The Donut Trap by Julie Tieu

 

Welcome Back, Booklovers! I've been hearing a lot of people talking about wanting more romance with adults fresh out of college in traditional publishing. So look no further, The Donut Trap is here! I received and arc from Avon for review.

Jasmine Tran is trying to find her place in the world like most 20s somethings. She's living with her parents and working at their donut shop while she tries to find a job after college. She also ends up reconnecting with Alex, a guy from her college who she wanted to get to know but couldn't find the courage to. Alex checks off all her expectations for her perfect guy. He's cute, he's Chinese, and he has a good job.

Jasmine is awkward and a bit of a mess but endearing. She is the child of Cambodian immigrants with Chinese ancestry. It's very relatable how she navigates her more Americanized way of thinking while also taking into consideration what her parents want for her and the sacrifices they've made. She was not good at school despite how hard she studied at first and ended up going off the rails towards the end with partying and recreational drug use. 

I think many people can relate to finishing college and then realizing they have no clue what they want to do with their lives. Then there's the struggle of finding a job when they want you to have years of experience which you can only gain by finding a job. While she's struggling she sees her peers moving on to great careers while she's wondering what the point of college was as she works a mundane job. Due to a rent hike she finds her parents leaning on her more than ever as she has to help them elevate the shop.

This is not a rom-com like the blurb suggests. And I know romance readers say this all the time about books but this was a book that didn't even feel like a romance. It was less about Jasmine and Alex's relationship and more about her personal growth and her familial relationships. I was not surprised to see it under the general fiction category on Netgalley because I definitely felt it belonged there alongside the women's fiction category. The romance is okay but it's not the focal point and it's more the driver for some of the drama with Jasmine and her parents. And then there was this meaningless reappearance of a high school ex that just wasn't necessary and very forgettable.