THE ROMANCE RIVALRY

“Late bloomer” Irene Park had an uneventful social life in high school, but things are different online.

With over a million followers for her @irene.loves.love.books social media channel, she’s a popular romance novel reviewer. She’s even eyeing an impressive, potentially life-changing brand sponsorship from a South Korean dating app, which might help her stand out in her family as more than just the “the awkward middle child.” At Brighton College in Southern California, Irene feels closer to her dream of becoming a book editor. But Aiden Jeon, or @aidentheguyreadsromance, who’s also Korean American, arrives on the online romance book scene and starts criticizing her reviews. She grudgingly admits that he has cute dimples, but his loyal and vocal followers make her question her own credibility as a romance expert, possibly threatening the dating app deal. Irene decides she needs to fall in love and experience real romance, using her favorite tropes to help her plan come to fruition. But she immediately hits some speed bumps, including the discovery that Aiden attends Brighton too—and that their literature professor has paired them as project partners for the semester. The leads’ banter is witty, charming, and amusing, and Irene’s fresh narration incorporates vocabulary from the online book reviewing lexicon. Lee adds to the fun by using popular romance tropes as chapter titles and interspersing excerpts from Irene’s and Aiden’s book reviews throughout.

Clever and delightful; a standout in the genre.