Review: The Tiger Mom's Tale by Lyn Liao Butler
One of the greatest gifts reading for Read It Or List It gives me is that I often find myself reading books I wouldn’t normally gravitate towards. We all know I’ve been on a romance kick, so I don’t typically reach for women’s fiction but the synopsis of The Tiger Mom’s Tale completely grabbed me. And then I had the pleasure of interviewing the author, Lyn Liao Butler, which is coming to the podcast very soon!
Synopsis: “Lexa Thomas has never quite fit in. Having grown up in a family of blondes while more closely resembling Constance Wu, she's neither white enough nor Asian enough. Visiting her father in Taiwan as a child, Lexa thought she'd finally found a place where she belonged. But that was years ago, and even there, some never truly considered her to be a part of the family.
When her estranged father dies unexpectedly, leaving the fate of his Taiwanese family in Lexa's hands, she is faced with the choice to return to Taiwan and claim her place in her heritage . . . or leave her Taiwanese family to lose their home for good. Armed with the advice of two half-sisters (one American and the other Taiwanese, who can't stand each other), a mother who has reevaluated her sexuality, a man whose kisses make her walk into walls, and her self-deprecating humor, Lexa finds the courage to leave the comfort of New York City to finally confront the person who drove her away all those decades ago.
With fond memories of eating through food markets in Taiwan and forming a bond with a sister she never knew she had, Lexa unravels the truth of that last fateful summer and realizes she must stand up for herself and open her heart to forgiveness, or allow the repercussions of her family's choices to forever dictate the path of her life.” —Via Amazon
What I Liked:
The Pacing—Honestly, I was hooked from the first chapter, which I feel like hasn’t happened for me with a book in a LONG time. The writing is readable, fast paced, and dramatic. A perfect summer read!
The Characters—I loved Lexa and her sisters, Hsu-Ling and Maddie (thought Maddie can take a while to warm up to). I also LOVED her dad, Greg, and her father Jing-Tao.
The Food—The FOOD!!! I loved how Lyn wrote about food in this book. I was so hungry while reading and it was such a cool window into the Taiwanese culture.
What Didn’t Work For Me:
Not much! I found this books very entertaining and also heartwarming. It might be a little too dramatic for some readers’ tastes, but I was all in.
TW/CW: Car accident, Death of parent, Death, Violence, Sexual harassment, Racism, Xenophobia, and Blood
Character Authenticity: 5/5 Steam Rating: N/A Overall Rating: 4.5/5
Get yourself a copy: Bookshop.org Amazon