⊂⊃. a spoiler free review

Jenna Chen isn't your typical lovable main character. She is tattered with jealousy, a choking artist, driven and blinded by a longing to be anything but herself. Her world revolves around her, until only her pain and struggle exists. Until one day, her world begins to revolve around her perfect cousin she longed to be. Because she was her. She was Jessica Chen.

꒰🎨𓂃 4.4 stars
⤷ This may be my favorite Ann Liang book yet !! I have read all her YA books now, and while each one has been wonderful to read, I Am Not Jessica Chen has been the most relatable and lovable of all. Yes, as I always do in romance novels, I have cringed a few times, and as overthinking female characters go, I have been frustrated a few times. Yet the character development and the cohesive execution of an intriguing premise made up for it.

⊹₊⁺ "Not great. Not terrible. Just suffocatingly average."

⌗ plot<
The story has been interesting throughout. I did not find a particular section especially dull, and every chapter served the plot. The book was well paced, and I enjoyed the plot! I am beginning to find Ann Liang's usual plot devices a little repetitive though. Otherwise, I had no complaints about the cohesive and intriguing plot line. I especially loved how Jenna's choices effected the world enveloped around her.

⌗ characters
Everything about this hurt. I absolutely love Janna Chen. Her character development has been phenomenal in this book. I felt so much and it was as though I was watching a deep, immersive movie of her growth. She was also very relatable and unique. She is most likely my favorite out of all of Ann Liang's girls, all of whom I've grown to love. She was so painfully real, trying, but never there, longing to be anything but herself. While Jenna's complexity and growth was mind blowing, I did find other characters slightly lacking in depth. It was odd in that I logically saw the complexity in nearly every character yet it felt like something crucial was missing in the presentation of their development that didn't quite reach me the way Jenna did. I wish we had seen more of how Jessica changed with her part of the experience.

⌗ setting
Jenna and Jessica are both immigrants in a foreign setting, both from the same family, yet even their daily lives contrast as though they are from different worlds entirely. This element hit me the hardest, along with the general lesson of the story, that you never really know what is going on in someone's life until you are in their shoes. The atmosphere almost felt distant, not in a bad way, but in a way that I could feel the cold and the loneliness Jenna felt. <i>(Wow my review is literally just vibes no explanation lol)</i>

⌗ writing style
Ann Liang's writing is always easy to read and immersive to what is happening now. It's not exactly the super-atmospheric-poetic-over-garnished style I usually read, but I have no complaints!

⌗ personal enjoyment
I absolutely loved this book. I could have given it five stars and the only reason why it doesn't is just that I simply don't love romance driven books, but that is just my personal taste. This is, however, so much more than just a young adult romance novel. I have so intimately related to the characters and the plot, and the story was cohesive and driven. I loved it so much and it is my favorite Ann Liang novel (for now)! I would recommend this to EVERYONE. Will be my new most recommended Ann Liang!

꒰🎨𓂃 Please note that this reviewed is completely based on personal experience and taste! Thank you Netgalley & Harper Teen for providing me with an e-ARC. Thank you for reading this review

Another perfect Ann Liang book!! She crafted a wonderful story, and I can't wait for the rest of the world to read this amazing book!🫶🏼

4.5 stars - Ann Liang EXCELS at writing contemporary fiction, academic tension/rivals, with a hint of magic. And I’m so glad she hasn’t given it up. I Am Not Jessica Chen is darker in tone than Liang’s other works. It really explores the consequences of never being satisfied and getting so caught up in perfection you can’t recognize the amazing aspects of your life.

This book is basically a deep dive into Jenna’s character and how her mind functions. We get to see up close how hard she tries to be perfect and how much resentment she holds for always falling short. Her self-hatred is a huge part of the plot and it is easy to empathize with her. Not all the side characters are fleshed out though because the plot doesn’t rely on the ensemble.

My small critique is that there were some unresolved issues in my opinion. The way Jenna’s parents pressure her and put her down is never addressed. Her dad in particular said some crazy stuff and it is never revisited.

I know Liang has another YA contemporary coming out soon and I’m so eager to dive in! They are really her bread and butter.

❝because i don't want a quiet life. i want a brilliant one.❞

MY GOD, what a book!

(thank you to the publishers for the digital ARC! book is out january 28th)

prefacing this review by saying that this book was quite literally made for me-- i'm an asian-american immigrant and though i never attended such a cutthroat school as the one in the book, i've constantly measured myself against everyone else AND have been used as the measure itself.

i think, simply put, this book IS the asian-american experience. it deals a lot with the pressure cooker environment that often manifests in asian-american communities (model minority ftw). liang captured the nuances of these communities SO WELL, from the aunties always insisting that "oh, you really shouldn't have" to the parents showing love through food. i really think that this book did so well with the inticracies of the first-gen asian-american experience. there were plenty of moments that i had to pause because it just hit REALLY hard. it was so so easy to connect my own experiences to the characters.

liang starts the book out with a preface about how she hopes readers see themselves in the characters, whether you be a jessica or a jenna (i'm a jenna). the characters are so wonderfully done and have so much depth, even with the little screen time some have, that it's so easy to connect with them.

i identified a lot with jenna's need for success and her almost tunnel vision on achieving such success (❝that's the one thing i've worked for my entire life-- to be someone who matters❞). i saw myself in jessica's desperation to keep up with appearances, as well as her burnout. the hypercompetitive environment of the school really lends to a beautifully tragic depiction of gifted kid burnout that i think a lot of people will identify with in some way or another. at the end of the day, these characters are a product of their environment and i was able to see how said environment led to their positive and negative traits.

side note, i really liked the relationships jenna (as jessica and herself) formed, as she approached each relationship with a lot of empathy. i think she was such a great main character. i was rooting for her but i was also so so frustrated with some of her choices, despite seeing where she was coming from. i loved her little self-discovery arc throughout the novel and think we could all learn from it.

her and aaron were super cute! the romance fit in really well with the speculative fiction plot and added to it vs. drawing away from it, though i did feel that it was heavy-handed at times but who cares when it delivers banger after banger (❝how did you know i bought the hat?❞ ❝you mentioned it once❞).

my ONE gripe is so so small that i wouldn't take away a star but i do wish that the racism that jenna faces, which eventually leads to the climax of her character development, was weaved in a little better throughout the story as i felt that it was so abrupt. i think more could have been added to the story if liang explored the racism that asian-americans face despite being the model minority a little more, even if it was something as simple as adding a few instances of microaggressions to build up to the eventual climax of the story.

overall, 10/10 would recommend. i cried over this. this truly is 'my tears ricochet' coded. if you are: the eldest daughter, a first-gen student, an immigrant, and/or asian-american, prepare for tears. but even if you aren't, i think you'll find something that resonates with yoh in this story :)

my issue with this book is, well actually, a lot of things. i love ann liang (ok i really do!) but here are the issues i had w this book ranging from serious to completely stupid/"did u put this in here to trigger me” anyways just a little venting review that i will delete later and write a better analysis once the book is published because…i don’t want to spoil anything? so here are my unsolicited opinions!

hi. if ur dream school is harvard. u REA to harvard! i hope this helps. no but geninuely why were jenna and jessica talking about harvard as if it were like their top college, “when we get older, we’ll study at harvard while aaron studies at yale!” type situation? only for both of them to rd? (hey this is just an inference bc she mentions getting penn rejection before and you can’t ed penn and rea harvard so im assuming she rd'ed both also most decisions come out in march/by april 1st.) (“la la maybe she didn’t want to commit anywhere la la" hey rea is NON BINDING BY THE WAY and yale, stanford (I KNOW ITS NOT AN IVY), princeton, harvard are all REA...) anyways that was minor plot hole that bothered me a lot (because i am me and i get mad about little things but also because i feel like college discussion and expectation is a large focus of this book!! if it weren’t, maybe i would be a pure hater)

before people point fingers at me and call me elitist. a line of defense from me! please! if u get rejected from an ivy league…or GOD FORBID! deferred! waitlisted! it says nothing about your genius but just the fact that hey maybe you don’t align with the college’s values or hey 4% is a crazy acceptance rate. literally just this week, watched the brightest, smartest, sweetest, most driven (most definitely better than jessica chen) girls get deferred from an ivy league. (as in think about the smartest person you know now the kindest person you know now the hardest working people you know) so what? their loss! like im out here upset because some of the most qualified people i know got rejected from their top schools, yes! and i stand by that because i just watched these people crawl out of the literal trenches! i am not going to be upset if someone I LIKE (yeah i will be boo’ing when bad people get into schools because WDYM ur letting in a girl who tried to out another girl like that IS NOT a girl’s girl!) gets in like…i won’t even feel “ugh that should be me” because tbh college acceptance is the same thing as watching someone take an exam with makeup streaming down their faces, 5 GSW around vital organs, and a tissue in hand and still ace the exam! like maybe i am the issue because i am fortunate enough not to have a toxic friend group where everyone is competitive enough that insecurity over colleges is such a trivial thing.

lso very sick of seeing assumptions like ur smart/hard working = u get in NO this is so false like im so sick of it. this isn't 20 years ago when a 1550+ can get u into a good school or like wow you are the school president! harvard here you go!!!!

ALSO, let’s stop pretending T20’s aren’t good schools…because hey princesses…MIT is not an ivy league and it is insane. i could go on! CMU, CalTech, Stanford, Duke…also difficult liberal arts schools let’s talk about that too! swarthmore, haverford, bowdoin, amherest all <10% acceptance rate and you want to tell me that those aren’t schools worth applying to?(obviously don’t apply to all of them because…that’s a lot of $$…as in 10 schools can easily be around $750 btw) also like aside from them being hard to get into maybe have we considered that maybe its not the college but the things we do in college...ok. like IM JUST SAYING! JHU's BME is #1 and it's not an ivy but also very competitive. also resources at schools differ so it really kinda depends on YOU???????

also, hi! if u r applying to college? apply for target schools that you would actually want to go to? maybe i am the issue but i thought this was common sense... the way jenna says “i applied to all the ivys and safeties im too embarrassed to name...” if i said to apply to schools you know you want to go to and then apply to schools your parents want you to go to…then i am the mad woman in the attic...also all the ivys and then nameless safeties is CRAZY!! like hey friends, there are schools in between ivy leagues and community college…hope this helps everyone…

also if u don't like a school why would you apply...other than for prestige or parental figures saying you have to...

and obviously everyone has different opinions about college but this is just My take based off My experience…anyways i think about how i would have a field day on reddit every single day…going a tangent so next point which is

free my sister jessica chen! don’t tell me jenna just basks in her glory without feeling any of her suffering?

i feel like we think smart people just are. and sure! sure! sure, there are those 1% of people who are just genius, who just do and get results. but most of the people we admire in school for being smart or being “cracked” (or even 卷 if u have a chinese mother like me) just work so hard. im so serious when the harder people work, the more people hate on them. “oh she cries when she gets a b” “oh i hope she doesn’t get into her dream school, i hope she gets humbled” like imagine your standard for success being so high, its a fight to just breathe and then you have these people who don’t half of what you do just hating on you? like ok anyways…

so many instances i want to break down and things i wish i received from this book but OKAY! i will wait until January.

before everyone and their mothers comes after me, i am not underestimating jenna. i do think her feelings are universal and valid. i am not erasing her need for validation and the weight of parental expectation. i also am not saying that hard work = results. because it really doesn’t! you can put 100% into studying and get a C. i am also saying that she didn’t have a good character arc…very underdeveloped in my opinion! jenna you deserve so much better writing because this is every immigrant girl at one point in her life and i feel like it just doesn’t Reflect.

don’t let me speak on the romance.

3.5 Stars

Thank you NetGalley, Ann Liang and HarperCollins Children's Books/HarperCollins for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Thoughts:
“It doesn’t even matter–” “It does matter. You matter,”

If you are looking for dark academia, I won’t say this is it. If you are looking for a coming of age, light academia story with a touch of romance, and an fmc, Jenna, who is learning to love herself, then look no further.

In simple terms:
Writing? Stunning
Style? Instantly recognizable as Ann Liang’s style. None out there that is like it and I love it!
Characters? Not complex but relatable
Tropes? Predictable but cute
Romance? [She falls first, but he falls harder.] Truthfully it is lovely, but I wanted more butterflies and backstory. There is more tell than show for the love aspect. But boy does our mmc, Aaron, know how to make a girl swoon when it comes to declarations.
Friendships/side-characters? Very sidenote, and felt incomplete when it came to Jenna’s family and friends. We had more from “Jessica’s” side, but still felt like the story wasn’t finished or that something was missing in terms of the side characters mentioned with our main character, Jenna.
Plot? Well done, but gave me déjà vu because I definitely felt a sense of familiarity and similarity to things I’ve seen and read before. However, this was still a fresh take with a more modern touch.

I Am Not Jessica Chen is truly YA at its finest. The pressures of growing up are not to be taken lightly, and learning to love yourself does not come easy for everyone (especially when looking in comparison to others). The themes in this book are handled gorgeously. I like that our main character, Jenna, wasn’t perfect or perfect-in-disguise and just believing that she wasn’t. She had flaws, was selfish at times, and so very human, but also lovely, caring, and just navigating being a teenager. One additional aspect of this story I loved was that our author gives us is that even when the answers are staring you in the face, sometimes it is still hard to know what to do, make yourself face it and really do what you must.
Ultimately, I wanted a little more from this book (like I did with I Hope This Doesn’t Find You) and that is because I already have an expectation and adoration of Ann Liang’s work, but I am still very satisfied with it.This story delivers a beautiful message that AL dealt with delicately while also not hiding the difficulties. I would have loved to have read this book when I was a teen, and I hope that younger audiences take a chance on this. I know no matter what age I am or will be, I am still a forever sucker for Ann Liang, and will always read anything that she comes out with.

Always know that you matter. You are enough.

Quotes:
“The world just felt smaller with you … Or maybe you have a way of making the world feel bigger. I missed you. I’d miss you everywhere I went”

“I’ll be here, always.”

“Because I don’t want a quiet life, I want a brilliant one,” I say at last. “Because I need to know what it’s like to win. To be the best.”

‘I’ve always had this theory that if I want something badly enough, the universe will make sure to keep it just out of my reach–either out of boredom, or cruelty, like an invisible hand dangling stars on a string.’

‘the moral of the story was that sometimes you have to be a little cruel to yourself, that sometimes pain is necessary if you want to succeed. That’s what we do isn’t it? We turn pain into a story, because then it has a purpose. Then, we reason, there was a point to it along. But sometimes pain is just pain, and there’s nothing particularly noble about clinging to it’

‘It’s so easy to fall into the assumption that anything someone else gains is something you lose. To think of success as some lavish party with only a limited number of invites. To convince yourself that if you could only make it to a certain point in the distance, you’ll finally find a place to rest. To feel like there’s always more that you can do. But I mean, look what’s being done to us–to our self-esteem, to our pride, to our bodies. We’re all exhausted and on the verge of breaking down at any second and somehow . . . somehow we’re expected to just keep going.’

“I just need to know if you’re safe.”


“You know you’re my weakness”

“You think you can get rid of me so easily?”

‘I miss myself’

“you’re all I’ve ever wanted,” he says, quiet. Perfect. “It’s always been you. It can only be you.”

Would I recommend this and to who:
Yes, to fans of Ann Liang already, to YA lovers, and to those who are trying to find their place in this world
Paperback/Hardcover/Audiobook/E-book:
E-Book
Pace:
Fast/Medium
Triggers:
Racism, Abandonment, Classism, Mention of Death of a Parent, Injury, Grief, etc.

the way this book had me crying on the couch for over an hour is simply rude!

full review to come on youtube (once this book is published :)) ~

SPOILERS AHEAD

the characters
I adored our characters. Everyone had their flaws, and it made them that much more real. I loved Jenna so much, and felt incredibly connected to her. Her character growth was admirable, and I also felt realistic for a 17/18 yo girl.

Aaron was so cute. I really liked Jessica (lowkey wish we got more of her post-body switch). Celine and Leela were very interesting characters. They're friendship dynamic with Jessica was very interesting to dive into. And surprisingly, I didn't mind Cathy. Yeah, she definitely irked me at times BUT you know if <spoiler>someone stole my thesis idea</spoiler> I'd be out for vengeance too.

the plot:
this plot was so emotional. I don't think it was the MOST original with the whole wishing you were someone else b/c of how envious you are of them, BUT I thought miss Ann did a great job of illustrating the emotions behind it.

It was fast-paced which I enjoyed and I'm glad Jenna didn't easily turn back. The fact that despite she struggled as Jessica but STILL preferred her life than to her original life... I felt was very real and an interesting mindset to explore.

The romance was cute too! I'm actually glad the romance was much more of a subplot.

the book cover:
beautiful. stunning. 10/10.

this might be my favorite ann liang book ???

----------------

thank you net gallery for the arc! xoxo

Jenna Chen and Aaron Cai
As an Asian-American girl in her early 20s who expresses herself through art and perfectionism, this book was like looking into a mirror. I Am Not Jessica Chen is a compelling heartfelt exploration of identity, belonging, and the complexities of cultural expectations. Ann Liang dives into the suffocating weight of familial pressures and aspirations and its effects on a teenage girl who already struggles with self-doubt, imposter syndrome, and the fear of failure.

This book is "this is me trying" x academia featuring a burnt out perfectionist, a failing art student, and the quiet prodigy. Jenna Chen wishes to have the perfect life, a perfect family, and a perfect future— just like her cousin, Jessica Chen. However, Jenna quickly learns how imperfect her cousin's life is once she steps into her shoes. Upholding Jessica's seemingly pristine outward appearance may be the most difficult challenge she faces yet. Jenna loses herself in the glory of being Harvard-bound and the top of her class. While she strives to keep Jessica's grades up, maintain her friendships, and family obligations— she finds that the girl she used to be is quickly slipping away.

This story embraces the she falls first he falls harder trope so so well, I had the best time uncovering Aaron's true feelings towards Jenna through his actions. Through it all, the most satisfying part is Jenna realizing that there is somebody who already loves her as she is. All she has to do is see that she is already the perfect daughter, the perfect student, and the perfect girl for Aaron Cai.

"I was so ahead of the curve, the curve became a sphere
Fell behind all my classmates, and I ended up here"
- Taylor Swift

If you relate to these lyrics— this book is for you.
If you're a burnt out overachiever— this book is for you.
If you're a mirrorball— this book is for you.
This book is a tribute to the girls who who feel like imposters or outsiders in every room.

I cannot wait for I Am Not Jessica Chen to be released and I hope you love it as much as I did. In the meantime I will be patiently awaiting Ann Liang's next release, Never Thought I'd End Up Here. Lastly, I would like to thank the author, publisher, and Netgalley for this ARC.

Jenna Chen has been living in her cousin Jessica‘s shadow for their entire lives. After getting rejected from all of the Ivy League colleges she applied to, she wishes she could be Jessica—only to wake up the next morning to discover her wish came true. Now, Jenna must deal with the consequences of her desires before she is forgotten entirely.

This is a relatively relatable occurrence in a lot of Asian people’s lives: constantly being compared to some relative’s (no matter how distant) achievements and sometimes wishing you could be them instead. Ann Liang has taken this to a new level in I Am Not Jessica Chen because what would happen if your wish came true? Would you enjoy actually living someone else’s life or would it just solve your problems and create different ones?

While this probably isn’t my favorite of Ann Liang’s books, I still enjoyed it a lot. It’s easy to understand Jenna’s deep-seated jealousy and anxiety; her parents have always raised her to be like her cousin Jessica, so much so that she’s developed a one-sided rivalry in her head. Her childhood best friend Aaron’s reappearance in their lives doesn’t help either, as Jenna is convinced that he likes Jessica.

When she wakes up in Jessica’s body and has to live her life, she quickly realizes that Jessica’s life is not as easy as she previously thought. I thought it was interesting for Jenna to realize the juxtapositions between their lives, namely that, for all their pressuring, Jenna’s parents are very present in her life, especially compared to Jessica’s. As she spends more time with Aaron too, she realizes that not everybody prefers her cousin as she’s always thought. Life isn’t a competition; you have to live your life as yours and not always compare it to somebody else’s.

I Am Not Jessica Chen is a thrilling tale of being careful of what you wish for and learning to appreciate your life for what it is. I enjoyed the characters and the writing, and I think many people will relate to this story. If you’re a fan of Ann Liang’s books, particularly If You Could See the Sun, you’ll definitely enjoy I Am Not Jessica Chen!

Jenna Chen has lived her life in the shadow of her cousin Jessica. Feeling jealous and insecure about Jessica’s acceptance to Harvard, she makes a wish that she was Jessica instead. She wakes up the next morning in Jessica’s body, while Jenna is missing and people slowly start to forget she existed in the first place. ‘I Am Not Jessica Chen’ is a good reminder that “perfection” is exhausting and never-ending. I think Jenna is a very relatable character for a lot of people and the story really encapsulates the idea that we don’t know what others are going through. Overall, I loved the message of the book and Jenna’s journey.

4/5 stars

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins Children’s Books for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I Am Not Jessica Chen by Ann Liang is a captivating YA speculative contemporary reminiscent of Freaky Friday. When Jenna Chen wishes she were her seemingly perfect cousin Jessica, she finds herself living Jessica’s life—only to discover that perfection comes with its own struggles. As Jenna begins to vanish from the memories of those around her, she races against time to reclaim her identity.

The story offers a heartfelt exploration of second-generation immigrant pressures, particularly the drive to meet family expectations. Jenna and Jessica’s contrasting experiences highlight the toll of perfectionism and the weight of generational dreams. The romance subplot with Aaron, Jenna’s childhood friend, adds depth and emotional tension, making their dynamic a standout element. Unfortunately, halfway through the novel lost a bit of steam for me and I was entirely uninvested into the romance sub plotline.

With themes of self-discovery, family expectations, and the hidden costs of ambition, this book is a compelling read for fans of YA with a speculative twist and stories about the immigrant experience.

I love Ann Liang's speculative novels (thinking about If You Could See the Sun too!). She really blends mysterious abilities with the character's personal growth and introspection!

“To dream of becoming a butterfly. I didn’t understand it when we were studying it in Chinese school, but I think I do now. Maybe it’s impossible to tell which is the dream and which is reality.”

Jenna Chen has always been jealous of her cousin, Jessica Chen, who is academically successful, abundantly popular, and effortlessly gorgeous. But her desire to become Jessica reaches a breaking point when Jenna is rejected from Harvard and Jessica isn’t. Burdened to meet her immigrant family’s expectations, Jenna wakes up one morning to find her wish to live Jessica’s life a reality. Thrust into Jessica’s world of academic pressure and secrets, Jenna learns that to be the best isn’t always what it seems. While trying to return to her true self, Jenna finds romance with an old crush and learns to appreciate the life and family she had.

While contemporary romances are not usually my go-to genre, I was intrigued by the Freaky Friday-like body switching magic present in the story. Liang takes the body switching idea in a completely new direction, providing a new way to consider human consciousness and where that might go if we no longer exist. Jenna Chen is a compelling narrator with several relatable flaws. This book really made me feel seen in terms of always striving to be the best academically, especially when surrounded by people who will always be more skilled and successful. The message of this novel is important for academically driven students who are (or have been) under an immense amount of pressure and might be feeling the onset of burnout. Aaron, the lead male character, is full of charm and had me swooning for a dream boy who surely could only like a perfect girl like Jessica Chen. Jessica Chen is also full of unexpected depth, with several secrets of her own. While reading this, I found myself astounded by the character-driven narrative, despite the mystery and ending being predictable. I knew early into the novel who was sending threatening messages to Jessica and was able to figure out how the story would wrap up, but this did not take away from my enjoyment at all. I highly recommend this novel for its portrayal of Chinese characters and immigrant culture, as well as its depiction of students who are constantly striving to be the best.

Jenna Chen has always felt second best to her perfect and beautiful cousin, Jessica Chen. When Jenna’s wish comes true to be Jessica she sees how hard it is to be on top.

While a pretty predictable story for an adult reader, it’s still entertaining and worth a read. There’s a strong lesson to be learned: the grass is always greener on the other side; but is it really? This is a perfect story for young adults struggling to do their best, but their best is never quite enough.

“Would the butterfly be relieved to turn back into a human? Or would the butterfly miss being able to fly too much?”

I Am Not Jessica Chen comes out 1/25.

E-ARC generously provided by HarperCollins Children's Books in exchange for an honest review! Thank you so much.

4.5 stars, probably rounded up once I think about it a bit more. Bringing to mind the terror of The Portrait of a Dorian Gray while also drawing a gorgeously rendered portrait of what it is like to want, Ann Liang's newest YA is a fabulist, dark academia tale that made me feel seen: brilliance and flaws and all. Bravo!

Ann Liang never disappoints. This book made me feel so seen, because Liang effortlessly depicted the jealousy and vulnerability that comes with constant comparison to someone you perceive as better than you. This definitely ain’t my favorite book by her but it is still a good book!

I Am Not Jessica Chen by Ann Liang is a compelling YA novel that explores identity and family dynamics through the lens of Alice, who feels overshadowed by her perfect sister, Jessica. Ann Liang skillfully delves into themes of self-discovery and the pressure of living up to expectations, delivering a heartfelt and relatable story. With authentic characters and a narrative that balances humor and emotion, this book is a poignant read for anyone grappling with their own sense of self and familial roles.

I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

I Am Not Jessica Chen by Ann Liang is a first person YA speculative contemporary in the vein of Freaky Friday. On the night of her rejection to Harvard, Jenna Chen wishes she was her perfect cousin Jessica. Jessica, who was accepted into Harvard, is the number one student, and is part of a million clubs. But Jenna soon learns that Jessica is dealing with her own stuff and being perfect isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. What’s worse, Jenna is disappearing from the memories of everyone around her and she’s running out of time to get her old life back.

The more time Jenna spends in Jessica’s body, the more she, and the reader, see that Jessica is extremely hard on herself to the point of using self-deprecating language over a single mistake. Her relationship with her mother is also a lot more emotionally fraught than Jenna knew. It both was and wasn’t shocking because a lot of kids who are that obsessed with perfection do have a parent or guardian in the background making them feel like they have no choice but to be perfect. What I was not expecting was how it was presented in the mother.

Jenna and Jessica are two sides of the extreme of the second generation immigrant experience and the struggle to fulfill your parents’ dreams. Jenna and Jessica’s fathers are brothers and all four of their parents immigrated from China and had their daughters shortly after moving. Jessica’s family is wildly successful compared to Jenna’s and Jessica herself is a model student getting perfect scores and has a bright future ahead of her to keep pulling her family forward and further into wealth, something many immigrants dream of for their children. Jenna tries her best in school, but she does struggle. Her talent lies more in the arts, which is just as wonderful as computer science or politics as we will always need art, but that doesn’t stop Jenna from feeling like she isn’t good enough that she failed to meet her parents’ expectations and dreams when they came to the US.

We have a romance subplot with Jenna and Jessica’s childhood friend, Aaron. Jenna has had feelings for him for a long time but he left for Paris and shortly returned at the beginning of the book, leaving the potential between them hanging in the air. Aaron is the only person who not only remembers Jenna fully, but doesn’t immediately assume Jenna’s on vacation when she ends up in Jessica’s body. There was a lot of tension between Jenna and Aaron because Aaron wants to keep his feelings close to the chest but Jenna wants something to finally happen or not happen between them even if she doesn’t know how to push him to try. Loved their dynamic and was rooting for them the whole time.

Content warning for brief depictions of self-deprecating language, emotional abuse, and racism

I would recommend this to fans of YA with a single speculative element, readers looking for a book exploring the price of perfection, and those looking for a YA focused on the second generation immigrant experience in relation to college acceptance and secondary school

Ann Liang truly excels at everything she writes, and I Am Not Jessica Chen is one of my top reads of the year. I loved the characters so much, and I related so much to Jenna in terms of feeling like everything I do pales in comparison to everyone else's achievements. This book was written with so much raw emotion, and I loved the romantic aspect between Aaron and Jenna. I feel so seen in terms of Jenna's personality, and I am advising everyone to read this book! Infinity stars!

Have you ever desired to be someone else? Have you ever felt as if your life is a series of failures? Do you ever think that the life you have today is not the one that you wanted? If you answer yes to any of these questions then you must know Jenna Chen. Jenna Chen has always fought to be seen, but no matter how hard she tried, she never achieved it. She lives in the shadows of her cousin, Jessica Chen. Jessica is the perfect daughter and student. Since she has learned to speak and write, Jessica has stood out in everything. That's why people always say that Jessica is predestined to do great things. Jenna dreams of such recognition. That's why Jenna asked a shooting star to be Jessica Chen, and the universe made her wish come true.

Until this book, I had never read a dark academia and I feel that I'm not convinced with this genre. To the ones who don't know what dark academia is, is a literary genre that involves settings in elite academies with a plot that goes from gothic and dark to fantasy. I feel that this book checks every box, but it was short in the dark theme. For a book where the main lead steals another one's life, you would think Jenna would be evil, but that wasn't the case. I'm not Jessica Chen is a sweet dark academia because it sends an inspiring message through Jenna.

Jenna's intention was never to harm others. For her, the soul swap means an opportunity to stand out and be admired. She even tried to save or sustain Jessica's reputation. Her character appears so they can reflect on their lives. At some point in their lives, some people would have wanted to be someone else. Jenna's character tells you to stop comparing yourself with the others.

Also, this book is an ode to self-love, which only we can achieve by ourselves. The plot is a message to explore what makes you unique and to treasure those qualities. There's a scene in which one of the characters, Aaron Cai, is trying to make Jenna see that she's special. That's when she yells that she doesn't want her life back because she doesn't love herself. That's when Jenna realizes that her salvation depends on herself. Loving yourself is the most important part of our lives. Also, this book talks about how we have to stop idealizing people. Jenna always lived thinking that Jessica had a perfect life. All of that changes, when Jenna starts seeing Jessica's life. The pressure and the expectations that everyone had on Jessica were too much for her. That reminds us that there's no such thing as a perfect life. Behind what we see of every person, there's a story that isn't seen. That's why before judging someone, you have to remember that behind their success there are scars, tears, and sweat that no one tells, but exist.

I'm Not Jessica Chen is a short and entertaining book. I like how Ann Liang portrays the desperation for acknowledgment and the realization that a perfect life doesn't exist. Like Jenna, the reader can learn to love themselves and their lives and stop running against an imaginary clock. Every person has their talents and times. Not because someone has success before you, it means you failed; this only means that it was their time. Your time will arrive when it has to be.