As someone who doesn’t read a ton of romance, I’m surprised by how much I enjoyed this! There was depth beyond the push/pull of Ari and Josh’s romantic development - I appreciated how we explored Ari’s avoidance, both characters feelings of inadequacy, and longing for something more. It did feel a little long in the last fourth, and I was frustrated with Ari in particular, but I realize her avoidance and back and forth is part of her character arc. Overall, appreciated that these characters were flawed and imperfect - this isn’t a fairytale romance and it was more interesting for it

if it's good enough for Olivia Rodrigo, it's good enough for me

Definitely need some time to sit with this one to fully figure out my thoughts, but overall this was an extremely thought provoking and worthwhile read. Less a critique of academia and more an exploration of the Asian American experience, internalized racism, and cultural appropriation. The heavy handed, cartoonish satire was both entertaining and effective at first, drawing you into the story and spotlighting the central themes (an overwhelmingly white East Asian Studies department, multiple white characters' shallow obsession with Asian culture, glaringly racist attacks). But, the established absurdism became a weakness as these topics were explored more in-depth (and with more seriousness) later in the book. Lots to unpack, definitely need to be in analytical mode while reading this one.