[Review] The Boy You Always Wanted - Michelle Quach

Summary: When her beloved grandfather, A Gung, is diagnosed with terminal cancer, she takes it upon herself to make sure he’s comforted in his final days. A Gung is old-fashioned, and the only thing he wants is a male heir to carry on the family traditions after his passing. Francine’s solution? Ask Ollie Tran, a family friend (and former crush, not that it matters), to pretend to be ceremonially adopted and act like the grandson A Gung never had.

Too bad Ollie hates to get involved. With anything.

For years, he’s made a point of avoiding the odd, too-blunt (and fine, sort of cute) Francine, whose intensity has always made him uncomfortable. So when she asks him to help deceive her dying grandpa, Ollie’s definitely not down. He doesn’t get why anyone would go to such lengths, even for family. Especially with a backwards (and sexist, Ollie keeps stressing) scheme like this.

Francine, however, is determined to make it work for her grandpa’s sake, and soon Ollie finds himself more invested in her plan—and her—than he ever thought possible. But as the tangled lies and complicated feelings pile up, Francine will have to discover what exactly she needs for herself—and from Ollie. Because sometimes the boy you always wanted isn’t what you expected. (Pub Date: Aug 01 2023)

 

Francine used to like her childhood friend Ollie a long time ago and then because Ollie was embarrassed about this they pulled apart. But now Francine's grandfather is dying with no son to take his family name and honor the Vietnamese customs as head of the family, she enlisted Ollie in her plan to make her grandfather think Ollie will be his honorary son. 

3+

I find the part about the Vietnamese culture very nice, it's presented to us in a seamless way, that doesn't feel like we're being lectured anything but it also manages not to alienate us, it's done in a manner you get what's going on almost by osmosis. 

I like that they understand the customs, how much it matters to Francine's grandfather, but they don't condone the sexism behind his motivations. It's always a struggle when you're talking about another country's uses to discern what is indeed acceptable or not. Moreover, I think it's a great topic to discuss with others who read the book with you, like in a book club. If not, it is food for thought.

It's a nice story, very pleasant to read and not overwhelming with the cultural elements, at the same time they are there, making it richer. However, when it came to the romance, it disappointed me. The problem with Ollie, and how immature he was in dealing with Francine's feelings from years before, is showing enough, but I don't think he fully got over himself in the end. But I think that would have been okay if the romance that was born in them becoming allies to execute The Plan had been more convincing. When it really counted, you could feel the author needing to pull strings to make them cross the line of friendship and be a couple. They did have chemistry, but I didn't buy how the development was done, and that took away the fun of reading a romance. At least, they're not a mismatch, but the steps from being friends to becoming a couple needed more work.

Recommended to anyone who likes a romantic YA that is more than just the romance, including a plot twist I loved.

Honest review based on an ARC provided by Netgalley. Many thanks to the publisher for this opportunity.

Rating: 3 out of 5.