Name: Chloe and the Kaishao Boys
Rating: 3.846153846153846 (13 reviews)

Mae Coyiuto

Chloe and the Kaishao Boys

because I was hooked, i was eager to finish this in one sitting and i did! there is a chinese-filipino representation and some moments are the things i found relatable, like the family and relatives expectations. I loved the slow burn between Chlo and the best Kaishao Boy! I was silently squealing in every kilig moments and the moment she was getting kilig and the kilig smile! I loved that the author added some Tagalog words that make me smile more. I loved her friendship with Cia and her relationship with her parents (that needs improvements). It's always the best to take a leap of faith and always tell the truth. I loved it, super loved it. It's such an adorable read. I guess she never needs a man to stop her from chasing her dreams.

stephie

The butterflies this gave me were overwhelming!!! 

Kicking blankets, punching pillows, squealing at inhuman pitches kind of overwhelming! 

A heart-warming coming-of-age novel about young love at the threshold of young adulthood, appropriately taking place in the lead up to Chloe's 18th birthday celebration, known to Filipinos as her debut. In need of filling 3 more spots in the 18 roses portion of her debut program (18 men from your life that offer a rose in exchange for a dance), Chloe's aunt not-so-subtly sets the poor girl up on kaishaos - Hokkien for some good old fashioned matchmaking! 

This was truly a fun read. It reminded me of my own debut preparations, the anxious weighty life decisions with college around the corner, and the downright painful awkwardness of first love. I love these kinds of stories. Can't help but look back and smile.

joana ashley

The butterflies this gave me were overwhelming!!! 

Kicking blankets, punching pillows, squealing at inhuman pitches kind of overwhelming! 

A heart-warming coming-of-age novel about young love at the threshold of young adulthood, appropriately taking place in the lead up to Chloe's 18th birthday celebration, known to Filipinos as her debut. In need of filling 3 more spots in the 18 roses portion of her debut program (18 men from your life that offer a rose in exchange for a dance), Chloe's aunt not-so-subtly sets the poor girl up on kaishaos - Hokkien for some good old fashioned matchmaking! 

This was truly a fun read. It reminded me of my own debut preparations, the anxious weighty life decisions with college around the corner, and the downright painful awkwardness of first love. I love these kinds of stories. Can't help but look back and smile.

★★★★ // “i’m only on the brink of liking someone right now, and it already feels overwhelming. it feels like it takes so much to reach the point of loving someone. and if you get there — if you find a person worthy of the magnitude of the word love — how are you supposed to give that up?”

— i needed another light read and i am glad i picked up this book. it’s been a while since i really enjoyed a young adult genre. written by a Filipino and set in the Philippines, with Chinese-Filipino characters and all the notes of heartwarming family moments. the humor is top notch too. traffic is hell these days so i would read this during bus rides to work and it takes everything not to laugh out loud in public. 

the romance is sweet too and done with care. i love that Chloe had all these experiences of dealing with confusing feelings, getting kilig over a crush, and slowly coming to terms with what her heart really wants. i’m so happy she chose the one i was rooting for and it did not get unnecessarily complicated. plus the resolution to the romantic dilemma was also done just right.

i did feel that the book had too many pop culture references, and it got a bit crowded at one point. but the reference i loved most were the ones about Got 2 Believe because (1) it really fit right in to the story, and (2) it is my ultimate fave romcom and only the best romcom of all time so i am biased. seriously though, the story made great use of its reference to G2B.

there is no clear cut sign that tells us clearly what love is. sometimes it just happens when you least expect it, and it’s a nice surprise. sometimes it’s as simple as discovering something new about the people you’ve always had around you and you realize how much they support and love you too. it’s a never-ending process, really. i think the point is you just find more ways to express your love so that it is felt and understood.

Kweh Quiambao

I have judged this book by its cover. It's giving multiple love interests and messy situations. It might be too cheesy for me (and I hate judging books for that when I am not a young adult myself). I am glad the blurb and the reviews by other PH booktokers pulled me in 🙌🏼.

Okay this book is very kilig and I'd like to stay in this bubble for a long time. I am now a big fan, Mae Coyiuto!

I now appreciate how vague the blurb was when it comes to the boys she was kaishao-ed (set up on a date) with. We don't know who Chloe will like the most or if she will end up with any of them. As for me I've been rooting for her and _____ since the beginning but was constantly anxious at the same time. I had no guarantee that it's them til the end. It's not just Chloe who gets shocked by the revelations, but us too. This added uncertainty is exactly what it's like to fall in love. 🥺

The FilChi representation was also great. It felt like a celebration and an exploration of how much their family love each other, and their own ways in expressing it. I was surprised at how much I loved the debut party they threw for Chloe, as someone who hates attention.

Lastly, I think the best part about this was Chloe's friendship with Cia. Their friendship was always priority. How lucky 👯‍♀️. 

Full Review

i already expected this to be a cute, lighthearted read, but i was still pleasantly surprised with how heartfelt the story ended up being. although marketed as a contemporary YA rom-com, it also explored cultural family dynamics in tandem with coming to terms with chloe's coming-of-age, which i think was an important aspect to have given that the setting is in manila. it was definitely a refreshing take on growing up and Finding One's Self and i appreciated the handling of nuances regarding ethnicity vs nationality and other difficulties filipinos and filipino-chinese communities sometimes clash on. but what really endeared me is how i could tell that this work was written with filipinos in manila in mind—us being the target audience for once. the code switching and mixing of different languages (tagalog, english, and hokkien) in one conversation, the typical catholic values that hold up with older generations (setting up a date on sunday mass! nakakaloka), and just. it reminded me so much of being a teenager (even though i didn't have any kaishaos or half the romantic experiences chloe did, lol) in the best ways possible. it was more heartwarming than i expected mostly because coyiuto gave a lot of heart within her characters and made them shine in their own ways, while still grounding them with shortcomings that they had to work through. i would have loved having a book like this when i was still in high school and then pretend to be indifferent to it while actually getting kilig in reality lmao it was really fun being able to read this! and it's one of those works i can easily see being adapted into a film, directed by cathy garcia-molina, most likely. <3

Chloe and the Kaishao Boys

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