
Member Reviews

This charming and heartwarming novel is a perfect fit for readers who adore lighthearted, humorous, and emotionally resonant second-chance romances. The story's exploration of the friends-to-lovers trope will particularly appeal to those who enjoy watching relationships blossom from a foundation of friendship and shared history. With its feel-good narrative centered on taking chances and rediscovering past connections, this book is an ideal choice for anyone seeking a story that celebrates the enduring power of love and the possibility of second chances. The author's engaging writing style and well-developed characters will draw readers in, making this a book that is hard to put down and even harder to forget.

The Girl Most Likely To by Julie Tieu
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4.25/5
I was happily surprised by this book. There honestly wasn’t a part of it that I disliked. I really related to the main character. I was laughing out loud throughout the whole thing, like genuinely lol-ed. I had so much fun reading this and absolutely flew through it.
The story follows two high-school best friends in a dual timeline meeting up for the first time since high school at their 20-year reunion after a major falling out on award’s night. We get to see them re-connecting while learning why things fell apart in the first place. Rachel and Danny take off on a night of errand-running for the reunion, and shenanigans ensue.
Julie Tieu did a fantastic job creating these characters. Every single character, even the side characters, was so well-rounded and fleshed out. She did not half-ass this writing. Her words are witty and comical with top-tier banter, which I live for. I really connected with these characters, especially Rachel. I empathized with her need for perfection in high school and how that became the only thing that mattered to her. I loved being able to see her let go and live a little. It healed a little bit of the gifted child burnout in me.
The plotting and pacing was spot-on. The story never lagged or got boring. I was constantly entertained and couldn’t wait to get back to it every time I set it down.
I am really happy with this book and will definitely be purchasing a hard copy for myself to have on my shelves. Thank you to Julie Tieu, NetGalley, and Avon for the ARC!
Review will be on Instagram soon!

I normally don't read high school or college reunions, I don't like to seek out that specific kind of angst. But this book made it like a more chill & adult version of the movie Booksmart when the FMC reunites with her high school best friend and they go on a night of twists and turns, re-learning each other and having the talk they've always needed to have. They totally have chemistry and passion. I was like kicking my feet at how strongly the MMC reacted to the FMC after all this time.
Interspersed throughout there are short snippets of flashbacks to them in high school and I felt like it was utilized well especially because it was usually a page maximum and most of this book is in the present. I loved the nostalgic callbacks to aol and some of the music references.
The reason for 4 vs 5 stars is just that at times it felt a little slow and this is possibly because so much page time was over a single night. Which is definitely something I can get on board with but I think just could've used a bit more finesse to fully pull off. But overall, I loved the balance of the FMC in that she is in a quarter life crisis at the start of this book and there's definitely room for character growth but was also still a realistic 30-something mature adult.
Thank you to Avon for the eARC!

The Girl Most Likely To by Julie Tieu is everything I love about rom-coms. From the moment I started reading, I was swept into the story filled with witty banter, emotional depth, and characters you can’t help but root for. This book had me laughing, swooning, and tearing up.
At its core, The Girl Most Likely To follows the journey of Rachel Dang, who is navigating love, friendship, and self-discovery—all at the age of 38. Rachel just got laid off from her job, and she’s trying to regroup when she gets invited to her 20 year high school reunion. Which then brings her to think about Danny—her AIM crush turned real life classmate turned frenemy. (Swoon😩)
Julie Tieu’s writing is sharp and insightful, and she has a fantastic knack for capturing the emotions of her characters, making them feel so real and relatable.
What really stood out to me was how the book balances humor and heart. The dialogue is quick and clever, often reminding me of the classic early 2000s romcoms like 13 Going on 30 or Notting Hill. There’s that same sense of charm and nostalgia, with a protagonist who is figuring things out and finding herself along the way.
The cultural elements in The Girl Most Likely To add a layer of richness that sets it apart, offering something fresh and exciting while still embracing the feel of those beloved romcoms from the early 2000s. It’s a delightful reminder that even in the chaos of life, love can be just around the corner when you least expect it.
If you’re a fan of romcoms, The Girl Most Likely To is an absolute must-read. It has all the heart and humor of your favorite nostalgic movies, but with a modern, diverse twist that makes it feel entirely its own. I can’t wait to see what Julie Tieu comes up with next! Thank you NetGalley and Avon for this ARC!🫶

Incorporating the way AIM chats used to define relationships, talking with crushes and connecting with someone virtually for the first time with planned chat dates was such a fun callback because I 100% used to do that.
My one annoyance with Danny and Rachel's relationship was how easily they fell into a romance after 20 years apart, hardly unpacking of their baggage. There wasn't tons of development from the reunion night to the realization that they wanted to truly give their relationship a try.
Miscommunication also really grinds my gears but I'm giving this a pass because they were in high school and one little thing can be a catastrophic end to a friendship and relationship when you're in your teens.
➡️ Dual timeline
➡️ Second Chance
➡️ Friends to lovers

I really enjoyed this! It gave me Emily Henry vibes with the single POV and rambling inner dialogue which I actually really enjoy because it’s super relatable!
This was cute and sweet and I would definitely read more by this author! I feel like the FMC was incredibly relatable and I’m sure most people would be able to identify with some of her struggles.
Thank you to NetGalley, Avon and Harper Voyager, Avon and Julie Tieu for giving me an advanced listener’s copy and an ARC of this great book 💕

Great book for fans of Suzanne Park or anyone who feels like they'd like a second chance to do high-school. This book was paced well and had main characters who were relatable. I kept wanting to yell at high school them to wake up and be brave and honest! I appreciated that as adults it was easy to see how they matured and were able to be honest with one another. This was a quick and fun read with the right amount of spice! 3.75 stars. Thanks to Net Galley and Harper Collins for this eARC in exchange for my honest review.

I don't know how you could not like this book because I found it fantastic! Rachel and Danny were friends.. and more in high school until it all went south. They haven't seen one another for 20 years and they reunite at their reunion. Rachel is going to apologize to Danny and she hopes they can be friends again, but Danny went for one reason only.. and that was to see Rachel. It is clear he never forgot about her and that he was just as smitten as ever. This book was packed full of nostalgia for me and I was eating it up. I was also eating up just how gone Danny was for Rachel.. swoon. I had so many AWE moments with this one. There wasn't a lot of angst, just a lot of sweetness and that was refreshing.
Thanks to Avon, Netgalley and Julie Tieu for an early copy.

I’m sure others will enjoy this book, but I’m not the target audience. It’s a dual timeline, and I had trouble keeping track of where we were in time. There isn’t really a plot—it’s more a series of unfortunate events. The tone isn’t as light and fun as I expect from a rom-com.
Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC.

This is my first read by Julie Tieu and I really enjoyed it. I loved that we get to see Rachel and Danny go from friends to lovers in the past and in the present. Dual timeline is a tricky thing but I think this was executed perfectly. I love that although they both were hurt by things the other said/did in the past, they were able to move forward as adults because they could see that the other was truly sorry for what had happened. I will definitely be picking up more Julie Tieu books in the future!
Thanks to Harper Collins and NetGalley for this ARC!!

Miscommunication, Second Chance romance. A unique premise that takes place almost entirely at their 20th class reunion. Rachel was the girl most likely to succeed in high school, and even though it’s been 20 years, she still remembers those who were her biggest competitors. She has a not so glamorous life in the entertainment industry, and she has just been laid off from her job. She finally made the trades, and it was because of her layoff. Her friend (who is an actress) hired her short term to be her assistant, getting coffee and laundry. This allows for her to stay very close to the entertainment industry and to make it seem like her life is a bit more glamorous than it is. Just in time for her 20th reunion, she reconnects with Danny,. They had one special moment in 2023, and then nothing came of it. Not that she thinks about that much anymore.
There’s a lot of nostalgia in this one, depending on where you were around 2003, you will see and hear a lot of things that jump off the page and make you laugh. It’s really the details. I’m not a big fan of the miscommunication trope typically, but with teenagers they have miscommunication just about every day. I liked the way that in my copy the parts from high school were in bold print, allowing me to understand when we were in the past. There aren’t chapter headings that say the years, or “then” chapters and “now” chapters.
Rachel is not at all boring, she really is flawed yet likable. You’re rooting for her and you understand why she is trying to embellish her career to her former classmates. If you like a second chance romance, pick this one up.
Thanks to NetGalley and Harper Avon for the ARC. Book to be published February 18, 2025.

Thanks to Netgalley and Avon and Harper Voyager for the E-ARC. This was such a easy read. Rach and Danny met in high school via AIM I love this and how it reference it so much through the story because those were the days. They see each other at their 20th year high school reunion where lots of crazy and funny unfortunate things happen. The story goes back and forth where we see how the MCs relationship progressed.

I have tried to read this book on multiple occasions. I’m not sure if it’s the writing or the characters, but something just isn’t jiving with me. I’m going to go ahead and shelf this as a DNF, I apologize. Hopefully I will be able to return to it and try again in the future. Thanks!

This book was a nice read, starts off as a flash back to high school (back.in the AIM days) to now. Rachel meets Danny online as a teen they pretty much become best friends. Now years later and having not seen Danny in years Rachel heads to her 20 year class reunion. Trying to live up to her school expectations (girl most likely to) her world seems to be falling apart and then she reunites with Danny. She doesn't know what to do.

5/5 stars: This is Tieu's stand-alone which is a BIPOC Steamy Romance that follows a recently laid off film industry exec who reluctantly agrees to attend to her 20th HS reunion where she reconnects with her former frenemy and the two rediscover their romantic feelings. With flashback chapters to 2003, Tieu's writing and character work are excellent; the characters are well-rounded, complex and yet remain likable. Rachel and Danny are both great characters and I enjoyed seeing them dealing with their individual personal issues, come to terms with the past and finally get their HEA. The romance is top notch with plenty of swoony banter and the OPS sex scenes are incredibly steamy. Additionally, Tieu's humor hits just the right spot. And I have to say I loved the throwback to AOL's AIM chat. While there are plenty of heartfelt and lighthearted moments, Tieu does takes on some sensitive subjects; so take care and check CWs. Overall, I great frenemies-to-lovers romance; highly recommend!
I received this eARC thanks to NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyager | Avon in exchange for an honest review. Publishing dates are subject to change.

This was a fun single POV romance featuring a high school overachiever who finds herself suddenly let go from her company during layoffs and feeling lost in life and who finds herself reunited with her first crush/love at their twenty year high school reunion. Second chance romances are some of my favs and this was lighthearted, cozy and featured older MCs which I really enjoyed too. Great on audio narrated by Natalie Naudus (my absolute fav!) and perfect for fans of books like Reunion by Beth Reekles or The hookup plan by Farrah Rochon. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital and audio copy in exchange for my honest review!

I loved this book even more than I expected to. On one hand, it's simply a high school reunion. On the other, it's a chance to prove something to yourself or everyone you went to school with. Sometimes you need both. I love the nostalgia of the early 2000s mixed with the dose of reality that we get in the present. We can't change what we did, but we can change what we do.

friends with slight crushes who stopped talking to each other over a misunderstanding meet again at a high school reunion
rating: 2.5/5 ⭐️ | spice: 1/5 🌶️
i wanted to like this book so badly. so let's start with the good first. as a chinese-american, i was excited to read something where i could relate to the main characters. even as a zillennial, i felt nostalgia for some of the things incorporated like the AIM chat rooms and the pop culture references. i'm not from LA, but am familiar with the area, so it was also nice to relate in this way. but the biggest thing i could relate to was the family dynamics of an asian household and rachel's need to strive for perfection and success in tangible ways like awards and promotions. it also hit me extra hard because i'm also going through a period of my life of unemployment and feeling like i'm behind with my life falling apart. so it was nice to finally read a main character that i could relate to.
but as a romance book, i felt that it was a bit lacking for me. the writing felt a little juvenile, more like i was reading someone's fanfic instead of a book with proper editing. i didn't really feel the chemistry between the main couple throughout most of the book. it felt a little too forced, even in the flashbacks where we were supposed to get the most tension. rachel's lustful thoughts also just seemed so random to me that it threw me off a bit. it also didn't feel realistic that a misunderstanding of twenty-years could be resolved so quickly and calmly, even if it was a small misunderstanding. i normally live for a second-chance romance, but this really just felt like a barely acquainted strangers-t0-lovers instead.
i would recommend this for anyone looking for a quick romance read with a relatable experience of growing up chinese-american in the 90's.

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for the arc.
This was an adorable "second chance" rom-com. I am not sure how I haven't read a Julie Tieu book till now...it looks like I have been missing out on a great author. Danny and Rachel are a beautiful couple and I loved watching their love blossom in this book. If you like high school romance movies or movies where the character goes back to high school like Romy and Michele's High School Reunion, I definitely believe you will swoon over this book! I can't wait to see what Julie Tieu writes next!

Thank you to Avon Books and Netgalkey for the opportunity to read an early copy of Julie Tieu’s latest book.
This was my third read from Julie Tieu - I really enjoyed my first two reads from her, Circle Back + Fancy Meeting, so I was eager to try this one.
I think it had an interesting premise - girl who was voted most likely to succeed and currently in a bit of a mid life evaluation, faced with her 20 year reunion. What would compel her to still go after recently facing a lay off and uncertainty? Why the chance to reconnect with her one time friend and missed connection love interest from hs of course.
The night ensues into a comedy of errors type scenario, but also a chance for Rachel to reconnect with Danny (the one who could have been). Lots of early 00s references- highly relatable for those of us of the that coming of age era. Flashes between the present and the past where you get more insight into the Rachel and Danny dynamic.
While I liked the book, it was not my favorite of those I’ve read from the author. There were aspects I enjoyed but it took a bit to get into the story for me, and the pacing didn’t flow for me as well prior reads. I also didn’t connect with our two mains in the same way I have other characters in past reads. Not a perfect fit for me, but overall, still an easy, fun read to pass an evening. I look forward to trying more from the author in the future.