Give Me a Reason

by Jayci Lee

ARC Review

Publisher: Saint Martin’s Press
Release Date: June 29 2025
Format: ARC Review

I will be honest and say this isn’t the kind of book I usually read.
I tend to stay in the lane of literary fiction, translated works, and poetry that punches you in the chest. But sometimes, you pick up something totally different and it hits the spot in its own way. That’s what happened here.

Give Me a Reason is a modern K-drama-style retelling of Persuasion, and I mean that literally. The main character, Anne, is a Korean-American actress who gave up her college life and her boyfriend to bail out her family and start acting in Korea. Ten years later, she’s back in LA for aher favorite cousin’s wedding and a maybe a shot in Hollywood. Guess who’s one of the groomsman? Yep. Frederick. The one she pushed away to protect him. He’s a firefighter and very much not over it.

It’s full of those classic second-chance beats: long stares, misread signals, the ache of wanting someone you already lost once with a sprinkle of K-culture here and there, like references like to Crash Landing on You. But more than that, there’s a strong sense of the emotional language used in K-dramas: restraint, indirectness, habit as love.

What I didn’t expect was how much I’d enjoy it. It’s a little sweet, a little messy, and definitely spicy. The sex scenes are your typical K-drama style. They not shy, but they’re still relationship-driven.

The emotional beats land. In true K-drama form, Anne is written to be almost perfect but discovering she doesn’t have to be, and I appreciated that. She's someone who made a call and lived with it. Frederick is angry but shows his true colors as the book progresses.

Would I recommend it?

Yes, especially to readers who enjoy K-dramas, who understand what it feels like to carry regret for years, and who don’t mind a little steam with their longing.

If you’re looking for something fun, romantic, and still rooted in cultural texture, this one might be what you didn’t know you were in the mood for.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the ARC and the opportunity to read this one early.  It was a lot of fun.

US release date: July 29, 2025

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