BWS Review: The Romance Rivalry

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Quick Overview

Title: The Romance Rivalry

Author/Publisher: Susan Lee / Harper Collins Publishers

Story: Online Romance Book Reviewer, Irene meets her online rival Aiden on her first day of college. They agree to a challenge to find love using romance tropes with big stakes. As the challenge continues, Irene realizes that her Happily Ever After may not be what she had thought.

Published Date: May 13, 2025

Genre: Romance, Romance Book Tropes, Contemporary, College, Fake Dating, Enemies to Lovers, Young Adult Fiction. Asian-Lit

Pages: 352 pg

A novel about romance book reviewers finding love? Sign me up! The Romance Rivalry is fun, romantic, and kind of meta. Online romance book reviewers,  Irene and Aiden, search for love by using romance tropes in this romance novel. The Romance Rivalry is written by Susan Lee, author of Seoulmates and Julia Song Is Undatable (available October 28, 2025). The Romance Rivalry was published on May 13, 2025, by Harper, an imprint of Harper Collins Publishers. Do you love a good romance trope? Then learn about Irene’s journey living them!

The Summary

Content Warning: Sexual Content

Irene Park has made a career out of being a romance book reviewer with a massive online following, but her love life is nonexistent. When she starts her freshman year at college, she is determined to find love using romance book tropes. On her first day, Irene meets Aiden Jeon, her online rival and ultimate nemesis. Aiden challenges her to see who can find love using romance tropes first, with a big brand deal on the line. As Irene throws herself into the challenge, she realizes college isn’t as easy as she thought. She starts to struggle with what she really wants and what her ultimate HEA (happily ever after) looks like. She just needs the right trope to realize it.

Warning! Slight Spoilers Below

The Evaluation

This romance book is unique because it finds a way to use so many romance troops in many different ways. The first half is a blast as Irene and Aiden go on their trope-inspired dates. The second half is when things get serious in Irene’s life. The two grow closer, and the atmosphere becomes spicy. I like how Irene and Aiden’s romance is hard to pin down.  No one trope fits them perfectly. This book clarifies that real love is messy and doesn't fit in just one trope.

The theme of The Romance Rivalry is being yourself. Irene feels pressured to make others happy by doing what she thinks they expect from her. For example, she went to Brighton College to be a book editor because she thinks that is what will make her parents proud of her (22 pg). When she starts college, she realizes that making others happy at her own expense has a catch. If she is to make it through college, Irene has to learn to stand up for what she really wants.

What I Like

• Irene was relatable as a socially awkward romance reader.

We all think that if we were in a romantic book, we would all be the cool and suave love interest. But being in an actual romantic situation would be very awkward for me, which makes Irene’s struggle with romance IRL so relatable. “I wine. ‘I’m realizing that all the things I love in books feel so off to me in real life. I cringe at romantic words or gestures. I shrink from any thought of physical touch. I try to find anything and everything wrong with any person who shows interest in me. Like I said, I’m broke,” (82 pg). As someone who loves romance books, romance in real life is a lot harder. A lot of the tropes I enjoy would be off-putting in real life.

• So Many Romance Tropes.

This book is packed full of romance tropes. If you are a fan of one, you might see it in this book. Some of the tropes mentioned are Mistaken Identity, Opposite Attract, Love Triangle, and Shifter Romance (115-116). Lee even adds a Time Travel Trope! My favorite was the Forced Proximity trope in chapter seven.

• The chapter titles are the romance tropes.

The chapter titles being the romance tropes seen in the chapter is a clever idea, especially since the tropes doesn’t appear as the audience expects.

• Chapter 1: Small Town Romance

• Chapter 2: Enemies to Lovers

• Chapter 3: Instalove

• Chapter 4: Age Gap Romance

• Chapter 5: Workplace Romance

• The Romance Glossary

The book includes a romance glossary at the beginning with common terms used for romance books. I think this is an amazing detail and helpful for any romance newbies.  I will include some of the terms.

• HEA: Happily Ever After

• FMC: Female Main Character

• MMC: Male Main Character

• Book Hangover: Finishing a book that was so enjoyable, you can’t read another one.

• I enjoyed the obvious jealousy between Irene and Aiden.

Although Irene and Aiden are rivals in the competition to date other people, there are moments where they are obviously jealous of each other’s dates. It is so obvious and fun to read.

“A part of me feels disappointed that Aiden would date someone like this. He’s a romance reader. He should know better. Why are men? Why don’t they have higher standards and date the fabulous, interesting, funny, smart ones?

‘Where’s Garrett? Did he get so absorbed in a Kerouac novel that he’s running late?’ Aiden’s voice, which I would only ever describe as unbothered, suddenly sounds very…bothered,” (76pg).

Both suppress their feelings for each other when they should just tell the truth and date. These moments definitely build up the tension between them.

• There is representation of someone who struggles with reading but still loves to read.

I like how the book brings to light different ways someone may struggle with reading. “Aiden, the reader, whose brilliant mind struggles with forms and formatting but can plow through the density of Austen like it’s nothing,” (173 pg). There are two characters in the book who face this challenge, and one of them is a book reviewer.

• The book explores how men are treated for reading books, especially romance books

The book shines a light on the stigma of men reading romance. It doesn’t go to far into it, but the audience can see how it can affect Aiden when he speaks to Irene. “And I didn’t feel like I could just shoot the shit with my stoic, science-brained brother or really any of my buddies about it. You know, there’s a stigma about guys who read, let alone guys who read romance. …” (168 pg). I believe people should get over mocking people, especially guys, who read romance.

• The Romance Rivalry includes the toxic parts of being online.

I think it is amazing how Lee includes several different ways being famous online can lead to people treating you badly. Irene is the most vocal about it as she is worried about the haters in her comment section. When she speaks to Aiden, the audience learns how gender plays a role in online toxicity.

• Women

Irene reveals how she feels women have to work harder against an attractive man.  “Have you ever wondered why it’s always women who do those lifestyle-type posts, regardless of what their niche is? …“But a guy”--I wave my hand in his direction-- “can just show up all of a sudden, flash dimples, and his views skyrocket, his mailbox is filled with gifts off his wish list, and his follower count reaches a number that others took years to cultivate,” (165 pg). Online can be a vain place where appearances can matter more than the substance of the video.

• Men

Instead of leaving it at that, Lee takes it a step father and shows how toxic people treat those who they find good looking. “They just…objectify you like that?” My stomach feels sour as I read a comment from a reader offering to have Aiden’s ‘secret baby,’ (188pg). Aiden is objectified by people online and treated horribly just because they find him attractive.

Lee really drives home the message that online can be a toxic place. The safest way to have a good time online is to not take what other people say or do seriously.

• Irene cares for her younger brother.

With all the content out there where younger siblings are seen as annoying, I enjoy the relationship Irene has with her younger brother, Eugene. “I love my parents, and Eugene is the freaking cutest thirteen-year-old you’ll ever meet,” (10 pg). She genuinely loves her brother. I wish more books had this sibling dynamic.

What Didn’t Work For Me

• I thought there would be more drama with Irene’s family

  
  

From the start, the audience learns Irene doesn’t feel seen in her family, especially compared to her older sister, who is a famous model, and her younger brother, who is a prodigy junior golfer. A reason she tries to become famous as a book reviewer online is so her parents would respect what she does. “Then my parents will have the best skincare model, the best junior golfer, and the best romance book expert out there. I won’t just be the awkward middle child who they think ‘plays too much on the internet’,” (11 pg). Also, “I’m used to fighting for scraps of attention at home. Do I have to do it here with my professor, too?” (140). Several times in the novel, it is mentioned that her parents think her book reviews are a hobby, and she feels like they don’t understand her.

I was expecting this situation to be an emotional moment for the family, where Irene explains to them how she doesn’t feel they see her. But that doesn’t happen. At the end, her family suddenly respects her online review job. When she talks to her family, she never tells them about her feelings of inadequacy. I feel like Irene’s problem is solved quickly. It feels a bit anti-climactic.  

The Rating

The Bookworm’s Snack Rates The Romance Rivalry four out of five stars.

The Romance Rivalry is a fun, romantic, and spicy story that can be kind of meta at some times. This romance book is about a romance reviewer finding love in real life using romance tropes. If you love romance, this is a book for you! I enjoyed the fun chapter titles, how awkward Irene is, all the romance tropes, and the view on how toxic online communities can be. I did feel the obstacle surrounding Irene and her family was solved too quickly. Irene never mentions her feelings of inadequacy with her famous siblings to her family. The Bookworm’s Snack Rates The Romance Rivalry four out of five stars. If you have a favorite romance trope, there is a good chance it appears in this book!

Comment your favorite romance trope!