The Cuffing Game

K-drama-worthy conflict unfolds on- and off-screen throughout this theatrical rom-com in which two Korean American college students produce a student-run reality TV dating show. Everything in meticulous Marlon University freshman Mia Yoon’s life has gone to plan, including leaving her small Texas hometown to attend film school in Los Angeles, scheduling her classes for the next four years, and creating a campus-based dating show called The Cuffing Game. When lack of interest jeopardizes the program, however, she enlists popular senior Noah Jang—the campus’s “most eligible student bachelor” and Mia’s crush—as a contestant to elevate the show’s appeal. As The Cuffing Game’s matchmaking antics start heating up and Noah’s love life is broadcast for all to see, showrunner Mia—watching from behind the camera—becomes increasingly unsettled. Her growing rapport with, and deepening feelings for, Noah could upend everything she’s worked so hard to attain. Good-natured humor and easygoing prose by Lee (Flip the Script) make for a lighthearted, behind-the-scenes-feeling look at a Love Island–esque production. Nuanced subplots surrounding other Cuffing Game participants and queer relationships are this tidy novel’s biggest strengths. Ages 14–up. Agent: Penny Moore, Aevitas Creative Management. (Nov.)