Book Review: The Comeback, by Lily Chu
A formulaic romance (but I repeat myself).
Sourcebooks, 2022, 395 pages
Who is Ariadne Hui?
• Laser-focused lawyer diligently climbing the corporate ladder
• The “perfect” daughter living out her father’s dream
• Shocking love interest of South Korea’s hottest star
Ariadne Hui thrives on routine. So what if everything in her life is planned down to the minute: That’s the way she likes it. If she’s going to make partner in Toronto’s most prestigious law firm, she needs to stay focused at all times.
But when she comes home after yet another soul-sucking day to find an unfamiliar, gorgeous man camped out in her living room, focus is the last thing on her mind. Especially when her roommate explains this is Choi Jihoon, her cousin freshly arrived from Seoul to mend a broken heart. He just needs a few weeks to rest and heal; Ari will barely even know he’s there. (Yeah, right.)
Jihoon is kindness and chaos personified, and it isn’t long before she’s falling, hard. But when one wrong step leads to a world-shaking truth, Ari finds herself thrust onto the world stage: not as the competent, steely lawyer she’s fought so hard to become, but as the mystery woman on the arm of a man the entire world claims to know. Now with her heart, her future, and her sense of self on the line, Ari will have to cut through all the pretty lies to find the truth of her relationship...and discover the Ariadne Hui she’s finally ready to be.
Lily Chu has a formula. A Chinese-Canadian career girl who's practically perfect yet unfulfilled and unromanced is improbably thrown into a relationship with a hot Asian celebrity. Drama and hijinks ensue. I listened to The Stand-In because it was an Audible freebie and found it fluffy and entertaining enough, but as formulaic as I'd expect from a romance novel. Then this one showed up again as an Audible freebie, and since I recognized the name, I figured why not? And yeah, The Comeback is pretty much the same story and the same characters with a few details changed.
This time, the protagonist is Ariadne Hui, a striving lawyer trying to make partner in her law firm despite the fact that they are all wypipo so of course everyone is racist. When a bright blonde Becky shows up as a new junior associate and gets handed important clients, Ariadne can't read the tea leaves and just thinks she has to try harder. Then her roommate's cousin shows up to "hide out" from a "rough breakup." He's gorgeous, sexy, funny, and charming, and if you noticed the K-pop references being dropped in the first couple of chapters, then you have already guessed the twist (which you probably already guessed if you have ever read a book or watched a romcom in your life).
So Jihoon is the lead singer of the number #1 K-pop boy band in the world. He and Ariadne fall for each other, but of course they have to deal with the brutal K-pop industry, obsessive parasocial fans, and the band's management company, which all throw the obligatory obstacles into their path, forcing Ariadne to return to Canada heartbroken. Her conservative law firm and her conservative parents are scandalized, but not to worry, Ariadne discovers her bliss, repairs her relationship with her flighty sister, she and her roommate both stand up to their Tiger Mom parents, and Ariadne gets the boy in the end. Also some digressions about feminism, anti-Asian racism, K-pop is totally a serious and valid art form, blah blah blah.
This has done nothing to change my opinion that romance novels are formulaic fill-in-the-blanks, but I can see the appeal if you want reader-insert protagonists with predictable HEAs.
Also by Lily Chu: My review of The Stand-In.
My complete list of book reviews.
Sourcebooks, 2022, 395 pages
Who is Ariadne Hui?
• Laser-focused lawyer diligently climbing the corporate ladder
• The “perfect” daughter living out her father’s dream
• Shocking love interest of South Korea’s hottest star
Ariadne Hui thrives on routine. So what if everything in her life is planned down to the minute: That’s the way she likes it. If she’s going to make partner in Toronto’s most prestigious law firm, she needs to stay focused at all times.
But when she comes home after yet another soul-sucking day to find an unfamiliar, gorgeous man camped out in her living room, focus is the last thing on her mind. Especially when her roommate explains this is Choi Jihoon, her cousin freshly arrived from Seoul to mend a broken heart. He just needs a few weeks to rest and heal; Ari will barely even know he’s there. (Yeah, right.)
Jihoon is kindness and chaos personified, and it isn’t long before she’s falling, hard. But when one wrong step leads to a world-shaking truth, Ari finds herself thrust onto the world stage: not as the competent, steely lawyer she’s fought so hard to become, but as the mystery woman on the arm of a man the entire world claims to know. Now with her heart, her future, and her sense of self on the line, Ari will have to cut through all the pretty lies to find the truth of her relationship...and discover the Ariadne Hui she’s finally ready to be.
Lily Chu has a formula. A Chinese-Canadian career girl who's practically perfect yet unfulfilled and unromanced is improbably thrown into a relationship with a hot Asian celebrity. Drama and hijinks ensue. I listened to The Stand-In because it was an Audible freebie and found it fluffy and entertaining enough, but as formulaic as I'd expect from a romance novel. Then this one showed up again as an Audible freebie, and since I recognized the name, I figured why not? And yeah, The Comeback is pretty much the same story and the same characters with a few details changed.
This time, the protagonist is Ariadne Hui, a striving lawyer trying to make partner in her law firm despite the fact that they are all wypipo so of course everyone is racist. When a bright blonde Becky shows up as a new junior associate and gets handed important clients, Ariadne can't read the tea leaves and just thinks she has to try harder. Then her roommate's cousin shows up to "hide out" from a "rough breakup." He's gorgeous, sexy, funny, and charming, and if you noticed the K-pop references being dropped in the first couple of chapters, then you have already guessed the twist (which you probably already guessed if you have ever read a book or watched a romcom in your life).
So Jihoon is the lead singer of the number #1 K-pop boy band in the world. He and Ariadne fall for each other, but of course they have to deal with the brutal K-pop industry, obsessive parasocial fans, and the band's management company, which all throw the obligatory obstacles into their path, forcing Ariadne to return to Canada heartbroken. Her conservative law firm and her conservative parents are scandalized, but not to worry, Ariadne discovers her bliss, repairs her relationship with her flighty sister, she and her roommate both stand up to their Tiger Mom parents, and Ariadne gets the boy in the end. Also some digressions about feminism, anti-Asian racism, K-pop is totally a serious and valid art form, blah blah blah.
This has done nothing to change my opinion that romance novels are formulaic fill-in-the-blanks, but I can see the appeal if you want reader-insert protagonists with predictable HEAs.
Also by Lily Chu: My review of The Stand-In.
My complete list of book reviews.