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Frankly in Love by David Yoon

Young adult

Frankly in Love

Debut

We love supporting debut authors. Congrats, David Yoon, on your first book!

by David Yoon

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Volume 0
Volume 0

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Yes, she’s embroidered.

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Quick take

From the husband of Nicola Yoon, a soon-to-be movie about romance complicated by parents, race, and love itself.

Good to know

  • Illustrated icon, 400

    400+ pages

  • Illustrated icon, Social_Issues

    Social issues

  • Illustrated icon, Forbidden_Love

    Forbidden love

  • Illustrated icon, LOL

    LOL

Synopsis

High school senior Frank Li is a Limbo—his term for Korean-American kids who find themselves caught between their parents’ traditional expectations and their own Southern California upbringing. His parents have one rule when it comes to romance—“Date Korean”—which proves complicated when Frank falls for Brit Means, who is smart, beautiful—and white. Fellow Limbo Joy Song is in a similar predicament, and so they make a pact: they’ll pretend to date each other in order to gain their freedom. Frank thinks it’s the perfect plan, but in the end, Frank and Joy’s fake-dating maneuver leaves him wondering if he ever really understood love—or himself—at all.

Free sample

Check out a preview of Frankly in Love.

Frankly in Love

before we begin

Well, I have two names.

That’s what I say when people ask me what my middle name is. I say:

Well, I have two names.

My first name is Frank Li. Mom-n-Dad gave me that name mostly with the character count in mind.

No, really: F+R+A+N+K+L+I contains seven characters, and seven is a lucky number in America.

Frank is my American name, meaning it’s my name-name.

My second name is Sung-Min Li, and it’s my Korean name, and it follows similar numerological cosmology:

S+U+N+G+M+I+N+L+I contains nine characters, and nine is a lucky number in Korea. Nobody calls me Sung-Min, not even Mom-n-Dad. They just call me Frank.

So I don’t have a middle name. Instead, I have two names.

Anyway: I guess having both lucky numbers seven and nine is supposed to make me some kind of bridge between cultures or some shit.

America, this is Korea, Korea, this is America.

Everyone good? Can I go do my thing now?

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Why I love it

Give me a fake-dating romance book and I’ll be happy. Give me a fake-dating book that’s also witty, philosophical, and big-hearted, and I’ll be thrilled. Give me a fake-dating book that’s witty, philosophical, big-hearted, and about big things—identity, and culture, and learning to accept your incredibly flawed family—and I will be over-the-moon ecstatic. Frankly in Love is that book, and it’s one of the best books I’ve ever read.

Frank Li falls in love with the girl of his dreams. The only problem is that she’s white and his parents want him to date someone Korean. Frank’s friend, Joy, is dating the boy of her dreams. The only problem is that he’s Chinese-American and her parents want her to date someone Korean. Dear reader, you can see where this is going. Frank and Joy solve their problems by fake-dating each other. Hilarity and hijinks ensue! Only this book is about so much more than fake-dating. It’s about making your own way against the expectations of the world, even the people that love you the most. It’s about finding your heart and then learning to follow it. It’s about being.

Reading this book is truly a joyous experience. In a lifetime, only a handful of books will worm their way into your heart and change you for the better. For me, Frankly in Love is one of those books.

Member ratings (1,133)

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Young adult
View all
The Wild Huntress
Ruthless Vows
As Long as the Lemon Trees Grow
Dragonfruit
The Thirteenth Child
The Reappearance of Rachel Price
Gwen & Art Are Not in Love
Check & Mate
Divine Rivals
Foul Lady Fortune
Anna K Away
I Must Betray You
A Wilderness of Stars
Warrior Girl Unearthed
Bloodmarked
Instructions for Dancing
The Boy in the Red Dress
Color Me In
Not So Pure and Simple
Throw Like a Girl
Frankly in Love
Wayward Son
The Stars and the Blackness Between Them
Anna K
Patron Saints of Nothing
The Kingdom of Back
Yes No Maybe So
Permanent Record
Full Disclosure
Oasis
Where the World Ends
I Have No Secrets
When the Stars Lead to You
All the Bright Places
Saving Zoë
Symptoms of a Heartbreak
All of Us with Wings
The Boy and Girl Who Broke the World
Past Perfect Life
There's Something About Sweetie
Again, But Better
Sky Without Stars
How (Not) to Ask a Boy to Prom
Night Music
Shout
The Deceivers
Top Ten
A Million Junes
And We're Off
Salt to the Sea