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3.17 AVERAGE
3.17 AVERAGE
If Jessica was trying to make me emphatize with her Rachel, she did an awful job.
Stick to singing, honey.
Stick to singing, honey.
Lmao I don’t know what I expected? A scathing takedown of the industry, I guess, and in a lot of ways it was that- the strict and cruel training program, how absolutely everything is scripted and fake, how only rote perfection is acceptable, how it’s mostly old men telling young girls exactly how to look and behave, how boys are treated better and more leniently than girls and how one mistake can ruin a girl’s career but not affect a boy’s at all. And, how being from Canada and half white is an asset to Jason that makes him more interesting but being from America somehow makes Rachel not Korean enough. But, this is also a middling-quality young adult book that I am not the target audience for. And in the end, Rachel realizes how shitty the whole thing is but still wants to be a part of it, in a group with eight girls who are terrible to her, in a company that treats her abominably. I don’t know, guys! I don’t know.
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
relaxing
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
"Through it all, there was K-pop. It made me feel understood, like there was a place in the world where I belonged, where people would see me for me."
Rachel is a Kpop trainee who is months away from making it or being broken by the process. While navigating the cattiness, and insane restrictions, trying to achieve her dream, she meets Jason (KPOPs most recent prince). Can she balance falling in love (while not being allowed to date by the entertainment company she is with), practice sessions and trying to still have normal friendships all while dodging constant mishaps and misunderstandings with the groups of mean girls within her trainee class?
This book isn't changing any lives, it's not realigning my viewpoint on the world but it is fun, funny and a very quick read. can't wait to get book two from my library.
Rachel is a Kpop trainee who is months away from making it or being broken by the process. While navigating the cattiness, and insane restrictions, trying to achieve her dream, she meets Jason (KPOPs most recent prince). Can she balance falling in love (while not being allowed to date by the entertainment company she is with), practice sessions and trying to still have normal friendships all while dodging constant mishaps and misunderstandings with the groups of mean girls within her trainee class?
This book isn't changing any lives, it's not realigning my viewpoint on the world but it is fun, funny and a very quick read. can't wait to get book two from my library.
I was lucky to win an ARC of Shine! This book reads just like a television show. High emotions, strong visuals, and bright colors all flood through the pages! I definitely suggest this book for anyone with interest in the lives of stars. The drama of high school mixed with the ever present eyes of fans and company executives definitely makes the pages fly.
dnf page 114.
maybe i'll end up finishing it later in the year if i get curious and have the motivation. ftm it's just so bad (i'm sorry jessica i still love you though) i can't bring myself to continue and it's messing with my hot book summer.
maybe i'll end up finishing it later in the year if i get curious and have the motivation. ftm it's just so bad (i'm sorry jessica i still love you though) i can't bring myself to continue and it's messing with my hot book summer.
A fun read but the drama was overkill. This was essentially a generic K drama in a book.
A lot is said about the K-pop industry but there were some lost opportunities to expand that I hope Jung goes into it more in the second book!
A lot is said about the K-pop industry but there were some lost opportunities to expand that I hope Jung goes into it more in the second book!
3.75 stars but not enough for me to bump it up.
Rachel is an American-born Korean who was recruited when she was 11 to join DB Entertainment in Soul, South Korea. DB is an entertainment group who trains and pumps out K-Pop groups and stars. She's been working for 6 years towards the hope that she will be picked to be in the next new group. She has several things going against her:
1) she's American born
2) unlike the others in the training class, she does not live at the training compound and attend the training sessions 7 days a week. Her mother agreed to move to Korea but Rachel has to still attend regular school during the week and thus only train on weekends.
3) She gets massive stage freight when put in front of a camera.
4) Her biggest competitor, Mina, for the lead spot in the group is actively working to get her disqualified and kicked out of the program.
Enter a new complication - Jason Lee. He's the lead singer of DB's current top K-Pop Boy Band and he has the hots for Rachel. The reason for the complication is that there is a strict no dating rule for the girls as long as they are a trainee and under contract, AND she's starting to have feelings for him too.
What's a girl to do when her dreams are within reach but people keep trying to keep them just a hair's breadth away?
+++++
Disclaimers:
1. I am NOT someone who is in to K-Pop.
2. I am a 50 year old white woman.
1 + 2 = I am NOT the demographic this book is geared for.
That being said, of what i would classify as a YA (the main character is 17) book it seemed to hit it's mark for enjoyable escapist real-life fantasy.
Yes, there were some cringe worthy interactions. Yes there were parts of the story that felt a bit forced. Yes I would have liked to have seen more into the darker side of these singing group factories.
But I did like how the girls were all facing sexist, ageist, body-shaming, double standard issues. And I loved the relationship between Rachel and her younger sister.
All in all - for what it was, I liked it.
Rachel is an American-born Korean who was recruited when she was 11 to join DB Entertainment in Soul, South Korea. DB is an entertainment group who trains and pumps out K-Pop groups and stars. She's been working for 6 years towards the hope that she will be picked to be in the next new group. She has several things going against her:
1) she's American born
2) unlike the others in the training class, she does not live at the training compound and attend the training sessions 7 days a week. Her mother agreed to move to Korea but Rachel has to still attend regular school during the week and thus only train on weekends.
3) She gets massive stage freight when put in front of a camera.
4) Her biggest competitor, Mina, for the lead spot in the group is actively working to get her disqualified and kicked out of the program.
Enter a new complication - Jason Lee. He's the lead singer of DB's current top K-Pop Boy Band and he has the hots for Rachel. The reason for the complication is that there is a strict no dating rule for the girls as long as they are a trainee and under contract, AND she's starting to have feelings for him too.
What's a girl to do when her dreams are within reach but people keep trying to keep them just a hair's breadth away?
+++++
Disclaimers:
1. I am NOT someone who is in to K-Pop.
2. I am a 50 year old white woman.
1 + 2 = I am NOT the demographic this book is geared for.
That being said, of what i would classify as a YA (the main character is 17) book it seemed to hit it's mark for enjoyable escapist real-life fantasy.
Yes, there were some cringe worthy interactions. Yes there were parts of the story that felt a bit forced. Yes I would have liked to have seen more into the darker side of these singing group factories.
But I did like how the girls were all facing sexist, ageist, body-shaming, double standard issues. And I loved the relationship between Rachel and her younger sister.
All in all - for what it was, I liked it.
informative
lighthearted
medium-paced