"I Leave It Up to You" by Jinwoo Chong is a novel that tells the story of Jack Jr., a young man who wakes up from a two-year coma to find that his life has changed a lot. The book explores themes like love, family, and getting a second chance in life. Jack Jr. has to deal with the loss of time and the challenge of reconnecting with his Korean American family in Fort Lee, New Jersey.

Jinwoo Chong, writes in a way that is both emotional and sometimes funny, making the story engaging and relatable. Jack's journey back home is filled with moments of self-discovery as he tries to understand his past choices and how they affected his family and his own identity.

An interesting aspect of the story is how Jack learns about sushi-making, which becomes a metaphor for understanding life's complexities and the importance of knowing where you come from. As Jack works at his family's sushi restaurant, he learns valuable lessons from his father and faces his own fears and insecurities.

"I Leave It Up to You" is a touching story about starting over and the courage it takes to face the past. It's a book that many people can relate to, especially those who have experienced personal growth and family challenges. The story is both entertaining and moving, reminding us of the power of love and the importance of staying connected to our roots.

There is something surreal about reading someone who doesn't know what Covid is or how they ended up in a coma. But this book doesn't dwell on the implications about the pandemic. Instead it focuses on the relations of a gay Korean who is still trying to piece together his life.

I can honestly deeply relate to how Jack Jr. (MC) and Juno feel as a fellow first generation Korean living in America. Sometime parents are too much and the inherent guilt about wanting to leave is just a lot to deal with. But also parents don't always mean what they say, sometimes you need a break, and others you need an escape from their ideas of a perfect you.

If you ever wonder what asian generational guilt would feel like this book has it, but also the cast and dialogue feel so real I wonder if any of this is Biographical.

I loved this one! Jack Jr was such an interesting character to follow, and I felt like his story was too. Thank you NetGalley for an ARC!

A complex story that melds food, familial relationships, and the unknown so well. This is one of the only books post COVID that I've not minded having it in the book. Expertly done, I found myself so connected to each of the characters and their motivations.

Imagine losing two and-a-half years of your life to a medically induced coma. Then imagine waking up to find you lost your fiancé, your car, your apartment, your job, and your independence. For Jack Jr., this means moving back in with his parents and resuming his high school job cutting fish in his father’s sushi restaurant. But it also brings some gifts: a renewed relationship with his dad, a chance to mentor his nephew, and a new love interest. While some might sink into a depression and rot, Jack Jr. chooses to get back up again. But it’s not so smooth as Jack Jr. deals with what he left behind the first time, relationships he cut short, family he ghosted. A sort of going back in time and being able to do it all over again and get it right this time.

I really enjoyed Chong’s writing style and narrative structure. He delays some details and reveals them with subtle drama when the time is right. At times the narrative feels like it verges on melodrama, but Chong reels it back into balance. Jack Jr.’s character is easily relatable and easy to root for, even though he makes some questionable decisions. That’s where the humanity is.

I have not read Chong’s first book, Flux, but after reading I Leave it up to You, I would pick it up.

The writing was so gorgeous and poetic, but the actual plot was kind of hard to get into.
The feeling of connection and family was told so beautifully that I enjoyed reading it enough, but I don't think I would pick it up to read it again.

This is the first book I've read by this author and I am now a fan! I am going back to read the author's first novel. I enjoyed how the authors wrote about a complicated Asian American family without following the stereotypical Asian American family tropes such as cultural identity and immigration. I also enjoyed the premise of the novel. I will be recommending this to everyone.

After Covid Jack Jr. has just woken from a 23 month coma to find his estranged family by his bedside, but not his fiancé. His life - career, relationships - is not the same anymore. This was a story of loss and redemption. Jack Jr. rediscovers his love of making sushi along side his father while he builds a relationship with his teenage nephew, works to repair his relationship with his brother and his new-found romantic interest in one of his care nurses, Emil. This is a book about second chances, finding your way, redemption, family and life.
Thank you Netgalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine Books for the arc of this book in exchange for my honest review. Released on March 4, 2025.

I absolutely loved this book. The beginning is very gripping. I found the book an absolute riot for being about such a dark topic and that is something will resonate with so so so many people. As an Asian person having books that feature Asian families is so important and makes you feel so represented. I will definitely be recommending this to people. Loved this book so much. Like a a gay Asian While You Were Sleeping. I was laughing so hard at the main characters rant against Jersey especially. bravo haha.

I really enjoyed this book! I read it over a few weeks and really got to know the characters. Each family member was well thought out and contributed significantly to the story. I loved the backdrop of food preparation - the descriptions of sushi made my mouth water. Definitely a 5 star read for me!

A book about second chances, family and redemption - it was very well written and heart warming. The way the writer depicted the relationships was beautiful and the descriptions of food was delightful.

I wasn’t sure what to expect from this book but I found myself engaged in the story right away. The “hook” is Jack Jr, suddenly waking up in the hospital after being in a coma for 23 months. He asks his nurse, Emil Cuddy to call his fiancée, Ren but is faced with his estranged parents and brother instead. With no job and no place to go, Jack Jr. has no choice but to return to his father’s home and work in the family’s Japanese-Korean fusion sushi restaurant.
This story is surprisingly engaging from the beginning and throughout. This talented author includes so many important topics in subtle but interesting ways. As Jack Jr. re-assimilates into a post-Covid world, readers are also assimilated into Korean-American culture, family struggles, addiction issues, coming of age and of course, Jack Jr.’s blossoming relationship with his former nurse, Emil. And although some issues seem obscure, such as what happened with Ren, Jack Jr. eventually gets answers around the many things that he missed while he was in a coma. I really enjoyed how the family issues came together as the book progressed but the ending was still open, leaving the rest of the story up to the reader’s imagination. An usual book that I thoroughly enjoyed!

I was immediately drawn to the cover, love anything with food involved. Also, the premise was interesting, Jack Jr has been in a coma for two years and wakes up to a new world full of COVID, reconnecting with estranged family and a missing lover. I kept trying to pick this book up and get into it but couldn't find myself invested. I was disappointed because the prose is beautiful but I just couldn't get into it.

Thank you for the advanced reader copy Netgalley & Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine | Ballantine Books.

It’s not my cup of tea.

Jack jr is a gay Korean who has fell into a coma for the past two years and as his story unfolds he learns about what happened in the world (covid) and his life while he was intubated. I didn’t think the story would be so emotional and tragic. Take a breath you are doing alright

What an unexpectedly poetic read this was! There was a lyrical flow to the writing that made me want to read more.

Jack Jr has just woken from a 23 month coma to find his estranged family by his bedside... but not his fiancé. Told from his POV, the reader learns as Jack does, slowly, what has happened in his absence: Big world events like COVID, and personal events like his newly born nephew. Jack Jr has to come to terms with why he left home to begin with, the end to his relationship with Ren, and his new-found romantic interest in one of his care nurses, Emil.

This was a story of loss and redemption. Jack Jr rediscovers his love of making sushi along side his father while he builds a relationship with his teenage nephew and works to repair his relationship with his brother. The characters were beautifully written and very, very flawed. The familial love, with all the bickering and secret-keeping, feels genuine.

charming story that's a LOT brighter than i expected it'd be. rather than dark and mournful it's cheery, upbeat, and vibing throughout. 5 stars. tysm for the arc.

I wish I liked this book better than I did. The prose is good. The characterization ranges from fine to great. Unfortunately the narrative frequently lacks tension, resulting in almost unbearable middle sag. There is some conflict, but not enough to sustain the story start to finish.

If I had to point to a single emblematic issue… I would point to a few. First off, I think Chong erred severely in keeping Ren off the page for most of the book. Ren’s presence could have provided a great sense of conflict and continuity, and would be very much in keeping thematically, seeing as it would be conflict between two sympathetic people, neither of whom is completely right or wrong. Perhaps an instance or two of radio silence from Ren, then have JJ persevere and Ren finally give up, putting on an appearance.

Springboarding off of that, I think Chong made a <I>huge</I> mistake in resolving one of the book’s most prominent hanging questions how he did. The readers want to know what happened on the night of JJ’s accident. All I can say about the final reveal is that it was tooth-grindingly unsatisfying and a betrayal of reader expectations.

Lastly, we have JJ’s romance with Emil Cuddy, his nurse when he was in a coma. First of all, every time I heard Cuddy’s last name, I flashed back to an episode of House. It was distracting, and then I had to go angst about being old. But more relevantly, I found the relationship/plotline <I>boring</I>. They were both nice, decent people, building a nice, decent relationship. Almost literally nothing stood in their way, but it was still taking page time and boy was my butt squirming in the seat.

On the other hand, I loved the nuance in JJ’s relationships with his family. His bond with his nephew, Juno, provided something wonderfully positive and fresh, without ever leaning saccharine. His parents were also great, and I appreciate Chong not reaching for the low-hanging angst fruit of ever depicting them as homophobes. There were conflicts and miscommunications between them and JJ, but they were handled with subtlety and grace. I also enjoyed JJ’s fraught relationship with his brother, James. It likewise retained nuance, but also served as one of the best sources of genuinely exciting conflict. Sometimes it felt like James was ready to hoist the book onto his back and carry it to the safe harbor of plot.

Perhaps this is my genre roots showing. But I think even a literary novel can and should have <I>tension</I> even if its stakes are not life and death. And tension is where <I>I Leave It Up To You</I> let me down.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House - Ballantine for the free ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions within are my own.

An interesting exploration of an adult child coming back to family life that he left in an explosive fashion and picking up the pieces after being in a coma for years

Thank you NetGalley and Valentin e books for this ARC. I enjoyed the writing style, character development and story. I would recommend this.

United States Publication: March 4, 2025

Thank you to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for this advanced reader's copy. In exchange, I am providing an honest review.

Jack Jr cracks his eyes open and can't place where he is. Also, what's stuck in his throat, and who is that guy looking at him? Where is he, and where is his husband? After a few confusing and frightening moments, Jack Jr discovers he has just woken up from a 2-year nap, and nobody expected him to wake up this early, or maybe ever. After a lot of scrambling and attempts at reassurance, the pieces of this bizarre puzzle start to take shape, and Jack Jr doesn't like the picture being formed. He's been asleep while the world grappled with a pandemic he never knew anything about. He was found in the river in 2019 and woke 2 years later to a very different life than the one he left behind in 2019. He no longer has a job, a home, or a husband. His family, whom he was estranged from, are the only ones available to take care of him, so Jack Jr finds himself living in his childhood bedroom in his childhood home and becoming reacquainted with his family. Needing something to do, Jack Jr starts working with his Dad again in the family sushi restaurant Joja, which miraculously survived the pandemic but is now barely hanging on. As Jack Jr refamiliarizes himself with restaurant life and being in the kitchen, he begins to reassemble his life. It's a chance for him to step back toward his life in New York City or a new life in Fort Lee, New Jersey. But before he can take a step anywhere, he needs some answers and someone willing to share them with him.

I can't say precisely what it is about this title that I enjoyed so much, but I enjoyed it immensely. Jack Jr and the characters surrounding him were well-developed and interesting. Chong tackled the pandemic creatively by skipping over it and making it part of the story. I also appreciated that Chong didn't tie everything up in a neat little bow - we don't get all the answers, as Jack Jr doesn't either. The "happily ever after" is a question mark - these are true-to-life things, and the older I get, the more I appreciate true-to-life rather than happily ever after. I'm thrilled I have had the opportunity to read this title.