Author: Zen Cho
Genre: Contemporary Romance / Second-chance love / Corporate drama
Ideal For: Readers who adore romantic comedies with depth—where the sparkle of attraction meets the grind of ambition, where family expectations complicate desire, and where love isn’t just heart-fluttering but equal parts messy and meaningful.
From the first page of The Friend Zone Experiment, Zen Cho invites us into a world both glossy and gritty, where runway-ready fashion, global business empires, and second-chance love coexist—and collide. It is romantic entertainment at its most fun, and yet underneath the chic exterior there’s weight, real stakes, and emotional truth.
Plot Summary (Spoiler-Free)
Renee Goh seems to have it all: a thriving London-based fashion business, sharp style, and a life the Instagram filters approve of. But be careful, because what looks perfect often hides the wires. Though branded successful, Renee is estranged from her Singaporean family, passed over for approval again and again. Then the plot sweat: her pop-star boyfriend dumps her (via text, naturally) and her father rings with a bombshell—he’s retiring and is considering her to succeed him at the family conglomerate (thanks to her older, less ambitious brothers).
Cue the introduction of an old flame: Yap Ket Siong, Malaysian pianist turned reluctant investigator into the shady dealings surrounding palm-oil ventures and corporate corruption. A chance encounter in London reignites old sparks—and old wounds. Renee and Ket Siong must navigate: Can this be friendship this time? Or will want want to be more? Meanwhile, family rivalry, corporate intrigue and moral dilemmas swirl around them.
Cho’s Signature Style: Sharp, Compassionate & Complex
Zen’s voice here is elegant but unpretentious, playful yet thoughtful. She delivers the romantic beats with finesse—slow-burn tension, witty banter, the hum of possibility. But what makes this more than a comfortable rom-com is how she threads in class, diasporic identity, workplace sexism, family expectation and corporate power. One reviewer notes that the book “is steeped in the past… how we can be so desperate for someone to change, to see us, accept us.”
Renee is vibrant and flawed. She’s a self-made woman, yet deeply shaped by her family dynamics, her longing for approval, and the question of what she wants—not what she’s been told to want. Ket Siong is similarly layered: appearance of calm, interior of pain, a mission of his own. Their chemistry is warm and real—Cho’s ability to write both attraction and hesitation gives them authenticity.
Themes That Elevate the Romance
Ambition & Vulnerability. Reneé’s storyline isn’t just about love; it’s about self-definition. Does she step into the family empire or stay independent? The romantic arc mirrors the more universal: what we want vs who we are.
Family, Legacy & Cultural Weight. Cho doesn’t gloss over the immigrant-family expectation, the myth of freedom abroad, or how success often comes with unseen chains. The Singapore/Malaysia diaspora setting offers refreshing texture.
Social Justice & Power Structures. The corporate subplot—oil-palm money, corruption, environmental devastation—isn’t just footnote. It casts a shadow over the romance, asks questions about complicity, privilege, exploitation. Some of the best scenes come when the glamorous world cracks.
Second Chances & Friendzones. The title doesn’t lie. The “experiment” is both literal and metaphorical: Can two people go back into “just friends” territory? Can friendship evolve into love? And can love coexist with other big life decisions?
What Works Beautifully
- The setting and world-building. London couture meets Southeast Asian corporate boardrooms—not something you see every day in romance. It feels fresh.
- Emotional payoff. When Renee and Ket Siong tip over into love, it’s earned. The reader has seen their flaws, their pasts, their secrets, making the “finally” matter.
- Cultural authenticity. The Canary Wharf and Korean-drama tropes are present, yes—but Cho grounds them in diaspora realities. It is reminiscent of K-dramas with “a touch more reality”.
- Balanced stakes. The high stakes of romance (will they/ won’t they) are matched by real-world stakes of business, reputation, justice. It raises the emotional investment.
Tiny Quibbles (that don’t stop me loving it)
At times, the corporate subplot is heavier than the romance pacing demands. For readers who just want fluff, there may be moments of “Oh this is deep”. A couple of secondary characters or subplots could have been developed more—the older brothers, the family business corners—yet given the breadth of the story, that’s understandable. The resolution is satisfying but perhaps a little tidier than life often is. But in this genre, that’s acceptable.
Why You’ll Remember It
This book makes you laugh, blush, and think. It gives you the thrill of a second-chance romance and the weight of real life. After reading, you’ll find yourself revisiting the idea of “friend zone” and “experiment”—what if friendship was the safest path? Or what if friendship was the door to something deeper?
And you’ll close the book feeling full—not just of sugar, but of hope, reflection, and heart. Want a modern romance that has it all—style, substance, smarts? This is it.
Verdict: The Friend Zone Experiment is a five-star romance because it does everything right—delivers joy, delivers yearning, delivers meaningful stakes—and yet it also does something rare in romance: it asks you to look beyond love into life’s bigger questions. Zen Cho has crafted a story that proves you can want the fairy-tale and want the adult choices. Read it with a glass of wine, or a cup of coffee, and let yourself stay up too late. You’ll thank yourself.
