Mia Yoon is determined to succeed as a freshman at Marlon University by creating a reality TV show for her film class. However, when her roommate suggests she go on the show alongside another influencer that she is crushing on. Mia, unfortunately, isn't quite thrilled with the idea.

Noah Jang is a well-known influencer and a ton of girls are quite attracted by his online demeanor. When Mia approaches the idea of having him join this reality show, he isn't quite sure if he should, but since it's another online presence. He realizes that it could improve his social media influence even more.

"She made this entire TV show because she likes someone? Instead of just telling him? That's so wild"

As the reality show progresses, Noah and Mia both start to realize that they might have feelings for one another. But due to their constant bickering in class, Noah just assumed Mia may have disliked him. It never occurred to him that she was secretly crushing on him. The whole reason she acted the way she did was fear of rejection and to keep a safe distance.

We all remember having those crushes back in school and wondering if it's worth taking a chance. Sometimes it is but other times it's not worth it at all. We may want to stay in our cocoons and wait to be approached instead. I was the latter. Have you ever felt nervous? Did you take a chance?

I thought this book was cute! I think the word "remix" was perfect to describe the relation to Pride and Prejudice because it's not a retelling by any means but it's definitely fun to see the inspiration sprinkled throughout. I do feel like there was almost too many characters so I didn't get as much as I wanted from any of them and many seemed like just a caricature of their stereotype that were kind of just inserted to check a box. I love the concept and thought the idea of a reality show was a lot of fun!

The Cuffing Game by Lyla Lee has a refreshing plot that most romance novels lack. Lively main characters with fantastic backstories, funny, and great chemistry between leads.

I enjoyed this book, but it's tough to rate accurately because I realized a few chapters in this book is not really for me. I'm not a young adult (as much as I feel like it on the inside) and I don't like reality tv. I was drawn in by the claim it was similar to Pride and Prejudice, and as a P&P lover, I have to say, that claim is a stretch. Totally fine if the connections are small and the story is more "inspired by", but don't claim it in the blurbs. Also, this book felt very much like a 30's millennial (like me) writing what they imagine college 20 year olds are like. Just felt off...like very "hello fellow kids!" The story is cute and has some feet kicking moments. The diverse representation is refreshing, but sometimes feels like the characters are reduced to their labels and stereotypes.

This was just so so cute! I loved the balance of this being Pride and Prejudice inspired but also being its own story. If you like adorable fluffy romances this is definitely one to check out - I adored Mia and Noah and the drama of The Cuffing Show was just so fun to read. Definitely give this a go if you like reality TV, enemies(ish) to lovers, and lovable characters all around (Matias is my favorite iykyk)!

I received an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

The Cuffing Game was such an enjoyable read! The concept of a film school student creating a dating show for classwork and also to deal with her crush is such a unique idea that had such a fun execution. The relationships between the characters and the interactions they have had me giggling and kicking my feet. I love reading Lyla Lee books and this was no exception.

Mia is a very ambitious college freshman at Marlon University studying film who’s got the next four years completely planned out. The only issue with the plan is Noah Jang. He is completely and totally irritating but Mia just can’t stop thinking about him. Naturally, she creates a student-led dating reality show just to get him off her mind, but that doesn’t really work when Noah joins the show as a cast member. Perfect for fans of Pride and Prejudice and K-dramas, The Cuffing Game is full of heart and fun. I love that a lot of the characters don’t turn out to be exactly how you thought they were, and the Big Bear cabin setting for the show was just so cozy and atmospheric.
I will definitely be recommending this book to teens and college students at the library, and would especially recommend for fans of the K-drama Frankly Speaking.

Lyla Lee had me from the adorable author’s note at the beginning. I love the diversity and representation of love in this book. As a woman in my 30s now 🫣 it’s getting harder to relate to college freshmen and I know nothing about studying film, but I LOVED Mia and Noah’s drive and work ethic. Logistics really are so sexy.
Their story is chaos and drama and vulnerable and all about friendships. It really was a cross between sowing romance novel and bingeable trashy reality TV in a good way (as long as you like me enjoy both of those things).

Pacing-wise, it seemed to happen really fast for me (especially with the episode release timeline) so my brain got caught up on that but it didn’t impact the overall narrative.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
0.5🌶️ (making out)

This was such a cute, heartwarming book! I loved that the whole reality dating production offered the perfect formula for a forced proximity romance. Mia and Noah create such an adorable dynamic. I love seeing their journey through dual POV.

While the characters are technically in college, to me they read younger than expected. This is true YA. Overall I enjoyed the writing, and am thankful to NetGalley for the ARC.

I wanted to love this book, however it felt very slow and drawn out at points. The idea of students hosting a dating game was unique and very cute, but I had a hard time "feeling" any chemistry between the main characters and that part felt a little forced. I might have liked this book when I was a teenager but overall, it isn't something I would reread.

Thank you NetGalley for the e-arc!

Pretty much perfection. So cute, I ate it UP. More cute scenes could be added, though

This is a cute YA romance that reimagines Pride and Prejudice with a K-drama-inspired reality dating show.
I thought this was a fun, quick read that covers identity, self discovery, and love. Noah and Mia had such cute chemistry, I love the plot of Noah participating as a contestant for her dream film school scholarship and all of the cute moments that lead to her navigating her feelings with him.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Collins for this ARC! I loved the premise of this book, but I did not love the execution. I understand that the timeframe was set up like a short reality show, since that is what happens in the book, but the writing felt a bit choppy and I think there were too many characters that did not feel totally flushed out. The main character was sweet and interesting and I liked the dual POV, but the fact that she had such strong opinions of Noah that were not totally addressed made it a bit uncomfortable for me to see her with him at the end. I think this book would appeal to more younger readers, like late teens who want a fun concept of college and a sweet insta-romance!

This book was SO cute!! I’m a Lyla Lee lover, her writing really does it for me. If you’re looking for a fun YA romance with lots of yearning, definitely check this one out.

I really loved the evolution of the original tv show concept to the eventual Cuffing Game. I wish there had been a bit more depth to the game itself but overall I enjoyed that aspect. The dramatics in The Cuffing Game reminded me a lot of other tv dating shows and I totally ate it up.

Seeing Mia and Noah’s personal growth throughout the story was nice as well and added some depth to their characters.

My partner is going to love this book as well, going to buy it once it’s officially out and make her read it!

Thank you to Netgalley, the author, and HarperCollins for the ARC!

I loved the idea of The Cuffing Game by Lyla Lee. However, this Pride and Prejudice spin off fell a bit flat for me. I anticipated the story line to be predictable even with the reality show dating show vibes. This book left me wanting more.

Reality tv dating show
YA
College students
Enemies to lovers

Very light and easy read!

Thank you NetGalley for the arc!

This was an adorable book.

For some weird reason I have read a pretty decent amount of Pride and Prejudice adaptations (but I've never read the original P&P, lol). I can therefore say this is one of the best adaptations/homages to P&P I've ever read.

Mia and Noah were wholesome opposing characters and I enjoyed their journey through Mia's student-run reality show dating game. I especially like the cast of supporting characters.

My only tiny complaint was that perhaps all the characters were too nice. Even the "bad" guy Kyle wasn't all that horrible. It might have made for a bit more tension in the boom. This critique is probably moot when you consider that the target age range for this book is younger than me.

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins for an advanced copy of this book.

The adorable cover drew me in and the premise -- K-drama meets modern Pride & Prejudice -- hooked me. It sounded cute and unique. Unfortunately, I had a few issues with it.

First, the characters read younger than they are. I'd buy it if it was just Mia (a freshman) but it doesn't really mesh with anyone else. All the actions and the dialogue sound a bit cringey and awkward. A lot of them lack depth, too. Mia's backstory relied heavily on Elizabeth's role in P&P. Noah admittedly has a more fully realized backstory but it still felt shallow. And as cute as the side characters are, they were stripped down to their stereotypes: the athlete, the makeup influencer, the bubbly gay boy, the lesbian. Damien and Kallie, two of Mia's only friends, hardly make an impression at all.

Second, the plot is overly dramatic. Maybe this is on me because I'm not a fan of reality TV but towards the end, it felt like major dramatic event after major dramatic event and they were all resolved a little too easily. They hardly had an impact on the characters or the narrative except to move things along.

Finally, the romances are all flat. I don't see how Mia and Noah got to where they ended up. Mia didn't have a crush on Noah, she thought he was hot. It was lust that drove her and sure, she gets to know him but it didn't feel like enough. I think this story might have been better told from a first person PoV. That way, we'd be able to see Mia and Noah's feelings grow and change instead of being told about them.

It's a quick, easy read if you're really interested in it. But it isn't my favorite.

<i>Many thanks to NetGalley, HarperCollins, and the author for providing a copy in exchange for an honest review.</i>

This was such a fun and quick read. The concepts were so amazing and the execution was even better! I was hooked from the begging and really loved the tropes.

Lyla Lee’s “The Cuffing Game” is a sparkling YA remix of lPride and Prejudice” set on a college campus with a reality dating show twist and a heroine who’s both fierce and vulnerable behind the camera lens. I believe this is definitely going to be a book teenagers will be begging for.

We have Mia, our fmc whose dream is to escape to film school. And then our mmc, Noah, who is the brooding bachelor she’d rather ignore. Naturally, fate (and her crush) have other plans to intertwine them together.

This book is filled with so much fun of the occasional K-drama flair, banter, secondhand embarrassment, that although embarrassing- will still make you laugh. However, underneath the chaos is a heartfelt story about ambition, identity, and the risks of being truly seen. Which I’m sure most college students, and teenagers will find themselves relating to.

A swoon retelling filled with cute moments, banter, angst, and the occasional life lessons one will find themselves wrapped in!