Rachel Chu is an economics professor based
in New York City, she has been together with her boyfriend Nick for just over a
year and when he invites her back to his home town in Singapore over the summer
for his best friend’s wedding, followed by a holiday touring around Asia.
Unknown to Rachel Nicks family is incredibly
wealthy and maintain very traditional views. His mother is unhappy that he is
bringing Rachel home, a girlfriend she didn’t even know he had, and does not approve
of their match or him bringing her to the wedding.
After arriving in Singapore Rachel faces a
rough introduction into the circles his family socialise in and becomes the talking
point for all of Singapore’s wealthy families, many accusing her of being a
gold digger.
Especially upset are the daughters of these
billionaires who feel that Rachel has poached one of their own and that she
could go back to America instead of wasting everyone’s time dating someone who’s
family will never accept her.
I really enjoyed this book especially Kwan’s
analysis of the complex social scene in Singapore and how so many of the
families were interwoven, either as allies or enemies. He does a brilliant job
of showing just how vastly wealthy these families are and how Rachel has almost
stepped into a different world.
Rachel is brilliantly written and terribly
relatable meaning that you go through her experiences with her, whether they be
good or bad. It’s lovely to see her reconnect with her friend from college Peik
Lin and just how much of a comfort she and her family are to her.
Some of the other aspects of the book I
found harder to believe such as the lengths Nicks mother Eleanor went to keep
them apart, however her motivations were made clear which meant that it did not
pull you out of the story too much and it was still enjoyable.
The ending wasn’t as complete as I would have
liked, there were too many loose ends and questions still to be answered,
however I know there are a further two books in the series following Nick and Rachel
so I guess I’ll just have to read those!
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