A fun premise paired with relatable characters and a satisfying wrap-up. Lily is a million times braver than I am—I'd have chickened out instead of heading back to school. I appreciate the way Park included imposter syndrome and mental health in Lily's journey. Leans into women's fiction as well as romance, which is exactly my kind of read.

Ten years after graduation, Lily finds out that she never actually graduated from college. The author of motivational books about the workplace secretly returns to college to finish her degree and encounters her college love, who happens to be her T.A. Things are definitely not easier the second time around, but Lily takes the chance to reinvent herself.

If you are looking for a fast paced and easy read then I would recommend this one but this wasn't entirely my cup of tea. I think for me, the character development especially between the relationship Lily and Jake wasn't really giving. Also romance is not the main plot but rather the sub plot in this book!

The Do-Over is a closed door romance about Lily Lee, a Korean-American business consultant and famous author who is forced to return to college and scramble to finish the degree she thought she’d earned ten years prior. One day, she’s a high powered business woman and accomplished non-fiction self help writer, and the next, she’s suddenly buying a backpack, checking out the ASA club table, and debating whether she wants to take STATs or Computer Science. Along the way, she bumps into Jake—her former college boyfriend who is now a PhD student and GTA at the school. (The book was very tasteful about that. This is not a teacher/student romance in practical execution. Jake never misuses his power and is very respectful.)

This book was sweet. But, I don’t think it was a romance. It reads more general fiction to me. Jake was cute, but he wasn’t the shining star here, and neither was their relationship. The real story driver in this novel is Lily. And I loved Lily. I really enjoyed watching her grow and learn to better manage her imposter syndrome, her anxiety, and her complicated relationship with her parents.

Mostly, I loved how this story encourages Lily to mix it up. To try new things, even though she’s a decade into her career path. I think so many people can associate with feeling stuck, and this story thoughtfully considers that experience while offering a different route and a note of hope to go with it.

I almost gave up on this one but powered through. Enjoyed the characters and the premise caught my attention. But the love story fell very flat to me.

I was excited to read The Do-Over because second chances is my favorite romance trope. However, I didn't care for this one. The romance wasn't the main focus of the story as much as Lily going back to school after ten years and dealing with her insecurities about being older than the other students. By the halfway point, Lily had maybe two conversations with the love interest, probably about five minutes each. Because the interactions were so short, there wasn't a lot of chemistry.

Honestly, I wouldn't have minded that so much if I had known going in, but this was marketed as a contemporary romance, so I just expected it to be more romance-y.

I liked the side characters, but they also seemed a little flat. After a while, I lost interest in them too.

I really struggled to get through this one.

Thank you for the ARC of this book! Thank you to the publisher and to NetGalley.

This book was easy to read, but the plot just didn't hold up for me. It opens very abruptly with the main character realizing she never finished college... and I wish I got to know her first because it just made me feel like "how could you not know this?"... even though that's exactly what she explains after.

Then the love interest just bored me too. This was fine but not a favorite book.

this one is for the girlies that went to college outside of the “standard” college years.

Lily Lee is our female mc in The Do-Over. she attended Calthorpe University where she graduated with her masters, except she didn’t. although she walked the graduation stage and was handed her degree, Lily did not earn all of the credits required of her. she was forced to go back to Calthorpe to finish, essentially, what she had started.

Jake Cho could be found by Lily’s side throughout the entirety of their senior year. they broke up tragically at the beginning of their senior year. when Lily finds herself back in a lecture hall, she also finds her college boyfriend is now her TA.

although i felt that Lily and Jake’s reunion was a little forced, i loved their story as a whole. i loved Lily’s perspective as the daughter who can never please.

It was a good book and really enjoyed it all and rooted for this couple to make it. Love it all.
This checked off everything I look for in a book. Was not disappointed. Really enjoyed this book.

It’s more a story of a woman in her 30s going back to college than it is a romance. I enjoyed the references to the FMC’s Korean culture and her bestie Mia and roommate Beth but I found the chemistry between the two main characters lacking.

I loved this book. I was expecting a simple romcom, but got an empowering, independent you got this novel instead. It was what I need at the moment, even though I thought I needed a quick fluff read. I have enjoyed Suzanne Park's books, but this is my favorite.

Upon landing her dream job, writer Lilly Lee finds out she didn't pass the background check due to an issue with her college transcripts. Turns out, after a disastrous final semester and bad advice from her dean, she didn't actually graduate.
Returning to school for a final semester after 14 years, Lily juggles her new course load, the secrecy of why she's on campus, a book timeline for a book she doesn't feel she can write, and publicity with a power brother/sister duo that undercuts her abilities. All while managing anxieties and a level of imposter syndrome, and just to make things worse, her ex is her TA.
The story follows Lilly's growth, while flashing back to the moments that led up to where she is, and how the trauma of her final semester has influenced her life up to where we see her.

The story was part cute rom-com, part honest look at expectations and anxieties, and part coming of age.

#arc
#netgalley
#thedoover

This book has such a fun premise, and it is executed so well! Lily, the main character, is very successful in the business world, and she is about to be offered a big new dream job. Unfortunately, when the company investigates her background, they find something she's conveniently forgotten about -- she never actually graduated from college and is just a few credits shy. So, she gets a "do-over." Don't we all fantasize about that in one way or another? She goes back to college and while there, meets up with an old crush who happens to be the TA in one of her classes. Lots of humor, romance, and poignant moments in this wonderful story.

I think this book was simply a Not For Me read. I love second-chance romances and was intrigued by the premise but maybe I've just been out of college too long for it to hit quite right for me.

I've read all of Suzanne Park's books and this one holds up to the rest. As someone with a Korean mother, I really relate to her characters, and The Do Over is no exception. I also love that more and more Asian American writers like Park are including mental health as a topic in their books because there's still such a stigma in our communities.

Overall, The Do Over is a fun romp through what it would be like to go back to college 10 years later, from frat parties to midterm exams. Lily's vulnerability makes her so endearing, and I love the frenetic energy of her friends (roomies!) Mia and Beth. And of course, there's the love interest, Jacob Cho, who's gotten a glow up since they went through a bad breakup 10 years ago.

I laughed out loud, felt Lily's anxiety, and enjoyed the warmth of her loving friends. Thank you for the advanced copy!

This was a solid, cute romance! I enjoyed the cover and the overall themes in this book. Could see it for many book clubs!

3.5/5 ☆

Unexpectedly enjoyed this more than I thought I was going to!

Lily Lee is 32 year old in need of a career change. When she finds out she didn’t actually finish her degree, she heads back to undergrad to finish out her remaining units. There, she is reunited with her ex-boyfriend Jake Cho, who coincidentally is the TA for the computer science class she’s registered to take. Trying to balance school, author-life, and nosy parents - Lily finds herself overwhelmed navigating it all.

This definitely isn’t a romance. I agree with most reviews that this more women’s fiction with a romance sub plot. That was probably the least interesting part of the whole book. Don’t go into this book expecting an amazing, second chance love story. It wasn’t one.

I was more interested in Lily going back to school, her friendships with her new roommate and best friend, and how she planned to live this “double life” as a student and author. I love the message of the story and how empowering it was - it’s never too late to go back to school and learn something new. Very big fan coming from someone who works in the higher ed industry! Her relationship with her parents also hit home for me. I could relate to a lot of what Lily felt when I was in college, trying to meet my own parents’ expectations. Very thoughtful and accurate.

This was my first book by Suzanne Park and I enjoyed it! Hope to read more of her backlist soon.

This book started so strong and quickly petered out for me. This book was really a mixed bag.

I really enjoyed the plot set up- Lily is getting her dream job when she find out through a background check she didn’t actually graduate and has to go back to college to finish a class. However, I felt it quickly got cliched and outlandish.

I did enjoy the descriptions of food throughout the book- especially the Korean food! I also enjoyed the themes of self love and the portrayal of anxiety and mental health.

Some of the characters like Cameron were too over the top for me- just very surface level with no depth to their character. I did enjoy a few of the side characters like Mia and Ethan. Overall, I felt the character development could have been better- especially with Lily and Jake. I also felt they had a lack of chemistry and I didn’t feel invested in their love story. The reason for their breakup was stupid and annoyed me too. A lot of aspects of this book just didn’t seem realistic.

This book had potential but it just missed the mark.

Thank you Netgalley for the advanced reader copy!

As Lily is a rising author in her early 30s she finds out, while interviewing for her dream job, that she did not actually graduate from college. She needs a few more credits to complete her degree, so decides to put her life in Manhattan on hold and go back to her college. To her surprise, her college boyfriend is also at the school completing grad school.

I really enjoyed the beginning of this book and started to get a little frustrated as it went on. Lily not being upfront with people made me anxious - I felt like they would surely find out and it would all be so much worse! The secondhand embarrassment made it hard for me, and I felt like Lily just kept making questionable choices.

I did love all the supporting characters - Mia, Beth, and Ethan were so great and added a lot of depth to the story. All the descriptions of food were so great, and made me so hungry and craving sweets the whole time.

I also really loved the honest discussion of anxiety and coping methods, including therapy. Lily talks a lot about the pressures she felt - both from her parents and from herself and society, and all of that was incredibly authentic and important to have represented.

I was rooting for Lily and Jake and did enjoy the end, even if it was a little too neat and tidy.

Thank you to NetGalley for the advanced copy of this book!

I’ve read other books from this author that I loved which was why I had to read this one. 32 year old Lily found out that she had to go back to college to get her dream job and to finish her second book. She realized through their background check that she didn't graduate 😳. Even though she thought she did, she missed it by a few credits. As a 32 year old senior year in college she finds that her ex college boyfriend was now her TA.

What I found cringewirthy was going back to school and parties with 22 year olds. Goals are different for 30 years olds versus 20s year olds. The boyfriend/love interest was dull as wallpaper. Best friend Mia was a bit annoying. The storyline was somewhat predictable but I liked it. Overall, I was rooting for Lily because she was so likeable. I wanted her to win in life!! The ending was adorable.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for my ARC in exchange for my honest review.