Hangry Hearts

by Jennifer Chen

Love, family, and food collide in this sparkling Romeo and Juliet-inspired romance.

Julie Wu and Randall Hur used to be best friends. Now they only see each other on Saturdays at the Pasadena Farmers Market where their once close families are long-standing rivals.

When Julie and Randall are paired with ultra-rich London Kim for a community-service school project, they are forced to work together for the first time in years. It quickly becomes obvious that London has a major crush on Julie. But Julie can’t stop thinking about Randall. And Randall can’t stop thinking about how London is thinking about Julie. Soon, prompted by a little jealousy and years of missing each other, school project meetings turn into pseudo dates at their favorite Taiwanese breakfast shop and then secret kisses at the beach—far from the watchful eyes of their families.

Just as they’re finally feeling brave enough to tell their grandmas, the two matriarchs rehash their old fight and Julie and Randall get caught in the middle and Julie’s brother finds out they are dating. Their families are heartbroken.

But it’s the Year of the Dragon, an auspicious time to resolve disagreements and start anew, and Randall isn’t going down without fighting for what—and who—they love. Could the Lunar New Year provide not only a second chance for Randall and Julie, but for their families as well?

Jennifer Chen’s Hangry Hearts is a funny, big-hearted romance about friendship, family, and first love—and being brave enough to have it all.

Genres: Romance, Young Adult, Contemporary, Fiction, LGBT, Contemporary Romance, Retellings

320 pages, Hardcover

First published March 18, 2025

About the author

Jennifer Chen is a freelance journalist who has written for print and online, including pieces in the New York Times, O: The Oprah Magazine, Real Simple, and Bust. She earned an MFA and BFA in dramatic writing from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts, and is a proud alumnae of Hedgebrook, a women’s writing residency. She lives in Los Angeles with her TV writer husband, twins, two pugs, and a smoky black cat named Gremlin.

Reviews

[Christy · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 stars

I was excited to read this YA 'Romeo & Juliet' inspired romance. When I started 'Hangry Hearts' I thought it had so much promise. Then after a while the pacing felt off and I started to skim. Unfortunately it just didn't hold my attention like I'd hoped.

[Kasia · Rating 2 out of 5]

**ARC of this book provided by publisher in exchange for an honest review**

After fabulous Invitation to a Banquet: The Story of Chinese Food I wanted to stay in the realm of Asian food a bit longer and fortunately I got an ARC of this book so I jumped right in. As a warning I will just mention that this is a YA story and I am aggressively middle aged so take my review with a grain of salt.

The plot. It was pretty underwhelming. Main plotline from the blurb (community service school project) is done within first 100 pages. It's resolved without any conclusion and never to be mentioned again. It is also very difficult to get into because of the weird time jumps - you end one chapter and the next will follow the story couple weeks later even when it makes sense to continue with descriptions of what happened the next day, how the characters reacted to what just happened. I hoped we will get to observe how the love between Julie and Randall develops but because of the time jumps it happens kind of off screen which for a romance book is pretty disappointing. There is even one point in the book when Randall asks Julie for a month of break because he needs to process what is happening and the next chapter picks up the story after one month. You get couple sentences about how they were missing each other but that's it.

The food. I hoped we will get great descriptions of Taiwanese and Korean delicacies since both families are food vendors but main focus was on mandu and fan tuan with couple dishes mentioned briefly here and there. With the progression of the book the descriptions of food started shifting towards the growing produce aspect of it and I did not enjoy it all that much.

Pet-peeves galore:
- There are multiple instances in this book where certain information is given immediately before it gets relevant;
- The family feud is resolved in a deux ex machina scenario and not because of actions of protagonists;
- The drama would be cut in half if author remembered that the lovebirds can text each other anytime they want;
- Julie punches someone in the face because after one self-defense class her "instincts are kicking in";
- The story feels like random scenes were taken from different versions of this book and haphazardly thrown together so there are moments when something feels important but in the end have no impact and is not mentioned again;
- The story goes on for longer than it needs to;

Despite all the problems its a fast read and the representation is pretty good. Author has this light writing style that feels effortless and makes this book easy to digest. But it lacks severely in the storytelling and chemistry departments hence 2 stars.

[Mai H. · Rating 2 out of 5]

API Heritage Month 2025 #3

✨ LA Times Festival of Books 2025 ✨

/ What a Girl Wants: Romance in Young Adult Fiction
/ Sunday, April 27, 2025
/ 12:30 PM
/ Taper Hall 101

I had such high hopes for this one. This was the first year I didn't go to all of The Ripped Bodice's panels, but I went to this one to support Trin. Jennifer had a lot of positive things to say about her book. I was intrigued by ROMEO AND JULIET meets food, but no death. I've sat on this ARC for some time now. I went in blind, so I wasn't aware the love interest is trans.

I'm all for LGBTQ+ rep. I'm more for it if the author is part of the marginalized group. Jennifer, admittedly, isn't, and thanked her sensitivity reader profusely. While I agree this is the right thing to do, rather than not have one at all, I, myself, find it interesting when authors write outside of their known. I won't shelve this with AMERICAN DIRT or THE ISLAND OF SEA WOMEN (Lisa See, while 1/8 Chinese, is not Korean), but I do want to state facts.

None of this is the reason for the middling rating. I won't pinpoint the YA, since there is YA I've enjoyed lately, especially YA centered around Asian American families. I get the parental drama and lack of acceptance. It's the white YA that's hard to swallow. Yelling at your parents? Not having to sneak out? Having a boyfriend? What are these so-called "problems" you have?

Julie and Randall's families each have food stalls at a Pasadena Farmers Market. The grandmothers used to be best friends. Now they're enemies. Ooh. Except it's not ooh. It's a little boring. And while food descriptions usually suck me in, I found not even that could hold my interest.

So Julie and Randall do the former friend thing. Then they realize they're in love with each other, which, fine. But for two 626 kids to sneak around in the 310 to date is the most absurd thing to ever absurd. I'm one of those hos that never willingly leaves the westside, so I know what I'm talking about. As someone that is nearly always in Santa Monica, I can count on one hand the number of times I've been to Pasadena. One of them was for my best friend's wedding. And scene.

rep: Korean American, Taiwanese American, trans

📱 Thank you to NetGalley and Wednesday Books

[haddy · Rating 3 out of 5]

i'm a simple girl - i see a book with a leni kauffman cover, it goes on my tbr

[Kristen's Bookshelf · Rating 2 out of 5]

The cover sucked me in but the story did me dirty.
I am a former chef so any book that deals food I am all in on and want to read. The food descriptions were fantastic. I could taste the shrimp shu mai and fan tuan.
I loved the asian culture and LGTBQ+ rep the author wove thru the story. Learning about some of the asian traditions was great!
I am not a stranger to YA books. Maybe I get lucky and find ones that border YA/NA, but this book I think was a true YA story (leaning more toward the lower age range) and so it just didn't do it for me. It was very Romeo and Juliet on a lower high school level.
The author does have a nice light good pace to her writing so it made for a very quick read.

[Mia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hanhry Hearts is a fun-loving book. The characters and romance had an easy emotional arc even though it felt somewhat formulaic.

ARC kindly provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Nursebookie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was the cutest surprise! 💕

Hangry Hearts is everything I love in a YA rom-com: friends-to-enemies-to-lovers, delicious food, Lunar New Year vibes, and a whole lot of heart.

Julie and Randall used to be best friends, until a falling out between their families turned them into rivals at their local night market. But when they’re paired up for a school project and start spending time together again, sparks fly (and so do dumplings 🍜). Their banter is adorable, their chemistry is SO sweet, and I was rooting for them from the first page.

What makes this story extra special is Randall’s journey as a trans teen. His relationship with his halmeoni, and Julie’s bond with her ahma, added so much depth. The way Jennifer Chen weaves culture, identity, family, and first love into the story is so beautifully done, and it had me smiling one moment and tearing up the next.

Also… don’t read this book hungry. The food descriptions are mouthwatering. 😍

Hangry Hearts is perfect for fans of Gloria Chao, Emma Lord, or anyone who loves a soft, funny, culturally rich love story with major heart. Highly recommend!

[Hillary · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.7
If I disregard the fact that every character in this book had the emotional range of a bao bun, I still have to warn you that the writing has some deeply cringe moments. For example, a third grader is introduced to the reader (from the perspective of a teenage boy) as "a fat red head." Like, wha?

[Sherwood Smith]

There was a lot to like in this "Romeo and Juliet" (ad language for the book) for young adults. Specifically the food descriptions, with dim sun and Korean street food lovingly and deliciously described. I loved the sense of filial piety from traditional custom up against LA's laid-back cultural chaos.

I also liked the idea of many of the characters, and some of the dialogue was fun. But it took me a long time to read the book. Partly that was due to the grammar errors, which I hope were ironed out in the final version, but mostly because the author seemed to be trying to reinvent the omniscient narrator, the result being oddly jerky segments split between POVs, which, interspersed with text messages, could get confusing. The pacing thus seemed off, and the narrative voice would frequently undercut the dialogue by telling crucial bits before we saw the action.

Finally there was a formulaic feel, largely because The Big Incident that caused the families to feud was referred to without being told up front. I found myself impatiently reading for the "why" of all the drama.

So it was a bit of a mixed bag, but with lots of potential. Especially the food! Looking forward to more by this author.

[Christine Reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was such a cute YA Romeo and Juliet retelling! We follow rival Asian families who work across from each other at the market. Julie and Randall used to be friends before the family feud and now are forced to work on a school project together. They get closer but can't go too close for fear of their families wrath. Oh and Randall is trans which makes this even better with how well written it's was! I loved this novel and it's was super cute and yummy with all the food descriptions throughout.

[Lochi's Library · Rating 2 out of 5]

If you came here cause of a Leni Kauffman cover that’s great (I love an artist moment) but Hangry Hearts is a bumpy novel that fizzles very quickly.

While this book markets itself as a Romeo & Juliet retelling there’s so much more to this book because Julie and Randall's story had so much potential.

If this story was pushed to provide more room for growth, maturity, meaningful dialogue, exposition, and took more time with broader social and cultural themes? It would connect with so many readers that deserve to feel heard and seen in YA. Sadly, I was in shock at times by how elements in this book were handled with such a lack of care.

Thanks to St. Martin’s Press, Wednesday Books and NetGalley for the ARC.

[Aliyah Potts]

dnf @ 32%

This book sounded very promising, I can get down with a YA book, especially with LGBTQ+ rep, but it seems as though the pacing is confusing. There was also a scene where our main character spoke with her mother while asking about her father, and her mother said “when i got pregnant with you, he wasn’t ready for kids” but she has an older brother? There were multiple inconsistencies within the story. I also didn’t enjoy the changing of the POV’s multiple times within the same chapter, it would’ve been better in my opinion to have all of one persons POV, then the next chapter switch to the other characters. Switching mid-chapter really took me out of the story.

[suonnahbooks · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hangry hearts
-omg I love their bickering and banter gobbling it up you can sense that tension from the beginning yummm
-I love a good forced proximity
-I loved being able to learn more about Julie, Randall ,their families and their culture
-all the food talk made my hungry lol
-it’s giving very much modern Romeo and Juliet we can’t be together but want too so badly yesss
-this book was ADORABLE
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

[🍂 emma 🍂]

dnf at 22%

due to my religious beliefs, i decided not to finish this book when it was revealed that the mmc was trans. i wish that i had known about the contents of this book before even requesting it, but the blurb failed to mention that this was an lgbt novel.
i appreciated the clever writing and fast pace of the story, but ultimately felt uncomfortable continuing it.

thank you netgalley for allowing me an advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

[Jaimes_Mystical_Library · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a cute young adult romance. I liked the overall storyline of this book and how it was a Romeo and Juliet retelling, especially since I haven’t read many. I appreciated the dual povs between Julie and Randall as I followed them throughout the story. The pacing of this book felt a bit rushed at times but overall this was a good read. Heads up that this book had a lot of food references and descriptions that will leave you hungry.

Read this if you like:

📖 Romeo and Juliet
📖 Rivals to lovers
📖 Ex-best friends
📖 Forced proximity
📖 Lgbt reps

Thank you to @wednesdaybooks for the gifted arc.

[Mireya casuallyreadingx · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5⭐
YA Romance

Thank you Wednesday Books for the #gifted copy! 💙

Read if you like:
🥡Romeo and Juliet inspired
🥡LGTBQIA+
🥡Found Family
🥡Drama

Hmm. I thought this had cute parts!😊 I liked the food descriptions, although I wish we had more of that. The Taiwanese and Korean food aspects were such an important part of this book and for the main characters, yet it left more to be desired. It did make me hungry! This cover is also sooo cute!

So, what did not work? The plot was pretty dull and underwhelming. It was repetitive, with no details, and just left me skimming about halfway through. The pacing also did not match the storyline. One second, we were in the past, the next it was a different day, then people were not talking, etc.😓 Just a vague, jumbled mess. But what felt like was missing the most was HOW the main characters fell in love? I wanted to see that story unfold.🤷🏻 Unfortunately, this one missed the mark for me. I think more of a YA reader would enjoy this or beginning contemporary romance readers.

EN ESPANOL: Hmm. ¡Pensé que tenía partes adorables!😊Me gustaron las descripciones de la comida, aunque desearía que tuviéramos más de eso. Los aspectos de la comida taiwanesa y coreana eran una parte importante de este libro y para los personajes principales. ¡Me dio hambre! ¡Esta portada también es tan linda! Entonces, ¿qué no funcionó? La trama era bastante aburrida y decepcionante. Era repetitiva, sin detalles, y simplemente me dejó hojeando a mitad de camino. El ritmo tampoco coincidía con la historia. Un segundo estábamos en el pasado, al siguiente era un día diferente, luego la gente no hablaba, etc. Solo un lío vago y confuso. Pero lo que sentí que faltaba más era 😓 ¿CÓMO se enamoraron los personajes principales? Quería ver esa historia desarrollarse. 🤷🏻 Desafortunadamente, este me pareció que no cumplió con las expectativas. Creo que más un lector de YA disfrutaría esto o los lectores que comienzan en romances contemporáneos.

[Mandi · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75 ⭐️

This was a cute YA romance book.
I loved the diverse representation and I think it’s the perfect read for teens.

I loved how food focused it was.

Thanks NetGalley for the ARC.

[Jen · Rating 1 out of 5]

Nodnf @ 35%

I was so excited to read this rival food stall families mcs(Korean mmc × Taiwanese fmc) book with friends to enemies to lovers kind of trope, was totally thinking that there was going to be lots of talk about Asian food(street food, Taiwanese and Korean specially) but the writing style is all over the place and just... omg I don't have words to explain... hardly 5 chapters in and I read this...

"Randall, look at how they've grown," cries out Laura, a fat red-haired girl.

mind you this is a teen kid's perspective about a kid who's in third grade... Some things that other characters say don't make any sense at all, the time skips are weird, and who in their sane mind would put multiple POVs in the same chapter...

I just want to read without frowning every two pages.... I totally don't recommend this

[Karissa ₊˚⊹ ᰔ · Rating 2 out of 5]

Hangry Hearts by Jennifer Chen
⭐️ 2.5 stars

Tropes & Themes:
🔹 Childhood friends to enemies to lovers
🔹 Romeo & Juliet family feud
🔹 Love triangle (kinda)
🔹 Cultural identity & family expectations
🔹 Food as love language 🍜🥟

⸻

This book was super cute in theory, but in practice… it didn’t fully land for me 😕Hangry Hearts follows Julie and Randall, former childhood besties turned lowkey rivals thanks to a big family feud. When they’re forced to work on a community service project together, obviously the tension starts turning into something more.

I loved the Taiwanese American rep and how deeply the culture and traditions were woven into the story especially through the food! The descriptions of scallion pancakes, soy milk, and all the breakfast shop scenes?? Chef’s kiss. Seriously I was hungry the whole time 🍱🤤

That said, the romance itself didn’t give me butterflies. It felt kind of surface level and rushed like we were told they had all this history and angst but I never really felt it. The love triangle wasn’t very convincing and some of the drama just felt forced. The writing was good but I wanted more spark between the characters and more emotional depth overall.

⸻

Final Thoughts:
I loved the cultural elements and all the food descriptions but the romance didn’t totally deliver. If you’re looking for a light book with major foodie vibes and a sprinkle of star crossed drama then Hangry Hearts might be worth a try but I probably won’t be rereading it 🥲🥡

[Mollified.Moments · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okay, so to be fair, I was really intrigued going into this one. A YA, foodie-themed, Romeo and Juliet-style romance? That’s a combo I’m usually all in for—even though I’m not a big romance reader, if you throw in food, I’m a sucker.

There were definitely things I liked. The MMC is trans, which I thought was fantastic to see in a YA book. That representation was one of the strongest parts for me. And the food descriptions? Incredible. I hadn’t even heard of most of the dishes, but I was starving while reading and basically just wanted to go out and eat everything.

That said… this one didn’t totally work for me. The POV shifts were a big hurdle. It wasn’t mid-paragraph or anything, but the perspectives would change from one paragraph to the next, and that made it feel a little chaotic at times. I get what the author was going for, but it didn’t quite land for me—it kept pulling me out of the story. The pacing also felt uneven, and the plot ended up being pretty predictable.

I did finish the book, though I’ll admit I skimmed through the second half just to see how everything wrapped up. There’s definitely some charm here, and I think readers who are into light YA romance with a foodie twist might still enjoy it. It just didn’t fully hit the mark for me.

[Carson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have slightly conflicting feelings about this book. The concept is super cute and I do think for the most part it was executed well. However, I don't personally think I would call this a Romeo and Juliet inspired story like it is described as. Yes the families are "rivals" but to me describing such a cute wholesome YA book as even inspired by Romeo and Juliet gives the wrong impression. This book however was super good and cute, there were some aspects that I thought were a little strange or out of place (such as the constant mention of random none speaking or very minor roled characters races, to me it did kind of just seem like it was getting included to be like "but we did have diversity" and not as a "this is just a part of everyday life". Maybe that was just me though) I also definitely feel like these characters somehow read as both middle schoolers and 20 years old at the same time when they are supposed to be high schoolers and they didn't feel like high schoolers at all to me

[Shannon · Rating 4 out of 5]

I absolutely adored this over the top enemies to lovers YA Romeo and Juliet retelling that has the offspring of two feuding Asian American farmer's market vendors falling in love while forced to work together on a school project.

The FOOD in this book abounds and will have you drooling from start to finish!! It was definitely a highlight for me. I also really liked that there was a trans masc main male character who was wholeheartedly accepted by his nuclear family.

While there was a lot of drama, there was also a ton of heartwarming found family, multigenerational friendships and trans joy. I truly enjoyed this sophomore novel so much and would recommend for fans of books like A pho love story, Bingsu for two, Cafe con lychee or Fake dates and mooncakes.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital and finished copy in exchange for my honest review!! This was the perfect start to my #TransRightsReadathon2025 !!! BTW the cover design/illustration by Leni Kauffman is chef's kiss!!!

[Kassandra DeBord · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for the ebook.

Hangry Hearts by Jennifer Chen

This is a fun, food-filled YA romance that clearly takes inspiration from Romeo and Juliet, with a modern twist and a lot of heart. Hangry Hearts introduces us to Julie and Randall, star-crossed teens caught between feuding food truck families—and a growing romance that’s supposed to be off-limits.

While I appreciated the diverse representation and the unique premise, I felt like the story tried to juggle too many things at once. Randall’s transition, the school group project, the family feud, and their romantic tension all had potential, but instead of weaving together tightly, it started to feel like plot threads were being added faster than they could be resolved.

That said, if you’re looking for a light YA romance with strong food vibes (seriously, the food descriptions are top-tier), this is a cute read. Julie and Randall’s relationship had its moments, but I honestly felt like the dishes stole the spotlight.

[Escaping in Pages · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rating - 3.5/5 stars ��⭐⭐
Date Read - December 12, 2024
Publication Date - March 18, 2025

*I received an E-ARC of this book for free in exchange for an honest review* - Thank you St. Martin's Press and Wednesday Books!

Take warning from the title of this book and make sure you don't read Hangry Hearts on an empty stomach! I loved learning about the food, from its importance and symbolism to just sounding yummy. Friends to lovers is one of my favourite tropes, so I had high hopes for this book. However, I found it hard to root for the main characters to be together because the emotional connection didn't really seem to be there. They talked about their old friendship, which sounded promising, but I didn't feel like anything in the present showed romantic feelings. Overall, I picked up this book for the romance but stayed for the food and family dynamics.

*Please check trigger warnings*

[Victoria · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is firmly young adult, but in a good way! It's a very sweet Romeo and Juliet retelling with good food, gardening, and market stands. This book features dual first person PoVs and forced proximity as our MCs navigate a school project with their rivals.

This is a teenage girl x trans boy romance. There are no dead names used, only mentions of the past when they were both younger and still friends. This is a little like a second chance romance in that they were once really close until their families became bitter rivals. The main characters are very very sweet together, and I enjoyed reading their story.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the advanced reader copy of this book. This review is voluntarily written and the thoughts and opinions contained in this review are my own.

[Jennifer · Rating 1 out of 5]

The descriptions of the food is why I kept reading. It made me so hungry!

This book had so much potential and I really tried liking it but I could not find myself being able to care for the characters. The writing was absolutely underwhelming and I never knew what month it was because the timeline is all over the place. There is no fluidity between POVs to the point it would change even after just a small paragraph. Everything feels very surface leveled with so much happening behind the scenes that the author doesn’t share with us. I think I would have cared more if she had dove a bit deeper into the characters.

I did love the representation of trans people as well as showing with us the support Randall gets from his family. And I also loved the emphasis on the food.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC in exchange of an honest review!

[kayla · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thank you Netgalley and Wednesday books for the ARC!

this had so much potential but unfortunately just wasn't great... i know i'm not the target audience for YA contemporary but still. i try to go in with an open mind but the weird time skips and lack of development on-page was meh. it felt like so much of the romance developed off page and therefore it didn't feel super believable.

things i did like: the lgbtq rep was a nice surprise especially given it's pure trans joy with a nice romance and family support (we absolutely need more of this!); conversations around traditional Korean/Taiwanese foods and culture was really great

tldr; this was a pretty fast read and the representation was great but the actual storytelling and development of plot/characters was lacking for sure

[Aly · Rating 3 out of 5]

The beginning of this was fun, with a cute school project involving kids and gardening. I liked the idea of growing various vegetables and teaching elementary students about different cultures. Unfortunately, this part of the plot ended early and then we just moved on, never to return.

After that, I thought the plot dipped and became kind of repetitive. Julie and Randall get together, their families cause issues, they break up, and repeat. There were some nice parts, like the grandmothers and their love for their families. I appreciated how everyone accepted Randall as transgender, even his more traditional Korean Halmeoni.

I voluntarily read and reviewed this book. Thank you to Wednesday Books and NetGalley for the copy.

[Jenn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hangry Hearts is a sweet YA romcoms about second chances, family, and first love. Julie and Randall used to be the best of friends. But 5 years ago, a feud began between their families and they've been at odds ever since. Now Julie and Randall are stuck working on a project together at school, so they'll have to call a truce if they expect to make it through.

This was cute and enjoyable story, but it doesn't feel super cohesive. Like the first part of the story is about this school project, but then it was just forgotten. There were several instances like that. But it was still a fun one.

Release Date: 3/18/2025

[books_with_sass · Rating 5 out of 5]

Julie and Randall were best friends until a tragedy five years ago tore their families apart, Thrown back together for a school project, they soon realize they have feelings for each other...but how can they possibly date when their families are sworn enemies??

This YA romance has all the heart of strong family ties, a bit of second chance romance, and star-crossed lovers. When Julie and Randall have to keep lying to their families to be able to spend time together, it puts a strain on all their relationships. Told from both points of view, it focused a lot on their Korean and Taiwanese backgrounds, which was educational for this Caucasian. The closeness of the family members was developed nicely, and they are all relatable. It also had a gay character and a transgender character, which I believe were told in a positive light, although neither of those things were a big focus of the story.

Thank you to @NetGalley and @StMartinsPress for a digital copy for review consideration. All opinions are honest and my own.

All in all, if you enjoy young adult romance (no spice!), a Romeo & Juliet retelling, or close family stories, then this is right up your alley! I really enjoyed this one!