Review - - Give Me a Reason

Give Me a Reason: A Novel

by Jayci Lee

Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin

Release Date: July 29, 2025

Reviewed by PJ

In this modern retelling of Jane Austen's PERSUASION, a K-drama actress gets her second chance at love with the man she left to save her family, if only she can work up the courage to risk her heart on forever…one last time.

For ten years, Anne Lee told herself that Frederick Nam was her past. To save her father from bankruptcy, she dropped out of UC San Diego to pursue an acting career in Korea. Anne had to stop Frederick from following her and ruining his future. Breaking up with him was the best way she could love him.

After Anne left him, Frederick spent years loving her, missing her, and hating her until he decided to live his life for himself. He followed his dream and became a firefighter in Culver City. He didn’t need romance. He had his work and his friends.

When she returns to Los Angeles, Anne and Frederick find themselves in the same wedding—she as her cousin’s bridesmaid and he as his friend’s groomsman. Even though he is cold and distant with her, Anne can no longer deny that she never got over him. Not even close. As for Frederick, needing to take care of Anne is a habit he can't seem to kick, but that doesn't mean he has to forgive her.

PJ's Thoughts:

I love a second-chance romance. Give me that trope with a Korean-American cast of characters, dysfunctional family, firehouse chosen family, and a K-drama actress/Fire Captain main couple all wrapped up in a story by Jayci Lee that's a modern retelling of Jane Austen's Persuasion? I couldn't wait to dive in!

I've enjoyed every book I've read by Jayci Lee and this one was no exception. I love how she immersed me into this Korean-American extended family and their culture. My heart ached for Anne and the way she was treated by her father and sister, not only in the present but also in the past when she sacrificed her happiness for those who would never have done the same for her. I appreciated the time Lee took to show the inner workings of Anne's family and the impacts - both intended and unintended - their actions caused. 

Giving readers a dual POV gave me insight into Frederick that I might not have had if this story had only unfolded within Anne's frame of reference. I could feel the pain he suffered in the past and how that had shaped him and his relationships in the present. There were times when I wanted both Frederick and Anne to get out of their heads and talk to one another but I also think watching them work through their issues internally helped me understand them better and be more appreciative of their relationship when they finally open their hearts again. 

Lee does a good job of blending emotion, humor, and slow-burn romance in this book. I enjoyed the friendships depicted, especially Frederick's friends and how staunchly they protected and supported him. I also appreciated the love and support among Anne, her younger sister, and her cousins as she reestablished herself within the family unit after her return from Korea. Certain events added elements of awkwardness, humor, and angst to the journey which, for me, gave it more of an authentic feel. I'm glad Anne cleared the air with one family member but would have liked to have seen her do the same with another as well. Still, I felt like she found her strength and would not be walked over again. 

If you enjoy Austen retellings or just enjoy a good, second-chance, contemporary romance with intriguing characters, family dynamics, and Korean-American representation, add Give Me a Reason by Jayci Lee to your reading list. 

Review - - Booked on a Feeling

Booked on a Feeling

by Jayci Lee

Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin

Release Date: July 26, 2022

Reviewed by PJ

 

Lizzy "Overachiever" Chung, Esq. has her life mapped out neatly:
* Become a lawyer. Check.
* Join a prestigious law firm. Check.
* Make partner. In progress.

If all goes to plan, she will check off that last box in a couple years, make her parents proud, and live a successful, fulfilled life in L.A. What was not in her plans was passing out from a panic attack during a pivotal moment in her career. A few deep breaths and a four hour drive later, Lizzy is in Weldon for three weeks to shed the burnout and figure out what went wrong. And what better place to recharge than the small California town where she spent her childhood summers with her best friend, Jack Park.

Jack Park didn't expect to see Lizzy back in Weldon, but now he's got three weeks to spend with the girl of his dreams. Except she doesn't know of his decades-long crush on her--and he intends to keep it that way. She's a high-powered attorney who lives in L.A. and he's a bookkeeper at his family's brewery who never left his hometown. He can't risk their friendship on a long shot. Can he? When Lizzy decides that the local bookstore needs a little revamp, of course, Jack is going to help her bring it back to life. But the more time they spend together, the harder it becomes to ignore there might be more than just friendship among the dusty shelves and books...

Sometimes the path to the rest of your life has been in front of you all along.

PJ's Thoughts:

What a fun, feel-good story! This one had me grinning pretty much the entire way. I just loved these two so much! The way Jack looks at Lizzy, the way he thinks her quirks are so adorable, the way he is always there for her, the way he understands and appreciates her love of books... Is it any wonder I fell for him as hard as Lizzy does?

Friends-to-Lovers is one of my favorite romance tropes and one this author does very well. Jack and Lizzy have been best friends for twenty years, since the age of ten. It's evident in the comfort level they share, the freedom to tease and joke around, their rock-solid support and belief in one another, the deep affection, and the openness and honesty that is the foundation of their relationship. Well, except for that one little thing: the fact that Jack Park has been in love with Lizzy Chung for almost his entire life. 

Lee guides Jack and Lizzy through this journey with almost flawless execution. Their unexpected, gradual transition from friends to lovers occurs alongside their individual journeys of personal growth in a way that feels real and authentic. Each of them is at a professional crossroads, with looming decisions that will impact family expectations as well as personal relationships. Lee allows the gravity of those decisions to play out with necessary emotional introspection, giving it the gravity it deserves while also balancing it with the lightness, humor, and sweetness of the ever-deepening dynamic between Lizzy and Jack. 

As with her previous books, Lee also immerses the reader in the Korean-American culture of her main characters. I enjoy the inside view of these families; their traditions, expectations, food (yes, I drooled), and differences. The dichotomy between Jack's parents and Lizzy's is quite striking. 

I also appreciate the approach the author takes with Lizzy's anxiety and Jack's feelings of unworthiness, issues so many people deal with. It makes these characters even more relatable and it makes their growth, as evidenced by their eventual life-changing decisions, and ultimate HEA, even more satisfying. 

I'm already excited to discover what Jayci Lee has in store for readers next. In the meantime, I enthusiastically recommend adding Booked on a Feeling to your summer reading list.   

Review - - Seoulmates

Seoulmates

by Jen Frederick

Publisher: Berkley

Release Date: January 25, 2022

Reviewed by Hellie

 

 

When Hara Wilson lands in Seoul to find her birth mother, she doesn’t plan on falling in love with the first man she lays eyes on, but Choi Yujun is irresistible. If his broad shoulders and dimples weren’t enough, Choi Yujun is the most genuine, decent, gorgeous guy to exist. Too bad he’s also her stepbrother. 

Fate brought her to the Choi doorstep but the gift of family comes with burdens. A job in her mother’s company has perks of endless company dinners and super resentful coworkers. A new country means learning a new language which twenty-five year old Hara is finding to be a Herculean task. A forbidden love means having to choose between her birth family or Choi Yujun. 

All Hara wanted was to find a place to belong in this world—but in order to have it all, she’ll have to risk it all.

 

Hellie’s Heeds 

This is the second book of Jen Frederick’s Seoul series; and while I believe technically you could read one without the other, I believe that reading the first one will give the reader a deeper understanding of the core conflict keeping the hero and heroine apart. In the first book, which I felt was a love letter to South Korea and adopted kids everywhere, Hara is this Everywoman character you root for to get her happy ending. While in one way she does get her HEA, the romantic element, perhaps the element many of us look for in a HEA more, does not get a HEA–and even getting a happy for now ending was a bit challenging. But there was so much to unpack with her story. She was an adopted kid from South Korea whose adoptive parents are from Iowa, where she grew up as the only Korean kid for miles. While she is totally loved by her adoptive mother, Ellen, her adoptive father ends up divorcing her mom and has a “real” (read: white) child with his new wife. Hara decides to go to Korea to find and meet her biological parents, much to the distress of her mom. When Hara arrives in Seoul to meet her biological father, she learns he died two days before and ends up attending his funeral instead, etc, etc.  

This book picks up six weeks after the last book ends, where Hara has reunited with her birth mother and is given an opportunity to live in Seoul, learn more about her birth country and culture, and maybe fit in for the first time with people who look like her. Only as one always learns when she thinks life will be easier if she just lived somewhere else, she realizes, nope, she is still the Outsider. On top of it, the boy she met who made her experience of Seoul and finding her birth parents bearable is her “stepbrother” which in the Korean culture is the same as if they were true siblings, meaning any romantic relationship they may have wanted would be cultural incest and social suicide if they keep pursuing it. And they want to be together.  

I have to hand it to the author: there was conflict galore in this book. I was so happy to have a second book that would perhaps resolve the issue of the romantic couple, but this book put the heroine (and the reader) through the wringer as one wondered if Hara would ever get a happy ending, if she would ever get to be with her true love without losing her mother again or tearing apart a family. There was also the conflict of Hara trying to find her place in society and a job/career she truly enjoyed. The book starts with her working for her mother–so she is known as the nepotism hire and all the co-workers treat her poorly because she didn’t earn her position. And there was also the conflict that Hara does love her adoptive mother and does also miss aspects of her adoptive home, Iowa, which she doesn’t imagine ever feeling. So the ending where Hara resolves her romantic issues as well as her career issues also resolves her homesickness for Iowa and the things she actually enjoyed there. It was also like a love letter written back to Iowa a bit.  

The story runs the gamut of emotions, but feels authentic and immersive to Korean culture and the people who live there. If books are a way to travel to places you only dream about, I think these two books do a bang up job as a travel guide for places you should go. And I want to go. Mostly for the food described in the book–but I’m a very food oriented person. The setting and description of places is also very well done. And the love scenes are very sexy and sensual without feeling too graphic, just the right touch to connect with the characters and their romantic arc.  

Highly recommend.