Scan barcode
sblake26's review against another edition
1.5
This story felt unrealistic and rushed to me. A lot of the writing style made me cringe. The only reason I finished it was for a reading challenge.
safeblanckreadingjourney's review against another edition
4.0
One of my most anticipated ya releases of the year and it did not disappoint!! I had a great time reading this. It’s a fun and enjoyable read. The characters and the story are amazing. And it’s so well written!! More young-adults like this one please!
allisonreadsabook's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
tangodiva's review against another edition
4.0
Absolutely LOVED this book. Stephan Lee has totally captured the voice of 15-year-old Candace Park from Fort Lee, New Jersey, and I give it up to him for that. This book made me cry and that is no lie from your 53-year-old K-pop Stan (of course Candace was the Rosé - I didn't even need to read an interview with the author to guess that).
I don't know why I love K-pop so much, I just do. It started with the Wonder Girls so I'm no Johnny-Come-Lately. And even though I love it and the way it tickles my cerebral cortex just so, the way it makes me feel happy when I'm depressed - there's no denying it's got a dark underbelly. That is not shied away from here. That trainee life is tough, periodt.
My only tiny nitpick is that I wasn't always sure of Candace's motivation in wanting to become a trainee. Lack of confidence? Feeling that her family didn't really "see" her? Crush on a male idol? It's hard to say. But when her mother tells her she is worth more than anything no matter what someone else may say, well, maybe I got it a little bit.
Lots of great flavor on the sights and sounds and smells of Korea. A handy-dandy dictionary at the end should you need it. And Lee writes with love and affection of all the songs you know and love.
Just try getting Red Flavor out of your head (Wendy is my bias!)
I don't know why I love K-pop so much, I just do. It started with the Wonder Girls so I'm no Johnny-Come-Lately. And even though I love it and the way it tickles my cerebral cortex just so, the way it makes me feel happy when I'm depressed - there's no denying it's got a dark underbelly. That is not shied away from here. That trainee life is tough, periodt.
My only tiny nitpick is that I wasn't always sure of Candace's motivation in wanting to become a trainee. Lack of confidence? Feeling that her family didn't really "see" her? Crush on a male idol? It's hard to say. But when her mother tells her she is worth more than anything no matter what someone else may say, well, maybe I got it a little bit.
Lots of great flavor on the sights and sounds and smells of Korea. A handy-dandy dictionary at the end should you need it. And Lee writes with love and affection of all the songs you know and love.
Just try getting Red Flavor out of your head (Wendy is my bias!)
karis_lit's review against another edition
funny
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
xvicesx's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Overall, I didn't love it but it was pretty average. I think I added this book to my to read list after reading Axie Oh's XOXO, which I found to be brilliant, but it didn't quite live up to my expectations. Maybe it's where XOXO had managed to create a very vivid life for the main character, and made a much more believable romance so the bar was set too high in my mind. But I did fine K-Pop Confidential to be rather lackluster.
Candace is somehow phenomenally talented and it gets her to the final team, but we don't really live those crazy hours that are described for the idols and trainees. Those short breaks, the constant hounding by fans, the insane schedule, the lack of sleep -- they don't come off the page to make you wonder. As a snapshot, they're well described, but you don't live them as you would expect from a book.
I wasn't convinced on the necessity of the love triangle, or the love aspect at all. It was quite shallow in the grand scheme of things and there wasn't really a lot of push and pull to justify its existence. Also, what exactly made Candace so appealing?
Finally, I didn't really get along with the way Korean language was introduced in the novel. It felt more like a show off of using the terms rather than an actual immersion in the language, which made it less impactful. The moments in English when the language of the characters was stilted because of the formality of their speech felt more realistic than the actual phrases in Korean. But that's maybe just me.
Regardless, OK, but I don't expect to continue the series.
Candace is somehow phenomenally talented and it gets her to the final team, but we don't really live those crazy hours that are described for the idols and trainees. Those short breaks, the constant hounding by fans, the insane schedule, the lack of sleep -- they don't come off the page to make you wonder. As a snapshot, they're well described, but you don't live them as you would expect from a book.
I wasn't convinced on the necessity of the love triangle, or the love aspect at all. It was quite shallow in the grand scheme of things and there wasn't really a lot of push and pull to justify its existence. Also, what exactly made Candace so appealing?
Finally, I didn't really get along with the way Korean language was introduced in the novel. It felt more like a show off of using the terms rather than an actual immersion in the language, which made it less impactful. The moments in English when the language of the characters was stilted because of the formality of their speech felt more realistic than the actual phrases in Korean. But that's maybe just me.
Regardless, OK, but I don't expect to continue the series.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body shaming
Minor: Bullying
kirstenrose22's review against another edition
3.0
This is a fun behind-the-scenes look at what k-pop trainees go through, but it would be a lot better if Candace weren’t such a huuuuge Mary Sue!
blueberrybanana's review against another edition
3.0
Obsessed with this book even though the writing was a lot and the plot didn't really make sense when I thought about it but I literally couldn't stop reading it
Hwaiting Binna!
Hwaiting Binna!
kittykaules's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75