I was given this book by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. I was super excited when I saw this up for grabs on net galley. I originally read The Kiss Bet on webtoons as it came out weekly so I was really happy for Ingrid Ochoa that it was actually getting published. I really enjoy her distinctive cute art style. This is a very sweet story (as well as cute art), every character has a distinct personality, even the side characters that aren't mentioned very much, which is unusual for a webcomic of this type. It's definitely a fun easy read. But that being said, there is nothing added to this from the webtoon, which is free to read. I would have liked authors notes or a little blurb at the end saying "I started writing this at this time in my life because of reasons. " or "I was inspired to write this because of blah blah blah" just so it was slightly different than the free version online.

This was such a fun read albeit hella childish. The personalities of some of the characters and their antics seemed a bit more middle school. Sara Lin was a very clueless character, in my opinion. I was a huge fan of Lulu and Subway Boy, and thought they were hilarious. Patrick’s jokester personality was quite fun too. I was low-key hoping Tammy would come out of the sidelines to date Patrick just for fun. The story was super easy to follow, and I did enjoy reading it overall, so I’ll probably end up checking out the next volume.

3.5/5 Stars

The art style was fun and the expressions conveyed were vivid, I typically don't read YA but the story and characters didn't bother me. I liked the story and the slowly parsing out of information and how things connect which felt very realistic, especially in a high school setting. I don't know if I'd continue since I don't remember how the story ended or even if there was a cliffhanger.

This was such a fun read! I absolutely adore the art style, and the story takes me right back to the awkwardness of High School and teenage crushes. What an absolute delight! I can't wait to read volume 2 when it comes out!

Summary:

Sara Lin is eighteen and still hasn’t had her first kiss. That isn’t a big deal, except for the fact that Sara can’t stop thinking about it. So she stupidly makes a bet with her best friend, Patrick, that she’ll get her first kiss before time is up.

One thing led to another, and now Sara is in a world full of drama. She embarrassed herself in front of the new kid, has a total crush on his brother, and overall is making life so much messier than it needs to be.

Review:

The Kiss Bet Volume One is a roller coaster of a read, from start to finish. I wonder what sort of chaotic adventures will happen in the second volume. (Yes, I know I could hop on Webtoons and read more right now).

This story has a lot of teenage drama, from high school woes (grades, clubs, etc.) to more personal drama (crushes, kisses, friendship issues). It’s a lot, and I mean that in a good way. Let’s be real—we were all a little extra in high school.

Sara Lin is pretty much the embodiment of extra. She feels so much, is clearly an avid fan, and is super harsh with herself. About some things, anyway. The irony of her being more upset about a kiss than her grades gave me a good chuckle (we’ve all been there, right?).

I won’t pretend I liked every character in The Kiss Bet Volume One. The story was chaotic and fun, but some of the characters drove me nuts. I’m hoping we’ll get the chance to see them grow with the series.

Highlights:
Young Adult Romance
Webtoon Comic
Teenage Drama

The Kiss Bet has all the lovely over the top Webtoon kind of tropes - and I loved it! The main character is flawed and often clueless. We ultimately are dealing with three love interests for her, two she is ultimately unaware of them being love interests. High school hijinks, funny one liners, a cast of fun characters. My personal favorite Lulu and the dad, both providing levity to the drama. I'm looking forward to volume 2!

Cute moments meet angst and hesitation as a teen tries to deal with peer pressure surrounding a first kiss.

It's Sara Lin's birthday, and she's now eighteen. While that ranks her as a full-fledged adult, her friends tease her that she's still a child, considering she hasn't even experienced her first kiss. So, she takes on a bet that she can convince a guy at the subway to kiss her...and it bombs terribly. Brushing off the embarrassment as best she can, Sara Lin heads to school and discovers that a new, cute boy has joined the class. This is a guy, which has her truly dreaming of a first kiss. The dreaming, however, doesn't help her already sinking grades, which land her in after-school tutoring hours. But when she opens the door, Mr. Subway is sitting there as her tutor. The only way Sara Lin thinks she can save herself from ultra embarrassment is to disguise her appearance, but this might not be the best plan, especially when things start running amok in several areas at once.

This is the first volume in a brand new graphic novel series, which takes a girl on her first ride through crushes and kisses. Sara Lin is a ball of positive energy (with a touch of anxiety), who is satisfied in her own skin until her friends start pressuring her. She wants to keep everyone happy but doesn't know how to deal with her own awkwardness and embarrassment. Add quirky characters, a little jealousy, and unexpected situations at all the wrong (or right) times, and it's a read with lots of good feelings, smiles, and laughs.

The author brings across the emotions with a lovely sense of naivety and lets those most touching and awkward situations come across loud and clear. It makes Sara Lin very easy to empathize with and root for as she steers through each moment with lacking finesse. The pacing is slower because of this, which means there isn't a congested or heavy plot. Rather, it's a simple, fun read to dive into and get lost in each sweet moment.

The illustrations fit the atmosphere very nicely and offer a sense of pastels and cuteness, while dipping in clashing shades to add bite when required. The frame number stays more relaxed, allowing readers to soak up each scene. There are several small jumps in time with several flashbacks tossed in, which came unannounced (except for twice(?)), and this added enough confusion that I had to go back and check to see if I caught things right.

Fans of super-sweet romcoms with school drama and a touch of triangular relationships with hesitation, uncertainty, and even a sprinkle of enemies to lovers are sure to enjoy this one quite a bit.

This was fine, and at one point in my life I definitely would have enjoyed it more. This is definitely geared to high school teens, the language is probably more towards young teens.
I did really enjoy the illustration and the story line and hope the story is successful.

I really enjoyed where the story line went. It was very creative. The illustrations were very detailed and on point. I truly enjoyed them.

The personalities of the characters were very relatable! It felt almost real life. I loved the friendships that were there. The author did a great job giving this more depth then a lot of other graphic novels. In my opinion. I am eager to continue the series and read the next one.

This was quick and kind of cute, however, the dialogue was super elementary. Calling each other weirdo chicken and little poop in 12th grade is crazyyy. The storyline was moving too quickly with dialogue that was boring because of how surface level it was.

I haven’t read a graphic novel in quite some time, but this one spoke to me when I saw it on NetGalley as an ARC and read the description. The art style also intrigued me. Given the story itself, I’m a bit out of the age group it’s meant for, but I still enjoyed it for what it was.

This is a journey for the main character, Sara, and a friendly bet between her and her friend Patrick. She has to deal with some ups and down, and some definitely embarrassing scenes, but it was a good read and I enjoyed the characters and the story.

Thank you so much, NetGalley and WEBTOON Book Group for the ARC copy!

4 ⭐️

I enjoyed this surprisingly. The art was beautiful and the story seemed to progress pretty well, though I’m not sure if the arc had skipped a few pages cause I got lost and the pages jumped a few times.

Anyways, this was funny and cute but maybe “The Kiss Bet” is a name that shouldn’t have been chosen if it was only gonna be used once in the beginning and left completely altogether. Maybe in the next volumes it’ll circle around again but it was weird that it just started with that but then didn’t go back. I’d definitely want to see where this comic goes though.

Thank you NetGalley and Wattpad Webtoon Book Group for the arc in exchange for a review. Hope to see more from this author

5 stars 🌟 🤩

The Kiss Bet is my absolute favorite webtoon!💋🩷 It's so nostalgic to reread The Kiss Bet from the beginning with the new art style. I can't wait for the physical copy! I'm so obsessed with Sara Lin and Oliver Yang!!! The piggy moments they share throughout the series (so freaking adorable!) 🐷🩷

I love witnessing the art style changing and improving. It's so beautiful 😍
I'm so glad the artist is recreating the beginning to match the rest of the comic. I really like that artist/author put the old version as thoughts/ moments with the new version. I love it! ❤️

When I started this series, I hoped that one day, it would be a physical copy in the future. It is finally happening in 2025! Shout out to Ingrid Ochoa! 🎉🎉🎉

Thanks NetGAlley for the ARC!

I loved it! It is funny and all the characters are very relatable because high school can be tough especially when your a new student or are extremely shy. I can see this being a big hit, plus everything that has been published from WEBTOON Unscrolled has been incredible and super popular with my patrons.

Sar just turned 18 and it's her senior year and she has never been kissed. She’s got great friends, a cool dad (or so he thinks), and all she needs to do is pass Calculus and try not to worry about her first kiss. That was the plan until her best friend Patrick makes a bet for her to kiss a boy, which doesn't end well but may lead to love, heartbreak, or embarrassment…or maybe all three. Sara Lin wants it to be special even if her friends don't agree with her.

Along the way, as Sarah explores her relationship options with three different boys, she discovers that life isn't a fairytale and romance is inherently complex. It's messy and complicated, but boy, it sure can be fun.

super cute, fun, shojo read! despite having similar story lines to other books, this felt different. I adored the banter and the art was fantastic and funny. miss girl has three potential options for bfs and doesn't even know it! i'm looking forward to the next volume!

This feels like a whole new book, with all the art being updated to fit the newer art style Ingrid has out done herself. I’m reeled back in the same way I was when the story was being updated weekly on Webtoon. The colors are vibrant, the line art is crisp and the characters are just as charming as ever. This is such a cute and wholesome read for teens and young adults, I highly recommend this book and look forward to picking it up to add to my shelf in the near future!

This was a fun and quick manga! Highly recommend if you want something that’s guaranteed to make you laugh
i can’t wait to read the next instalment!

This book was a great read! The story had a great pace and the characters were well developed. It was very easy to get sucked into the story and in just a few sittings, I was done reading the book!

The Kiss Bet follows Sara Lin, a high school senior who has not had her first kiss. On a bet, she approaches Oliver in the subway and asks to kiss him. After denying her, they realize they are neighbors and Oliver is her math tutor. Sara begins crushing on Joe who turns out to be Oliver's older brother. Patrick, Sara's friend, keeps betting her that she won't telo Oliver who she is or Joe that she likes him. As Sara gets closer to Oliver, she finds herself connecting more with Oliver and distancing herself from Patrick.

The Kiss Bet was a cute high school story. Sara was a relatable character who keeps trying to avoid embarassing situations. She is too scared to do things that would make her happy, but her friend Patrick keeps pushing her. The story seems to be setting up for a large love triangle. The story was silly high school fun. I enjoyed the characters and it was a wonderful diversion.

This was SO cute! I love the main character, she's such a doofus, but in the way that I, too, am a doofus. The style ROCKS, and works nicely in the book format. I'm looking forward to adding a copy to my shelf when it releases, and more importantly I'm looking forward to continuing on with the series.
4.5 ★ rounded up