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Frankly In Love #2

Super Fake Love Song

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From the New York Times bestselling author of Frankly in Love comes a young adult romantic comedy about identity and acceptance. Perfect for fans of John Green and To All the Boys I've Love Before and now in paperback!

When Sunny Dae--self-proclaimed total nerd--meets Cirrus Soh, he can't believe how cool and confident she is. So when Cirrus mistakes Sunny's older brother Gray's bedroom--with its electric guitars and rock posters--for Sunny's own, he sort of, kind of, accidentally winds up telling her he's the front man of a rock band.

Before he knows it, Sunny is knee-deep in the He ropes his best friends into his scheme, begging them to form a fake band with him, and starts wearing Gray's rock-and-roll castoffs. But no way can he trick this amazing girl into thinking he's cool, right? Just when Sunny is about to come clean, Cirrus asks to see them play sometime. Gulp.

Now there's only one thing to Fake it till you make it.

384 pages, Paperback

First published November 17, 2020

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16664 people want to read

About the author

David Yoon

8 books985 followers

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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,053 reviews
Profile Image for Vicky Again.
645 reviews827 followers
June 6, 2020
Oh gosh, I absolutely sped through this!

Super Fake Love Song takes on a lot lighter and more romcom feel than Frankly in Love. (And when I say romcom, I do actually mean it.)

Even though there's this twisting feeling in your gut for the big reveal of Sunny's secret (as he fakes being in a rock band with his best friends based on a miscommunication ten minutes into when Sunny met the love interest Cirrus), Super Fake Love Song still has that joking, silly feeling that Yoon gives his characters' voices.

I mean, Sunny is a nerd nerd. A LARP, DIY role-play prop video-making nerd. He's got a very specific & unique voice, a bit cynical & a little bit reminiscent of Norris in The Field Guide to the North American Teenager (but less judgemental & not getting in the way of the story).

This story is very much a romance and a comedy and a story about friendship and love. Sunny gets new friends, strengthens bonds with his old friends, and really comes into himself over the course of the novel.

Unlike Frankly in Love which is definitely a little more serious and rooted in family pain, Super Fake Love Song touches these topics with a much gentler hand, secondary to the romance and deception.

I really enjoyed not only the lighter tone, but also how Sunny really manages to reconcile what he felt like his different personas were. Opposite of how Field Guide fell short for me, I think Super Fake Love Song managed to blur the lines of "nerd" and "jock" without it being like choosing one side or another.

This story is light and it might be a little bit nerve-wracking from the secrets, but it ties itself up nicely in a way that makes me feel relieved and joyful walking out of it. Definitely something I'd recommend, even if you didn't like Frankly in Love.

A note: I did read the uncorrected proof (And I mean, like really early & uncorrected. This is the first review on Goodreads.) and there's one really minor line that's really nagging at me.
"Together, we three [Sunny and his two frineds] represented 42.85714286 percent of the entire Non-White population of Ruby High. The other four were Indian Indian, Asian, and Non-White Hispanic, all girls..."

I hope this gets changed in its way to publication, both in the capitalization of white and also the implication that Indians are not Asian, even though they are. Yoon probably means East Asian, not Asian. This unfortunately isn't an uncommon mistake, but I did want to acknowledge it.
Profile Image for Katie B.
1,726 reviews3,172 followers
November 18, 2020
3.5 stars

This book was a bit of a slow grower as I struggled with the premise at first. Around the halfway point or so I realized the positive aspects of the story outweighed the negative, and I settled into a good reading groove. Surprisingly, given the title, the romance is not the strength of the story. But the main character, Sunny Dae, is someone worth getting to know, in my opinion.

Sunny Dae admits he is a nerd. Along with his two best friends, Jamal and Milo, he plays Dungeons and Dragons. They also like to post DIY videos for those diehard fans who LARP, aka live action role playing. (I'm trying my best to get the lingo down!) When Sunny meets the new girl at school, Cirrus, he doesn't think he will win any cool points with her if he mentions his hobby. So instead he just straight up lies and tells her he is in a rock band. Hmm.. lying to impress a girl, let's see how this one is going to play out.

I'm a frequent reader of romance novels, so it's not like I am unfamiliar with the whole "pretending to be something I'm not" premise. However, even I thought the rock band storyline was a stretch of the imagination and I could never fully get on board with it. At least after awhile, I was able to stop analyzing it to death and focus on the parts of the story that were more enjoyable to me.

There wasn't much character development when it came to Cirrus and that might be why the romance fell a bit short in my eyes. On a friend level, Sunny and Cirrus were a good match, but beyond that I didn't see much chemistry. Thankfully the author does bring some substance to other aspects of the story which made it a worthwhile read. Discussions of racism and how Sunny was treated in his community gave the story depth. And I loved how in the last few chapters of the book, you really got the opportunity to know the rest of the Dae family as well. That's the heart of the story.

Might not have been a perfect read, but I'm glad I read it.

I won a free copy of this book from BookishFirst and the publisher. All views expressed are my honest opinion.
July 28, 2021
**Many thanks to BookishFirst, Penguin Teen/Putnam, and David Yoon for an ARC of this book! Now available in paperback!**

Sunny Dae (yes, that's really his name) has always been a nerd, a far cry from his wannabe rockstar older brother Gray who is out pursuing his dreams in LA. When he moves to a new town due to his entrepreneurial parents' unyielding ambitions, he finds brothers-in-arms in Jamal and Milo, and the trio stand up against full-time jock and part-time bully Gunner. Sunny's life takes a dramatic turn, however, when his parent's prospective clients bring their fun and quirky daughter Cirrus around to meet Sunny...who has consequently been hanging out in his rockstar brother's former bedroom, wearing his clothes, and even holding his guitar. Of course, Cirrus instantly gets starry-eyed for the teenaged rocker Sunny. And naturally, this leaves Sunny no choice but to recruit his friends and transform into said rockstar. Can these nerds get their rockin' revenge? Will Sunny get the girl...and more importantly, can he keep her?

Super Fake Love Song is, at its core, a love song in and of itself: to all nerds, everywhere. Yoon goes so far as to actually dedicate this book to them, and he lives up to that promise! This book is SO nerdy and quirky, in fact, that it took me quite a while just to get used to the narration. At first, I felt it might just be a bit over my head, but as time went on, I got very invested in Sunny and his friends and got increasingly hopeful they would be able to pull off their scheme. Super Fake Love Song reminded me in some ways of what John Green attempted to do (and in my opinion, did not do, since it was the only book of his I haven't enjoyed) in An Abundance of Katherines , with the almost Asperger-like qualities in those characters. What felt jerky and strange there flowed much better here for me, and these teens are full to bursting with uniqueness. The story kept moving and I appreciated Yoon's balance of relationships, from Sunny's relationship with Cirrus, to his brother, to his parents, and beyond.

Though perhaps not the most inventive in terms of plot, Super Fake Love Song is a fun ride through the ups and down of high school, first love, and rock and roll, ultimately underscoring the universal truth: Nerds really DO rule the world. 4 (rock) ⭐!
Profile Image for Kristen Peppercorn .
570 reviews97 followers
November 18, 2020
11/18/20: REVIEW TIME!!
Big thanks to Bookish First and the publisher for providing me with a beautiful finished copy of this, my most anticipated book of 2020... unfortunately, just like everything else in 2020, it sucked.

So there's irreverent and then there's POINTLESS. This book leaned heavily towards the uppercase word in that sentence. I read in the acknowledgements that this was Yoon's "fun" book, and I get that, I do. I've written things just for funsies too... only I wouldn't slap a $19 price tag on it and hand it out for the world to consume.

Don't get me wrong, I do sorta kinda maybe a lil see the POINT of this book - if I squint, but I think it missed the mark big time. Like Fake Love is bad. If you don't love yourself, you can't love anyone else. That's true. I agree with that message. I despise when people fake anything to try to fit in. That's what the message of this book was. Could it have been done better? Yap.

Was it funny? Eeeeeeeeeeeeeer, a little. Did I laugh? Mmmmmmmmmmmnnnnnnnnnnnn, a little. Did I like it? Urrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrm, not really.

Within pages, I was disappointed. Nothing against nerds - I AM ONE!! - but it was just TOO nerdy. Like a stiff sorta unfunny kinda nerdy. Think Sheldon Cooper minus the hee hee's and the ha ha's. I didn't fall particularly hard (read: at all) for any of the characters, and minus like one tiny mention, it was lacking the charms of diversity that Frankly in Love banked on.

It just wasn't what I wanted and I am le sad. Oh well.

10/5/20: I STAYED UP TILL MIDNIGHT TO SNATCH AN ARC BUT I DID IT! I GOT AN ARC OF THE BOOK I MOST WANTED TO READ THIS YEAR!! I CAN'T WAIT FOR IT TO GET HERE!!! :D :D :D

YAY!

I see the words "Fake" and "Love" together and I SCREAM.

Why?

I don't know! Nan molla!!

Also because I really love David Yoon's writing. lol It's delicious.

Profile Image for Fanna.
1,071 reviews523 followers
October 18, 2020
October 17, 2020: It was fun to read!

↦ quick miscommunication leads to a string of teen lies that keep you nervously excited.
↦ adoration at first sight gradually evolves into genuine feelings.
↦ excellent character development as Sunny finds what he truly likes, finds himself, strengthens his current friendships, opens up the possibility of connecting to new people, and remains a proud nerd.
diverse set of characters: Korean-American MC & love interest, Jamaican-American side character, Guatemalan-American side character.
↦ humorous narration that is actually hilarious at bits.
↦ the romance didn't impress me much and the narrator's tone gets annoying at times.

Note: I can't help but take away a whole star from the rating because I couldn't find anything to justify this sentence in the first few pages of the book: "...we three represented 42.35 percent of the entire Non-White population of Ruby High. The other four were Indian, Indian, Asian, and Non-White Hispanic..."

As an Indian, I'm a little too tired of seeing anything that implies India isn't a part of Asia or that Indian has to be used as a separate identity when an inclusive term, Asian, is already being used in the very same sentence. I understand I've read an early copy but seeing the capitalisation of white and this implication (even if unintentional) I pointed out, isn't something I expect to see in any stage of a manuscript, especially when the writer is an author of colour himself.

July 01, 2020: No, I haven't read Frankly in Love. No, that doesn't mean I can't be super excited for this. I mean, it has the fake-identities-but-real-love trope soooo YAY! Digital review copy received via Edelweiss.
Profile Image for Jessica (Odd and Bookish).
708 reviews852 followers
March 3, 2021
I received an ARC of this book for free from the publisher (Penguin Teen). Since I received an ARC, my quotes from the book are tentative.

I had previously read Yoon’s other novel, Frankly In Love, and loved it, so I knew I had to pick this one up.

It should first be said that this book is different than Frankly in Love. This book is less serious and more light hearted, so don’t go into this book expecting it to be just like Frankly in Love.

I thought this book was so fun. I found the whole “fake being in a band to impress a girl” premise to be well executed. I loved seeing how it all came together.

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As for the actual romance, it was not the most exciting thing. I didn’t find Sonny and Cirrus’s relationship to be all that interesting or compelling. I just didn’t see the chemistry. In terms of relationships and dynamics, the book really shined in regards to Sonny and his brother. I loved seeing them reconnect. I also liked the friendship dynamic between Sonny and his two best friends, Milo and Jamal.

I was really glad that Gunner, the school bully, was so much more than that. Oftentimes YA authors just use bullies as an adversarial cliche, but in this book we discovered that there was more lurking under his tough exterior.

Lastly, I just love Yoon’s writing style. It flows so well and is highly entertaining. He is also so good at making big points in very subtle ways. For example, there is a short mention of the racist background of the national anthem. He writes, “ the crowd groaned along with its hoary antiquated lyrics, as always omitting the third stanza threatening murder for free former slaves” (pg 107). It was a brief nod, but I liked how it brought attention to it.

Overall, I enjoyed this book and am looking forward to reading what he writes next!
Profile Image for Kelly (and the Book Boar).
2,819 reviews9,521 followers
June 3, 2022
Once upon a time, a boy faked being the front man of a rock band in order to impress a girl, only to—



I don’t know how this one resonated with actual young people, but my old ass loved pert near every second of it and found it to be . . . .



Well, aside from the references to “old tyme rock and roll” and “classic rock” which featured songs by Nirvana, Fall Out Boy, Thirty Seconds to Mars, etc. . . . .



If you like Young Adult romances – the trope where someone pretends to be something they're not and ends up discovering how to be comfortable in their own skin – that everyone has a story behind their choices (sometimes even the school bully) – ride or die pals – and the magic of first love, this one might be for you . . . .

Profile Image for fer bañuelos.
899 reviews3,818 followers
August 12, 2021
Lo mejor del libro es que hay dos personajes que se llaman Sunny Dae y Gray Dae. I love me a good pun.

No me voy a andar con rodeos, la principal razón por la cual quería leer a David Yoon es porque es el esposo de Nicola Yoon, y esta mujer es la diosa del contemporáneo juvenil. Tenía muchas ganas de ver que podia hacer David por su cuenta y si sus historias eran capaces de defenderse por si solas y no acabe decepcionado.

Este libro es una comedia romántica through and through. La novela tiene todos los detalles necesarios para enamorarte y hacerte disfrutar de ella y, aunque tuvimos un inicio rocoso, al final cerre el libro con una sonrisa en la cara.

Debo admitir, la trama de “sin querer esta persona piensa que soy alguien que no soy pero le voy a hacer creer que si y nos vamos a enamorar pero siempre me terminan descubriendo” no es de mis favoritas. La he visto mil veces en películas, series de tv y libros también. No me encanta porque ya sabes como acaba y es drama innecesario, pero este libro, al final de todo, me terminó ganando. Me llegue a encariñar con Sunny y Cirrus y ame como no tienen una idea su romance. Había interacciones divertidas y muy buena química.

Me dio mucha risa que Sunny fuera el nerd más nerd y luego poco a poco empieza a cambiar a ser todo un rockstar. Hay algunas referencias, tal vez demasiadas, que David Yoon agrega a Sunny y su grupo de amigos que no entendí, al igual que siento que el estilo de escritura a veces era demasiado “quirky” para mi gustó. Pero después de leer todo el libro y ver como evolucionan los personajes acabe acostumbrándome a esos detalles y ahora siento que eran indispensables para la historia.

Ya tengo Frankly in Love en mi wishlist y estoy seguro que continuaré leyendo al autor. Ese que ya lo leí se los recomiendo mucho la verdad.
Profile Image for Cody.
1 review6 followers
January 31, 2025
I've been reading books for a LONG time and this was my first DNF ever that wasn't caused by me getting interested in another book. I thought this book would be cool judging by the premise I got from the summary, but I was disappointed. I also was looking forward to this book after reading Frankly in Love by David Yoon, but it really left me wanting more. I would call myself a nerd, I have random interests and my friends call me a nerd, but the way Sunny talks gets on my nerves so much. His vibes emanate "loser," and him and the rest of the students are beyond disrespectful to the teachers. I am a high school student, I typically am on the more respectful side, but even the worse students don't act even close to this way towards their teachers. The part of the book I read also just seems very high school in movies esque, with everybody being in their own group, and bullies and nerds hating each other, which is not at all how it works, yes there are some groups but its not to this extreme. What's even worse is Sunny's obsession with making Cirrus think he's cool, he completely changes everything about himself yet his inner thoughts don't change at all and he just isn't a good character to read. I strongly dislike the way this book is written which sucks because I love some of David Yoon's other books as well as some of the books his wife, Nicola Yoon, has written. Unfortunately this one is off the mark and I did not enjoy reading it.
Profile Image for Taschima.
943 reviews444 followers
November 20, 2020
Super Fake Love Song--The story about an insecure boy who decides to lie about who he is in order to get the cool new girl to like him. I was expecting more, specially after Frankly in Love (I remember being taken right away with the characters in the first few chapters). Ultimately I feel like Super Fake Love Song was the equivalent to a pop song (which the main character of course dislikes), easily digestible.

Super Fake Love Song has some introspection into what is ultimately real vs fake, the limitations we put on ourselves, and how we change as we grow up. SUNNY--He spends the entire novel debating the coolness of everyone and everything, drowning in his nerdness while still legit wanting to go back to his old lifestyle, though not really. I did like the authentic way Sunny faces his old persona and wanting to leave behind the negativity and cynicism that was his downfall in his old life. He learns to embrace his old self while learning which parts to incorporate from his fake life (aka, the confidence) and that is beautiful.

The family dynamics shined. I enjoyed seeing how Sunny and Gray's relationship developed, how they dealt with their parent's over working, how they ultimately learn to listen to each other. Gray really needed some therapy to work out some issues. Their broken relationship was the backbone into which a lot of Sunny's insecurities sprung upon, as he felt abandoned by Gray and bullied into submission.

Sunny and Cirrus' love story felt incredibly one sided. I wasn't hugely invested in it, and a lot of the time was rooting for its demise.

Cirrus Soh is the trademark Manic Pixie Dream Girl--it feels like she is only there to be the catalyst to the male character's transformation. She has been all over the world! Yet we don't really hear stories about her and her hundreds of friends unless they directly relate to something the male character is hiding about himself. I legit feel like I barely know Cirrus and yet I do because she is just a generic girl, there to further the male counterpart's story line.

While having some neat introspection, Super Fake Love Song suffers from a basic love story, and a female love interest that is painfully uninteresting (she is as blank as the condo she lives in). It was okay overall *shrugs*

PS; I was provided a review copy in exchange for an honest review. Thanks go to the publisher!
Profile Image for ♠ TABI⁷ ♠.
Author 15 books513 followers
Want to read
July 15, 2020
Lying leading to love?? Okay, let's see how disastrous this gets haha
Profile Image for Lunabookaddict.
356 reviews595 followers
April 18, 2021
A pretty cool story with band rock related. Pretty much loved Jamal and Milo’s friendship over sunny. I just think something was missing 😭 idk what. But overall the story was cool.

Also love gray so much 🥺
Profile Image for human.
652 reviews1,191 followers
Want to read
November 23, 2020
*chuckles* oh, this is not gonna end well...
Profile Image for Reading_ Tamishly.
5,302 reviews3,462 followers
February 12, 2023
Pick up this book if at all you’re in a very young adult contemporary romance mood. This one is okayish for those who just want to start reading a romance novel.

I feel the writing is okay. The story isn’t boring but I would say it could have been much more shortened than it actually is. But I am not the author so that’s that.

It felt like it took forever to reach the story we were all waiting for.

It seems like the book started and kept on starting until we reached the last part of the book pissed that the characters need not do much but be more interesting and not chaotic. Of course, young characters are chaotic so expect a lot of the main character trying to show off his character and the other main character blinking off and on on her parts. I feel the side characters are more interesting and I wanted to know them more.

Did I like this book? I would say it lacked a little something in the chemistry, the family and the friendship interactions as how the writing depicts and the main characters need to be more convincing. The romance is just like a candle waiting the entire time to be lit up. And we need to know it’s not the match’s fault that the candle doesn’t lit up much. (Not the reader’s fault not finding much chemistry and connection when there’s not much going on with the characters.) bad bad bad comparison, old woman.

Did I not like the book? I sipped it like I was sipping a cup of tea that got cold and I was too lazy to heat up the pot again. Just sipped it waiting for the caffeine to kick in. Sadly, slowly though. And told myself not to repeat this.

So you decide.
Profile Image for Lea (drumsofautumn).
642 reviews645 followers
February 15, 2021
This book was just very much not for me. I can handle storyline of a relationship being based on a lie for a little bit but... it really took until the end for things to actually get resolved and that didn't leave enough space and time to actually do that.
I was missing the part where the characters truly get to know each other and especially the part where the main characters properly apologizes and then him and his love interest get to actually build trust again.
I just really want more in terms of character development with a story like this.

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Profile Image for 여리고.
77 reviews212 followers
Want to read
February 14, 2020
This feels like every other rom-com movies out there. One would think it's getting old. But I sure hope it still delivers.
Profile Image for Anniek.
2,562 reviews884 followers
May 25, 2021
I DNFd Frankly in Love, but I'm glad I gave the author a second chance, because I really enjoyed this one! Such a fun romcom!

I did miss a little more substance/emotional depth, hence the 3 stars
Profile Image for Bethany (Beautifully Bookish Bethany).
2,779 reviews4,688 followers
November 5, 2020
Super Fake Love Song is a contemporary YA coming of age story about a nerdy boy who tries to impress the new girl by pretending he's in a band. Feelings develop, but his lies start to get a little out of control...

Sunny Dae is a total nerd, making cosplay how-to videos with his friends and living in a sterile feeling bedroom. So when cool new girl Cirrus mistakes his much cooler older brothers bedroom for his, he lets her believe she's right. And then has to convince his friends to create a fake rock band to back up his web of lies.

Parts of this were pretty funny, if very over the top. Plenty of bad decisions are made and you know it's all going to blow up in his face. The message here is that coolness is all a matter of perspective and maybe is more about confidence than anything else. And also, high school isn't everything. I felt like the ending wrapped up a bit too neatly, and I felt like Sunny's ongoing lies became pretty egregious, but overall I had a good time with this one. I received an advance copy of this book for review via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
Profile Image for Lena.
433 reviews404 followers
February 15, 2021
Yes and why is no one talking about this book? Not only is it amazing and super sweet, it also made my little Nerd heart incredibly happy
Profile Image for Kajree Gautom.
792 reviews4 followers
July 21, 2020
Ah this book!!! Super fake love song was my first from David Yoon and I absolutely loved this book! It narrates the story of Sunny Dae, who is a dorky nerd and makes diy role playing videos for the internet. So when he meets the very charming and intresting Cirrus who thinks Sunny is in a rock band, he continues on with the lie. With his best friends Milo and Jamal, they create a fake band until Sunny can carefully come out of his lie while also get the girl.

It is such a fun story. The characters are interesting and totally dorky, which makes them all the more real and relatable. Sunny's constant thrive to be someone and be interesting is something that we all teenagers would relate to. And Yoon also very perfectly addresses racism again Asians in the story. Milo was one of my favorites in the book and Jamal's practical worries just added a whole lot of joy to the story. Their friendship was adorably beautiful and healthy and it was so good to read about them doing nerdy works, being total fangirls over Lady Lashblade!! Simply adorable 😍

What I really liked was the fact that even though Sunny must have gone on with the lie, it in no scene turned into something toxic. Rather, it became a medium of growth for him and his friends, to come out of the shell and figure himself out. That was so nicely done, and the the characters' growth was great too.

While Cirrus was an interesting character, I don't think we see of her much in depth. She appeared a lot two dimensional and she was fun, but I couldn't really connect with her as much as I did with the others. Even then, I totally loved Cirrus and Sunny together! They were totally cute and loved seeing their relationship grow, and how she was so supportive and a big fan!!

The story might be a YA rom-com but it also talks about the important of friendship and family in a large context. I really enjoyed the ending because of that.

Overall, Super Fake Love Song was an amazing book and I enjoyed it thoroughly, right from the beginning. It was sweet and funny and an ode to fandom nerds!
Profile Image for Nazanin.
783 reviews12 followers
December 8, 2020
I don't know what is with David Yoon books but they start out really great but towards the end they really drag on and get super boring.

This was your typical YA story of a guy faking his way for a girl to fall for him.

Profile Image for Toya (thereadingchemist).
1,390 reviews188 followers
November 17, 2020
After seeing all the love for Frankly in Love, I immediately jumped at the opportunity to read Super Fake Love Song.

Yoon does an incredible job of taking a light hearted rom-com and infusing it with deep social themes such as race, class, identity, and role expectations (parental and sibling).

17 year old Sunny Dae is a Korean American and a HUGE nerd. We are talking DnD and LARPing. Sunny’s character shows us the many struggles that teens face with balancing school, one’s identity, and relationships (familial, friends, and love).

I loved Sunny’s relationship with his two best friends Milo (Guatemalan American) and Jamal (Jamaican American). The three of them together was just a ton of fun to watch. They had amazing banter and were always there for each other through everything (even the really bad decisions).

I really appreciated the complicated family dynamics in the Dae household. Sunny’s parents want more to life than what they had, but there’s definitely a cost associated with that. And Sunny’s relationship with his brother Gray is tense to say the least, but the tension was so authentic and refreshing to see.

I do think that the romance of this story takes a bit of a back seat, not that it's a bad thing. I actually found Cirrus' character to be the least developed of all of the characters presented in the story, so I wasn't that invested in her. Rather, I enjoyed Sunny's personal growth and development as well as watching him navigate his relationship with his friends and brother. I think that ended up being more important to the story line.

Overall, I do think that this is a good story that will resonate with a specific audience. I say this with the caveat that I am not a music fan (so all of the music references went over my head) and I know nothing about gaming.

Thank you to Penguin Teen for providing a review copy. This did not influence my review. All opinions are my own.
Profile Image for Elena L. .
1,148 reviews193 followers
October 29, 2020
Sunny Dae is considered a "nerd" person and when he encounters Cirrus Soh, he wants to be cool by pretending to be a front man of a rock band.

SUPER FAKE LOVE SONG is a lovely YA rom-com which is mainly about exploration and discovery of identity.
We follow Sunny as he navigates through new hobbies and faces his fears. It is a journey which he finds himself and recognizes/deals with his shame. I really enjoyed the diverse cast of characters - Korean-American MC and his Jamaican-American and Guatemalan-American friends - and I found this brotherhood sweet and priceless (plus the side characters were captivating). There were funny dialogues, "nerd" jokes and heartwarming moments that kept me invested in the story. The fluid writing of Yoon drives us into themes of friendship and familial relationship and makes for a fast-paced read. While this book offered less about Korean culture in general, it was mouth-watering to read about yummy Korean food and Sunny's family humor had me laughed a bit. Furthermore, as a lover of music, I particularly adored reading about the power and magic of music.
I thought that this book was "too YA" in the beginning and the romance aspect was cute yet not developed enough. Also, in my opinion, some relationships progressed too quick. Few readers may think that the ending wrapped up too neatly but I was satisfied with it.


Overall, I enjoyed SUPER FAKE LOVE SONG and this book is great for readers who enjoy a YA novel focused on a character's journey on a search to be accepted.

[ I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review ]
Profile Image for Aiza Idris (biblio_mom).
622 reviews211 followers
January 21, 2021
It all begins one day when Sunny, the main character, met a girl named Cirrus. He kinda told her about being a part in a rock band when he's actually not 😆 From there on, he had to play pretend and intentionally and accidentally dragged other people into his game. An instant rock band was faked and everyone thinks he's cool. The biggest challenge is to perform LIVE at a local competition and he's supposedly win the girl's heart. But, could he? 🤔

💭 What I like about it? : How chessy his name is. Very PUNnable. Sunny-dae. Underneath the main story lies other interesting events like his "true hobby", and his brother. I love Yoon's style of writing. Its easy to get hooked and unputdownable in most chapters. The story also reminds me of my highschool!

💭What I dislike about it? : The so-so ending.
Profile Image for Paperback Mo.
468 reviews102 followers
December 23, 2020
Check out my initial thoughts of this book here: https://youtu.be/nnRBvkz8vQA

Ok I got this book in a book box and I never would have bought it for myself.
Pleasantly surprised! Not your usual icky love story. A rom-com but more com than rom.
It's the theme of this book that does it for me more than anything - finding out who you are and how others perceive you, and what that means to you.

3 stars
Profile Image for abthebooknerd.
317 reviews157 followers
September 15, 2020
A quick fluffy rom-com that explores and redefines the typical high school stereotypes!

I loved the length of this one! It wasn't too long, and it wasn't too short. It was just right for the story! Super Fake Love Song was a super swift, cute read that required little commitment (which I needed so bad right now, as I'm recovering from surgery). The book definitely played on the classic tropes and flipped them on their heads, which was enjoyable to read about. I loved seeing that the typical jock liked to play D&D on the sly 😂 I did find the main character a little annoying at some points, and while I wasn't a big fan of the romance, this was still funny and enjoyable.

Super Fake Love Song releases on November 17th!

Big thank you to Penguin Teen for sending me an ARC copy of this book!
Profile Image for Nursebookie.
2,889 reviews452 followers
November 18, 2020
This hilarious, romantic and diverse young adult contemporary read was completely endearing, and so much fun. This was one of my most anticipated reads this summer, and Super Fake Love Song definitely did not disappoint.

Sunny Dae and his friends love being complete nerds with each other until .... super cool Cirrus Soh enters into his life where all of a sudden, pretending to be his amazing Hollywood musician brother was the best thing to do to impress Cirrus. In this captivating, hilarious and charming read, you will find yourself completely immersed into these amazing characters.

The narration and writing is impeccable - witty, clever, and super fun, Yoon captures the hearts of all ages, while addressing racial stereotypes in that coming-of-age, finding your identity and your true self underneath all the expectations of wanting to be accepted and loved.

This is Perfect.

I enjoyed this one and I highly recommend!
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