Lara Jean is a Korean-American girl, the middle of three sisters, and a junior in high school. She has several intense, profound crushes, but she has never acted on any of them. She “gets over” these imaginary boyfriends by writing them letter, and hiding the letter in a hat box in her room. When the letters are sent out, including one to her sister’s on/off boyfriend Josh, she has to crisis-manage.
She gets into a “pretend” relationship with one recipient Peter Kavinscky; she gets to keep Josh at bay, and Peter gets to show his long-time girlfriend that he’s got options. Anyway, things don’t entirely go to plan, she actually ends up liking Peter, and vice versa. But when a story of Lara Jean in the hot tub with Peter gets around, it all falls apart.
I had several issues with this book. Lara Jean is supposedly sixteen. But she thinks, talks and has the maturity of a twelve-year old. She’s a bit spoiled and naive, and comes across as rather whiny. If at any point she had taken charge of the situation, and spoken out and acted sensibly, the book needn’t have been. She whole story exists because she did not.
Also for someone who is in her final two years of high school, she spends exactly zero time studying or doing homework. I find that both unrealistic, and exceedingly hard to sympathize with.
On the whole, this whole book is dull and pointless.