Frankly in Love by David Yoon
High school senior Frank Li is a Limbo–his term for Korean-American kids who find themselves caught between their parents’ traditional expectations and their own Southern California upbringing. His parents have one rule when it comes to romance–“Date Korean”–which proves complicated when Frank falls for Brit Means, who is smart, beautiful–and white. Fellow Limbo Joy Song is in a similar predicament, and so they make a pact: they’ll pretend to date each other in order to gain their freedom. Frank thinks it’s the perfect plan, but in the end, Frank and Joy’s fake-dating maneuver leaves him wondering if he ever really understood love–or himself–at all.
For a book that was supposed to be a rom-com with a little bit of drama and social commentary, this was, frankly, disappointing. (Especially after the beautiful book trailer!)
Parts of the book, like the immigrant family friends dynamic, were well fleshed out and wholesome. The idea of the Gatherings and Limbos is something that any second generation immigrant can relate to easily. The plot is also compelling, and light enough that it can be comedic while being tasteful.
David Yoon’s writing style is a little clunky, and it definitely feels like an adult narrating a teenager’s life through rose-colored glasses. Frank Li is a huge nerd, apparently, and his only friends are the fellow seniors in his Calculus BC class. (Honestly, I’m not a genius but I took Calc BC in junior year. And there were sophomores in my class.) He does, honestly, average on the SAT and still gets into an insanely hard school. David Yoon makes Frank’s life weirdly perfect, and it makes it difficult to relate to Frank. It really does feel like everything is handed to him on a silver platter, and it leaves this weird unsettling feeling in your stomach. Also, for an awkward nerd, it is unbelievable how many people fall in love with Frank throughout this book (maybe the author just needed more plot twists?????) Frank also has basically no personality, which just makes it even more awkward.
Still, these are all minor problems, and the book floats along to the halfway point with about four stars.
After that, though, things take a turn for the worse. The plot becomes muddled, and the book becomes preachy. Things stop making sense, and all the good parts of the book are taken out. The book sputters to an end. Rather than giving the reader a sense of closure, the last half of the book keeps on bringing up open-ended problems that have literally nothing to do with the main plot of the book.
Honestly, I’d recommend this book. But there is a point in this book (you’ll know when you’ve hit it) that seems like the end of the story. Just stop reading there; there’s nothing worthwhile left.
For a book that was supposed to be a rom-com with a little bit of drama and social commentary, this was, frankly, disappointing. (Especially after the beautiful book trailer!)
Parts of the book, like the immigrant family friends dynamic, were well fleshed out and wholesome. The idea of the Gatherings and Limbos is something that any second generation immigrant can relate to easily. The plot is also compelling, and light enough that it can be comedic while being tasteful.
David Yoon’s writing style is a little clunky, and it definitely feels like an adult narrating a teenager’s life through rose-colored glasses. Frank Li is a huge nerd, apparently, and his only friends are the fellow seniors in his Calculus BC class. (Honestly, I’m not a genius but I took Calc BC in junior year. And there were sophomores in my class.) He does, honestly, average on the SAT and still gets into an insanely hard school. David Yoon makes Frank’s life weirdly perfect, and it makes it difficult to relate to Frank. It really does feel like everything is handed to him on a silver platter, and it leaves this weird unsettling feeling in your stomach. Also, for an awkward nerd, it is unbelievable how many people fall in love with Frank throughout this book (maybe the author just needed more plot twists?????) Frank also has basically no personality, which just makes it even more awkward.
Still, these are all minor problems, and the book floats along to the halfway point with about four stars.
After that, though, things take a turn for the worse. The plot becomes muddled, and the book becomes preachy. Things stop making sense, and all the good parts of the book are taken out. The book sputters to an end. Rather than giving the reader a sense of closure, the last half of the book keeps on bringing up open-ended problems that have literally nothing to do with the main plot of the book.
Honestly, I’d recommend this book. But there is a point in this book (you’ll know when you’ve hit it) that seems like the end of the story. Just stop reading there; there’s nothing worthwhile left.
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