Lauren Ho's "Last Tang Standing"

                                                          

This book can be found here.

Ho's novel is contemporary romance / chick lit. That's right, I went there and read one of these. 

Anyway, the book is well-written. The language is tight and witty. But that's also not what you are going to focus on in this review ...

So, the story. Andrea Tang is a successful lawyer (hoping to make partner), owns a posh condo and has a strong group of friends who always know the best places in Singapore to go. It sounds like she has everything (or will). But as Andrea is a dutiful Chinese-Malaysian daughter, the weight of familial expectations to marry and bear children is hard to ignore, particularly as she is thirty-three and almost last in the family to be married. 

Andrea is therefore struggling between the tensions of the life she has, the life her family (and possibly she herself) wants, and what Andrea hopes for or really desires. Andrea is realistic and relatable (even with all the drinking and partying that may or may not be relatable to your personal life). The fact that there are parts of Andrea that are contrasting and almost incompatible at times show the depth of humanness to her in the book. The fact that the book deals with very successful and rich characters could challenge easy connections readers make with Ho's book; but the themes of identity, singleness and purpose are universal and will still speak to any reader. 

The characters, too, are strongly written and well-rounded. The characters can be seen as diverse within Malaysia/Singapore, but also highlights some of the ways the dominant cultures and communities view diversity. Ho has explained why the writing is the way it is here, if you find those moments difficult to read or understand. Whether this helps or hinders you reading this book, let me know. 

The pace also may be slower for some. However, given this is contemporary romance / chick lit, I didn't foresee it as action-packed and ever going to be moving at a speedy pace. However, it may be slow even for some readers who live for this genre. 

For her first novel, it was very strong and it should be a full and enjoyable read.

Links for you

Title read-a-likes in the Library: 

Bridget Jones's baby: the diaries

Helen Fielding

(Be aware, this is not the first of Bridget Jones's stories). This novel was chosen because of the familial pressures placed on its characters, the diary fiction-style of writing and the similar snarkiness of its protagonist.

Crazy rich Asians

Kevin Kwan

This novel is chosen for the culturally diverse cast, the same setting and similar wit.

First comes love

Emily Giffin

Author read-a-likes in the Library:

Unmarriageable: Pride and prejudice in Pakistan

Soniah Kamal

This author was chosen as they write in the same genre, the author uses their own voice and a strong sense of place.

Not that kind of guy

Andie J. Christopher

This author writes in the same genre and has characters that are culturally diverse, flawed and likeable.