Rachel Chu is excited to spend the summer in Singapore and meet her boyfriend, Nicholas Young’s, family. They’ve been dating for two years, and while Nick has vaguely mentioned them she’s excited to see where he grew up and learn more about his family. But once landing in Singapore, Rachel is surprised to learn that Nick comes from an incredibly wealthy family, and that they are not very happy that Nick has chosen to date her.
Alright, alright, I’ll admit it, I watched the movie Crazy Rich Asians before reading the book. I enjoyed the movie and was always curious about the book and how it was different from the movie, and eight years later here we are!
Crazy Rich Asians is a fun book. I really enjoyed Rachel as a protagonist and liked that unlike other romance novels where we see the couple meet and eventually realize they love each other that Rachel and Nick already do. They’ve been dating for two years, have a life together and are already happy, the driving plot of the novel is Rachel learning that Nick is rich and the results of that.
What shocked me about how different the book and movie are is just how many characters there are. Kwan helpfully includes a family tree at the beginning of the novel to explain who is who and how the Youngs are related, but it was still confusing at times. I absolutely adore Astrid and loved to learn more about her in the book and absolutely despised Eddie who I’m glad was not as prominent in the movie. His few chapters in the book were enough for me!
While the book is a lot of fun and I enjoyed the antics of the rich and Rachel learning to navigate around them, some parts were quite dramatic and felt a bit like a soap opera. It was fun, but a little hectic at times. I was also disappointed the ending wasn’t as resolved as I thought it would be, but there are two more books in the series!
While I don’t think this is a series I’ll continue, I did have a lot of fun reading this. It’s not my usual genre, but I had a good time and am curious about some of Kwan’s newer works!
Publication: July 11 2013
Publisher: Anchor
Pages: 544 pages (Library)
Source: Library
Genre: Fiction, Romance, Contemporary
My Rating: ⛤⛤⛤.5
Summary:
When Rachel Chu agrees to spend the summer in Singapore with her boyfriend, Nicholas Young, she envisions a humble family home, long drives to explore the island, and quality time with the man she might one day marry. What she doesn’t know is that Nick’s family home happens to look like a palace, that she’ll ride in more private planes than cars, and that with one of Asia’s most eligible bachelors on her arm, Rachel might as well have a target on her back.
Initiated into a world of dynastic splendor beyond imagination, Rachel meets Astrid, the It Girl of Singapore society; Eddie, whose family practically lives in the pages of the Hong Kong socialite magazines; and Eleanor, Nick’s formidable mother, a woman who has very strong feelings about who her son should—and should not—marry.
Sarah O'Connor 