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serendipitysbooks's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
The Leftover Woman is the story of two mothers - a birth mother who was told her child had died and an adopted mother who had no idea her child’s adoption was anything less than legitimate - and the daughter they unknowingly share. It also traverses China’s one child policy, abusive relationships, the plight of undocumented workers, organised crime, wealth, class, and a publishing industry scandal. With the exception of the high stakes action-packed ending I found the plot fairly predictable - and I probably should have seen that, or some variant of it, coming. It saddened me that the “best” option for the child was considered to be the wealthiest option. I understand and appreciate the need for stability and security, and the link between financial resources and quality of life and opportunities. Yet children need so much more than money, and money does not necessarily equate to a child’s best interests. While this story was poignant in places and did leave me with something to think about, overall its beats felt a little too obvious, sometimes cliched and overly dramatic, to be fully satisfying.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Violence, and Gun violence
Moderate: Racism
amberjackonski's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment and Gun violence
Moderate: Drug use
mysterymom40's review against another edition
emotional
informative
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual harassment, Violence, Miscarriage, Infidelity, Sexual content, Death, Addiction, Gun violence, Drug use, and Drug abuse
Minor: Xenophobia
lindsayerin's review
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence, Adult/minor relationship, Sexual assault, Racism, Grief, Sexual harassment, Domestic abuse, and Violence
Moderate: Sexism, Drug abuse, and Rape
Minor: Bullying, Medical content, Injury/Injury detail, and Abandonment
jennabeck13's review
challenging
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
The Leftover Woman by Jean Kwok
⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 (3.5/5)
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
About 275 pages
The Leftover Woman tells the story of Jasmine’s journey in NYC as she runs from her controlling husband, Wen, in China. While Jasmine has put up with Wen for years, when she discovers he lied and told her that her daughter died at birth, while in reality, their daughter is alive and well in the US, Jasmine knows it is time to go. Jasmine is determined to reunite with her daughter no matter the cost. But while Jasmine seeks to put her family back together, Rebecca’s family and career are falling apart. Following a scandal, Rebecca is on thin ice at work which is why she needs to land what is predicted to be the book of the year. Rebecca plans to connect with the author using her husband and daughter as leverage. However, she hasn't been prioritizing them lately, leading her daughter to favor her nanny and her husband to resent her a bit. While Rebecca and Jasmine are dealing with very different motherhood dilemmas, they end up on a crash course toward one another.
This was a beautifully done story that tackled several important topics including motherhood, racism, classism, abusive relationships, immigration, fetishization, and female empowerment. I enjoyed figuring out how the characters in Rebecca and Jasmine’s stories connected as the story progressed and seeing how both evolved as women. It also had a level of suspense we don’t normally see in contemporary fiction that I liked. My only complaints are there were a few places where I had trouble following the timelines and that Kwok left us with some loose ends.
Favorite Quote: “No one knew better than I that while your mind might disappear, the body must endure.”
Content Warnings
Moderate: Classism, Adult/minor relationship, Death, Deportation, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Cultural appropriation, Gaslighting, Gun violence, Racism, and Sexism
pomoevareads's review against another edition
emotional
informative
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Kwok takes on transracial adoption, the one child policy of China of the early 2000s, privilege, discrimination and looks behind the curtain of publishing in her latest novel The Leftover Woman.
Told in dual POVs of two mothers from two very different backgrounds and their desire to have the best outcome for their child. Jasmine is living in a small village in China when she discovers that the daughter she birthed has been illegally adopted by an American family after her husband had told her that her child died shortly after birth. Rebecca, an editor in chief at a publishing house in New York, and her husband Brandon adopted an orphaned child from China when attempts to have their own child were unsuccessful. Rebecca and Brandon have hired a Chinese speaking nanny to ensure their child holds onto her roots and Brandon is a professor whose specializes in Asian studies and speaks Chinese after having grown up there but never fitting in completely because of his whiteness. Now Jasmine is trying to pay back the snakeheads who brought her to the states illegally and plans to escape with her daughter into a new life.
This was my third book by this author and I quite enjoyed it but wasn’t surprised by any of the plot twists. While it was quite predictable at times, I did find myself interested in the examination of what is best for a child adopted outside of their culture.
The author’s writing is smooth and the story was propulsive. The Leftover Woman has an action packed ending worthy of being on screen.
Thank you to @harpercollinsca for an ARC in exchange for my honest opinions. the Leftover Woman publishes October 10, 2023.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Stalking, Sexual harassment, Racism, and Gun violence
Minor: Infertility and Addiction
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