A Phở Love Story Book Review

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A Phở Love Story concerns two rival Phở restaurants with families who run them that hate each other. Linh and Bao have always loyally hated the other but when they, by chance, meet, they realise that perhaps they don’t hate each other after all. Hiding their new relationship from their families while also both navigating school and all the while helping out at their families respective restaurants – they certainly have a lot on their plates!

What I loved about this book was that it was about so much more than just romance; Linh and Bao were such good friends to each other and encouraged the other to follow their passion and help them navigate how to see it as a viable career. Linh is an artist and Bao loves writing and I loved seeing how they flourished with the other’s support. The romance side of it was wholesome and cute but to be honest, the book had so many layers that actually that wasn’t even the biggest takeaway for me.

The book also touches on the immigrant experience and we get a glimpse into both teenagers’ families when they talk about their relationship with Vietnam and what it was like escaping during the war. The contrast of that with the couple’s fun romance meant the book was nicely complex and I liked the depth it had.

The only reason this isn’t a 5-star read was because the climax of the plot came way too late in the book, and by that point, I didn’t care as much. While reading, it was clear we were building towards something but honestly by the time it came to fruition, I’d actually lost in interest in that part and was satisfied with where the characters had ended up. If it had been about 50 pages earlier, I think it would have made the pacing much better.

A Phở Love Story was a perfect example to myself about why I love romance; this book was complex and relatable and I loved not just the romance, but everything else it brought to the table!