
If you’d like to share a review of a book you’ve read, we’d love to hear about it.Axie Oh has given us sci-fi and contemporary YA novels in the past, and now, with The Girl Who Fell Beneath The Sea, we have her first fantasy! I’d only read XOXO before picking this one up, though I do want to read the Rebel Seoul duology, so I wasn’t quite sure what to expect from this one. If you love K-pop and Korea, forbidden romances, and wouldn’t mind being enrolled in a high school performing arts school, this one’s for you. Jenny and Jaewoo are instantly attracted to one another, but it wasn’t insta-love, just an instant spark. That led to me feeling distant from the characters, so reading this one was more like watching a (great!) movie on a faraway screen than being immersed in the heart of the story. It more often told the reader what was happening instead of showing them through action and dialogue. While it was descriptive, it was also straightforward. The only thing that was a miss for me was the writing. There’s mystery, drama, even a little adventure, and of course a lot of romance. Besides Jenny and Jaewoo, I loved reading about Jenny’s new friends and Jaewoo’s bandmates. One of the best things about this one was the engrossing story and the standout characters.

When they reconnect in Seoul, after Jenny finds out who he really is (a K-pop idol who’s treated like royalty at the academy they attend), she also learns that he’s forbidden from dating. Jaewoo is a shy, protective boy who’s drawn to her. Jenny is a girl who knows what she wants and goes for it, and she’s funny too. XOXO is a story so great that I devoured it in one day. Jaewoo Is a K-Pop Star Who’s Forbidden to Date Oh, and he also goes to the academy where she’s now enrolled. She enrolls in the Seoul Arts Academy for the semester, and after arriving at her dorms, discovers the mysterious Jaewoo (who ghosted her after their one great night months before), is actually a K-pop star. A couple months later, Jenny and her mom land in Seoul. That night, he returns home to Korea and Jenny goes home to find out that her mom’s heading to Korea as well, to care for her ailing grandmother. When Jaewoo is reluctant to leave, Jenny challenges him to a sing-off, and mere hours later, they’re exploring the LA Korean Festival together.

Jaewoo is a lost-looking boy who turns up at her uncle’s karaoke bar where she works. Jenny is an accomplished cellist with her sights set on attending the Manhattan School of Music.

76 In XOXO, Jenny Is a Cello Prodigy With Big Dreams
