โA con artist story, a pop-feminist caper, a fashionable romp . . . Counterfeit is an entertaining, luxurious readโbut beneath its glitz and flash, it is also a shrewd deconstruction of the American dream and the myth of the model minority. . . . Chen is up to something innovative and subversive here." โ Camille Perri, NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW
Recommended by New York Times Book Review โข Washington Post โข People โข Entertainment Weekly โข USA Today โข Time โข Cosmopolitan โข Today show โข Harperโs Bazaar โข Vogue โข Good Housekeeping โข Parade โข New York Post โข Town & Country โข GMA.com โข Buzzfeed โข Goodreads โข Oprah Daily โข Popsugar โข Bustle โขย theSkimm โข The Millions โข and more!
For fans ofย Hustlersย andย How to Get Filthy Rich in Rising Asia, theย storyย ofย twoย Asian American womenย who band together toย growย a counterfeit handbag scheme into a global enterpriseโan incisive andย glitteringย blend ofย fashion, crime,ย andย friendshipย from the author ofย Bury What We Cannot Takeย andย Soy Sauce for Beginners.
Money canโt buy happinessโฆ but it can buy a decent fake.
Ava Wongย has always played it safe.ย As a strait-laced,ย rule-abidingย Chinese American lawyer with aย successfulย surgeonย as aย husband,ย aย young son,ย andย aย beautiful homeโsheโs built theย perfectย life. Butย beneath thisย faรงade,ย Avaโs world isย crumbling: her marriage isย falling apart,ย herย expensiveย lawย degreeย hasnโt been usedย inย years, andย herย toddlerโs tantrums are pushing her to the breaking point.
Enter Winnie Fang, Avaโs enigmatic college roommate from Mainland China,ย whoย abruptlyย dropped out under mysterious circumstances.ย Now, twenty years later,ย Winnie isย looking to reconnectย with her old friend. But the shy, awkward girl Avaย once knewย has been replaced with a confident woman of the world, dripping in luxury goods, including a coveted Birkin in classic orange.ย The secret to her success?ย Winnie has developed an ingenious counterfeit schemeย that involves importing near-exact replicas of luxuryย handbags and now she needs someone with a U.S. passport toย help manageย her businessโsomeone whoโd never be suspected of wrongdoing, someone like Ava.ย Butย when their spectacular success is threatened and Winnie vanishesย once again,ย Avaย is left to face the consequences.
Swift, surprising,ย andย sharplyย comic,ย Counterfeitย isย aย stylish and feminist caperย with a strong point of view and an axe to grind. Peering behind the curtain of the upscale designer storefronts and the Chinese factories where luxury goods are produced, Kirstin Chen interrogates the myth of the model minority through two unforgettable women determined to demand more from life.
"If you appreciate a good caper, youโll want to pick up Kirstin Chenโs novel . . . Fast-paced and fun, with smart commentary on the cultural differences between Asia and America." โ TIME
โPropulsive and captivating . . . A provocative story of fashion, friendship, and fakes (in more ways than one).โ โ VOGUE
Kirstin Chen is the New York Times bestselling author of Counterfeit, Soy Sauce for Beginners and Bury What We Cannot Take. Born and raised in Singapore, she currently lives in New York City.