The Anti-Fan and the Idol (My Summer in Seoul 1.5 / 1001 Dark Nights) by Rachel Van Dyken-Review & Excerpt tour
Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / Amazon.uk / Amazon.au /
Don’t own a Kindle? Download the FREE Amazon Kindle App for your mobile device or pc
ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date July 5, 2022
Make it or break it…
Or maybe just break them?
Ai-Ri has been training under YK Management in Korea for two years without any results. She doesn’t fit the typical mold for a successful K-POP idol image, literally down to her blood type. She has six more months before college entrance exams which means she only has six months to make it as an idol before her dreams are crushed.
Things take a turn when two of the most famous male idols break away from their group and decide to form their own co-ed group, a rarity.
And wonder of all wonders, they need one more girl.
It would be the perfect opportunity, except she hates them.
They are arrogant, entitled, rich little snobs who want the world to worship the ground they walk on. To make matters worse, the only reason they came to her was because they are desperate, which means she needs to prove herself even more.
Tempers and personalities collide when she’s forced to either accept the position or give up on her dream.
But what happens when you suddenly go from anti-fan and enemy number one to stuck in a love triangle between two boys you were born to hate but are somehow falling in love with? And will the group survive the heartbreak that follows when she finally makes her choice?
•••
REVIEW:THE ANTI-FAN AND THE IDOL is the second instalment and novella in Rachel Van Dyken’s contemporary, new adult MY SUMMER IN SEOUL erotic, romance series, and the author’s latest addition to the multi-authored 1001 Dark Nights series. This is twenty-five year old, Korean/Canadian K-Pop star Ryan, and nineteen year old, Korean/American singer/dancer/actor Ah-Ri’s story line. THE ANTI-FAN AND THE IDOL can be read as a stand alone without any difficulty. Any important information from the previous story line is revealed where necessary.
NOTE: Due to the nature of the story line premise including talk of suicide, there may be triggers for more sensitive readers.
Told from dual first person perspectives (Ryan and Ah-Ri) THE ANTI-FAN AND THE IDOL focuses on the trials and tribulations of becoming the next big K-Pop star. Ah-Ri is all out of options having failed to gain a foothold in the Korean entertainment business but one final audition brings her up close and personal with her nemesis Ryan, a young man who pushes all of our heroine’s buttons but to Ah-Ri’s surprise, Ryan offers Ah-Ri a spot in his fledgling K-Pop group, a co-ed group he is hoping to take to the top. Along with Ryan’s best friend and former K-Pop star Haneul, and dancer Jisoo, the foursome must work together in an effort to prove themselves worthy of K-Pop stardom. This is Ryan’s final attempt to make it to the top, an attempt he is doing for someone else. What ensues is the acrimonious but building relationship between Ryan and Ah-Ri, and the potential fall-out if their romance becomes public knowledge.
Relationships in the K-Pop industry are frowned upon. In fact, every aspect of their lives is guided and controlled by the people behind the scenes but Ryan and Haneul have ventured off on their own, in an effort to take control of everything they lost. Ryan and Ah-Ri’s strained relationship is exacerbated by their barely veiled and palpable sexual attraction, an attraction that will not be acceptable if the fans becomes aware. The $ex scenes are intimate and passionate without the use of over the top, sexually graphic language and text.
We are introduced to Ryan’s friend and fellow K-Pop star Haneul; Jisoo, and SWT star Sookie.
THE ANTI-FAN AND THE IDOL is a story of obsession and revelations, desperation and love. The author takes the reader behind the scenes for the making of a K-Pop star, revealing some of the adversity, rules, regulations and demands for be perfect, an industry in which many do not survive. The premise is engaging and heart breaking; the romance is impassioned; the characters are energetic, broken but healing.
Click HERE for Sandy’s review of book one MY SUMMER IN SEOUL
Copy supplied for review
Reviewed by Sandy
It sounds how I imagined it would, and I want to keep going because it feels good being in here with her, so I motion for her to keep singing her part.
She does it flawlessly.
We hit the chorus again before it goes into my rap line. I get lost in the words. Music always has a way of distracting me. The chorus pops up again.
Ah-Ri joins in and starts to dance a bit next to me.
I smile and keep singing.
We do four more takes, all of them perfect yet slightly different. By the time we finish the last one, I have so much adrenaline pumping through my system that I could record all day.
She pulls off her headphones and holds up her hand.
I make a fist and punch it lightly.
Ah-Ri throws her head back and laughs. “I guess I deserved that.”
“You really did.” I smirk, then hold up my other hand. “One last chance?”
She sets her headphones on the stand, moves in front of me, and then slowly presses her palm against mine.
Instinct takes over. My fingers slide into hers. Her smile falters as she stares at our joined hands. “Looks like our palms like a seriously long kiss.”
“A lingering kiss,” I tease, licking my lips.
“Lingering, huh?” Her eyes focus on my mouth.
This is a bad idea, my brain screams. Do not fall for your bandmate, the very one you could hate later or have to see on tour every day. In the history of bad ideas, this would be the worst.
Slowly, I pull my hand away from hers.
It falls empty at my side.
It doesn’t hurt, but it doesn’t feel good, either.
It feels like she’s missing when she’s standing right in front of me.
She stares down at her hand, then over at mine before slowly grabbing it again and pressing a kiss to my palm.
Her lips burn a hole through my skin. They create a memory with zero effort, one I’ll never escape from unless someone chops off my hand.
“You guys alive in there?” Haneul’s voice comes through the sound system. I jerk away from Ah-Ri, look through the glass, and leave the booth.
It was a moment of temporary insanity, brought on by high emotions, close proximity, and touching.
No more high-fives.
No more palm kissing.
Am I a toddler or something?
I wipe my hands on my black sweats and casually run a hand through my hair as I walk toward Haneul. Jisoo is in the corner on her phone.
Haneul smirks like he caught me making out.
It was just our hands.
Follow: Website / Facebooks / Goodreads / Twitter / Instagram
Rachel Van Dyken is the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and USA Today Bestselling author of regency and contemporary romances. When she’s not writing you can find her drinking coffee at Starbucks and plotting her next book while watching The Bachelor.
She keeps her home in Idaho with her Husband, adorable son, and two snoring boxers! She loves to hear from readers!
