by Kevin Kwan, Doubleday, June 2013
... a definite beach read!
This is a fun book on it’s way no doubt to becoming a fun movie. American born Chinese girl unknowingly becomes romantically involved with a colleague who is the scion of an incredibly rich Chinese family living in Singapore. The story flits from New York to London to Paris to Hong Kong to Singapore. The author has some familiarity with the lifestyles of the upper echelons of the incredibly rich Chinese and uses this information to skewer them in a hilarious fashion.
Rachel Chu is a successful college professor who falls in love with Nick Young a fellow prof at NYU. Nick invites her to his family home in Singpore without telling her much about the extensive wealth of his family. As you might imagine this girl from modest circumstances is not welcomed by the haughty family. Nick’s childhood friend is marrying and an outrageously expensive wedding provides the backdrop for most of this story. Rachel is immediately uncomfortable in this world and is rescued only by Nick’s cousin Astrid. Astrid’s relationship with her husband provides one of the subplots for the book. Events proceed in a rather predictable way but the story is rescued by the writing style of the author - he makes it all fun - an entertaining soap opera with multiple characters acting in just enough of an outrageous manner to make the whole story fly along. A definite beach read!
I read a copy of this novel provided by the publisher.
2 comments:
*I have met a crazy rich Asian or two from Singapore and would love to read this one.
I am still reading this book, but love the comical tone of it. I am curious how much of this is true vs fiction!
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