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katiemcgregor's review
funny
hopeful
informative
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Tokyo Ever After is basically Princess Diaries meets What a Girl Wants meets Japan, and I'm here for it. I'm not going to lie, it took me a few chapters to really get into it, but I suspect that has to do with the fact that this is such a tonal change from the intense adult fantasy books I've been reading lately. It was jolting to hop back into YA (and not at the fault of this book).
Honestly, Tokyo Ever After would make a really fun movie. Izumi is quite consistent in her tonal narration, her first encounter with Japan was fun to read about, and the romance was super cute (I wasn't sure about it at first, but it really pulled through).
I think my main issue with the book are the fact that I wish it delves a little deeper into Izumi's issues with identity and assimilation. But at the same time, I think that the level of exploration that is provided actually fits for the YA genre (again, I've just gotten so used to brutal and deep adult character arcs lately). My one other gripe has to do with the dialogue. I'm actually okay with the cheesiness of it since it's so consistent, but every once in a while it feels like Izumi uses vocabulary that is totally out of character. Maybe this is because she's learning to be a royal and this book simply isn't long enough to fully explore how this might change her mannerisms and vernacular, but it still feels a little jolting. I also wasn't super into the dialogue breaks that happen so an inside joke or small piece of information could be explained. I found that these make it a little hard to distinguish dialogue from narration, but this is really a style preference.
All that being said, my favorite thing about the book is how well Emiko Jean inserts Japanese culture into the Tokyo Ever After without spoon feeding information and phrases to the reader. I've read far too many books where an American girl goes to Japan and then every other sentence is explaining a cultural difference or what a Japanese word means. It's so tedious. Jean still includes some of this information, and actually taught me some things about Japanese culture that I wasn't previously aware of, but she does it so smoothly. I really appreciate that.
Tokyo Ever After is a ridiculously fun and fluffy book. It's exactly what I needed to reset from all of the heavy content I've been reading. I'll be looking forward to the sequel.
Honestly, Tokyo Ever After would make a really fun movie. Izumi is quite consistent in her tonal narration, her first encounter with Japan was fun to read about, and the romance was super cute (I wasn't sure about it at first, but it really pulled through).
I think my main issue with the book are the fact that I wish it delves a little deeper into Izumi's issues with identity and assimilation. But at the same time, I think that the level of exploration that is provided actually fits for the YA genre (again, I've just gotten so used to brutal and deep adult character arcs lately). My one other gripe has to do with the dialogue. I'm actually okay with the cheesiness of it since it's so consistent, but every once in a while it feels like Izumi uses vocabulary that is totally out of character. Maybe this is because she's learning to be a royal and this book simply isn't long enough to fully explore how this might change her mannerisms and vernacular, but it still feels a little jolting. I also wasn't super into the dialogue breaks that happen so an inside joke or small piece of information could be explained. I found that these make it a little hard to distinguish dialogue from narration, but this is really a style preference.
All that being said, my favorite thing about the book is how well Emiko Jean inserts Japanese culture into the Tokyo Ever After without spoon feeding information and phrases to the reader. I've read far too many books where an American girl goes to Japan and then every other sentence is explaining a cultural difference or what a Japanese word means. It's so tedious. Jean still includes some of this information, and actually taught me some things about Japanese culture that I wasn't previously aware of, but she does it so smoothly. I really appreciate that.
Tokyo Ever After is a ridiculously fun and fluffy book. It's exactly what I needed to reset from all of the heavy content I've been reading. I'll be looking forward to the sequel.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Bullying, Racism, Vomit, and Xenophobia
bookswithsoumi's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying
Moderate: Vomit and Medical content
Minor: Sexual assault
marjokat's review against another edition
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
1.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying and Misogyny
Moderate: Toxic friendship, Racism, Vomit, Sexism, and Alcohol
Minor: Body shaming, Dementia, and Sexual harassment
fremzz's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol
Moderate: Cursing and Vomit
Minor: Sexual harassment and Drug use
Content warnings: Vomit: the main character gets drunk at one point and vomits. Drug use: Extremely minor character mentioned smokingaargot1's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, Sexual harassment, and Vomit
Moderate: Bullying, Cursing, Dementia, Gaslighting, Toxic relationship, and Xenophobia
Minor: Stalking
paolina's review against another edition
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
A little cheesy in some places, but great for fans of modern fairytale-like stories.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Racism and Vomit
Minor: Sexism
girlonbooks's review against another edition
hopeful
lighthearted
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
🎵🎵🎵🎵 (four stars as rated in a song played on loop from a cell phone while two people dance in an otherwise empty room)
Izumi Tanaka has big plans for her senior summer and most of them consist of being generally ridiculous with her friends in their home town of Mount Shasta, California. But when Izzy stumbles on a love note to her mom from the dad she's never known, Izzy's whole life changes. Izzy uncovers that her father is none other than the crown prince of Japan, making Izzy a princess herself. Catapulted almost overnight from American anonymity to Japanese royalty would make anybody's head spin. Throw in some conniving cousins, an unrelenting paparazzi, a scrupulous lady in waiting and a unshakable body guard (who is really nailing that sexy brooding thing, by the way) and suddenly Izzy's summer is nothing like what she'd envisioned. Does Izzy have it in her to commit to this princess thing forever?
Izumi Tanaka has big plans for her senior summer and most of them consist of being generally ridiculous with her friends in their home town of Mount Shasta, California. But when Izzy stumbles on a love note to her mom from the dad she's never known, Izzy's whole life changes. Izzy uncovers that her father is none other than the crown prince of Japan, making Izzy a princess herself. Catapulted almost overnight from American anonymity to Japanese royalty would make anybody's head spin. Throw in some conniving cousins, an unrelenting paparazzi, a scrupulous lady in waiting and a unshakable body guard (who is really nailing that sexy brooding thing, by the way) and suddenly Izzy's summer is nothing like what she'd envisioned. Does Izzy have it in her to commit to this princess thing forever?
“I used to think the world belonged to me. But I was wrong. I belong to the world. And sometimes … I guess sometimes, our choices have to reflect that.”
This book really is aaaaall of the fluffy, teen romance feels. Izumi is such a fun character and one with whom it is very easy to empathize. Her romance with Akio made me very giggly at times and her blunders were just magnificently cringey. While the romance is obviously a primary plot point of the story, let us not overlook just how fantastically loyal and dependable Izumi's friends are. Protagonists are so often left dangling without the structure that a good cast of well developed friends provides. To give us that without a bunch of needless drama surrounding their respective relationships says a lot about the sophistication of Emiko Jean. Would 10/10 recommend this book, especially if you're looking for a quick weekend book/audiobook that will have you squealing while you listen in the car. I could not tear myself away!!
✨ Rep in this book: Japanese-American MC, diverse cast of friends, Japanese and Japanese-American supporting characters
✨ Content warnings for this book: vomit, medical stuff, bullying, alcohol use
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Content Warnings
Graphic: Vomit and Alcohol
Moderate: Medical content and Bullying
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