Truth

Onyx #1

by J.S. Lee

The Access All Areas pass gave Kate more access than she expected…

Offered the opportunity of a lifetime to be the official tour photographer for popular K-Pop group, Onyx, Kate can't say no. An all-expenses paid trip to nearly twenty tour dates in cities around the world with six ridiculously sexy guys? You'd have to be crazy to turn that down!

Onyx are the first group from Atlantis to have a world tour. They know what they want, and they work hard to get it.

And now they want Kate.

Kate’s already got her hands full keeping group discord, visa restrictions, and a growing list of logistical problems turning the tour into a nightmare out of the photographs. Now she must hide a relationship with Onyx from the world too. If she doesn’t, it’s not just the tour that could get canceled.

It’s a good job Kate is willing to work as hard as Onyx.

ONYX: Truth is the first book in a Why Choose medium-burn romance and ends in a HFN. It contains strong language and sexual situations.

Although the Onyx series is part of the Atlantis Universe, the series has been written in a way that you do not have to have read any of the other series to enjoy this one!

Join Onyx on their "Our Truth" World Tour now!

Genres: Contemporary, Romance, Contemporary Romance, Music, Why Choose, New Adult, Forced Proximity

235 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 1, 2019

About the author

Ji Soo Lee is the Korean name of this Texan Korean-American author. She spends most of her days lost in a K-Pop haze, which inspired her to start writing stories about her idols at Atlantis Entertainment.

​Under the name Ji Soo Lee, you will find YA contemporary romances, with romance levels like a K-Drama.

Under J. S. Lee, Ji Soo writes steamier stories, mainly of Reverse Harems.

Reviews

[maegan · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was, admittedly, hot trash, but hey it got me through my latest reading slump so don't judge.

I’m just going to take the time to write down some random thoughts I had while reading this:

1) That moment when 3 Korean K-pop idols decide they like you and are willing to share you. I mean, it happens aaaaall the time, right?

2) Even though I just mentioned random thought number 1, to me, the most unrealistic part of this book is how she can’t even go around the block without bumping into one of them. What are the chances in a city as big as Seoul? Or in any city, really. It's literally my worst nightmare.

3) If I had just met someone and they casually told me about that time they had oral sex in a public library, I think I’d faint from embarrassment and avoid them for the rest of my life.

4) Youngbin calling out Kate on her constant bs is a mood. I basically don't like her. How unprofessional can she be?

5) Kate’s ex sounds like such a jerk. Why were you ever in a relationship with him, girl?

6) Justice for MinMin, who was consistently ignored and forgotten throughout the book.

7) This girl can't speak Korean but understands everything. Such a prodigy. Teach me your ways, Kate.

8) I know next to nothing about K-pop but after reading this, I know 100% more than I did before. Don't know how that's going to ever be useful but... yeah, cool.

That's basically all I have to say. I won't be following up with the next one because I don't care lol

[Taryn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Here's what I know about K-Pop: (1) It exists, and (2) I once saw BTS perform on SNL. That's it. And I still really liked this book! After all, isn't the appeal of boy bands universal?

[Kayla Brunson · Rating 2 out of 5]

I think I had too many expectations for this book. We all know I love and adore the H3RO guys and that series, so I was over the moon to hear that the author would be writing another K-Pop reverse harem series. Because honestly, that’s all I really want in life.

However, I couldn’t get on board with this one. It really came down to Kate and that there wasn’t anything between them but sex. Kate somehow rubbed me the wrong way. I felt like she overstepped and besides her taking photographs, we never really got to know her. Was there chemistry between her and the guys? Yes. But that’s mostly all we got in my opinion.

Maybe I was still hoping for the same feeling I had while reading H3RO. Either way, this one didn’t do it for me.

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[Kimberly Garner · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not a fan. This book didn't seem to hit the kpop button I needed it to hit. It missed the mark big time. However, if I want a RH, well look no further. it just seemed far fetched, especially knowing the Asian culture like I do. Now like I said if I was looking for rh, then this totally does it for me. Overall though this book just wasn't for me. No biggie I am sure there are plenty of people that did like it, ya know opinions are what makes the world go round.

[Angie · Rating 4 out of 5]

YES!
+More Atlantis Entertainment "reverse harem" goodness!
+Three of the guys approach Kate right off the bat! It's lust at first sight, and they all agree to share.
+World tour! Fun, brief glimpses of Japan, China, and Thailand.
+I was quickly emotionally invested in CX. He's having a hard time as the newest member of Onyx.

NO!
-Kate is not fluent in Korean, but she communicates perfectly with everyone. She is fluent in Japanese and English, so why not just add Korean to that list so I don't have to obsess over how she's having perfect conversations with everyone who doesn't speak English or Japanese?!

[Amanda Hudgins · Rating 3 out of 5]

I haven't read all of the previous books in J.S. Lee's Atlantis Entertainment series, I was mostly just trying to get a feel for what is out there in the K-Pop novel universe, so I thought I'd see what is happening in her Onyx series.

Perks: Better negotiation on the polyamory? One of the biggest gripes I had with Idol Thoughts was that the polyamory was functionally indistinguishable from cheating since it didn't seem that there had been any communication. Yes, it's fiction and get your rocks off where you will, but it didn't seem like all the guys necessarily knew they were in a "harem." Maybe that gets cleared up in future incarnations of the series. With Onyx: Truth there is an honest to god negotiation sequence where Kate sits down with three of the band members and discusses what they all want and what they hope to get out of the relationship. So that's nice.

Downsides: There isn't as much character building here with Kate as there was with Holly. I don't really have a sense of who Kate is as a character beyond "she is a blonde photographer who is kind of spunky." That isn't a lot to go on. She keeps meddling in ways that honestly seem kind of dangerous in terms of social standing and the bands position and her own ignorance of the system. Again, I get that the story is basically a vehicle by which to deliver "sex with hot Asian men." I 100% understand. But this didn't really get there in terms of character development.

We then slightly undercut the solid negotiation sequence by the fact that at least two other men want to bone down with Kate, which fine, again Reverse Harem but we aren't really given a reason why anyone would want to have sex with her. She isn't given much in the way of a personality.

I am railing against romance novel tropes here, I know.

Overall, it's a quick read, and it has a playlist!

[♡ kitty *:･ﾟ✧ · Rating 4 out of 5]

the start of this book felt like it went way too fast and i would have liked more of a slow burn romance BUT i still had lots of fun with it & the characters!!!

[Brie · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF 50%
Maybe I just like more relationship development before the sexy stuff but this jumps right into it early on and I’m just feeling :/
I really enjoyed the H3RO trilogy so I was looking forward to this. These boys are nothing but names and I’m getting zero personalities and no chemistry at all.

[Adena · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm so thrilled to be back in the Atlantis Entertainment universe again, just in time to head out on a world tour with Onyx, a band that's been mentioned in previous books but whose members we haven't met yet. The entire tale is told through the very artistic eyes of Kate, a photographer from Las Vegas. She travels to South Korea, where her best friend Holly lives (who you will remember if you've read other J.S. Lee books.) Kate heads off on a whirlwind tour around the world with Onyx, one of the most popular bands on the label.

As if the temptation of traveling in close quarters with a bunch of hot k-pop stars wasn't enough intrigue, there's also a bit of drama surrounding the change in lineup - one of the original members has left the band and been replaced with a new guy who is working hard to learn all the songs and routines. Of course, the fans are not pleased, and this is exacerbated when the very popular Chinese member of the band can't travel to China because of visa issues and people fear that he will also leave the band.

K-pop fans really take the "fanatic" part of their title to the extreme. For that reason, dating is not allowed, and is forbidden in many of the stars' contracts. Never one to be hindered by the rules, Kate finds herself involved with multiple members of the band, sneaking around and secretly spending steamy moments with them whenever she can. This book is much racier than J.S. Lee's H3RO trilogy, mainly because Kate is so unapologetically sinful, and is not ashamed to admit her attraction to the guys.

I can't wait to read the rest of this series - what will happen when the rest of the guys find out what is going on? Will their extracurricular activities be discovered by their bosses, or the media, or their fans? And what will happen when they cross the Pacific to tour North America? Things are heating up fast, and Onyx is in for a wild ride.

I volunteered to review an ARC of this novel.

[Dblaze · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was a fan of HERO and now we get to continue in ONYX. I love how J.S Lee created a kpop reverse harem series . That i can enjoy. I can't wait to read more about the Atlantis ent. universe but i am enjoying that it's showing how realisitic the media and scandals effect the artist . There was the mention of a senior idol group with some members enlisted called B.W.B.B and CX's old group that Holly's little bro was in BRIGHT BOYS . I'm hoping they get a RH series as well. The was the mention of another group but i don't know if there with Atlantis ent. But I'm in love with the Atlantis universe and how realisitic the pressure and impact scandals have on idols it can be a culture shock to new fans or readers learning about about the kpop culture.

I know this is random/unrelated but I'm just putting it out there in the future I'd like to read a kpop reverse harem about how an idol group deals with pregnancy(like how will they hide it ? Living situations? Jealousy? More babies ? . And how it effects everything but thats just my wish .)

[Jenny (jennyluvslitbooks) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Onyx: Truth is the newest RH series from this author. If you had read the H3RO series, then you would know Kate, Holly's friend and photographer for the H3RO boys. In this first installment, it follows the story of Kate as she took the job again as photographer for another K-pop group, Onyx who is going on its world tour. From old scandal to overzealous fans, get ready for one bumpy ride as we start this tour.

It is always a joy whenever I read a book from this author. She is my go-to for my K-POP fix and this new book feeds my craving, a new group to fangirl over! Of course with a new group comes their own drama, not to mention their own brand of sexiness. I love the feel of this story because now I get to experience the ins and outs of a world tour. May I just say that Xiao will give Nate a run for his money. That boy is just intense. Whew.

I'm excited to read the next one and I'm hoping Kate will get her alone time with her boys to get to know them more.

[Andie · Rating 5 out of 5]

KPOP DayDream

Ji Soo Lee should be any KPOP fan's next obsession. Onyx: Truth is the start of a new series following Kate as she works with one of the biggest KPOP boy groups in South Korea. Being idols they are all steaming hot and of course sparks fly... This could be read as a stand alone but it's so fun to be in the know when you see the crossover characters.
Kate is the kind of woman I wish I could be - fun and willing to try new things while also so kind and thoughtful. I wish she could be my real life friend.
Its hard to develop multiple characters in the span of one book and felt that Ji Soo Lee so masterfully introduced a few truly unique characters without cramming in too much or relying on 2D archetypes.
The stage has been set in this steamy first in a series and I cannot wait to read more!

[Leanne Stuart · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought this book was absolutely amazing!! This was my first foray into the K-Pop genre so I didn’t know what to expect but I loved it!! I loved the FMC Kate who’s an artistic photographer and it’s through her eyes we see the story. She heads to South Korea after her boyfriend splits up with her-he’s awful!! She goes on tour with Onyx and instantly catches their eye!! I loved the development of the characters and the relationship between Kate and her guys. I loved how all the guys had their own personalities and characteristics!! I loved entering this new and exciting literary world!!

[T. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I purchased Onyx: Truth because I enjoyed the H3RO series. I liked Kate, but for some reason, I just didn't connect with the guys this time. The plot was interesting, but the guys followed the same tropes as other reverse harem reads. Onyx didn't hold my interest and I found myself reading a few other books before coming back to finish this one up. Great plot, and some fun moments, but not a series I'll continue--I'll wait for the author's next spin-off to try again.

[Danielle Evans · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved it!!!!! I love kpop tv dramas and reading one is so so much better!!!! Literally reading about kpop and it being a reverse harem is like an addiction! I read all three of the Idol Thoughts in a day and I would have done that with this series if the third book was out yet! Ahh I just loved this book! Highly recommend!

[Jenn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Starting off… I absolutely was into the tropes of this book. Why Choose/Reverse Harem, Fast Burn-ish, K-Pop (the biggest one that drew me to this series), Rockstar Romance….

However I was kinda lost the whole entire time. I expected to be lost when it came to remembering who was who. I remembered MinMin (strictly because I don’t even remember if the FML (Kate) had any conversations with him. CX (because he was knew and was introduced early on and it wasn’t actually his Korean name, and Xiao for the same reason it wasn’t a Korean name.

I do know there is Youngbin, Jiwon, and JongB and I can tell Youngbin from the other two, but Jiwon and JongB I can’t remember who is who….

Now to start about the storyline….

It was literally all over the place in my opinion. Right off the gate, they were all hot and heavy for each other it felt like in the first two chapters…. Which felt off for me for a RH. Then on top of it I had no idea why the three (Xiao,JongB, and Jiwon) wanted to be with Kate or why she did.

Literally the only conversations were about being together and then sex or “Fucking” as I think Jiwon (I think he was the one that kept saying that)… I literally could not feel any chemistry with any of them except maybe the Hello Kitty scene with Xiao (which i thought was cute)

It also felt like the author was detailed in like everything else except for the smutty scenes and the interactions.

I don’t know if this is because the author is Korean and was trying to write an English spicy book (as I know Korea has different customs than Americans) or if she just doesn’t know how to write spicy scenes (which could change in the rest of the series)

I just felt lost in most of the book, couldn’t tell between Jiwon and JongB and like the first sex scene… like wtf… idk just seemed way out of left field for the way the book goes and from everything else i know about K-dramas and Korea itself. It was just weird.

I’m not really sure how I’ll like the rest of the series but I’m willing to give it a shot (really because I want to see when/how CX comes into the harem and how that will happen)

Also side note, it felt really weird because I couldn’t remember who can speak what language, and then on top of that it was also weird when they kept saying they would translate in their head as we were reading in English. It would have been better if JongB was saying for example “Hana,Dul,Set” but written in Hangul in the book and then there would be in parathesis in space the translation or something. That way when they said something it was more authentic or read better in my opinion (and yes I’ve read other language books)

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hmmm...

Ok so I'll be honest,I've never heard of k pop before until this book. Very intriguing. Anyway I'm a little on the fence right now. Don't get me wrong, I like the series so far but I'm just not fully into it just yet. Kate the photographer is pretty outspoken and kind. Although for someone who seems to need this job she is kind of testing the limits. Especially with the no getting involved with the band. I haven't really gotten much info on the guys in the band, so I'm going to keep speculation out on them lol I am intrigued at the story and want to see where the story is going. Excited to start the next book

[Kasumatata · Rating 5 out of 5]

New experience



I'm ashamed to admit that while I'm a huge fan of rockstar romances, it took me a long time to try this series because I'm not a big fan of K-Pop and I felt like that would influence my experience while reading. However, this didn't happen. If anything I feel like this was something new and refreshing, because it comes with a different cultural background and I'm always up for exploring that. This book really piqued my interest and I will definitely continue reading the series. 

[Grace · Rating 3 out of 5]

While I do like the book (currently 81% through book 2) there is less of a deeper connection between the characters than the H3RO series. However, my biggest pet peeve is that Xiao keeps calling Kate “tai hou”, telling her it means queen in Chinese. I am Chinese, and I can tell you right now it does not mean queen. It means Queen Mother. As in, the king’s mother. So Xiao is essentially calling his lover his mother, which is very disturbing. A simple google search could have revealed this, so it bothers me every time I see the phrase.

[chriss giddins · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun read!

Like pop music, this book is a great way to while away a bit of time. The references to kpop culture are explained in a way that doesn't jar the story and the characters are building up into more fully formed people throughout the book. It gets into the sexy times pretty quickly but includes emotional moments too. I enjoyed it and am off to download the next in the series straight away.

[Josie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I started reading this as soon as I finished the H3RO series. The issues I had with the editing in the H3RO series weren't as prevalent here, which was great, as it made the reading experience far more enjoyable. I also liked that the set up for RH relationship was done differently. I loved getting to spend more time in the K-pop world, and I'm keen to see where these relationships go.

[Kelly Madison · Rating 5 out of 5]

In lust and needing a cold shower! LoL

Another out of the park hit for an amazing author. I am in love and drooling over the interesting dynamics in the group. I can't wait to see how things proceed (there are a few characters I want to see put in th their place ) with both the boys and the jerkface half brother who can't take a hint!

[Courtney · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was given an early copy of this and I loved this book so much!!
This one is so far my favorite, I bought it immediately.
Don’t need to read the others in the series to enjoy this!
Can’t wait for the next book!

[Stephanie Hassenplug · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh man, I got this immediately after it was released. I love all things K-Pop, and much like it's predecessor, this series is off to a great start!! I adore Kate and the guys, especially Xiao!!! RH is the best cause she gets all of them! I can't wait for book two!!

[Erin Danzer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another hit!

This was another amazing book from J.S. Lee! I love the world she's created centered around Atlantis Entertainment. This book is no exception. I can't wait to continue this series!

[Megan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Blazing through these books!!

I can not believe how invested I am in these stories! The author makes it so easy to flip page by page that I hardly notice the time and makes the story refreshing with complex characters and relationships. Gotta keep going!

[Peggy Carney · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great story

As someone who is obsessed with k-pop and k-dramas this book hit every Avenue I didn't know I needed. This book was like treating a k-drama with an RH twist. I loved ir and recommend it whole heartedly

[Toma · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am a new fan of this author and just like other books by this author, this one did not disappoint. It had a very natural flow, great character and relationship development. Although it ended a bit abruptly (and not in a cliffhanger), I definitely recommend.

[Brittany Baker · Rating 5 out of 5]

I COULD NOT put this book down!! I stayed up all night reading it, highly highly recommend it!

[Samantha Santon · Rating 5 out of 5]

J.S. Lee is a must read for fans of RH & KPOP. The first Onyx book is an excellent continuation of the Atlantis Entertainment series.