulmates I was very excited to see what would happen next.

This is a series. And you really need to read the first book before reading this one as it's a continuing story.

The narrator is Hara Wilson (25 years old, 1st person POV). This book takes place in Korea, just weeks after the last book ended.. It was amazing to learn even more about Korean culture.

I did enjoy this book. But it didn't have the same impact on me as the first one. The beginning was slow. But we did get to see a lot of what Hara's new life in Korea was like.

I loved getting to see more of Yujun, Sangki, Jules and Wansu. But I was really unsure how the story would end. Overall, it didn't end exactly how I was expecting it to end. But the end was clever and the epilogue was so good!

This past August, I read and enjoyed Heart and Seoul. I’m back now with the sequel- Seoulmates! Our MC, Hara is still in South Korea and is navigating her new life with her birth mother.

At the end of Heart and Seoul, we learn that Hara and Yujun have a bit of a forbidden romance. It continues in this book much to her birth mother’s dismay. Hara is also working for her mother’s company, but everyone there is disgruntled because they think Hara only got her job because of nepotism. She doesn’t understand a lot of Korean still so she isn’t assigned a lot of work to do. Hara is still trying to figure out how she feels about her moms, fathers and her place in life.

Yujun is still just as dreamy in this book, maybe even more so! It’s fun to see how Hara grows during this relationship. I’ve really enjoyed this series. The author did a great job of wrapping things up.

Thank you so much to @berkeypub, @prhaudio and @netgalley for my gifted copy. Seoulmates is on sale this Tuesday, 1/25.

The sequel to Heart & Seoul does not disappoint!

Hara and Yujun's story continues as Hara tries desperately to acclimatize herself to life in South Korea, its work culture, fitting in with her coworkers, and dealing with the language barrier. Also thrown into the mix is her not-so-welcome standing in her new found family, and her homesickness for her Mom, Ellen.

This is a poignant, sensitive story of love, and what really, truly constitutes as family. It's also a look at how culture influences us, what we are willing to sacrifice for family, and for love, and how far we'll go when we KNOW what our future should look like. I love how this book dives deeper into Wansu, Hara's birth mother, and her past, her motivation, her desire for Hara to have it easier than she did (believe it or not). It is a raw and honest look at a character who could have been villainized, but thankfully, was not. The underlying story of Bomi and Julia is equally compelling. And Yujun, in his own quiet way, shows how he is proudly Korean, but won't be bullied over his love for Hara.

Love how this duology wrapped up.

This book was an excellent followup to Heart and Seoul. Hara continues to struggle to find her place in Korea, and being the daughter of the president of the IF Group doesn’t help her fit in at work. But, just like in Heart and Seoul, she manages to find people who love her. Seeing Jules, Bomi, and DJ Song again was like running into old friends. I really enjoyed this book and the ending was absolutely perfect.