This was an insanely fun read !! I loved the relationship shown in the book, the characters were interesting and overall the book kept me entranced throughout the entire novel. Pacing could use a little help but it did not deter me from reading this book in one sitting.

Didn't See That Coming is a young adult romance fiction that revolves around Kiki Siregar, the cousin of the protagonist of Jesse Q. Sutanto's previous novel Well, That Was Unexpected, who unexpectedly moves to a prestigious, elite school and struggles to navigate through the rigid rules and wrong impressions, adding with the fact that her online gaming friend Sourdawg turns out to be one of the students there. While she's excited about that info, she's also nervous about it—why? Because her online friend knows her as a guy through her online gaming persona.

Compared to the previous novel, which singularly focuses on the worst side of social media and online presence, Sutanto attempts to blend a few sensitive issues that this current generation of youth is much more aware of than older generations. In general, those issues gravitate towards challenging misogyny and sexism in an academic setting as well as the social media sphere, including how social stratum also affects casual aggression without real accountability that follows through the offense.

While it's subtle, the narrative shift marks Sutanto's growth as a writer; she used to bring up issues that speak to her as a Chinese-Indonesian woman, as evident in her debut Dial A For Aunties, and now she could balance between topics that point out the discrepancies of being a woman in Chinese-Indonesian culture and universally speak on the experiences beyond one ethnicity. Another growth to be highlighted is the more orderly narrative structure implemented in this novel, especially when it's noted that Sutanto inputs quite diverse themes in the story.

In regards to the main characters of the novel, I notice that Sutanto has a penchant for pairing an assertive female main character with a soft and slightly introverted male main character; we have seen similar types of women from Meddelin (from Dial A For Aunties) to Sharlot Citra (Well, That Was Unexpected) to Kiki Siregar in this novel. Singling out the latter two, Sutanto also aims to use her female main characters as mediums of change, using the fearlessness in their characterization to embolden female empowerment, hence fulfilling her aim to challenge misogyny and sexism.

However, while her character arc in bringing justice for her and her female school peers deserves applause, I am less enthused with her almost nonexistent character development—sure that she has experienced unfortunate events, but the way they resolute feels too smooth and easy for her that there's no visible development in characterization. The only time that I believe has a slight maturation is when she does her final confrontation against her bullies and the entire school, in which she manages to face them head-on while managing her composure instead of physically acting recklessly.

Liam is the excellent antithesis of Kiki, perfectly settling himself as a blend of George Tanuwijaya (Well, That Was Unexpected) and Nathan (Dial A For Aunties) in terms of characterization. I find that his character has more development than Kiki's despite his arc being more or less an extension of hers. One of the characteristics that I appreciate from Liam is that he doesn't overreact as soon as Kiki's truth is revealed, in the sense he does not judge her so badly or quickly accept and forgive anything without consequences—Sutanto gives him time to assess everything before he has to give her a response. That scene shows his developing maturity and assertiveness, a contrast to his character introduction as a boy who cowers and follows Jonas like an obedient puppy.

How about Jonas Arifin as the adversary in this novel? His characterization is unmistakably stereotypical, compiling numerous dominant traits of misogyny into one person. I feel like this character-writing is intentionally one-dimensional, which Sutanto purposely exploits to show how misogyny is no longer acceptable in physical and online spaces, including gaming spaces. Sutanto is visibly gleeful in humiliating this character at the end of the day as if it is a way for her to vent out over similar incidents that she might've stumbled upon in real life.

Kiki's parents are typical Asian parents, especially when we note how they perceive success, education, and romance. However, one thing that I just find to be quite surreal is the fact that her parents are empathetic enough towards Kiki to apologize for their mistake—I wish this is a normal thing to do in an Asian household because it is not, particularly when the child is a female. But a girl can dream, right?

When it comes to the conclusion, it is satisfying to see that sexism and unfair treatment in academic settings are exposed, and Sutanto creates an empowering feeling through the mass resistance that demands a change. But the conclusion between Liam and Kiki seems a bit rushed—I don't think that Liam and Kiki have built enough chemistry with each other in real life (not online space) to date each other when they just get to know each other in such a short time and haven't really explored anything outside of game-related stuff, Jonas, the severe harassment that Kiki receives, and the weird culture in their school.

Nonetheless, is the book worth reading? If you want to find a quick, light reading in the romance genre, Didn't See That Coming is a perfect choice to spend your leisure time in spite of a few flaws. You don't even have to read the first book (Well, That Was Unexpected) despite some characters from the previous one showing up here. So, overall, it's absolutely recommended.

A great take on "You've got mail"

It was fun and enjoyable to read

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for this review copy and the opportunity !

Is it possible that I am finally aging out of YA? Maybe! This was painfully YA - all conflict could have been solved by one dedicated sit down conversation, and it felt like Sutanto wanted to discuss all the social ills applicable to the character's lives. This led to a scattershot approach where nothing was handled delicately or with any nuance. I did like the diversity in characters, but I wish the characters felt more developed.

This book was a little too young for me. I think I would have enjoyed it a few years back. It still was a cute read. It was a light read while covering some heavy topics. A quick, fun read.

I thought this was a really cute story and loved the twist on the "You Got Mail" type of story. I've really been loving all of the books that have come out lately centered around girls in gaming and think this one really hit it out of the park. I really enjoyed that the author didn't leave the main couple in the disagreement/not talking phase for too long. Also, the main male love interest? Walking green flag. I did not like Jonas and wish he would have had more consequences than he did but sadly the ending for him was somewhat realistic.

I wanted to love this but it’s not for me ! But I think a younger YA reader would eat this up. I just could t relate and just felt like I didn’t fit. Weird to describe but I think my teen daughter would enjoy it

An enjoyable novel that was an easy read. I would recommend this one. I look forward to reading more books by this author.

I really liked the other book I read by Jesse but this one just didn't hit the same. I was expecting more and because of that I felt a little let down. however it was still cute and if you are a teen this would prob be right up your ally.

This was really cute and fun to read. it brought up a lot of the stigma of women/girl gamers in such a great way for the young audience. the plot was so fun as well. i enjoyed the characters and their interactions. wished it was longer but overall a delight.

Kiki Siregar is a confident and self-assured gamer who plays with a male-sounding tag because she's tired of the abuse she gets when she plays as a girl. She makes a friend in one game that's all that's keeping her sane during her first days at a new, hyper-conservative, and misogynistic school. Can her self-esteem and friendship survive the abuse and discoveries that the new school has in store for her?

It's a 3.5 read because it's too much a typical outspoken teen in a restrictive environment story but it also has some excellent messaging about standing up for yourself and not letting others dictate your life.

Kiki has to go through some awful bullying and there were times when I wanted to scream at how unhelpful almost everyone around her was. Be warned that if you were bullied or know someone who suffered through it, this feels a little too real.

Aside from the harshness of the bullying and the self-esteem issues, it has some super fun and emotional moments that help Kiki become more empathetic and likable because she is honestly a little too full of herself in the beginning. There's being self-assured and being a brat, and she honestly feels more like the second for the first part of the book. I would have preferred character growth that didn't necessitate her going through the awful things she eventually goes through, but I do appreciate how it mimics the sad reality some kids face.

Happy thanks to NetGalley and Delacorte Press for the read!

I absolutely adored this lovely and fresh YA romance and really appreciated the character details and the writing style!

Perfect YA romance! The characters were amazing and I loved watching their love grow, especially because I felt connected through the characters being gamers like me!

Regrettably, I didn't enjoy this book. I found it very cringeworthy. While it touched on issues like misogyny and bullying, the writing left much to be desired, appearing more suited for middle school audiences. The main character's immaturity and disrespect toward her parents made her so annoying. The plot didn't help either, it's so predictable. The relationship between Liam and Kiki felt weak, and the insta-love was unconvincing. Additionally, the rushed ending made it feel odd.

Thank you to Netgalley and Random House Children's for the e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Random House Children's | Delacorte Press for providing this book in exchange for an honest review.

It is YA and geared towards that age group. I think late middle school and high school students would like this. I had to go into reading this knowing that. The gaming plot line is perfect for the younger crowd today. I guess I should preface that there is mature content for underage drinking, sexual harassment, innuendo, and mentions of drugs, sexting, sex, and rape. The violence content is for video game fantasy violence and mentions of murder.

I found it to be a cute YA romance.

honestly, this book is not the best from the author, it was a dnf for me, but i will finish it later! however, i do think this book is geared towards more younger audience which i am not, so take that into consideration when reading this review!

Jesse Sutanto's books are kind of a hit or miss for me, but this was a wholesome one, albeit unrealistic. I mean what are the odds you meet your video game friend IRL? I don't know. The romance didn't do it for me, but if I were not judging on that aspect, I'd say it was a wholesome cute read..

I love any sort of identity shenanigans in a story, so I was really intrigued by this premise. The gaming/Sourdawg plotline did take a bit of a backseat to the whole sexism/bullying plotline, which makes sense considering that was the main source of Kiki's growth. I just wish the two could've worked together a little better.

When I found out there was a companion novel to Well that was Unexpected, I was so excited! Thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for this e-galley. All thoughts are my own.

Set in the same beautiful Indonesia backdrop, this book follows Kiki and her secret life as a gamer online. Elements of You've Got Mail are peppered throughout the book which deals with catfishing, secret identities, fake dating and bullying.

To be honest, I felt the portrayal of entitled teenagers to be spot on and their characterization was full and not stereotypical.

This tackles a lot of heavy themes in a fresh way with humor and grit.

Didn’t See that Coming by Jesse Q. Sutanto, 320 pages. Delacorte Press (Random House), 2023. $13.
Language: R (290 swears, 20 “f”); Mature Content: PG13; Violence: PG
BUYING ADVISORY: HS - OPTIONAL
AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE
When Kiki’s parents make her switch Chinese schools, she’s confident that she’ll be able to make new friends and get along with her teachers like she did at her last school, but her first day goes terribly—she becomes known as “Crazy Kiki.” The only bright side is that Kiki’s online gaming friend, Sourdawg, tells her that he also goes to that school. If Kiki can find her friend, then maybe she’ll survive the strict school and her standoffish classmates.
When Kiki switches schools, the shockingly different environment is hard for her to handle, and she loses herself. As pieces of Kiki’s personality fall away in order to fit into the new group, Kiki’s happiness decreases and she isolates herself. This downward spiral is easy to get caught up in—it’s as easy in real life as it is in Kiki’s story. As Kiki gains the courage to reclaim her confidence and sense of self, readers can learn from her strength. The dramatization of this process is entertaining, but it still offers hope.
Most of the characters are implied Chinese Indonesian, Liam is half Singaporean, and Cassie is part of the LGBT community. The mature content is for underage drinking, sexual harassment, innuendo, and mentions of drugs, sexting, sex, and rape. The violence content is for video game fantasy violence and mentions of murder.
Reviewer: Carolina Herdegen