Chryssy has left her cardiology dreams behind to help patients dealing with heartbreak using TCM along with her aunts. All the women in Chyssy’s family have ended up heartbroken, believing they’re cursed. When she meets the famous cellists the Chao Brothers at a party, Chryssy offers to help Leo who is having a hard time dealing with a fresh break-up. Vin on the other hand needs some convincing, but wants to help Leo heal before their world tour. The brothers stay at Chryssy’s family’s wellness retreat. To explain the brothers stay, Chryssy agrees to fake date Vin to keep up his “heartbreaker” status if he promotes her family’s TCM brand. As fake dates develop real feelings, Chryssy has to remind herself this relationship with Vin won’t last due to her curse. Will it ever be broken?

With endearing, reflective characters, a lesson in TCM and a moody PNW setting this romance has something for every reader.

I've always been an avid supporter of Lauren Kung Jessen and she hasn't disappointed me yet!

Yin Yang Love Song is right up her alley as a cosy romance between two people who start off prickly with each other but warm up to one another's quirks very soon. I love that the women of many generations are always at the center of her stories. Chryssy and all the women in her family are cursed in love due to something their grandmother of 4 grands ago did to bring shame on their family. She's sworn off love for now to avoid having to deal with another disappoint. In comes, Vin, one half of a highly successful musical duo who has been labelled as a Heartbreaker and can't seem to shrug it off. When his brother goes through a heartbreak, Chryssy and her family business come to the rescue. Using Chinese Traditional Medicine, they help Vin's brother overcome his loss and grief. Meanwhile, Chryssy and Vin are seen together and must pretend to fake date to keep up his image and boost her family business. They just happen to fall in love along the way.

I loved the story of the curse and how women are often the victims of these 'generational curses'. Even when a man is at the center at the problem, history and broken telephone will always make it the woman's problem. I loved seeing how Chryssy and every female member of her family deal with the effects of their curse and how they've created a protective community for themselves.

The romance, just like some flowers, takes some time to bloom. Both Chryssy and Vin are highly skeptical and hurt individuals. They start to realize just how much they enjoy each other's presence - how much better their day is when the other is near. I especially loved seeing Vin, who is so career and ambition focused, realize he's completely burnt out and have Chryssy inspire him to treat himself better. The mental health and self care aspect of this story is written with so much care and seeing how TCM can be used to heal something like heartbreak was so interesting. I think this book goes far deeper than just being a romance between two people - it also highlights how you need to take care of your own mind and body too.

Thank you so much Forever Publishing for the opportunity to read and review!

The Hua women are in the business of heartbreak. Chryssy Hua Williams and her aunties run a retreat center for the brokenhearted, implementing Traditional Chinese Medicine into their treatments. Well versed in heartbreak of their own, the Hua women are supposedly cursed to never find lasting love. Enter bad boy cellist Vin Chao. He and Chryssy meet and hatch a fake dating scheme to benefit each others image. Vin’s celebrity will help bring exposure to Chryssy’s business and their eventual “break up” will boost ticket sales for Vin’s upcoming tour. What Chryssy and Vin do not account for are the very real feelings that arise between them and the undeniable chemistry that will make them reevaluate everything they’ve ever thought about love.

Lauren Kung Jessen pens a deeply introspective romcom filled with self-reflection and a plethora of herbal remedies. Chryssy and Vin have some important conversations revolving around growth and change. Their relationship was built on a foundation of logic and maturity that helped sustain them. Even when they were working through things internally, I always felt like they were forthcoming about their wants and needs. There were moments in the beginning where Chryssy and Vin’s connection felt rushed and I wished that there were a few more scenes that built up their chemistry but once they were together, I was invested and enjoyed how they supported one another.

My favorite parts of the novel, though, were the aspects surrounding Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). I learned so much from this story and there are so many practices I want to start implementing in my own life. You can expect to find me having Yin Nights regularly and I even steeped a mug of tea or two after being inspired by the characters. The concept of Qi and how to balance our bodies to sustain positive development was very interesting and I love how TCM uses ingredients that are natural and readily available. There were also a couple wellness and food related recipes in the back of the book which was a lovely touch.

Yin Yang Love Song was a heartwarming romance that left me with a cozy feeling. I delighted in Chryssy and Vin’s journey and loved how central the bonds of the Hua women were to the overall story.

Thank you Forever and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

"Don't play the final note before you've started playing the song"

A family love curse, a celloist known to be a heartbreaker and an Inn that aims to soothe heartbroken souls. This is a very sweet love story about letting go of the idea of love and loss and just being in the moment.

Chryssy was such an amazing character. I loved her empathy, her devotion to care, and how much she took her tea and wellbeing seriously. Vin was a hard working musician and I felt his desire to be the best but also the exhaustion from working so hard. I loved the curse, the meddling family, and the wild and fun dates they went on.

I don't know much about the world of celloist so I wasn't sure about the blowing up and the many news stories and on-line gossip that Chryssy and Vin are a part of but I rolled with it. I liked how it was a slow burn romance, with Chryssy and Vin really taking the time to talk and get to know each other. It was light, sweet, and a quick read, perfect for these cold winter days! And the tea and self care sounded amazing!

A huge thank you to the author and publisher for providing an e-ARC via Netgalley. This does not affect my opinion regarding the book.

This was such a charming rom-com where a Chinese herbalist who is cursed to never find love meets a celebrity rock cellist with a reputation for breaking hearts.

The women in Chryssy’s family are cursed to never have a happy ending kind of love. As experts in heartbreak, she and her aunties run a special healing retreat center outside of Seattle, where they incorporate Traditional Chinese Medicine to help the broken-hearted. But when Chryssy runs into the famed cello playing heartbreaker, Vin Chao, at an event where she is promoting their new tea line, speculation runs wild that she’s his new flavor of the month. In a deal that will help both of them, they agree to fake date so he can break her heart (and thus prompt more people to buy tickets for his heartbreakers tour) and in return, he’ll promote her business. But as we all know, the fake dating soon begets real feelings, and these two can’t deny their chemistry or desire to NOT break each other’s heart.

I thought this book was super cute and it read like a warm hug. This book was very emotional, but not in a heavy way. This was my first book from Lauren, and I fell in love with her writing style. I love the way she interwove different themes into the story, like music, cooking, and plants. It provided such beautiful imagery and I’ll definitely need to pick up more of her books!

The characters in this book were perfect. I loved the way their relationship developed and felt like we really saw them getting to know one another and fall in love. They built such a beautiful friendship first, even when they were attracted to each other. The story was also so focused on their own growth as individuals. They both were labeled and put into boxes, between Chryssy’s curse and Vin’s reputation. They needed to heal and become the best versions of themselves in order to truly be together as a couple, and I loved watching their journey and how beautifully Lauren wrote their stories. Again, the metaphors Lauren used with music and plants to show growth and change was perfection. There were also some FANTASTIC side characters between the aunties, Vin’s brothers, and the other guests at the center.

I really loved the inclusion of TCM from a character who was familiar with western medicine, and the interesting balance that was displayed between the two. As someone who doesn’t know much about TCM, I loved seeing the inclusion in a way that was educational and emotional, giving so much to Chryssy’s experience throughout the book.

I really enjoyed this one and am looking forward to reading more from this author!

Thank you NetGalley and Forever Publishing for a copy of the book.

Thank you to NetGalley, Forever and Lauren Kung Jessen for the chance to read this book in exchange for my honest review.

This was such a cozy read and I appreciated the message of listening to our bodies/stress level and making decisions for ourselves- not for what we think other people want to see from us.

It REALLY made me interested in Traditional Chinese Medicine and now I'm looking into ways I can integrate it in my self care.

Chryssy (short for Chrysanthemum) is a chef and traditional Chinese medicine herbalist. She also believes that she, alongside all of the women in her family, are cursed to never have lasting love. Vin is a rock cellist along with his brother. Their lack of lasting relationships has earned them a reputation as "heartbreakers". When Chryssy and Vin meet, a picture is taken out of context. To get the record label off his back Vin devises a plan to fake date Chryssy while his brother takes part in the heartbreak healing retreat that Chryssy and her aunties run on Whidbey Island.

Through the entire first half of this book, I thought it was a five-star romance. The tension and slow burn between Chryssy and Vin were excellent and I loved their connection. Plus the aunties are hilarious. However, as the story developed and the curse became more and more important, I became annoyed. The curse was a huge part of the story but brought down the plot overall.

All in all, it was a fun story that I recommend.

Thank you to Net Galley, Forever, and Grand Central Publishing for the DRC. All opinions are my own.

Chryssy Hua, a Chinese herbalist, meets musicians Vin and his brother Leo at an event. The brothers are known as the heartbreakers but in reality, Leo is heartbroken after a recent painful breakup. Chryssy’s family believes that all Hua women have been cursed to experience only heartbreak and have created a healing inn for those suffering from it. Vin needs Leo healed so they can go on their tour so they move into the Hua’s inn to fast track the process. Vin also needs Chryssy to be his fake girlfriend to he can break up with her and maintain his reputation. The two end up spending a lot of time together and while real feelings begin to form, between Vin’s label requiring him to be a single and Chryssy’s family curse they are not sure they can make it.

This was a fun romance and I read/listened the whole book in a day. For me the mix of romance, traditional remedies and cooking were a recipe (pun intended) for a great read. I read and listened to this one and the audiobook narrators were wonderful and I loved that there were voices and POVs for both Chryssy and Vin (I find these books work better with the dual POV). I personally liked this one better than her last and it was such a nice surprise.

I love Lauren Kung Jessen and her first two books, so I was very excited to read this book and lucky that NetGalley granted my request for an ARC. It saddens me that I'm giving this book 2 fewer stars than her first two books. It took me a while to get into this book. I knew the plot, and I was excited to read about it. But the execution, I think, was a little choppy. The pacing felt off. And it could use a little more refinement. But I did love the idea. I'm a superstitious person myself. And I may or may not believe in curses as well. And I love reading about it in books, especially in romance books, because it gives this hyper-realism vibes to it. Reading "Lunar Love" and "Red String Theory" felt like magic. One could say that Lauren Kung Jessen is in the same category as Ashley Poston in terms of their plots. That's what's missing with "Lunar Love Song," the magic. Regardless, I enjoyed it when I finally caught up to the pacing and plot of the book. I wished there was more of Chryssy and Vin. Their fake-dating lacked some tension you usually enjoy in fake-dating tropes. I'm glad that their third-act break-up didn't last two chapters. I'll still look forward to Lauren Kung Jessen's future works.

Thank you NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for granting access to this book and audiobook

Lauren Kung Jessen has done it again!! She has written another fantastic romance. I really enjoyed the chemistry between Chryssy and Vin and witnessing them fall in love throughout the book was magical! I also enjoyed learning about different types of herbs and Chinese medicinal culture.

For the audiobook portion, I thought that Eunice Wong did a great job (as always). I was not familiar with Erik Yang as an audiobook narrator, but now that I have listened to one book by him, I would be interested in listening to more audiobooks narrated by him in the future!

This was such a sweet romance. Fake dating doesn't always work for me but I really enjoyed how it was used in this book. Chryssy and Vin had great chemistry immediately and transitioned from friendship to love interest so smoothly. I adored all of the side characters too. I don't know a lot about traditional Chinese medicine but really enjoyed learning about it through Chryssy's business. This was my first Lauren Kung Jessen book but it will not be my last.

Thank you to NetGalley and Forever for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I read Yin Yang Love Song toward the end of January, which capped my month off so well considering I began with Welcome to the Hyunam-Dong Bookstore. Both books have such a theme of burnout, which given where I am in my life, felt so relatable. Maybe sometimes too relatable. Anyway, all that to say, this book is about Chryssy, who quit med school and is now working at an inn her aunts run where they use Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) to heal heartbreak. The thing is, her family genuinely believes that the women in the family have been cursed to never have a successful romantic relationship. Meanwhile, Vin is a professional cellist who plays rock covers with his brother, who is currently dealing with a heartbreak. The two of them are caught in a photo that makes it look like they're more romantically involved than they are, but the two of them decide to seize the moment and use the public's interest to help sell tickets for Vin and Leo's tour and to promote the new tea line that Chryssy and her aunts have created. This romance truly does feel like it's about healing. So if you are into a healing narrative, this gives that vibe, but with a cohesive storyline and not in almost vignette form. Overall, I really enjoyed this one, I just wish I hadn't dragged it out so long. I always enjoy a book more when I sit down and read it in one or two sittings, but that's on me. What I'm getting at though is that I absolutely think you'll enjoy it if the things I've mentioned sound appealing!

Somehow I unintentionally picked up three books in a row where a musician celebrity falls in love with a regular girl and the paparazzi creates drama. What are the odds?

The other two were somewhat similar, but YIN YANG LOVE SONG certainly stood out. I loved learning about Traditional Chinese Medicine through Chryssy's profession, and I loved the bit of family curse/mystery that added some depth to her character.

As one might expect from the title, Chryssy and Van are opposites. They compliment each other beautifully, and their love story comes together in a beautiful way.

If I remember correctly this book is set on Whidbey Island. I've visited Whidbey multiple times, so loved this setting. I loved the little Easter eggs from LKJ's previous books, too.

2.5 stars
Though I had never read a book by Jessen before, and I was so completely captivated by the TCM element to this story that it made my list of most anticipated new romance books of 2025. And honestly that is the best part about this book. As an acupuncturist myself, I loved how she sprinkled in aspects of TCM theory, information about qi and acupuncture points and how people use the medicine. I would totally book a trip to her Inn if it existed in real life because Jessen made it sound like the most perfect oasis of self care. But while I really enjoyed that aspect of the book, that is where my enjoyment ended.

As a romance book lover, I’m of course all about the central love story but I felt like this was really lacking. It seemed more like a cute women’s fiction story that also dealt with a musician on the side. There was no chemistry between Chryssy and Vin nor a really sweet slow burn which is where I thought it was going since nothing was happening between them in the first half of the book.

Even the fake dating aspect of the story got lost for me as they really didn’t date or get to know each other. Sure there were some interesting events thrown in throughout the story but they didn’t really build on their relationship. I needed more interaction between them to buy into any time of love connection but the story about the curse and his issues with his music career overshadowed anything between them for me.

Thank you to Netgalley for the advanced reader copy. All opinions are my own.

At first I wasn’t too engaged in it, but as their relationship developed, it became more of an introspective read. Growing up Chinese, my dad used a lot of TCM for his ailing, and I saw the benefits the medicine had on him. This book made me reflect on how I viewed the stages of changes a relationship experiences.

One quote that stuck out to me the most was “The fading light overhead exaggerates the lines in Dad’s face. The deep crow’s feet, his prominent forehead wrinkles, his hair grayer than it is brown. It’s not lost on me how much older my parents look, and when the time between visits increases, there are new details to add to my memory of them.” This quote lowkey broke my heart because it really put things into perspective for me about my parents. I’m a flight away from them and I try to go back 2-3 times a year, and every time I go back, I see them age a bit more despite it being a short time in-between. The changes are more prominent when you don’t see them everyday. It’s a reminder to me to stay grounded and to cherish the moments that you have with those around you.

Thank you for giving me the opportunity to read this e-arc!

This was a cute book but it felt slow. I loved the take on flowers and TCM!! I loved learning about flowers and their medicinal healing qualities, about Qi and rest and acupuncture. Honestly just a great showing of the heritage, culture and healing of TCM. The frequent point that we are the biggest change needed in that we need to choose our health as a priority *chefs kiss because she’s right! The curse breaking was done well but not a main part of the story and I felt if it hasn’t even been mentioned the story would have been fine. I loved our two mains. Vin was especially fun as we see him surface level and as he starts healing and setting boundaries we really get to see him in depth with all his layers. Chrissy with her knowledge and constant confidence and ease wa sa good counterpart to him.

I didn’t like the dual POV in this one particularly. The switching just took me out of the story rhythm too much to appreciate that we even got it.

Overall a cute love story with real implications about healing, putting one’s self first sometimes, asking for what you need and familial/generational struggles that need to be helped or put aside.

Lauren Kung Jessen does a really nice job with this sweet romance. I feel as though I consistently have the same feeling about her books, though, which is that the characters feel younger than they are supposed to be, and they are a little bit flat. There is a nice story here with the romance, the curse, and the family connections, however.

Totally different genres, but this book reminded me a lot of A Psalm for the Wild Built by Becky Chambers. So many people talk about Psalm being like a warm hug, a cup of tea, a therapy session, permission to do less etc etc. Yin Yang Love Song felt very similar, but contemporary romance instead of robots.

Sadly, Psalm did absolutely nothing for me, and I had a lot of the same disconnect here. A lot of time is spent with gentle, patient explanations about how harmful burnout can be, and how it’s okay if you don’t want what you thought was your dream anymore etc etc, and I’m just never going to be the audience for that.

I did really like the fake dating without any enemies-to-lovers aspect, and a MMC who’s a bad boy rockstar cellist is kind of goofy but in a fun, charming way. The loving family Chyrssy has, particularly her aunts was my favorite part.

My first Lauren K. Jessen book but definitely not my last. This book was a total delight and had me smiling the entire time. Chryssy & Vin’s story was sweet and gentle, full of beautiful dialogue and an incredible nod to Asian families. Lauren’s writing was so approachable and lyrical - a story about a cellist (Vin) who ends up taking a much-needed break with his brother at Chryssy’s family’s retreat, this book had gorgeous writing that wove in elements of musicality throughout.

This was a slow buildup of tension. Chryssy and Vin initially have preconceived notions of each other (and start their relationship off bickering) but they develop a friendship and mutual respect that becomes such a beautiful love story. This was sweet and gentle, and honestly the kind of romance I needed - something that took its time and literally stopped to smell the roses.

The Hua family curse that Chryssy is fighting against was such a fun backdrop to this story and allowed her aunts & mom to shine as secondary characters. There was a magic throughout this in the way Traditional Chinese Medicine and herbalism was brought into the story, and it gave this an almost poetic feel throughout.

I loved the lessons of slowing down and taking stock of what your body needs. I loved how supportive Chryssy and Vin were of each other. I adored how sweet and funny and palpably cute their dialogue was - it was refreshing and heartwarming.

This book was about healing and living for yourself in the moment and being present. And it was just my cup of tea (sorry, I couldn’t help it).

Thank you @readforeverpub for this early review copy!

This was a heartfelt fake dating romance featuring Chryssy, a traditional Chinese herbalist who strikes a deal with cellist Vin to pose as his girlfriend to promote his new album, let him break up with her and in exchange he'll help promote her family's heartbreak healing retreat. With a family love curse, family secrets and great chemistry, this book taught me a lot about traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) and the ways it can benefit burnout and stress/anxiety. Good on audio and perfect for fans of authors like Roselle Lim. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital and audio copy in exchange for my honest review!