Far from her Midwestern roots, Kathleen Schmitt is living in Tokyo as the project head for Personal Love Companion, a synthetic love robot made to match a customer's preference in personality and appearance. When Kathleen receives her own beta model for testing, she's shocked to find her personalized robot is the exact replica of her neighbor, Yuriko Vellucci.
American-born engineer for the PLC project, Yuriko is sympathetic to Kathleen's difficulties adjusting to Tokyo's culture, but quickly realizes Kathleen will need her help if this transition—and the PLC project—is to be a success. With Yuriko to show her the way, Kathleen learns to socialize at an izakaya, find the best onsen in Nikko, party at a matsuri, buy doujinshii in Akihabara, fall in love with Japan, and, perhaps, fall for the person who showed it to her.
First Bold Strokes Books edition; previously published 2016.