The best part of this book was the description of Vietnam and even those felt super surface-level and I think I only liked them as much as I did because I was feeling nostalgic and supplementing the book descriptions with my own memories of the country.

There was just so much about this book that I didn’t like but I think ultimately where it lost me was buying into the romance. It went from insta-lust to a sort of antagonists to more situation and I found some of the steamier writing super cringey so I never really bought them as a couple, which made me start to nitpick everything else. Like it’s a contemporary romance so the plot isn’t meant to be believable but the whole time I kept thinking that this premise just made no sense and the more I read the less I cared.

Quite typical romance even down to the setup—and listen, I mean that as a good thing because romance readers know what they want and it’s a formula. The characters were fun and endearing. Sometimes I did wonder how this book could keep going because it always felt like it was about to be resolved. The complications sometimes felt like they were for the convenience of keeping the story going, and there were many complications. And when I say they felt like a stretch, I mean sometimes I got confused about what the characters were even mad about that time around. Luckily the resolutions usually cleared things up to make me realize what I was misunderstanding, so that helped, though things still weren’t always clear. There was too much sex for me, but it was easy to skip. Lots of tropes and archetypes involved while still being fun and original and beautiful.

What I liked: Setting the story in a lavish, high-end tour of Viet Nam highlights the sights, culture, and food.

What I disliked: The grumpy vs sunshine story line feels fake. The main characters lack a believable romantic connection

Grumpy meets Sunshine.
Enemies to Lovers.
Opposites Attract.

What more could you want in a romance novel, right?
Evie Lang, recently just lost her Aunt Hao, leaving her a dreamy San Francisco mansion that had been a guesthouse for bohemian eccentric artists and their lifelong entertaining parties and gatherings, organized by her rich aunt. Sounds absolutely amazing, if you ask me! However, it comes with one, tiny, mandatory clause...
Evie has to go to a pre-arranged matchmaking tour in Vietnam for fun. At the same time, Evie also finds out her boyfriend is receiving resumes to fill her teaching position at the academy, she feels betrayed and soon-to-be jobless, which means it's the best time to dump her boyfriend and fulfill her aunt's wishes. So long, you big dumb-dumb head!

Meanwhile, Adam Quyen, a member of the powerful Quyen family, manages the marketing business of his sister's matchmaking company that arranges the very same tour Evie will attend. (We ALL know where this is going, right?!?!) Adam was publicly humiliated by his ex after she not only rejected his marriage proposal but also finding out that she cheated on him with a 60-year-old tycoon behind his back. (DAAAAAAANNNG!!!)
Adam's sister pushes him to do the tour, because what does he have to lose #1 and #2, how bad could it really be?

After seeing Evie for the first time, Adam is instantly drawn to her, but tries everything he can to restrain his feelings for her. So what happens from here? Does he fall for an american woman who doesn't really have much going for her? And what about Evie? She doesn't really want to be with someone super uptight who keeps his nose in Russian literature.

I love how we see Evie & Adam struggle, grow, and evolve both individually and as a potential couple. I love how Vietnam is not just the setting of the book, but also how we are immersed in their culture, so to speak, and the amazing food and sites it has to offer.

Loved this so much!
Thank you NetGalley, the publisher, and of course author for a copy of this digital ARC in exchange for my review.

A wonderful read!
This novel drew me in from the very first page and kept me hooked until the end. The characters were vibrant and relatable, the writing was engaging, and the story had just the right balance of heart and humor. Highly recommend!
Many thanks to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for my ARC. All opinions are my own.

This is an entertaining enemies to lovers romance, set in Vietnam. The descriptions of the country are beautiful, I considered booking a ticket just to see some of spots in the book! The romance develops naturally and doesn’t feel contrived in any way. This is a fun getaway book!

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley, I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Unfortunately, this book was a miss for me. There were parts that I did enjoy. I loved learning more about Vietnam, and it sounds like an absolutely beautiful place to visit. I thought it was interesting to read about matchmaking tours as well. I thought the love story in the book, however, was extremely slow at times and I just didn’t buy the love story that much. There was insta-love between Adam and Evie with a little bit of enemies to lovers as well. I appreciated the growth of Evie, but I just felt like her actions were far too immature compared to her life. She was a professor, but she was also extremely childish in her courting of Adam. It just didn’t work for me. While it wasn’t my favorite book, it could certainly be for other readers.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for an advanced reading copy of this book. All opinions within this review are my own.

Loved the cultural aspects and the writing -- made me want to visit Vietnam, which is what I was hoping for when I picked up this book. Found the writing style refreshing as well. Where the book fell short for me was the characters -- Evie felt like two different characters when she's in her POV and through Adam's POV. And the matchmaking company setup was confusing AF -- is it an established "empire" or are they just starting out? Or is this the first tour by an established company. I'm so lost. All in all, a fun, fast, yet confusing read.

This was just OKAY to me. There were too many characters and storylines that at times made it difficult to follow. I know others will enjoy the story though

Well this was a disappointment... I wanted to like this audio so much but it fell incredibly Flat.

- The insta-lust Adam and Evie had for each other was hard to believe and felt Forced.
- There was so much disconnect between the 2, so much misunderstanding and miscommunication, I just couldn't understand how it worked.
- Both characters were incredibly Boring and one-dimensional, I was never fully invested in either of them and just wanted the audiobook to hurry up and be over.
- I liked the unique setting but wish they would have spent some more time describing that instead of only a few locations.
- Everyone seems outdated and argumentative in Việt Nam, which seemed like stereotyping on the author's part.

In the end, if you're looking for a not-so-deep diverse read with mediocre characters you won't cry over at the end of the story, read this book. I think the author has a lot of potential but this fiction debut didn't work for me.

This is a romance set on a whirlwind romp through Vietnam. Loved the setting and the development of the characters. They are more complex than I expected, and I appreciate that this book is more than just a fluffy romance. Adam and Evie both confront real issues - family expectations, cultural identity - and grow as people. I was pulling for both of them!

Two strangers embark on a matchmaking tour in Vietnam that they each are attending for different reasons other than to actually meet someone romantically. They end of being drawn to each other but believe it would be too complicated to make things work between them. I really wanted to love this one, and there were aspects of it I really enjoyed, but overall, it was just an okay read for me. I liked Evie as the main character and I was rooting for her throughout, but Adam was not a very likeable or convincing love interest in my opinion. I feel like he was swayed by his sister’s and parent’s opinions way too easily. I also did not feel much chemistry between the main characters and the amount of miscommunication between them was just annoying. I did really enjoy the tour itself, learning about the sites and cultural aspects of Vietnam. The story was decent but the chemistry and communication between the main characters could have been more convincing. This was just an okay read for me but someone who loves the romance genre may enjoy it more than I did! Thank you to NetGalley, Nora Nguyen, and Avon and Harper Voyager for the gifted ARC in an exchange for an honest review.

I have never been to Vietnam but after reading this I feel like I need to visit and explore. The scenery is magical. The characters and story are warm and fuzzy. There are a couple of open door scenes and adult language. I would definitely recommend this for anyone interested in trying out open door romance.

# Adam & Evie's Matchmaking Tour
# 2/20/2025 ~ 2/22/2025
# 4.0 / 5.0

When I first started reading this book, I thought it would be another predictable romance novel -- boy meets girl, boy loses girl, boy gets girl back. And it is that. But it's also much more. Despite being a combination of a Hallmark movie, Sex and the City and Crazy Rich Asians, the book, which has a love story as its focal point, also deals with issues of self worth, self identity and finding your own version of success and happiness, all set on a backdrop of Vietnamese sights and sounds. It includes an eccentric set of characters, all likable and all relatable. I definitely enjoyed this book, and I would recommend that others give it a chance as well.

DNF…

I felt that there was way too much filler in this to the point of boredom. It took too long to get to the premise of the story. There were so many things that could’ve stayed out of the book. This was too dull for me to finish.

Even though the plot had a lot of potential, it fell short on delivering the fun romance I was hoping for. However, I really enjoyed the writing! It was beautiful and poetic and resonated with me so deeply.

𝙏𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙠 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙩𝙤 𝙉𝙚𝙩𝙂𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙮 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙥𝙪𝙗𝙡𝙞𝙨𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝘼𝙍𝘾.

Thank you to Netgalley and the Publishing Company for this Advanced Readers Copy of Adam and Evie's Matchmaking Tour by Nora Nguyen!

A delightful, adventure-filled romance with sizzling chemistry and heartwarming moments. Adam and Evie’s reluctant connection blossoms against the vibrant backdrop of Việt Nam, making for a fun and emotional journey. Perfect for fans of grumpy-meets-sunshine tropes and stories about love, self-discovery, and embracing the unexpected.

Thank you for the advanced copy. I really liked this book! It had a perfect Rom-Com feel similar to Crazy Rich Asians. It was an easy read, but still felt mature. I the characters felt well developed, especially Evie and Adam. I found their relationship to be believable and realistic. I would definitely recommend this book to friends who also like contemporary romance novels.

The 3rd person POV prevented me from really sinking into this story and connecting with the characters. I love the scenery and the entire idea of a matchmaking tour, but the story didn't grab me and I found my mind wandering as I read. I ended up not finishing it, and will not be writing a more in-depth review than this.

the romance in this book didn't completely work for me, but i did love the setting and the writing! i will check out the author's other books under her other author name.