Loveboat, Taipei: A Chick Lit Wednesday Review

The last thing Ever Wong wants to do is spend her summer in an educational program in Taiwan learning Chinese and preparing to start at Northwestern’s pre-med program in the fall.

But Ever is used to not having a say in her own life and isn’t surprised when her parents ship her off and ruin her plans to spend one last summer dancing before she gives up (like always) and does what her parents want (like always).

But the program isn’t what ever expects. Instead of rigorous study with Chien Tan Ever finds herself in a program with minimal supervision and her exuberant roommate Sophie Ha egging her on, Ever is ready to break every one of her parents rules–especially when it comes to no dating.

With its reputation as a party program to meet up (and hook up), there’s no shortage of cute guys–most notably including Xavier Yeh the sexy heir to a fortune who’s already caught Sophie’s eye and has a secret he’s reluctant to admit. Then there’s Rick Woo who, as the bane of Ever’s existence and object lesson of how she’ll never be good enough for her parents, is totally not dating material. No matter how much he gets under Ever’s skin.

But the more time Ever spends doing all of the things her parents would hate, the less sure she is what she wants for herself in Loveboat, Taipei (2020) by Abigail Hing Wen.

Find it on Bookshop.

Loveboat, Taipei is Wen’s debut novel. Although Ever’s narration sometimes skews towards hyperbolic metaphors (“But why did you let me dance when I was little? I want to cry. Why give me honey when you knew my future was diabetic?”) her struggle to reconcile her own desires with honoring the sacrifices her parents have made to give Ever so many opportunities.

Ever is a complex, fully realized heroine with her own strengths and flaws. What starts as a summer of rebellion becomes a chance for her to learn how to articulate and pursue her dream to become a dancer and choreographer instead of the doctor her parents always wanted her to become.

Loveboat, Taipei shines when the focus is on ever and her own journey. The other characters, in comparison, often feel one-dimensional. A tertiary character’s struggle with depression becomes a plot device in the final act and does not receive as thorough a treatment as it should have. In contrast another character’s dyslexia is addressed much more conscientiously.

Over the course of the summer, Ever travels through Taipei’s glittering nightlife and tourist destinations while negotiating her identity as an American visitor in Taiwan compared to her life as the only Asian American in her small Ohio town. With clubbing, loads of drama, and a messy love triangle, Ever’s summer is more than she bargained for and forces her to confront her best and worst qualities before she can figure out what comes next.

Loveboat, Taipei is as thoughtful as it is sensational. Recommended for readers looking for a splashy romance with soul searching in equal measure.

Possible Pairings: Practically Ever After by Isabel Bandeira, Our Wayward Fate by Gloria Chao, The Revolution of Birdie Randolph by Brandy Colbert, Anna K.: A Love Story by Jenny Lee, Tweet Cute by Emma Lord, This Time Will Be Different by Misa Sugiura, Gossip Girl by Cecily von Ziegesar

The Astonishing Color of After: A Chick Lit Wednesday Review

Leigh knows that her mother turned into a bird after she killed herself. The bird came to her before the funeral. She came again with a box for Leigh to take with her when she goes.

She isn’t sure what the bird wants or how to help her mother. All she knows is that she and her father are now in Taiwan and Leigh is meeting her maternal grandparents for the first time.

Nothing about the trip or her family is what Leigh expected. Her world feels colorless and confusing–coated with grief and filled with ghosts. But as Leigh learns more about her family, her heritage, and her mother’s past it starts to feel like Leigh might be able to find a way through in The Astonishing Color of After (2018) by Emily X.R. Pan.

Find it on Bookshop.

The Astonishing Color of After is Pan’s debut novel.

It’s taken me a while to review this book because I’ve been struggling with separating how hard this book is to read with how very good it is.

The novel opens shortly after Leigh’s mother has killed herself. Leigh comes home just in time to see her body being taken away, to see the blood, and she is haunted by the thought that she might have been able to do something if only she’d been home instead of celebrating 2.5s Day with her best friend and longtime crush Axel.

Leigh finds a way to channel her grief when a bird comes to her. Leigh knows it’s her mother. She knows the bird is real. She also knows that her mother the bird has things she shouldn’t have–photographs that were burned, heirlooms that were sent to Taiwan.

In traveling to Taiwan Leigh thinks she can somehow rescue her mother the bird and bring her home. Instead Leigh embarks on a journey of discovery and understanding as she learns more about her heritage and her family’s past. She still hurts, she still mourns, but she also begins to learn how to move on and how to forgive.

In traveling to Taiwan Leigh also begins to learn more about her family’s heritage and culture–things that were hard to hold onto as a biracial girl–especially with her mother eager to embrace her new life in America and leave the past behind.

The Astonishing Color of After is not an easy read–Pan’s writing is too visceral, too evocative for that. Instead readers are immediately drawn into Leigh’s journey. Flashbacks shed light on Leigh’s relationship with Axel–a thread that ties the novel together from its painful opening to its hopeful conclusion–while memories from Leigh’s relatives shed light on her mother’s past while also underscoring the flaws in Leigh’s memories and the things she has tried to forget.

The Astonishing Color of After is a powerful and nuanced story about loss, forgiveness, art, and all of the things that make a family–whether it’s blood or a deeper bond. Highly recommended.

Possible Pairings: Down and Across by Arvin Ahmadi, Starfish by Akemi Dawn Boman, The Best We Could Do by Thi Bui, Tell Me No Lies by Adele Griffin, Darius the Great is Not Okay by Adib Khorram, This Raging Light by Estelle Laure, We Were Liars by E. Lockhart, Don’t Date Rosa Santos by Nina Moreno, I’ll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson, The Summer of Chasing Mermaids by Sarah Ockler, 500 Words or Less by Juleah del Rosario, Bone Gap by Laura Ruby, I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter by Erika L. Sánchez, The Walls Around Us by Nova Ren Suma, The Serpent King by Jeff Zentner, American Street by Ibi Zoboi