Review by Booklist Review
Mia Yoon and Noah Jang's only relationship is butting heads in film class. Although Noah is a senior and Mia's a freshman in college, they both wind up in the same intro class and clearly do not get along. What Noah doesn't know, though, is that Mia has a crush on him. When Mia's student TV production transforms by necessity into a reality dating show in which crushers and crushees spend five days of winter break in a lodge together, Mia is sure she can keep her feelings for Noah--also her roommate's crush--out of the spotlight. But just like the best reality TV, things immediately go off the rails. Mia and Noah are thrown together and forced into close proximity, heightening Mia's feelings for Noah and unearthing Noah's crush on Mia. Though told in dual POV, the reasons for Mia's crush on Noah are less clear than his feelings for her. Brimming with cozy winter vibes and a fun, eclectic cast of side characters, Lee's latest is comforting and warm.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
K-drama-worthy conflict unfolds on- and off-screen throughout this theatrical rom-com in which two Korean American college students produce a student-run reality TV dating show. Everything in meticulous Marlon University freshman Mia Yoon's life has gone to plan, including leaving her small Texas hometown to attend film school in Los Angeles, scheduling her classes for the next four years, and creating a campus-based dating show called The Cuffing Game. When lack of interest jeopardizes the program, however, she enlists popular senior Noah Jang--the campus's "most eligible student bachelor" and Mia's crush--as a contestant to elevate the show's appeal. As The Cuffing Game's matchmaking antics start heating up and Noah's love life is broadcast for all to see, showrunner Mia--watching from behind the camera--becomes increasingly unsettled. Her growing rapport with, and deepening feelings for, Noah could upend everything she's worked so hard to attain. Good-natured humor and easygoing prose by Lee (Flip the Script) make for a lighthearted, behind-the-scenes-feeling look at a Love Island--esque production. Nuanced subplots surrounding other Cuffing Game participants and queer relationships are this tidy novel's biggest strengths. Ages 14--up. Agent: Penny Moore, Aevitas Creative Management. (Nov.)
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Review by Kirkus Book Review
Pride and Prejudice meets reality television--but make it college and sprinkle it with the sweetness and fluff of quirky K-dramas. Mia Yoon, a Korean American girl from Texas, arrives at film school in Los Angeles with an ambitious four-year plan--one that doesn't include meeting her longtime crush, Noah Jang, a Korean boy she follows on social media. He's the campus's most eligible (and emotionally unavailable) heartthrob, and he loves challenging her in class. Rather than engaging with her feelings, Mia channels them into planningCampus Crush, a documentary that will follow students who are grappling with unrequited love. When the project faces cancellation due to lack of interest, however, she desperately pivots, changing the concept to one that Noah proposes.The Cuffing Game will be a reality dating show starring Noah himself; he's hoping for a real connection beyond his curated online persona. Paired with Mia's roommate, Celine Huang, he navigates the show's scripted chaos while wrestling with his attraction for the one person who's off-limits: the host herself. Set in a snowy lodge and told in the leads' alternating points of view interspersed with behind-the-scenes interviews, this rom-com explores how vulnerability and the pressure to perform shape modern relationships. Mia's perfectionism and Noah's emotional guardedness create compelling romantic tension, while their intellectual sparring adds depth to their chemistry. Mia's queerness adds to the book's thoughtful diverse representation. A clever, contemporary romance that explores authenticity in an age of endless scrutiny.(Romance. 14-18) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
