Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to review this book.

Maybe it’s because I went to UC Davis and have family in Westminster, but there were a lot of small details in this book that made this book feel relatable and comforting to read (maybe a bit of nostalgia?) I also appreciated that the romantic aspects of this book were more innocent than other young adult books that are out there, and that while there was interest brewing between Evie and Viet while Evie was still with her boyfriend, not happened while she was in the relationship. It was refreshing to read a book that didn’t get too tangled up in relationship drama.Each chapter is told from the perspective of Evie or Viet, some focused on their inner thoughts, and others telling different perspectives of the same situation.

Another thing the author did well was write about the experience of growing up in an Asian American family. The expectations placed on the children to achieve their best and find a life path that is “worthy”, making sure that your lives look perfect so that you don’t become fodder for gossip among the “aunties” (unfortunate, but true), and parents staying together for the sake of the kids - even if they’re unhappy in their marriage.

A constant theme in the story is the importance of true friendship - whether it was their friend group, or a budding romance, the foundation of the relationships were how they all genuinely cared for each other’s wellbeing. There was comfort in reading that the characters all had at least one person, if not their whole friend group to come to/or know to reach out to them, when they were going through a hard time. One can only hope to find a true group of friends that was found in this story.

A soft, sweet college romance. I loved the friends to lovers aspect, and the whole friend group. There was a tiny bit of angst, but it was real life/growing up angst that fit the story. I also loved the ties back to A Pho Love Story as I loved that book too.

Solving for the Unknown by Loan Le, 336 pages. Simon & Schuster, 2025. $20.
Language: R (47 swears, 2 “f”); Mature Content: PG13; Violence: PG
BUYING ADVISORY: HS - OPTIONAL
APPEALS TO: SEVERAL
Coming in as a first-year in college, Việt (18yo) is worried about making friends and about leaving his parents in the house alone without him as a buffer. After a rocky encounter with his roommate’s friends, Việt changes his mind about accepting a party invitation. He might not remember most of the night, but Việt is grateful for the people he meets in the morning, especially Evie—third-year Evie who has a jerk boyfriend.
Việt struggles with depression, and Evie struggles with self-worth. Even with their support system of loving friends and family, their problems are not slain with a one-time defeat. These characters have to figure out how to not get discouraged when their trials resurface and how to be comfortable sharing the burden by accepting help. Not all problems go away, but they can become smaller. While this is the companion to a previous book by Le, Việt and Evie’s story can stand alone.
Việt, Evie, and their families are Vietnamese American. The majority of active characters in the story are Asian, and the majority of supporting cast characters are implied White. The mature content rating is for kissing and for alcohol use, including underage drinking. The violence rating is for mentions of blood and murder in fake crime scenes.
Reviewer: Carolina Herdegen

Thank you to Netgalley for the free arc!

This book was different than I expected. When I picked it up, I was expecting a sweet light-heartedness romance between two Vietnamese college students. Told in alternating narratives between Evie and Viet, the story unfolds slowly. Both storylines reveal personal struggles for each character. For Evie, it is a relationship in which her boyfriend does not treat her well and she wrestles with how and if to stay with him. For Viet, he battles what turns out to be depression. Throughout the novel, the characters develop the same friend group as well as their own individual friendship. The ending of the story is very predictable and when it finally happens, it does not feel too believable.

Two Vietnamese college students find themselves juggling their lives, their future, and their romances as they cross paths and become friends. Viet Ho is starting at UC Davis, he's got a passion for forensic sciences and is a bit of an oddball, however he's also in the middle of his parent' divorce. With a new year at school and no friends, Viet has his worked cut out for him with being away from home and dealing with a new environment... until he runs into Evie (or rather trips and she gets him). Evie Mai is a junior biology major and has lived the perfect life: she gets good grades, has a group of great friends, and a smart and ambitious boyfriend who is the son of a well-connected university board member. But not everything is smooth sailing for her because she's trying to get into a clinic while also dealing with a boyfriend who is growing more distant and never really sees her or is interested in what she's doing.... Then she meets Viet. Evie is Viet's best friend's older sister and when they run into each other they find that there's a connection, someone who knows their roots from outside of school. When Evie brings Viet into her friend group things start to brighten up for both of them as they spend more time supporting one another.... but Viet has a secret, he's got a crush on Evie despite her having a boyfriend while hes dealing with his dark moods... and Evie is beginning to see that her new friend might be something more for her if she's not afraid to finally break bout of her mold and chase after something she wants. This was such a charming and sweet story with a friends-to-lovers storyline. It's so adorable and the characters felt so real with their struggles and their growth. As a Vietnamese kid myself, I could relate to so much of wht Viet went through ( and as someone who was interested in forensics in college it just felt so relatable). I adored the characters and all the side characters as well. This was just such a fantastic read!

Release Date: March 4, 2025

Publication/Blog: Ash and Books (ash-and-books.tumblr.com)

*Thanks Netgalley and Simon and Schuster Children's Publishing | Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

Wow. I enjoyed this sweet New Adult treat more than I thought I would.

Solve for the Unknown is a companion novel to the YA hit “A Pho Love Story” and I think I enjoyed it even more. The 3rd person POV story follows a bunch of characters but focuses on the very slow burn of Viet and Evie during their time at UC Davis.

I appreciated that the author continues in the universe but enters the college real and allows the reader to grow with them. Along rhetorical was you get to “stay in contact” with Bao and Linh as they enrich the lives of Viet and Evie.

What I like the most is learning about Vietnamese culture, families and food in an endearing way. I loved the sub plot of the forensic science competition bit wished it had a bit
More to it and a better resolution. The biggest challenges in the book is that there are so many sub plots that many get
lost and peter out where the reader doesn’t get a resolution to them.

However, I love the romance as it is age appropriate and sweet ending in an HEA on true romance book fashion.

I am thankful to have gotten an eARC for free from Simon and Schuster Children's Publishing through NetGalley to read which gave me the opportunity to voluntarily leave a review.

If you loved A Pho Love story you’re sure to love this sweet but chock full of real life, culture and romance. It’s on sale March 5th 2025 so get it on your TBR!

My rating system since GoodReads doesn’t have partial stars and I rarely round up.

⭐️ Hated it
⭐️⭐️ Had a lot of trouble, prose issues, really not my cup of tea (potentially DNF’d or thought about it)
⭐️⭐️⭐️ Meh, it was an ok read but nothing special
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Really enjoyed it! Would recommend to others
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Outstanding! Will circle back and read again

*Thank you to Simon Teen and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest review*

A lot of my animosity here is because I thought it was a math YA contemporary novel (which based on the title is not unreasonable!!). But it's not, in case anyone else cares.

However we do get a follow-on companion novel to A Pho Love Story, set in college and focused on Viet and Evie. There's a lot going on, as is common in university, and I felt like a lot of plots fizzled out before they got GOOD. I loved the forensic science competition at the end and almost wished it was focused more on that. But I did enjoy the representation in how Viet's depression manifested and was shown on page.

I already read and enjoyed the prequel, A Pho Love Story. Therefore, I was excited to read Solving for the Unknown. I am a sucker for a good slow-burn friends-to-lovers romance, and I was not disappointed. I will recommend this title to my teens who'd appreciate a solid romance, but I honestly did enjoy A Pho Love Story more.

there were so many great parts of this book, however they were all so underdeveloped. i didn't believe the romance when it finally started and the other plots fizzled out at the end without any concrete conclusions