In a future Korea, the world has been ravaged by dust clouds and the deadly Akanta virus. Rather than live in their nightmarish present, people slip on virtual reality headsets to indulge in simulations of the past. Eighteen-year-old Soop – stigmatised by her brush with Akanta, which causes VR Rejection – is bullied at school for having to live solely in the real world. Her only solace comes from the K-pop music she listens to on repeat. When Soop comes face to face with her idol, Yichae, whose new music video is being filmed at Soop’s high school, she hopes this might be her chance at real connection. But Yichae has her own troubles. She is one of the few remaining ‘real’ human idols, forced to live up to unattainable beauty standards while being celebrated for her supposed authenticity. The Forest Called You is a love letter to K-pop, romance and high school politics – a novel about staying true to our passions and loving ourselves and each other in an increasingly artificial world.