Member Reviews
After reading Crazy Eich Asians, i was so excited for this book. As an Asian American read myself, I love seeing the tie ins and how Kwan weaves culture in with the ever entertaining storyline. A really fun time in my opinion.
I was super excited for this one because I truly loved the Crazy Rich Asians series, but this book did not live up to that series. It has the similar set up of luxury, name dropping, and privilege. But Lucie was a flat character and I found myself wanting to skip through the book because I just could not get into it.
I loved the Crazy Rich Asian series and looked forward to reading this book. I was not disappointed. I really enjoyed this title.
A great read with interesting characters and opulence everywhere. I love Kwan's writing and the characters he creates.
I received a review copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley for my honest review. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.
Written by the author of #crazyrichasians this is very much along the same lines. Lots of privilege, name dropping, very luxurious and ostentatious lives. But a fun quick read. #netgalley #bookstagram #sexandvanity #kevinkwan #reader #advancereadercopy #bookreview #bookrecommendations #lovetoread #readallthebooks #readersofinstagram #bookloversofinstagram #bookreviewsofinstagram #booksbooksbooks #takeapagefrommybook
Apologies for the late response on this title, and apologies for clogging up an inbox on old titles.
While I am aware it's obvious, I have chosen not to read/review this title.
As always, I appreciate access to titles and look forward to the next one...which I have likely already read based on how long ago this title was published.
Thanks, again.
I thought this book was really good and so beautiful just like the Crazy Rich Asians series. This book has a lot of family traditions and some good family drama. I thought he made Capri sound so beautiful. It made em want to visit as soon as we can hop on an international plane again. Kevin Kwan left the ending kind of open, so I’m not sure if there is going to be a sequel or not. I hope so!
Sex and Vanity is, as the title suggests, about the vanity of sex, sex, period, and how vain those seeking vanity can be.
I laughed out loud several times during this outrageous farce and truly enjoyed the skewering of the pretentious super rich. Yet beneath the farce is a coming of age story of Lucie, a lovely young woman who emerges as a beautiful orchid and precious jewel as the novel progresses. The love story between Lucie and George is simply stunning, a serious coming together of two highly principled young people amidst a sea of name dropping and designer gowns and jewels,
I loved this book. Highly recommended.
I received this book from the publisher and NetGalley.
I loved the Crazy Rich Asians series more and more with each release in the series, so I was incredibly excited to hear that Kevin Kwan was releasing a new novel. Unfortunately, this one did not have the same magic for me that I found in the CRA series, but still a worthwhile read.
3.5 Stars
I'm currently clearing out all of the books that were published in 2019-20 from my title feedback view!
I really liked the movie of Crazy Rich Asians, so I thought I'd give Kwan a try. It was a good read, but I didn't like it as much as I expected. Maybe just not my genre.
This book is AMAZING y’all! It is no surprise to me that it debuted on the NYT bestsellers list. Be whisked away to Capri and then indulge in the extravagance of NYC with our protagonist Lucie Tang Churchill.
Lucie is not your normal protagonist, for my fellow biracial friends, she is the protagonist we have been waiting for! Kwan has written her with such authenticity, I had to take breaks when reading because certain things were just too real. Thank you, Kevin Kwan. ❤️
This being his first book after the Crazy Rich Asians trilogy we all were expecting a huge home run and sadly this wasn't it. While you did feel for the main character the story lulled too much and just didn't give you the same feelings as when you read CRA.
Sex and Vanity by Kevin Kwan is fine, just fine. I highly anticipated this book after reading the Crazy Rich Asians series, but this book just didn't pop. The main character Lucie isn't as engaging as Rachel Chu, though her struggle with her half white half Chinese identity was interesting and important.
Lucie first meets (and falls for) George at a wedding in Capri when she is nineteen. After an intimate incident ending embarrassingly, they part ways, and Lucie puts it behind her. Five years later, she’s engaged to Cecil. George moves to New York and enters her life again. Lucie is confused. She’s torn between her Chinese and European heritage as much as she is between George and Cecil.
The story is interesting. The mix and difficulties brought forth of Chinese- and European-American heritage are interesting, as the old versus new money issues. It’s a story of love, family, and finding yourself.
I was kind of torn with Sex and Vanity. In one way, it felt way too similar to reading Crazy Rich Asians, although the writing style still definitely hooked me from the start. On the other hand, I’m a sucker for a dramatic storyline! Like with CRA, though, I felt that the writing sometimes went into too much detail and didn’t add to the plot itself.
I wanted to love this one, I really, really did! I adored his Crazy Rich Asians series and was hoping this would be sort of similar. It wasn't and I should of known better. I spent the whole time trying to get into it, remembering all the characters, and following the story line. It felt more like homework than reading for pleasure. I didn't necessarily hate it but i didn't find it that enjoyable either...it was just OK.
This was an interesting read, but didn't draw me in like Crazy Rich Asians. It was the same style and the focus on the wealth was too much for my taste.
So, this book was enjoyable, but in a blah kind of way. I get that it's a retelling of A Room With A View, but there were a lot of characters that took me a while to get a grasp on. I thought once the characters were established, it was much more enjoyable. I felt like George and Lucie's relationship could have been drawn out a bit. Overall it was a satisfying read, but it just took a while to get there.
I must say I was very excited to read this, as I enjoyed the Crazy Rich Asians trilogy. This one, however, took me a long time to get into. Perhaps it was because I felt I had already read so much of the lifestyle in the other books that there was nothing left to tell. I might have to come back and read this one again. But for now, this one just didn't do it for me.