Fascinating story. I recall from history how men from China went to work in California and sent money back home to their families (immigrants still do this, but now from other parts of the world. Odd, how some Chinese families, who have lost touch with their American families, still write expecting them to send them money in the 21st century!) Anyway, I wasn't aware of paper wive. It's a new one I'll have to read up on sometime, but I learned quite a bit about it in this book. I thought mail order brides was a relatively recent activity (1960's-70's) then remembered we also practiced this in the U.S. in the 1800'. WW2 also had a lot of mail order type arrangements (friends whose parent's marriages were somewhat arranged.) I really had no idea it was happening in China, too. Well, there are arranged marriages all over the planet it seems.
It was an interesting story from the bride's prospective, so as a woman I found it interesting to know how she was feeling about the deal and it's ramifications for her life. I guess we make the best of things. Great read!

Sorry - not for me. Interesting setting but the characters and prose felt quite generic and it didn't draw me to keep reading. DNF

Paper Wife was an honest look at how hard life was 100 years ago, how much discrimination there was against Asian people in America.
In a culture that was so incredibly different from what most readers know. The concept of arranged marriages is one so different from our modern culture.
With all of that being said, I immensely enjoyed this book. It's really interesting to get another perspective on the world.

This gentle novel throws light on an aspect of history that I knew nothing about. Set largely in San Francisco’s Chinatown, it focuses on the surreptitious custom of the ‘paper wife’, and on one particularly determined and compassionate woman. In March 1923, in a small village in China’s Guangdong Province, young Mei Ling is obliged to take her elder sister’s place in a matchmaking deal. New American immigration laws mean that Chinese workers in the USA can no longer move freely back and forth to their families in the motherland. A businessman from San Francisco has come home, hoping to take his wife and son back with him, only to find that his wife has recently died. Now he needs a replacement, and Mei Ling’s family are poor enough and desperate enough to send their daughter to the other side of the world, with a stranger, in the hope of securing a good life for her. The catch is that Mei Ling must pretend to be the dead wife of her new husband, in order to get through the examination given by US border officials. A tale of resilience, hope and well-meaning deceit, this book looks at the challenges of building a new life in the New World – and stepping into another woman’s shoes.


Mei Ling is actually lying twice over, by necessity. She is not Wong Lew She, the dead wife of her husband Kai Li. But nor is she Yu Ling, her elder sister, the woman Kai Li has been expecting and whose horoscope (a Rabbit) was carefully selected to blend with his. But Yu Ling has fallen sick with a severe fever and Mei Ling’s family can’t let this opportunity pass: their other daughter must step into the breach. The problem is that Mei Ling is not a Rabbit: she’s a Dragon, full of force and passion, and she wonders how she can hide her spirit from her husband. Yet she will need all the inner strength she can muster for the long voyage in steerage from Hong Kong to San Francisco – separated from her husband and solely responsible for her new stepson, meek little Bo. On arrival, they are sent to Angel Island, the internment camp for new arrivals, where they are checked and interrogated to make sure they are who they claim to be. This is where it could all go wrong. And Mei Ling is no longer responsible just for herself. She has Bo to think of, and bright little Siew, an orphaned child who has attached herself to their family. Moreover, Mei Ling soon realises that she’s pregnant.

What if she fails and is sent back to China in disgrace? How can she convince the officials that she’s a woman she has never met, and that she knows a house and a village she’s never seen? And even if she manages to pass the exam, what will her new life be like? Can she trust her husband – a man she has barely seen since meeting him? Will he be kind? Nothing is quite as Mei Ling expects, of course, and it turns out that she isn’t the only one who has been lying. But she is young and strong and, at heart, optimistic. She sets out to make the best of the hand fate has dealt her: doing her best to be a good mother for her stepson; using her embroidery skills to boost the family finances; cautiously learning about her husband; and wondering what happened to courageous little Siew after they parted on Angel Island. Life is not easy here, in the hardscrabble world of San Francisco, but Mei Ling will learn that it can still be cherished. She gradually creates a new network of family, caring friends and community to replace the one she left behind – and helps to change a few lives in turn.

This is a wholesome, heartwarming story, with nothing to scare the horses. Indeed, at times it all seems to flow a little too easily. Mei Ling faces surprises and mild setbacks, but I never really felt she or her family were in peril, or doubted that they would overcome the challenges they faced. These challenges were resolved surprisingly easily, especially the major crisis in the book (I won’t say more, to avoid spoilers), which is deftly disposed of – albeit in a way that would surely only have created further problems. The characterisation occasionally also feels a little flat: Siew is a wonderful little creation, for example, but Kai Li never develops much depth. Coupled with a slightly stilted and detached prose style, this means that the story itself never really came to life for me, although the period and setting were certainly fascinating. The whole concept of the ‘paper wife’ (or son, father, niece, etc.) was also intriguing, and you can easily understand why so many Chinese people took the opportunity to escape political or economic troubles at home in the hope of making a fresh start in the USA.

For the review, please see my blog:
https://theidlewoman.net/2020/03/11/paper-wife-laila-ibrahim/

"Paper Wife" is an entertaining historical fiction novel. While it does seem to have some unrealistic parts, it remains a rather entertaining, interesting story.

Paper Wife by Laila Ibrahim is a must read for fans of Lisa See and Amy Tan. I thoroughly enjoyed the story of Mei Ling!

A historical fiction book that was extremely entertaining. A teenage girl living in China must move to America and become a “paper wife” for a Chinese immigrant. This is a story of immigration, family, a woman’s strength and what she’ll do to protect her family.

This ebook and audiobook are available on Kindle Unlimited, which is how I listened to/read it, but I would like to that the author, publisher, and NetGalley for a copy of the ARC.

This is a gorgeous historical fiction. It follows a young Chinese woman as she goes to the US in the twenties. Unlike so many historical novels, this one is not chock-full with a bunch unnecessary filler. I simply loved it.

3/ 5 stars

Eighteen year old Mei Ling and her sister Jah Jeh are living in a village with their family. It is 1923 and times are hard as China rebounds from famine, war and disease. A matchmaker has been employed and a husband has been found for Jah Jeh who is destined to travel to California with her merchant husband and his orphaned son Bo. Unfortunately she is stricken with a fever and Mei Ling must take her place as the matchmaker will not refund her fee. Such is the desperation of the family that they may never see their daughter again and she may provide much needed help from her new position.

Mei Ling travels to Hong Kong with Kai Li and from there by boat to San Francisco. Mei Ling has assumed the identity of her sister to deceive Kai Li. On his part he explains to her that she must now assume the identity of his deceased wife to enable her to gain entry to the United States. She has become a ‘paper wife’ which necessitates her learning the correct answers to the questions that immigration will ask of her.

The book was interesting althoughnit was very unrealistic in many aspects

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and the author, for an ARC of this book, in exchange for an honest review.
Unfortunately, I have tried reading this book on 2 separate occasions and during this 2nd attempt, I have only managed to make it halfway through so I'd rather stop here and state that this book just wasn't for me.

A wonderful story that swepts you away to times gone by. The characters make you feel for them. I finished this book in two days. It went by to quickly, in a good way.

I received this e-book ARC of Paper Wife through Net Galley from Lake Union Publishing in exchange for a truthful review.
Historical fiction about the journey of a desperate "paper wife" from being an educated teenager in Southern China in the 1920s to her marriage and immigration to the Bay Area of California.
The story was riveting, heart breaking in parts, inspirational in others and I zoomed through it in several hours. Historical information on the plight of Chinese immigrants to the US during this time frame is discussed in an appendix.
Only took off one star because a resolution of one problem towards the end of the novel which screamed "out of character" to me.

I really liked learning about how the Chinese had a difficult time immigrating to this country. This is a wonderful historical fiction for anyone interested in China.

I would like to thank Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book free of charge. This is my honest and unbiased opinion of it.

I love books written about the Chinese culture. Everything about the culture, their traditions, and the way they live their lives has always fascinated me. Paper Wife was an excellent look at the times and traditions of China in the 1920's—an arranged marriage for Mei Ling and a long voyage to America with a man she didn't even know. And then to find out that what she thought was the truth, was a lie. But wasn't she living a lie, as well?

Paper Wife is beautifully written and I fell in love with all of the characters that made up Mei Ling's family. The story is full of life struggles as everyone tries to adjust to each other, and to their new lives, but it's also full of love. I really enjoyed this story and look forward to ready more books by this author.

A wonderful tale about a beautiful,Chinese girl who took her critically ill sister's place and married a complete stranger.
She thought it was to be on paper only,but their love went on to be much more than that after coming to America.
There were many trials and catastrophes along the way,but family life went on and the children grew and mistakes were forgiven.
Story has a lot about Chinese customs and believes and is very entertaining.The main characters are richly detailed and you will especially love Me-lei, who sacrificed a lot for her family
A big thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to Read and review such a great novel, "Paper Wife" by author Paula Ibrahim.

Did not finish. Would definitely try again. I admired the courage of the younger sister, just didn’t click with the book

Paper Wife is an interesting look at the way some immigrants came from China to the United States. It's a difficult journey for these women. The story is engaging and informative with many historical facts. It's interesting enough to keep you reading until the end. Thanks to NetGalley for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

Wow, so many unexpected turns and twists! A strong and moving story about coming to USA and so much more. There is a lot of interesting history told on a personal level, with good sources listed at the end. Tons of cultural facts. I highly recommend.

I really enjoyed this book. It tells a story about immigration from China to America. Being immigrant my self, it showed me a different view of a hard road people had to take to get to this country. It remind us that we all have our own story of getting here, we are people of different races and backgrounds, but inside we are all the same humans with the same feelings of wanting the best for our families, we all need love and feeling of belonging.

Paper Wife by Laila Ibrahim is a very good story, and all the circles in the storyline could 'easily' be developed into its own stories. This is one of the books where You seem to feel there is much more to be told, but the characters would turn into something else. Not that it is a competition, but I could not resist the plot and read it in a day and a half days Thank you for the allowance to read.