Reviews with content warning for Toxic friendship - Counterfeit

This is an easy read. The story begins with a first-person narration by Ava, who narrates her experiences with Winnie to the detective. Ava is not really likable, but she had good character development. That said, aside from her and Winnie, the other characters have no personality at all. They all seem really one dimensional.

Through this book we not only get an interesting premise, but insight into complex issues such as family expectations, consumerism, and labor exploitation.

Unfortunately it was a bit difficult to read because there were no quotation marks through most of the book. Being honest, I don't like that style of writing, especially since there is a lot of talking and no action.

Overall it was a great book, but I'm hoping for better!

tw: toxic friendship, toxic relationship, xenophobia, racism, alcoholism, medical content.

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anntharai's review against another edition

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funny reflective tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

I read this on a recommendation and without reading the blurb and I’m so glad I did. It was genuinely funny and interesting, and I definitely thought it was going to end a lot darker than it did.

I thought there was going to be a time shift twist or some heavy foreshadowing payoff - the plane Winnie gets on was going to be the one that crashed in Ava’s testimony/another plane with the same counterfeit part issue. If this was intentional from the author bravo it worked, if not maybe I’m a bit grim hahah)

Though I did have to look up a lot of the bags to understand some of the designer humour 😂.

I liked the structure and the style, plus the narrator Catherine Ho did a phenomenal job.

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kirstym25's review against another edition

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adventurous lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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erinmjustice's review against another edition

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lighthearted mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

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nadia's review against another edition

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lighthearted tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No

3.75

This was a really good listen! Perfect for captivating my attention while doing chores around the house or commuting. There's a lot more depth than meets the eye to this one and I appreciated where Kristin Chen took the book. Didn't quite make my personal 4⭐️ threshold because of a couple narrative elements that felt a teeny bit off/awkward and a couple plot points that I didn't fully connect with. I saw someone else say that this would make a great movie and I wholeheartedly agree!

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stephbakerbooks's review against another edition

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mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

This was a good quick listen; it kept me engaged and entertained, it surprised me in some places, though I was left with mixed feelings about the ending, unsure how I'm supposed to feel about the characters.

Most of the story is written as a conversation between Ava and a police detective, as she recounts how she got involved with the counterfeit scheme. I liked this narrative device and I think it served the story well, but I think the story would work better as a movie. Especially with the handbags—because honestly I am not a handbag person and had no idea what these bags were supposed to look like haha.

Even though the ending left me unsure how I feel about Ava and Winnie, they both still get nice development and complexity throughout the story and I appreciated that. I would actually say the characters are a little stronger than the plot here.

Anyways, it was an enjoyable listen and I'd definitely recommend the audiobook route for this one!

Thank you to Libro.fm, HarperAudio, and the author for my ALC!

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kristynpittman's review against another edition

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mysterious

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

This was such a fun audiobook!! It really hit all my interests. Designer bags, scamming people, crime, college besties, and a frazzled mom. This is the perfect summer “thriller” to take to the beach. No heavy topics or death. Just killer handbags ! 👜

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