Somewhere Only We Know

May 1, 2019
A K-pop star finds love and adventure with an aspiring photographer in this modern retelling of Roman Holiday. Lucky, a Korean-American K-pop star suffering an existential crisis over her career, plays hooky one night after a big concert in Hong Kong, escaping her handlers and bodyguard in search of a hamburger. Woozy on anti-anxiety medication and sleeping pills, she loses her way only to be rescued by Jack, an attractive stranger and fellow Korean-American who at first has no idea who she is and is struggling through his own personal crisis over whether to study banking to please his parents or pursue the photography he's so passionate about. As Lucky and Jack adventure through Hong Kong, they begin to fall for one another, but their budding connection is threatened by the lies they've told one another: Lucky hides her real identity, pretending to be an ordinary girl who is on tour with her church choir, while Jack has secret plans to sell photographs of their day together to a tabloid to help launch his career. Narrated in short chapters that alternate between Jack's and Lucky's first-person perspectives, Goo (The Way You Make Me Feel, 2018, etc.) develops each character's voice with clarity. A quick-paced, entertaining plot, witty banter, and expert characterization make this a light and satisfying read, and a wealth of local details effortlessly immerse the reader in the worlds of Hong Kong and K-pop stardom. Charming and swoonworthy. (Fiction. 14-18)

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May 15, 2019
Grades 9-12 K-pop star Lucky is wrapping up her tour in Hong Kong and getting ready to debut in America, and all she wants is a hamburger. The problem is, she's on total lockdown?K-pop stars are kept on a short leash, and her reputation is pristine?so she's going to have to sneak out of her hotel. It's the same hotel that tabloid photographer Jack is sneaking into on an assignment. When he runs into Lucky, it could be his big break. She doesn't realize he knows who she is, and they hit the town together as she pretends to be just an ordinary girl. But as they explore Hong Kong, Jack starts to regret the photos he's planning on selling, while Lucky finds herself unsure about returning to her regulated life. Jack and Lucky's whirlwind romance is given life by Goo's (The Way You Make Me Feel, 2018) rapid-fire dialogue and enthusiastic embrace of rom-com tropes. A buoyant romance that's as much about self-�discovery as it is about new love.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)

July 10, 2020

Gr 9 Up-Catherine "Lucky" Nam is a Korean American rising K-pop star finishing a whirlwind tour in Hong Kong. Her world is knocked off its axis when a volatile mix of sleeping pills, anxiety medication, and a desire for a hamburger brings her into contact with Jack Lim, gifted photographer and tabloid paparazzo. They decide to spend the day together in Hong Kong with differing objectives, but their goals shift and change over the course of the day as they get to know each other better. VERDICT The overarching theme of crafting the life you want, while making space for the unexpected, shines brilliantly in this novel.-Desiree Thomas, Worthington Lib., OH

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