Book Review: Once Upon a K-Prom by Kat Cho – An Adorable Childhood Friends-to-Lovers Romance and a Tribute to K-Pop and its Stars

Blurb:

Elena Soo has always felt overshadowed. Whether by her more successful older sisters, her more popular twin brother, or her more outgoing best friend, everyone except Elena seems to know exactly who they are and what they want. But she is certain about one thing – she has no interest in going to prom. While the rest of the school is giddy over corsages and dresses, Elena would rather spend her time working to save the local community center, the one place that’s always made her feel like she belonged.

So when international K-pop superstar Robbie Choi shows up at her house to ask her to prom, Elena is more confused than ever. Because the one person who always accepted Elena as she is? Her childhood best friend, Robbie Choi. And the one thing she maybe, possibly, secretly wants more than anything? For the two of them to keep the promise they made each other as kids: to go to prom together. But that was seven years ago, and with this new K-pop persona, pink hair, and stylish clothes, Robbie is nothing like the sweet, goofy boy she remembers. The boy she shared all her secrets with. The boy she used to love.

Besides, prom with a guy who comes with hordes of screaming fans, online haters, and relentless paparazzi is the last thing Elena wants – even if she can’t stop thinking about Robbie’s smile…right?

I was provided a review copy by the publisher in an exchange for an honest review.

Readers who love stories that have K-Pop and are about K-Pop stars: Once Upon a K-Prom is a must-read for you. The story follows Korean-American teen Elena, who would rather spend her money saving the local community centre than going to something as silly as a prom. One day, her childhood sweetheart Robbie appears at her door, following up on his promise that he made to her as children – except she hasn’t seen Robbie since they were ten years old and now he’s one of the hottest K-Pop stars in the world.

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The Pond’s Most Anticipated Reads of 2019, Part II. – Eight(een) Diverse Debuts You and I Can’t Miss in 2019

TEXT: The Pond's Most Anticipated Reads; Eight(een) Diverse Debuts You and I can't miss in 2019. Image: Xiaolong the pink axolotl, reading a book and sitting inside a book tent and fort, surrounded by books.

Welcome back to the second part of our The Pond’s Most Anticipated Reads series, friends! It’s great to see you again and I hope you all are reading some lovely books. 💜

Welcome to Part II of The Pond’s Most Anticipated Reads of ’19

After doing a lot of research on the diverse books releasing in 2019, I had initially planned to write a simple ‘top 8 most anticipated books of 2019’, but after browsing Goodreads for hours, it occurred to me that one post about my top picks for 2019 was impossible and was not worth the pain. Therefore, today’s post is the second post of my week-long event of The Pond’s Most Anticipated Reads of 2019!

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