Member Review

Julia Song is the CEO of her own company, a cosmetics company that's growing exponentially. But her failure at finding a husband seems to be the only thing her family notices. When she accepts to go on 3 arranged dates, her panic at their imminent failure has her asking her cute neighbor Tae to be her dating coach. Tae Kim feels like a failure because he's unemployed and living in his parents' basement while he cares for his ill father. He doesn't consider all the help and little jobs he does for the Korean community around town a real job, which in a culture obsessed with success and earning potential, leaves him depressed and frozen when asked about the future. The only thing he knows for sure is that the girl he's had a crush on since he was a kid wants his help, and the way to do that is by showing her how great she can be at dating.

If you only look at the basic plot, it's a tried-and-true fake dating turns to feelings romance, which is honestly good enough. What you get once you dig deep is a story about 2 people facing familiar and societal expectations and doing their best to meet them. There are so many great points made in just over 300 pages that you don't even notice all the hits until you stop to think about it.

I loved how Julia knows what she wants and she's not going to accept less than just because some people can't believe she's almost 30 and single. She built her company and is excelling at that, she shouldn't feel pressured to make herself less just becuase most guys can't stand being top dogs even in relationships. And the fact that the one who's struggling with finding his way and battling depression is the male lead, and that Tae is so sweet to everyone, is a perfect change of pace that really made the book a standout read for me.

There's also a lot in it about American-Korean culture that I'm not at all familiar with, but Lee does a great job at making it a part of the story without it being necessary to understand it all. The tight-knit community and everyone being in each other's business, mostly out of a desire to help, is universal.

Overall, it's one of the best contemporary romances I've read all year.

Delighted thanks to NetGalley and Canary Street Press for the wonderful read!