A review by bookswithsoumi
Tokyo Dreaming by Emiko Jean

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

See full review on my website Tokyo Dreaming

TEA was the first book I read in 2022, and I was jumping up and down when I received the advanced reader copy! The general premise of the story is that Izumi, a Japanese-American teenager in California, finds out her dad is the Crown Prince of Japan, Princess Diaries-style. Princess Izumi navigates royal life, her conniving cousins, and forbidden romance with her bodyguard. Book 2 deals with the same themes, but Izumi continues to grow as a person. She basically tries to get her sh*t together as the Imperial House Council blocks her parents’ marriage, as Izumi’s mom is 1/ American 2/ not royal 3/ isn’t rich. 

I don’t want to give any spoilers, because even listing the tropes could be a spoiler, but I was blown away by this book. TD was a little more fluffy than TEA, and the conflict didn’t seem as dramatic as book 1, but I think that’s a good thing. In book 1, our princess deals more with inner conflict regarding her ethnic identity and romantic feelings for her bodyguard. In book 2, Izumi’s conflict is more external, regarding the public opinion of her parents’ marriage and her social standing as a student trying to get into an elite college she is academically unqualified for.  Izumi doesn’t run away from her problems this time and instead tries to support people who feel like they have to. We also get to explore a few more ~unlikely~ friendships in this book, and we get to see new sides of Izumi. She studies hard with her new tutor, Eriku, to get into the University of Tokyo, all to impress the Imperial House Council to allow her parents to get married.

Since the whole book is set in Japan and not in USA, I think Izumi has fewer opportunities to explore her identity as a “third culture kid” in America. I missed that discussion of cultural identity from the 1st book when 

I really want a third book, but at the same time, I can tell the author tied up everything nicely and I don’t want to ruin the happily ever after. It must be named Tokyo Ever After for a reason! Why do good things have to end? 

Thank you for Flatiron Books and Emiko Jean for the free ARC in exchange for an honest review. 

Spoilers for book 2: (the tropes) 
1. Fake dating. I loved forced intimacy because it always turns into real vulnerability! 
2. Love triangle. I was actually SO unhappy when I heard there was going to be a love triangle in this book. I feel that sequels rely on this trope too often (i.e. New Moon in the Twilight series, The Elite in the Selection series) This was the first and only time I’ve ever thought a love triangle was done well where there was an actual choice and it wasn’t obvious.
Tl;dr: A must read (completed) duology of the “I-Just-Found-Out-I’m-A-Princess” Trope!
Who might enjoy this book?: readers of royal romances, books about Asian/ Japanese Americans, 

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