Meant to be in Manila
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See moreBefore Sunrise meets Love Hard in this romantic comedy about a Filipino history teacher and a Canadian-Filipino urban architect exploring Manila in search of lost love—and falling in love along the way.
Before Sunrise meets Love Hard in this RomCom set on a walking tour of Manila, Philippines.
Sophia Eunice "Piayaya" Hermosa, a former Philippine history teacher and a believer in meant-to-be, is on a plane back home to Manila after being ghosted by her Canadian boyfriend—whom she uprooted her life for—just as she arrived in Vancouver, Canada.
Raphael Alfonso "Rafal" Herbert, an urban housing architect and artist, is going home to his father's homeland, the Philippines, to chase after the girl who ghosted him and convince her of his love.
By some miracle of the romantic comedy gods, Sophia and Raphael meet on the plane bound for Manila and strike a bargain to help each other with their respective ghost-ers. Raphael will pretend to be her fiancé at her brother's wedding, and Sophia will drive him around the city to look for the girl he loves.
As they search for closure from their failed relationships and tour Manila along the way, it won't be long until they find out that they're exactly where they're meant to be—with each other.
Book Details
INFORMATION
ISBN: 9789815266122
Publisher: Penguin Random House SEA
Format: Paperback / softback
Date Published: 05 May 2026
Country: Singapore
Imprint: Penguin Random House SEA
Audience: General / adult
DIMENSIONS
Spine width: 33.0mm
Width: 132.0mm
Height: 198.0mm
Weight: 364g
Pages: 582
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About the Author
Mica De Leon is a Filipino writer of swoony romance comedy novels and SFF novels. She has won the Don Carlos Palanca Awards For Literature in 2019 and 2022 for her essays on romance, feminism, history, fantasy, and the Filipino identity in the aftermath of Martial Law and the 2022 presidential elections in the Philippines. She likes walking on the beach, dogs, cats, swoony and spicy romance novels, lengthy epic SFF novels, and Taylor Swift. Connect with her on Instagram and Tiktok- @micadeleonwrite
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