Author: Sujin Witherspoon
Publisher: Union Sq & Co
360 pages
FTC FYI: I received a paperback ARC and a NetGalley link from the publisher. All views are my own.
This outrageously charming and infuriatingly adorable enemies-to-lovers coffee shop romance is perfect for fans of YA books by Jenny Han and Better Than the Movies.
Meet River Langston-Lee. In the past 24 hours, he’s dumped his girlfriend, walked out of his SATs, and quit his job at his parents’ cafe in spectacularly disastrous fashion—even for him.
Somehow, he manages to talk his way into a gig at a failing Korean cafe, Bingsu for Two, which is his lucky break until he meets short, grumpy, and goth: Sarang Cho. She’s his new no-BS co-worker who’s as determined to make River’s life hell as she is to save her family’s cafe.
After River accidentally uploads a video of his chaotic co-workers to his popular fandom account, they strike viral fame. The kicker? Their new fans ship River and Sarang big-time. In order to keep the Internet’s attention—and the cafe’s new paying customers—River and Sarang must pretend that the tension between them is definitely of the romantic variety, not the considering the best way to kill you and hide your body variety.
But when Bingsu for Two’s newfound success catches the attention of River’s ex and his parents’ cafe around the corner, he faces a choice: keep letting others control his life or stand up for the place that’s become home. And a green-haired girl who’s not as heartless as he originally thought . . .
MY REVIEW
Meet River Langston-Lee. In the past 24 hours, he’s dumped his girlfriend, walked out of his SATs, and quit his job at his parents’ cafe in spectacularly disastrous fashion—even for him.
Somehow, he manages to talk his way into a gig at a failing Korean cafe, Bingsu for Two, which is his lucky break until he meets short, grumpy, and goth: Sarang Cho. She’s his new no-BS co-worker who’s as determined to make River’s life hell as she is to save her family’s cafe.
After River accidentally uploads a video of his chaotic co-workers to his popular fandom account, they strike viral fame. The kicker? Their new fans ship River and Sarang big-time. In order to keep the Internet’s attention—and the cafe’s new paying customers—River and Sarang must pretend that the tension between them is definitely of the romantic variety, not the considering the best way to kill you and hide your body variety.
But when Bingsu for Two’s newfound success catches the attention of River’s ex and his parents’ cafe around the corner, he faces a choice: keep letting others control his life or stand up for the place that’s become home. And a green-haired girl who’s not as heartless as he originally thought . . .
MY REVIEW
Since I am a confessed lover of all things Korean, I jumped at the chance to review this. Bingsu is one of my favorite desserts from my favorite Korean BBQ place Yummy’s! (The mango is the best!)
The book begins with River having an extremely bad day that gets worse and worse. He has his “life planned out” and I love that he decided he’d had enough and wanted to go his own way. River’s journey was my favorite! There are so many tropes I adore in this book. Enemies/rivals to lovers is a big one and workplace fake dating.
Sarang (사랑, yes I did those characters myself!) and River have some great banter. I highlighted line after line. Mix in some really funny moments and you’ve got a great YA romcom. (And I love the shoutout to BTS, Felix and some other Kpop groups.) The chapter headings were fun too.
I appreciate the Korean throughout the book. (I am learning, so this was fun for me.) It’s a book full of quirky, enduring characters, and I enjoyed the one POV of River. I enjoyed the way the videos are written into the book and how they brought them together as a group. River is flawed and has a lot he’s taking on. I felt the ending fit the story well.
I received a NetGalley link and a paperback from the publisher. All views are my own. (There is a lot of language I didn’t think was necessary.)
4 out of 5 stars.
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https://tbrandbeyondtours.com/2024/12/12/tour-schedule-bingsu-for-two-by-sujin-witherspoon/
Sujin Witherspoon is a Korean-American author, artist, and lover of words she can’t pronounce. She gravitates towards stories that will either plague her nightmares or make her stomach hurt from laughter–no in between. Having earned her degree in English from the University of Washington, she spends her time writing, thinking about writing, or exploring Seattle. You can find her online at sujinwitherspoon.com
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