Happy Lunar New Year and happy TATBILB 3 day!! In honor of the last installment of the To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before trilogy on Netflix, I’m back a full year after my original To All the Books I’ve Loved Before post with part two! This time, I’m focusing on some of the key themes in Always and Forever, Lara Jean, like navigating grief and the future, as well as first loves and old/new friendships. So grab a cup of tea and a cozy blanket, because I’m here with recommendations that will cure your TATBILB hangover!
🌱 = audiobooks I’ve personally enjoyed and recommend! You can access them using my Scribd referral link, which grants you a 60 day free trial and gifts me 30 days free at no cost to you!
I Love You So Mochi by Sarah Kuhn 🌱
Synopsis: Kimi Nakamura loves a good fashion statement.
She’s obsessed with transforming everyday ephemera into Kimi Originals: bold outfits that make her and her friends feel like the Ultimate versions of themselves. But her mother disapproves, and when they get into an explosive fight, Kimi’s entire future seems on the verge of falling apart. So when a surprise letter comes in the mail from Kimi’s estranged grandparents, inviting her to Kyoto for spring break, she seizes the opportunity to get away from the disaster of her life.
When she arrives in Japan, she’s met with a culture both familiar and completely foreign to her. She loses herself in the city’s outdoor markets, art installations, and cherry blossom festival — and meets Akira, a cute aspiring med student who moonlights as a costumed mochi mascot. And what begins as a trip to escape her problems quickly becomes a way for Kimi to learn more about the mother she left behind, and to figure out where her own heart lies.
I Love You So Mochi was such a cute, pleasant surprise, made all the better by a wonderful audiobook! The romance is super sweet, but what I really enjoyed was Kimi’s personal journey and the development of her relationship with her grandparents.
10 Things I Hate About Pinky by Sandhya Menon
Synopsis: Pinky Kumar wears the social justice warrior badge with pride. From raccoon hospitals to persecuted rock stars, no cause is too esoteric for her to champion. But a teeny-tiny part of her also really enjoys making her conservative, buttoned-up corporate lawyer parents cringe.
Samir Jha might have a few . . . quirks remaining from the time he had to take care of his sick mother, like the endless lists he makes in his planner and the way he schedules every minute of every day, but those are good things. They make life predictable and steady.
Pinky loves lazy summers at her parents’ Cape Cod lake house, but after listening to them harangue her about the poor decisions (aka boyfriends) she’s made, she hatches a plan. Get her sorta-friend-sorta-enemy, Samir—who is a total Harvard-bound Mama’s boy—to pose as her perfect boyfriend for the summer. As they bicker their way through lighthouses and butterfly habitats, sparks fly, and they both realize this will be a summer they’ll never forget.
Did someone say fake dating? 10 Things I Hate About Pinky is a frenemies-to-lovers, opposites attract, fake dating scheme gone surprisingly right, and it has the added perk of being a part of the Dimple and Rishi universe, which means there are companion novels if you can’t get enough of Sandhya Menon’s writing!
Synopsis: If Bao Nguyen had to describe himself, he’d say he was a rock. Steady and strong, but not particularly interesting. His grades are average, his social status unremarkable. He works at his parents’ pho restaurant, and even there, he is his parents’ fifth favorite employee. Not ideal.
If Linh Mai had to describe herself, she’d say she was a firecracker. Stable when unlit, but full of potential for joy and fire. She loves art and dreams pursuing a career in it. The only problem? Her parents rely on her in ways they’re not willing to admit, including working practically full-time at her family’s pho restaurant.
For years, the Mais and the Nguyens have been at odds, having owned competing, neighboring pho restaurants. Bao and Linh, who’ve avoided each other for most of their lives, both suspect that the feud stems from feelings much deeper than friendly competition. But then a chance encounter brings Linh and Bao in the same vicinity despite their best efforts and sparks fly, leading them both to wonder what took so long for them to connect. But then, of course, they immediately remember. Can Linh and Bao find love in the midst of feuding families and complicated histories?
Even though Linh’s sister Evie is more of a side character, their relationship definitely reminded me of Margot and Lara Jean. Linh and Bao’s struggles to carve out their own futures also rings true with some of the conflicts Lara Jean has to wrestle with as she prepares to go to college, and I think it’s a good book to read for anyone trying to find their way.
Only Mostly Devastated by Sophie Gonzales
Synopsis: Will Tavares is the dream summer fling―he’s fun, affectionate, kind―but just when Ollie thinks he’s found his Happily Ever After, summer vacation ends and Will stops texting Ollie back. Now Ollie is one prince short of his fairy tale ending, and to complicate the fairy tale further, a family emergency sees Ollie uprooted and enrolled at a new school across the country. Which he minds a little less when he realizes it’s the same school Will goes to…except Ollie finds that the sweet, comfortably queer guy he knew from summer isn’t the same one attending Collinswood High. This Will is a class clown, closeted―and, to be honest, a bit of a jerk.
Ollie has no intention of pining after a guy who clearly isn’t ready for a relationship, especially since this new, bro-y jock version of Will seems to go from hot to cold every other week. But then Will starts “coincidentally” popping up in every area of Ollie’s life, from music class to the lunch table, and Ollie finds his resolve weakening.
The last time he gave Will his heart, Will handed it back to him trampled and battered. Ollie would have to be an idiot to trust him with it again. Right? Right.
Only Mostly Devastated explores first loves and how they don’t always work out the way we want them to, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t worth fighting for. High school can be an extremely turbulent time for anyone, but the right friends can help in finding yourself and ways to move forward.
You Should See Me in a Crown by Leah Johnson 🌱
Synopsis: Liz Lighty has always believed she’s too black, too poor, too awkward to shine in her small, rich, prom-obsessed midwestern town. But it’s okay — Liz has a plan that will get her out of Campbell, Indiana, forever: attend the uber-elite Pennington College, play in their world-famous orchestra, and become a doctor.
But when the financial aid she was counting on unexpectedly falls through, Liz’s plans come crashing down . . . until she’s reminded of her school’s scholarship for prom king and queen. There’s nothing Liz wants to do less than endure a gauntlet of social media trolls, catty competitors, and humiliating public events, but despite her devastating fear of the spotlight she’s willing to do whatever it takes to get to Pennington.
The only thing that makes it halfway bearable is the new girl in school, Mack. She’s smart, funny, and just as much of an outsider as Liz. But Mack is also in the running for queen. Will falling for the competition keep Liz from her dreams . . . or make them come true?
I loved that Chris is a more central character in Always and Forever, Lara Jean and that we get to see more of their friendship. I don’t think I really need a reason to recommend one of my favorite YA contemporaries of all time, but You Should See Me in a Crown features an adorable romance and the rekindling of an old friendship that fans of Chris and Lara Jean’s relationship will love.
Vanessa Yu’s Magical Paris Tea Shop by Roselle Lim
Synopsis: Vanessa Yu never wanted to see people’s fortunes — or misfortunes — in tea leaves.
Ever since she can remember, Vanessa Yu has been able to see people’s fortunes at the bottom of their teacups. To avoid blurting out their fortunes, she converts to coffee, but somehow fortunes escape and find a way to complicate her life and the ones of those around her. To add to this plight, her romance life is so nonexistent that her parents enlist the services of a matchmaking expert from Shanghai.
The day before her matchmaking appointment, Vanessa accidentally sees her own fate: death by traffic accident. She decides that she can’t truly live until she can find a way to get rid of her uncanny abilities. When her eccentric aunt, Evelyn, shows up with a tempting offer to whisk her away, Vanessa says au revoir to America and bonjour to Paris. While working at Evelyn’s tea stall at a Parisian antique market, Vanessa performs some matchmaking of her own, attempting to help reconnect her aunt with a lost love. As she learns more about herself and the root of her gifts, she realizes one thing to be true: knowing one’s destiny isn’t a curse, but being unable to change it is.
Lara Jean and Vanessa Yu both love love. Vanessa Yu takes the whimsical, romantic feel of TATBILB to a more literal level with everyday magic, matchmaking, a trip to Paris, and of course, mouthwatering baked goods.
With the Fire on High by Elizabeth Acevedo 🌱
Synopsis: With her daughter to care for and her abuela to help support, high school senior Emoni Santiago has to make the tough decisions, and do what must be done. The one place she can let her responsibilities go is in the kitchen, where she adds a little something magical to everything she cooks, turning her food into straight-up goodness. Still, she knows she doesn’t have enough time for her school’s new culinary arts class, doesn’t have the money for the class’s trip to Spain — and shouldn’t still be dreaming of someday working in a real kitchen. But even with all the rules she has for her life — and all the rules everyone expects her to play by — once Emoni starts cooking, her only real choice is to let her talent break free.
This audiobook, narrated by Elizabeth Acevedo herself, is amazing. Much like Lara Jean, Emoni has to learn how to choose the future she wants, without letting her consideration of other people stand in her way. And you know anything by Acevedo is going to be absolutely *chef’s kiss* (pun intended).
Rent a Boyfriend by Gloria Chao
Synopsis: Chloe Wang is nervous to introduce her parents to her boyfriend, because the truth is, she hasn’t met him yet either. She hired him from Rent for Your ’Rents, a company specializing in providing fake boyfriends trained to impress even the most traditional Asian parents.
Drew Chan’s passion is art, but after his parents cut him off for dropping out of college to pursue his dreams, he became a Rent for Your ’Rents employee to keep a roof over his head. Luckily, learning protocols like “Type C parents prefer quiet, kind, zero-PDA gestures” comes naturally to him.
When Chloe rents Drew, the mission is simple: convince her parents fake Drew is worthy of their approval so they’ll stop pressuring her to accept a proposal from Hongbo, the wealthiest (and slimiest) young bachelor in their tight-knit Asian American community. But when Chloe starts to fall for the real Drew—who, unlike his fake persona, is definitely not ’rent-worthy—her carefully curated life begins to unravel. Can she figure out what she wants before she loses everything?
Rent a Boyfriend is actually comped to TATBILB in its official synopsis, so of course I had to include it in this post. Fake dating that leads to real feelings is one of my favorite tropes that Rent a Boyfriend and TATBILB have in common, and much like TATBILB, I think this would make a great Netflix film!
Clues to the Universe by Christina Li
Synopsis: The only thing Rosalind Ling Geraghty loves more than watching NASA launches with her dad is building rockets with him. When he dies unexpectedly, all Ro has left of him is an unfinished model rocket they had been working on together.
Benjamin Burns doesn’t like science, but he can’t get enough of Spacebound, a popular comic book series. When he finds a sketch that suggests that his dad created the comics, he’s thrilled. Too bad his dad walked out years ago, and Benji has no way to contact him.
Though Ro and Benji were only supposed to be science class partners, the pair become unlikely friends: Benji helps Ro finish her rocket, and Ro figures out a way to reunite Benji and his dad. But Benji hesitates, which infuriates Ro. Doesn’t he realize how much Ro wishes she could be in his place? As the two face bullying, grief, and their own differences, Benji and Ro must try to piece together clues to some of the biggest questions in the universe.
I’m writing up this post a day before the TATBILB 3 movie drops and therefore have no clue if they’ll include this particular storyline, but Clues to the Universe contends with a similar grief that the Song Covey girls experience, especially as a wedding gets planned (👀), and is super wholesome.
A Cuban Girl’s Guide to Tea and Tomorrow by Laura Taylor Namey 🌱
Synopsis: For Lila Reyes, a summer in England was never part of the plan. The plan was 1) take over her abuela’s role as head baker at their panadería, 2) move in with her best friend after graduation, and 3) live happily ever after with her boyfriend. But then the Trifecta happened, and everything—including Lila herself—fell apart.
Worried about Lila’s mental health, her parents make a new plan for her: Spend three months with family friends in Winchester, England, to relax and reset. But with the lack of sun, a grumpy inn cook, and a small town lacking Miami flavor (both in food and otherwise), what would be a dream trip for some feels more like a nightmare to Lila…until she meets Orion Maxwell.
A teashop clerk with troubles of his own, Orion is determined to help Lila out of her funk, and appoints himself as her personal tour guide. From Winchester’s drama-filled music scene to the sweeping English countryside, it isn’t long before Lila is not only charmed by Orion, but England itself. Soon a new future is beginning to form in Lila’s mind—one that would mean leaving everything she ever planned behind.
A Cuban Girl’s Guide to Tea and Tomorrow was the soothing and healing read I didn’t even know I needed. It’s all about navigating a future that might not have specific people in it, and learning how to be okay with that.
There are so many different kinds of love, and I hope that whatever you’re doing this weekend, you’re reminded of all the kinds of love in your life. Continue to love yourselves and your shelves ♡
I love this post! I didn’t realize TATB3 came out today until this morning, but I’m so excited to curl up on the couch tonight and watch! ♥ So many adorable books on here that are on my TBR, loved this post! (:
I hope you enjoyed TATB3 and that you find a new book to love! Thanks for reading 💕
Great post! I might have another book for my TBR.
Enjoy the read!
Rent A Boyfriend is a bit heavier, but I think it paired really well with TATBILB! I have I Love You So Mochi on my TBR, I’ve heard nothing but amazing things about it!
I really enjoyed I Love You So Mochi, and definitely agree about Rent a Boyfriend! Thanks for reading <3
Adding ALL of these to my wishlist!!
We love to see it!!
Ah I love this post SO much and the formatting is absolutely STUNNING. <3 I have I Love You So Mochi on my TBR, it sounds like such a great read and ahh, A Cuban Girl's Guide is on it as well. I loved the author's debut and can't wait to read more from her. Thank you for the recommendations 😀
Thank you so much for the kind words Marie! <3 I hope you love I Love You So Mochi and A Cuban Girl's Guide!
I LOVED THIS! To All the Boys is one of my favourite book to tv adaptions so all these books recs speak to me! Most of these books are on my TBR already but I have never hear of Vanessa Yu’ s Magical Paris Tea Shop before and I love Paris os this book is right up my ally. I have read You Should See Me in a Crown and I adored it so much. Liz and Jordan were my heart and them becoming close again was so cute!