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A review by book_concierge
A River of Stars by Vanessa Hua
3.0
Hua’s first novel looks at the immigrant experience from a slightly different angle: wealthy Chinese who pay a high fee to ensure their pregnant partners will stay in a secure location until they give birth to babies who will automatically have the always-coveted native-born U.S. citizenship.
The story focuses on Scarlett Chen, the mistress or Boss Yeung. Boss already has three daughters with his wife, but ultrasound has shown that Scarlet is carrying a boy, so he wants to be sure to give his son every advantage. But most of the other women at Perfume Bay are wives, and they shun Scarlett. The only other “outcast” is teenaged Daisy, another unwed mother whose parents are trying to keep her separated from her American-Chinese boyfriend. When Scarlet’s dreams seem to be falling apart, she panics, taking the facility’s dilapidated van and heading towards the only location she can think of – San Francisco’s Chinatown. En route she discovers that Daisy has stowed away and is intent on accompanying Scarlett. Together they forge an unusual alliance.
I found this an interesting and engaging story. I really liked Scarlett, who is intelligent, resourceful, determined, and a very hard worker. I found Daisy frustratingly immature, but then she’s a teenager, impetuous, quick to react, easily bored, and not always thinking of future consequences to her actions. And yet, the two of them DO work together, Daisy using her fluency in English and brash personality, Scarlett lending her entrepreneurial spirit and willingness to work hard so that they two of them can stay ahead of those who are seeking them.
I was less interested in Boss Yeung’s story and the drama/suspense that it brought to the novel. Although I do recognize the importance of his role to the story arc, and I liked the way Hua ended the story.
I also have to make a comment about the role of food in this story. I was hungry all the time, reading this, and definitely wanted to seek out one of Scarlett’s hanbaobao “sliders”!
Final verdict: a good, but not great, debut. I’d consider reading another of Hua’s works.
The story focuses on Scarlett Chen, the mistress or Boss Yeung. Boss already has three daughters with his wife, but ultrasound has shown that Scarlet is carrying a boy, so he wants to be sure to give his son every advantage. But most of the other women at Perfume Bay are wives, and they shun Scarlett. The only other “outcast” is teenaged Daisy, another unwed mother whose parents are trying to keep her separated from her American-Chinese boyfriend. When Scarlet’s dreams seem to be falling apart, she panics, taking the facility’s dilapidated van and heading towards the only location she can think of – San Francisco’s Chinatown. En route she discovers that Daisy has stowed away and is intent on accompanying Scarlett. Together they forge an unusual alliance.
I found this an interesting and engaging story. I really liked Scarlett, who is intelligent, resourceful, determined, and a very hard worker. I found Daisy frustratingly immature, but then she’s a teenager, impetuous, quick to react, easily bored, and not always thinking of future consequences to her actions. And yet, the two of them DO work together, Daisy using her fluency in English and brash personality, Scarlett lending her entrepreneurial spirit and willingness to work hard so that they two of them can stay ahead of those who are seeking them.
I was less interested in Boss Yeung’s story and the drama/suspense that it brought to the novel. Although I do recognize the importance of his role to the story arc, and I liked the way Hua ended the story.
I also have to make a comment about the role of food in this story. I was hungry all the time, reading this, and definitely wanted to seek out one of Scarlett’s hanbaobao “sliders”!
Final verdict: a good, but not great, debut. I’d consider reading another of Hua’s works.