Warm, Cozy, Friends to Lovers with a Bookish Backdrop
This show. This show. *This show*. How do I even begin to describe it?Is it the best kdrama ever? Probably not. Does it feel like it to me and is it my favorite out of everything I've ever watched? Yes.
I wish I could properly describe how incredibly wonderful this show is. It's probably not for everyone. If you're looking for something super dramatic and crazy and intense, this isn't it. Come back to it later when the chaos around you is too much and you need something soft and quiet and cozy to wind down to. This is it.
Romance is a Bonus Book is warm. It's quiet in that it sort of sneaks up on you. You're enjoying it but you don't realize *how much* until you're in too deep. It's literally the equivalent of a steaming cup of tea (or hot chocolate, whatever your poison is) by the fireplace. It's *beautifully* written, the romance is soft and quiet just like the rest of the aesthetic of the show, but it's *so welcome*. I didn't realize how tired of problematic leads I was until this show. The ML is literally *the* most unproblematic, wholesome, beautiful, wonderful ML I've ever come across. There were scenes where I literally could not stop grinning because of him (and the FL). I also really loved the FL. She's incredibly strong and there's this quiet strength to her that really drew me in from the very moment she was on screen.
There isn't a *single character* I dislike (except for random people that show up once or twice but barring them). Scratch that, there isn't a single character I don't like and/or love. Every character is unique and brings something really special to the storyline. This isn't a plot-driven drama, it's a character-driven one, so this is incredibly important. Each character is like this thread in a larger, gorgeous tapestry. One after the other, their lives weave together and create this beautiful thing that is this show. The cast is great, the acting is wonderful, and I just love everyone! (I've always heard great things about Lee Jong-Suk and this show *truly* showed me why. Guess who's watching While You Were Sleeping Next?)
This show is about strength, about resilience, about friendship, and love. It's very beautiful to see the different kinds of love that people can have for a person, and how that love can develop/change over time. It's just ... ugh I love it so much. If you're looking for a friendship to lovers, this is it. This is wholesome and beautiful and makes me happy. The side couple is also *incredibly cute* and I love them to pieces. So much. As individuals and together, and that is so rare!
All of this, added to the absolutely *gorgeous* backdrop/theme of a book publishing company and it's the best thing I've ever seen. The publishing house is so clean and brightly lit, you love every scene spent there. Not only are you surrounded by books, but by people who love and cherish them too. The literature references, the way people talk about books, the different references to quotes/deeper things was just the bow that wrapped the present that is this show all together. It brings everything together so so beautifully. As a lover of literature, just the book storylines/backdrops alone were enough to make me like this show. Pair it all with the flawed but incredibly wonderful characters and it's now my favorite show ever.
It's not without its faults, don't get me wrong but the good far *far* outweighs the little things I'm not the biggest fan of. A certain storyline could have been handled better (or just omitted altogether), and I admit I sometimes want those fireworks/epic love kind of romances, but that's just not this show's style. It's just so soft and warm and cozy, so welcoming and quietly deep, when it ended, I lowkey teared up but they weren't sad or happy tears they were just ... wow this is done. I have to leave this show now.
I definitely plan on rewatching because just thinking about it makes me want to smile like an idiot.
Esta resenha foi útil para você?
...
the production was good, I can't complain .I also say that the performance was incredible, it would be a sin if I complained.
I love the actors, I loved the characters.
Of course, not everything is perfect, I can't lie, but what a drama that doesn't have a single flaw.
So in conclusion, I recommend...
I say it's worth watching, maybe it's bad for some, but for me it was good.
This is just my opinion, you better watch it and have your own opinion.
I don't know what to say, because I think everyone has their own opinion.
Esta resenha foi útil para você?
Esta resenha pode conter spoilers
De mis dramas favoritos
De mis dramas favoritoooos. Tiene todo lo que me gusta, libros, llanto, romance y es muy emotivo.En los primeros capítulos yo ya estaban llorando por todo lo que Dan Yi tiene que pasar ): quería sacar del drama y abrazarla y decirle que se quedara en mi casa.
Por otro lado, Eun Ho es EL HOMBRE, en serio que me encanta demasiado él. Lo lindo que es con Dan Yi, lo mucho que la apoya y la relación que ambos tienen es muy muy linda.
A mí me encanta leer, entonces que los libros sean parte importante de la historia me gustó demasiado <3
Es un drama que recomiendo muchísimo. Yo lo amé!
Esta resenha foi útil para você?
Good but dragged out
it was a pretty good show and I did enjoy it, but many times through out watching it I wished that it would hurry up and finish because I feel like it drags out so much without explanation. the last episode or two really make up for it because it ties everything off but before then it just makes it hard for me to care about what's happening since I dont know what's going on. also, the main FL has a daughter but shes only mentioned like 4 times which erks me a lot lol, I wish we could have seen the daughter at the end of the show. The side characters love story was more interesting to me then the main love story... like there was times I wished the main leads would hurry up with their "cute" banter bc it'd be like 10 mins of them just laughing and giggling with nothing happening but it added nothing and I didnt care about them enough to enjoy it. overall it's an okay show, a nice watch I suppose but definitely not in my top picksEsta resenha foi útil para você?
Un apapacho al corazón
Tiene una historia preciosa sobre volverte a encontrar después de un punto de quiebre, combinada con un dulce romance y un gran aprecio hacia los libros.Kang Dan-i es una protagonista admirable. Se divorció, su hija está en otro país, no tiene trabajo, ni hogar, y el mundo está empeñado en cerrarle las puertas. Sin embargo, no se deja derribar; saca el dolor, limpia las lágrimas y vuelve a intentarlo.
En este proceso, Dan-i recupera la individualidad. Su vida ya no se caracteriza por ser "esposa de" o "mamá de". Aprende a conocer de nuevo su entorno y su ser, forja nuevas metas y da una oportunidad a explorar sentimientos antes desconocidos.
El romance de Kang Dan-i y Cha Eun-ho se siente como regresar a tu hogar después de un día difícil: cálido y reconfortante. Es una relación fraguada con años de cariño y apoyo mutuo, en la que pueden ser ellos mismos, sin miedo a juicios o rechazo.
La historia nos hace apreciar a las personas que entregan su alma para lograr que un libro llegue a manos de los lectores y las palabras del autor entren en sus corazones. Tiene el bonito detalle de colocar citas al final de cada episodio, como si se tratara de una novela.
Hay una porción de tristeza, pero es un drama hecho para dar aliento y consuelo, lo cual incluye personajes secundarios divertidos y encantadores, que merecen mucho amor.
Romance Is A Bonus Book es para mantener como un lugar seguro. Pacífico, romántico, tierno y divertido. Gracias a su historia, elenco, fotografía y OST, sé que siempre lo tendré en mis pensamientos.
Esta resenha foi útil para você?
Portrait of a companionship
It's a nice drama for those who love books. The struggles behind writing and publishing are so interesting, I really don't know if it's like this in reality or if they just romanticized, but for sure is interesting. Some story odd parts made me think "gosh, why?", but I just decided to not be so demanding, and accepted it in my heart.Dan Yi and Seo Joon relationship was so dreamy, and I just loved the dog. They lost a great chance of steal our hearts just because they had a dog in scene. But I would totally fall in love if I get that scallion plush toy.
All secondary roles were so full of life, and I really appreciate they gave us an ending for each one.
My complainings goes to main couple, of course. I've seen Jong Suk in a few romantic roles, always playing this good boy, and is never disappointing, though sometimes I can't help but thinking it could be a bit different role. First time watching Na Young acting and it was okay, but nothing remarkable, although really broke my heart how she was always emotionless even when Eun Ho was putting so much effort to make her realize he had feelings for her. Even kissing scenes were super meh. But I do admit their relationship is a portrait of how companionship should be, spending time together, supporting and caring for each other.
So if you're not eager to watch super breath-taking kisses, it's a good drama.
Esta resenha foi útil para você?
Esta resenha pode conter spoilers
I came to watch this series purely for the way it presented itself as a fluffy, simple romance - something I needed after watching all the heart aching melodrama I've been watching recently. And that's exactly what it was.STORY: 7.5/10
There are many things I liked about the general synopsis of the story. The main female lead's situation was unlike anything I had heard of before in fluffy romance; especially their age difference. It gave some sort of message that even after you've peaked in your youth, and it seems life is over for you - there's still hope that things will get better. I loved the whole concept of the book metaphors being used throughout the series, and the entire thing taking place within a publishing company - as a writer and aspiring editor myself, many of the dialogues about how much books can affect and change the world, and how much they mean to the writers and everyone behind it touched my heart and made it easy to relate. The direction of the story was well written and left us with a cute, sentimental yet open ending.
Dani's struggle through her career and the many subplots that circulated around the company, however, were the main thing that kept me going through the series. As the other reviews may suggest, there was a point where they were just dragging everything along, and I found the melodrama undertone of the story to be a bit lacking and weak when it came to the intensity of it all. I feel like the main point of this drama was just to showcase those "cute couple moments," since that's most of what came out of it between the main leads. In the beginning, I was far from hating it, but it kept going on in the most random situations that it just seemed out of place and way too corny for even me, the romance enthusiast's, taste.
Not only that, I found it a bit weird that Eunho just assumed she liked him back and that's what started their relationship. There was a lack of that realization of "Woah, I've loved her for so long and now she finally returns my feelings!" that I was incredibly hopeful for. I also wanted more on Dani's part on how she started seeing him differently, and how her feelings for him were different from the other men she's dated previously. Simply put, I wanted more depth in how their romantic relationship developed instead of it just flashing into this whole cutefest of snuggling and kissing. I also wanted there to be more about Dani as a mother - that was the main thing that disappointed me about this drama. Her daughter literally appeared once or twice and was only mentioned once in the last episode - but it would've been nice to have the main female lead of a romance drama be seen as someone who is mature and motherly more often.
ACTING/CAST: 7/10
There was nothing remarkable about the acting between the cast members. The chemistry between the main leads was perfect and cute, allowing them to really seem like lifelong best friends (I heard somewhere that LJS said that Lee Na Young was his ideal type? Good for him). I loved some side characters (I will protect Ji Seo-jun with my LIFE), and also really liked the feminist undertones when it came to Dani, Ji-yul, Ms. Go, and Ms. Seo. Each woman sacrificed the lives planned out for them because they wanted to live the way they wanted to.
The publishing employees were all very lovable in general and their dynamic as a whole hardworking family was very fun. The comedy (with the trenchcoats, especially) made this series much more lighthearted and rendered some smiles and giggles from my part. Overall, the cast had great chemistry with one another and made me feel like I was even a part of their gang.
MUSIC: 8/10
I am a BIG The Black Skirts fan, so having some of their songs being played was absolutely wonderful. The music, in general, was very soft and fitted into the whole aesthetic of the show just right.
REWATCH VALUE: 8/10
As this doesn't allow any big emotional toll, I might give this show a rewatch in the future, simply for the cute moments.
OVERALL: 7.5/10
Although the concept of the drama was interesting, the way it played out didn't amount to what I actually expected and had much more potential plot-wise. However, it did perfectly as a way to have the audience go "Awww" at Lee Jong Suk being a cute boyfriend and tried it's best to remain interesting and poetically consistent. With lovable characters and beautiful imagery of the literature and writing world, it is a drama that is absolutely perfect for those who simply want some lighthearted fluff and to leave with a full heart and a smile on their face.
Esta resenha foi útil para você?
Romance é um livro bônus!
Ah! Amo essa série, ainda mais pois me vi no lugar da Lee Na Young, quem depois de uma certa idade, apesar de não se sentir com aquela idade tem a oportunidade de vencer o preconceito e ser verdadeiramente feliz? Porque há tanto preconceito com relação às mulheres mais velhas, quando a idade não pode ser medida cronologicamente? Quer dizer que depois de uma certa idade a pessoa está fadada a infelicidade, a solidão e a depressão por conta de uma sociedade preconceituosa e egoísta? Trilha sonora linda, ainda ouço no chuveiro e tento cantar, ainda que seja só no "lalalalalala". Viver é uma arte, sobreviver é necessário ainda que não se encontre quase ninguém que te ajudará a seguir, é preciso muitas vezes se agarrar a si mesmo e enfrentar tudo sozinha, pois no final não haverá quem te dê tapinhas nas costas por suas conquistas e falhas. TTEsta resenha foi útil para você?
Esta resenha pode conter spoilers
First,-Why i like
- Strong female characters
(Dani and Dani's friends)
-nice male characters
(All kind male characters,
Except Dani's ex husband)
-kind characters
(Like Park hoon and Ji Yul)
-never give up messaging
(Dani's life)
-contains everything about books
(Soo much books love!! I love it books business )
-Great acting
(Especially Lee Jong Suk and Kim Sun Young.)
Second,
Why i dont like
-first and second episode is boring
-fast love
(Dani and Eunho have been friends for along time. Even so, everything happened suddenly. I didn't understand what happen. And i didnt like it.)
-careless mum
(We didn't watch enough Dani and Dani's daughter)
Esta resenha foi útil para você?
For me, the strongest parts of "Romance is a Bonus Book" are the excellent cast and the well written characters. At the heart of this story is the lifelong friendship shared between Eun Ho and Dan-i, and I felt Lee Jong Suk and Lee Na Young captured this perfectly even despite their 10 year difference in age. The chemistry between them was great in the sense that every scene they shared felt very natural and comfortable. Jong Suk did a great job here, and I feel this was the perfect final drama for him to do before he had to take his break due to his required military service. Aside from the leads, the supporting cast also had so much to offer. There were faces I was so happy to see again (such as Kim Sun Young and Jo Han Chul) and new faces I came to really love.
It's hard not to love and root for Dan-i as she tries to find herself again; Anyone who has ever gone through the struggle of trying to find a job can relate to her. It was nice to see her really earn her place by her own merit. I loved the way Dan-i descibed her relationship with Eun Ho as if he was a well loved book of hers, and their relationship in general was so incredibly heartwarming. I was touched by their confidence in eachother, and how because of that their relationship had zero frustrating misunderstandings.
Other characters I particularly felt for were Seo Joon and Hae Rin, whom I desperately wanted happy endings for, and the entire "founding members" team at the publishing house. Overall, I didn't find a single character that had screentime to be unnecessary or annoying, and all their different relationships and friendships were fleshed out nicely. If there's one character I wish we got to see more of, it's Dan-i's daughter. She didn't play as big of a part in the story as I expected her to, and I think having had more of her would have made the story even more special.
This is a good drama to watch whenever you're looking for something that feels like a warm hug, and I have a feeling I might be returning to it in the future, looking for some wisdom.
Esta resenha foi útil para você?
Very rewatchable
This drama was on of the first drama I watched when I stared watching kdrama. And I started to watched it again (skipping to the good bits) as I loved the arc of the lead’s romance. I like the fact that she is a mother (although the actress was way to young to play a 39 year old) and the fact that they are no prepubescents (lol).The whole cast works well together and all the pieces are there. The love triangle, the youth drama etc...
Also the chemistry between the two leads seemed really genuine and the acting was really just on point. So really watchable and re watchable for me!
Esta resenha foi útil para você?
Das beste K-Drama, was es gibt!
Romance is a bonus book ist mit Abstand das beste Drama, was ich gesehen habe.Das Drama schafft es, eine Wohlfühlatmosphäre zu erschaffen. Jedes Mal, wenn ich angefangen habe 'Romance is a bonus book' zu schauen, habe ich mich sehr wohlgefühlt beim Schauen. Was dazu beiträgt, sind definitiv die Charaktere. Jeder Charakter hat seine eigene spezielle Persönlichkeit, was nicht nur zu einer Wohlfühlatmosphäre beiträgt, es trägt auch dazu bei, dass das K-Drama sehr lustig ist. Vor allem die beiden Hauptcharaktere in Kombination sind sehr lustig.
Wenn man also ein K-Drama sucht, wo man sich wohlfühlt beim Schauen und dabei auch noch lachen möchte, kann ich Romance is a bonus book nur empfehlen!
Esta resenha foi útil para você?
