Pub Date: March 5, 2024 🎉

I love a good heist, especially when it’s as fun as Sophie WAN’s WOMEN OF GOOD FORTUNE.

Lulu is about to marry Shanghai’s richest and most eligible bachelor, much to her dismay. She isn’t in love with Harv, but their marriage would be a financial gain to help out her family as well as avoid being considered a “sheng nu” (a woman passed the appropriate age for marriage).

Meanwhile, Lulu’s friends Jane and Rina are also in their own predicament. Jane feels like she’s in a loveless marriage forced upon her because no other man would marry her for her looks. Rina has put aside love and starting a family to focus on her career, but has been constantly passed up for promotion in favor of her male colleagues. If they had it their way and their own money, they would each go after what they really want. Together, they end up hatching a plan and forming a small crew to steal the red envelopes at Lulu’s upcoming wedding. 

I love Sophie Wan’s debut novel. It takes a cultural look into customs and expectations of women, but gives its three main characters a chance to break away and take back control of their lives through a heist. The whole idea and execution felt like something straight out of an Ocean’s Eleven movie. I liked seeing the details come together and was excited to see how it would all come through. The two additional members of the Leftover crew, as they called themself, also rounded out the team well. 

I also really like how Wan explores each of the women’s own dilemmas, including how the people they care about will be affected. Not everything is simple as planned and we see what is at risk for all of them, with even their friendship put to the test, as relationships begin to develop and what they each thought was so important is called into question.

I would have liked to have known more about some of the other characters in the end, but despite this I had a great time reading it. It’s perfect for fans of Ocean’s Eight, Bridesmaids, and Crazy Rich Asians.

Thank you to NetGalley and Graydon House Books for the eARC!