I'm Not Here to Make Friends

Terrace House meets Loveboat, Taipei in this fun, frothy, incisive YA debut, following two teens and their unforgettable summer on a reality show.

When Sabine Zhang is picked for Hotel California, a teen reality show with an all-Asian cast, she jumps at the opportunity. As one of few Asians at her high school in the Midwest, she’s always felt as if she was playing a side character in someone else’s story. But on this show, she’ll finally have a chance to step into the spotlight.

All Yoona Bae wants is to get away. The girls at church think she’s mean, her mom thinks she’s a troublemaker, and she’s tired of fighting against her unearned bad reputation. So when she’s invited to appear on Hotel California, Yoona sees it as an opportunity to chill out, make some friends, maybe even get a tan.

But life on the show isn’t all sunshine and self-actualization. The producers want drama at all costs, even if it means pitting Sabine and Yoona against each other. With the season finale looming, can the girls figure out a peaceful way forward, before they lose control of their own narratives?

• Enemies to Friends: Sabine wants the spotlight and Yoona wants to be left alone, but the show’s producers have a different script in mind for these two rivals.
• Dual POV: See the drama unfold from both sides. Get inside Sabine’s head as she fights to be seen, and walk in Yoona’s shoes as she tries to escape her past.
• Witty and Heartfelt: A sharp, funny, and emotional coming-of-age story about the pressure to perform and the power of finding an unexpected ally.
• Authentic Asian Representation: Explores the joy and complexity of finding community and identity in a space where being Asian is the default, not the exception.