"ABSOLUTELY adored it!!"—Christina Lauren, New York Times bestselling author
“Tradition meets modern progress, and it's a delicious combination!” —Abby Jimenez, New York Times bestselling author of Part of Your World
"A refreshing and unexpected take on matchmaking! This will be a perfect match for any reader looking for a heartwarming romance steeped in cultural traditions." —Jesse Sutanto, national bestselling author of Dial A for Aunties
"Lauren Kung Jessen writes supremely satisfying slow-burn and rivals-to-lovers. LUNAR LOVE's characters feel real, with flaws and depth and so much to love and root for. Where Bennett's strong determination meets Olivia's own steely resolve, there's heat, friction, sparks—it's a lit match. An incompatible match in zodiac terms, at that, but it just might be what both of them need. With surprises that are, in turns, adorable, wickedly funny, and heart-twisting, I'll be thinking about Olivia, Bennett, Swiss rolls, and LUNAR LOVE for a long time." —Sarah Hogle, author of Just Like Magic
"A bright new voice in romance. Kung Jessen writes with such affection, you can't help but see the silver lining in everything. A heartwarming debut that upends everything you know about love." —Carolyn Huynh, author of The Fortunes of Jaded Women
"A lovingly crafted rival-to-lovers rom-com about navigating the space between traditional and modern dating! I loved the contrast between Liv’s commitment to honoring her family’s Chinese zodiac matchmaking legacy and Bennett’s drive to bring traditional methods to a modern dating app. But more than that, I loved watching Liv and Bennett’s sizzling chemistry grow from their bakery meet-cute to their perfectly compatible happily ever after. This book is a delight!"—Farah Heron, author of Kamila Knows Best
"Prepare to laugh, cry, swoon, and rush to the nearest Chinese bakery to get your fix of Swiss rolls with vanilla cream filling! With You’ve Got Mail vibes, witty banter, delicious tension, strong character development, and a yummy cinnamon roll book boyfriend, Lunar Love grabbed me from the first page and never let go." —Meredith Schorr, author of As Seen on TV
"With an endearing cast of characters and a heartwarming plot, Lauren Kung Jessen's LUNAR LOVE is a delightful romantic escape. Tradition and technology collide in this scrumptious match made in rom-com heaven." —Dylan Newton, author of All Fired Up
“Jessen’s debut rom-com hits all the beats of a tried-and-true rivals-to-lovers narrative.” —Publishers Weekly
"Lunar Love has everything I love in a book: smart characters, a love story with chemistry, the nostalgia of family traditions, and a plot that is both emotional and laugh-out-loud funny. Oh, and did I mention the food? Yes, please. This sweet opposites-attract story shines brighter than a supermoon on a warm summer night. It has all the feels and will make you believe in soulmates. It’s a match made in heaven for all rom-com fans." —Elizabeth Thompson, USA Today bestselling author of Lost In Paris
"Is it better to find a soulmate using ancient traditions or is a modern, high-tech approach the more efficient way? In this charming and original debut, Lauren Kung Jessen tackles the question with a breezy, tender joy. Lunar Love is filled with wide-eyed optimism and singular characters whose search for love will delight even the most cynical of readers." —Lynda Cohen Loigman, USA Today bestselling author of The Matchmaker’s Gift
"Lunar Love has a lot to say about modern love while securing its place as a timeless classic. Lauren Kung Jessen is an author to watch and her debut romance is both smart and swoony and will earn a place on your keeper shelf.” —Elizabeth Everett, author of the Secret Scientists of London series
"Fans of Jasmine Guillory and Sally Thorne will delight in Lunar Love, a deliciously romantic tale about the true and wildly unpredictable nature of attraction, compatibility, and love. Lauren Kung Jessen's debut is pure heartwarming joy, complete with matchmaking enemies who battle over tradition on one side and change on the other and who might have more in common than they think." —Amy Poeppel, author of The Sweet Spot
"A heartwarming debut about two matchmaking rivals who go to great lengths to carry on their families' legacies. Readers will be charmed by the undeniable chemistry that shines throughout their test of wills. Lunar Love is a sweet romcom that shows that in the battle of tradition and modernity, love plays by its own rules." —Julie Tieu, author of The Donut Trap
"LUNAR LOVE is a touching tribute to Chinese-American culture and the power of family. Set against a vibrant Los Angeles backdrop, this romance is packed with plot twists, thought-provoking questions about love and astrology, and sentimental scenes that will stay with you long after you read the final page. Bennett O'Brien is the perfect book boyfriend!" —Hannah Orenstein, author of Meant to be Mine
“I dare you not to fall in love with Lauren Kung Jessen’s writing. Lunar Love is a sweeping romance that celebrates the deep-rooted family legacies that shape us and how these traditions evolve into our own. Brimming with crackling chemistry from page one, Olivia and Bennett prove that those who may appear the most incompatible on paper may just be our perfect match.“ —Amy Lea, author of Set on You
"Can technology ever take the place of tradition? And can a couple that’s incompatible make love last? These are the questions Lauren Kung Jessen asks in LUNAR LOVE, a delightful, sparkling romance full of family bonds, a swoon-worthy hero, and plenty of delicious food. This super sweet read is perfect for rom-com fans!" —Kerry Winfrey, author of Just Another Love Song
"Love is written in the stars in this charming, cheery rom-com! You've Got Mail meets the Chinese Zodiac in Jessen's delightful ode to food, Los Angeles, family, and finding your perfect match. A delicious treat for fans of Jasmine Guillory and Helen Hoang."
—Georgia Clark, author of Island Time
“A sweet, buttery treat. An enemies-to-lovers romance with a warm and gooey cinnamon bun hero. It was an added bonus to learn so much about Chinese culture." —Jayci Lee, author of Booked on a Feeling
"Lunar Love has all the makings of a new romcom classic. Liv and Bennett’s chemistry-filled rivalry over technology vs. tradition serves as the perfect setting for a nuanced exploration of what it means to be truly compatible. Insightful, atmospheric, and breathtakingly romantic." —Ava Wilder, author of How to Fake It In Hollywood
"Matchmaking meets the modern age in this delicious and delightful romantic comedy.” —Elizabeth Boyle, New York Times bestselling author of Six Impossible Things
"LUNAR LOVE is a touching tribute to Chinese-American culture and the power of family. Set against a vibrant Los Angeles backdrop, this romance is packed with plot twists, thought-provoking questions about love and astrology, and sentimental scenes that will stay with you long after you read the final page. Bennett O'Brien is the perfect book boyfriend!"—Hannah Orenstein, author of Meant to be Mine and Playing with Matches
"Can technology ever take the place of tradition? And can a couple that’s incompatible make love last? These are the questions Lauren Kung Jessen asks in LUNAR LOVE, a delightful, sparkling romance full of family bonds, a swoon-worthy hero, and plenty of delicious food. This super sweet read is perfect for rom-com fans!"—Kerry Winfrey, author of Just Another Love Song and Waiting for Tom Hanks
“Rich and tender in the best of ways, Lunar Love wraps an enemies-to-lovers story around a tale of family devotion and love.” —AllAboutRomance.com
“Debut author Kung Jessen does an impeccable job helping two adversarial lovers find common ground in their Chinese American heritage and creating a slow-burn romance with lots of humor, family, and food.”—Library Journal
“A fun, flirty romance book with an emphasis on family, culture, and food!”—TeaTimeLit.com
★ 10/01/2022
DEBUT Olivia Huang Christenson is poised to take over Lunar Love, a third-generation family-run matchmaking business focusing on clients' compatibility using Chinese zodiac traits. After decades of success, Olivia feels the pressure, especially since business hasn't been booming recently, and a new dating app called ZodiaCupid could mean Lunar Love's demise. Bennett O'Brien wants to honor his Chinese lineage by creating a successful dating app that matches users based, in part, on their Chinese zodiac animal. Olivia is incensed that Bennett stole a traditional, in-person matchmaking method to create a watered-down version for ZodiaCupid. When Olivia and Bennett confront each other on a live podcast, they agree to match one another, and whoever's match results in true love, wins the wager. But both Bennett and Olivia learn that love doesn't play by their rules when the two of them fall for each other. VERDICT Debut author Kung Jessen does an impeccable job helping two adversarial lovers find common ground in their Chinese American heritage and creating a slow-burn romance with lots of humor, family, and food. An excellent match for fans of Jackie Lau, Jayci Lee, and Helena Hunting.—Eve Stano
2022-10-12
Two warring matchmakers vie to make one another fall in love in this debut romance.
The key to finding the perfect match is written in the stars—at least according to Olivia Huang Christenson, the newly appointed Chief Executive of Love. Her family has shaped their decades-old matchmaking business, Lunar Love, around using the Chinese zodiac to make compatible pairings. Ever since her Pó Po—whose matchmaking success rate sits astronomically high—left the company to her, Liv has made it her mission to carry on the family tradition. Taking on the role of Head Matchmaker is easier said than done, however, especially with realtors knocking on the door of their Chinatown office and the company's income sinking. On top of that, Liv’s own love life is practically nonexistent…that is, until a fateful run-in with a handsome cocktail-bun thief at Lucky Monkey Bakery. Like her, Bennett O'Brien is mixed race with Chinese heritage, and just as Liv begins to imagine a future with him, she discovers that he’s the creator of a new, numbers-based matchmaking app called ZodiaCupid. Not only does Bennett’s app threaten to put Lunar Love out of business, he’s also a Rat—the most incompatible sign to her Horse. When they end up featured on the same podcast, Liv challenges Bennett to a contest: She says Lunar Love can help him find true love faster than ZodiaCupid can find a match for her, with the ultimate prize of social media exposure and guaranteed new clients. Can Liv put aside her beliefs about incompatibility and algorithms in time to realize that opposites do, in fact, attract? Jessen’s debut excels at explaining the history of the Chinese zodiac and throwing in fun matchmaking tidbits (did you know Rembrandt was born during the Year of the Horse?), but, unfortunately, the romance falls flat. Liv is often unkind and paranoid toward Bennett, and the sweet, cozy moments of their courtship are overshadowed by her constant scheming to sabotage his company.
An uneven rom-com that offers readers a match not made in heaven.
