I loved the cover and the title and wanted another change of pace book after reading some heavier books in terms of content. Dylan is a young man who wants to enter a local competition for mooncake-making to both honor the memory of his mom and help bring a little extra help to his aunt's restaurant. He meets Theo in a bit of an awkward situation involving a cranky customer super mad about an incorrect order, who gets Dylan to go with him to a wedding at the Hamptons. The two seem worlds apart but can these two find happiness together?

Being the type of book it is, you probably can guess, but how we get there is the story. I thought author Lee's writing was good (enough to get me to skim even though I'm not really one for romance books), but it's hard to disagree with a lot of the criticisms. You can see some plot developments coming, like a late story break-up that of course ends happily. Some of it felt a bit contrived as a means to get the two have conflict with each other.

In some ways it felt very plot-driven (the conflict as the initial meeting, stuff like being a fake date at a wedding, the baking competition, etc.) at the sacrifice of actually developing an actual romance or understanding what these two characters see in each other. Your mileage may vary, though.

I do think this would probably make for a really great adaptation, though. Yummy foods, the 'Crazy Rich Asians'-like possibilities for beautiful locales, a dog is involved, etc. A winning-adaptation all right here, ha ha.

It was an okay read and I'd read more by the author but overall I thought this was an "eh" read that might be best as a library read. ( )

This was a pretty cute, tropey romance. It was one of your classic working-class-hero-enjoys-attention-of-the-wealthy fantasies, which is huge in adult romance, but is an uncommon one for the YA audience. It's not my favorite sort of trope personally (eat the rich) but this story had enough interesting details (cute leads; romance developing from cultural connection; family ties; competitions; food!) to get away with it. ( )

I shrug. "He lives in a huge mansion and drives a Ferrari. I ride a boke with a squeaky front wheel. Our worlds are as far apart as the sun and moon."
"They align every now and then," Aunt Jade points out. "Eclipses are pretty memorable."
But they are over before you know it, I don't add.

This book was exactly the kind of cute, tropey romcom it wanted to be. It read like a fanfiction, and I mean that as the highest compliment: you know exactly what will happen and it's enjoyable every step of the way.
Dylan wants to win a baking contest so his aunt's takeout gets some good publicity. Theo is rich and lonely and needs a date for his family drama wedding. They fall in love, obviously.

The writing style was easy and fun to read, and I liked the emphasis on how money can't, and won't, bridge any gaps. I also really liked how querness was not an issue. These characters have 99 problems but homophobia isn't one of them. It feels very refreshing among the many queer romcoms that deal with the outside world's opinion.
The characters and their struggles felt a bit cliche at times, but I didn't mind that. This is a lighthearted romance, not a deep character driven novel, and it was absolutely adorable.

I read an ARC of this book so the published version might differ from what I've read. ( )