I couldn't get through this title. It ended up not being for me, but I hope it finds a hope with other readers.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

YZ Chin is weaving together so many threads throughout this story and doing such a masterful job at pulling them all together. All at once, this is a story about the dissolution of a marriage, a commentary on immigration, an interrogation of the mother-daughter relationship, an examination about consumption and body image, and a story of grief and trauma. All while being told on two timelines. Chin’s greatest strength in this novel is the intersectional way she tackles each issue, showing how every layer of this story is influenced by its surrounding layers.

I also really appreciated that this felt like a real story. I’ve talked about this with friends and in the book-internet world before but it feels like we are in an age where so much of fiction is trying to be about some grand political point, and proving that point comes at the cost of actual story telling. Edge Case feels like a rare version of a story that puts a series of cultural, social, and political topics under a microscope but still manages to examine them through an engaging plot and well developed characters.

My only criticism is that the story isn’t quite there on a craft level. I think the writing style was a little basic. There were a few parts that stuck out to me as having really impressive and interesting sentence structure or profound points being made through language, but for the most part there wasn’t a lot of linguistic meat on the bones of the story (pun sort of intended?). I also struggle with stories written in the first person. Without having a narrative reason to be in first person, it always comes across a little juvenile to me. There was an attempt to justify it in the text by having the main character occasionally break the third wall and address the therapist she is writing to, but that fell flat for me.

This was definitely one of the better contemporary novels I’ve read lately. And while I don’t think it rises to the level of sanctified canon on a craft level, I am so impressed by how much it was able to contain within one cohesive story.

A Malayasian couple immigrates to the USA. The husband leaves Edwina, and she goes on a journey of self-discovery. It was just okay.

This was a hard one. I found the story of Edwin interesting, but jumped around too much for me. It was engaging in some ways but left me with a lot of questions. It’s an different book. The characters are very one dimensional. The ending left little to desire.

An intimate look into one side of a marriage on the edge of crumbling as the husband has removed himself without word to the wife, Edwina, we find her stressed by the misogyny at her tech job that may prevent her from getting visa sponsorship and stress from her mother who keeps wondering aloud why she’s in America at all. In New York City distractions from her missing husband abound and she turns to eating meat as her vice throwing away years of vegetarianism. Not so much plot-driven as it is introspective I thoroughly enjoyed being able to watch how Edwina reacts to her present situation. .

YZ Chin is a wonderfully moving, funny, inventive, imaginative and wise writer. This book was a roller coaster of surprise and joy. I loved every minute. Bravo.

3 stars.

I stumbled across this title on a list of books to look for last fall and completely forgot that it was in my Netgalley queue! I'm way late to review it, but nonetheless, I did read it and enjoyed it.

Edge Case is the first book by YZ Chin, and it is one of a kind. Edwina & Marlin are Malaysian immigrants to the US. They met after they had both finished their undergraduate studies and were doing their best to secure tech jobs and get green cards. Marlin is tech to his core, spending days coding and playing video games. Edwina works in tech only to get citizenship because her English Degree isn't going to get her what she needs.

When Marlin's father passes away, a strain appears in their relationship. Gradually edging them apart until one day, Edwina returns home to find that Marlin has left. What follows is Edwina's search for Marlin, for answers, for identity, and for purpose.

It was a weird premise but I liked the voice a lot.

*with thanks to NetGalley for the digital ARC in exchange for this honest review.

I want to thank Netgalley and the author for gifting me the ebook. If you like fiction books you might like this book. The cover is pretty.

This was a beautiful story. There is a lot going on, and a lot of perspectives to keep up with. However, once you get the hang of that, it is a great read. I liked the exploration of different stories,

I like to read a variety of genres from a variety of voices. This contemporary novel was disappointing. The writing was whimsical and darkly humorous, and the odd storyline did not scare me off, but the plot was clumsy and all over the place, here and there, without a semblance of organization. The characters were unengaging, and I was glad to make it to the anticlimactic ending. I wish I could get back the hours I spent reading it. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a review copy of the book. 3 stars.

This was wonderfully interesting & highly engaging. The highlight& intrinsic insights into immigrant experiences was intriguing to read. Thank you netgalley & the publisher for the copy.

I enjoy immigrant experience stories so was excited to pick up Edge Case, a debut novel by YZ Chin. In Edge Case, we are introduced to Edwina, a recent immigrant from Malaysia to America. She and her husband, Marlin, travel to Malaysia after Marlin's father dies. After their return to NYC, Marlin goes missing. Edwina works to find him and also in the process starts to change her own life.

There was A LOT going on here. I got kind of lost and distracted by some of the tangents in this one, and maybe that was the point. Maybe my mind wasn't in the right place at the right time to read this novel. There was some good stuff in here but it didn't truly capture me.

I enjoyed reading this book. Edwina and Marlin are both immigrants from Malaysia working on a visa, both are hoping to get a green card. Marlin' leaves their apartment one day, taking all of his stuff and doesn't answer texts or calls from Edwina. The book is narrated by Edwina who tries to figure out what went wrong and how she can get Marlin back. The book goes from flashbacks from the past to the present day. The writing is excellent. Edwina is a very likeable character. Her experiences as an immigrant, woman and overweight were enlightening. The comparisons between the cultures were interesting.

This was an interesting story, but I ultimately failed to feel a connection. The is a broken marriage storyline and that anxieties that go with being an immigrant and having you life transform in another country. The stress of the green card process was good perspective to include, and where I could relate more, but still I was not able to fully engage.

The prose of this book was so compelling, and the characters kept me wondering what would happen next. I haven't read as many novels about the experience of being an immigrant from Malaysia, and this twisty novel about a broken marriage was an great one to recommend to others.

The structure of the book is somewhat confusing - the narrator was speaking to a therapist of her story. Along the way, the story flowed and the “therapist” addressed as “you” appears infrequently. I didn’t see the point of this story telling technique or device, except adding word counts.

The story is of a woman whose husband packed up and left. She examines their love, identities, race, and shared lives as immigrants, including how they relate to their parents. As immigrants with family still in Malaysia, their ambitions and careers were tied to their green card status, all the while mulling the shortcomings of being in America. It’s a complex story, wanting to become permanent residences in the US, and accepting being minorities. This part of the story was dramatized in ways I wasn’t sure if real life was as dreadful as she makes them out to be, or if getting a green card really were so all consuming. I suppose those that ever were concerned about their green card status would relate, the confirmation bias audience the author might be looking for.

Sometimes, her intellectualizing was offbeat and so ruminating (or overthinking as her mother puts it), that I got really bored and wanted to skim ahead. Thankfully, the comic relief comes in from her work and friendships. She gave interesting insights into how some tech start ups company culture might be like - the all-male engineering team, the tolerance of male jokes by the token woman on the team, being hit on (half kissed) by a colleague, which she chose to not dramatize as “sexual assault.” The stories were realistic, and as her friendship with Katie was heartwarming.

I learned a bit reading this book and for that I rated it 3 stars. The sections when the narrator was in her own head (especially examining going from vegan to carnivore) were harder to relate or sympathize with, or I would have rated it higher.

Thank you Netgalley and Ecco for the e-arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I felt so bad for Edwina. She was abandoned with what seemed to be no one to talk to about what she is going through. But she also frustrates me throughout, because she doesn't use the people she can and doesn't express things that she should to stand up for herself. She does nothing to help herself. I don't understand why she doesn't tell her husband's friend, Eamon, what is actually happening early on so he can help her. I don't understand why she doesn't tell her coworker his book sucks. Or even turn him in for making her feel uncomfortable. But then again, I have never been someone living in a foreign land with foreign customs where I feel like I cannot make one wrong move and be deported. The chicken nugget incident...why??!! It made me cringe for several pages.
I think if I were in a different mindset, I could have enjoyed this book more.
Thank you Netgalley for a chance to read this book in exchange for a free and unbiased review.

This was good/fine but didn't leave much of an impression unfortunately. I think the writing of the emotions themselves were interesting but the path of the story was just ok

Edge Case was a really intriguing book. I loved the way that the story moves from the past to present, and really makes you understand the love that was shared in this marriage.
Really an interesting story in the way that culture and tech played a part as well. I loved YZ Chin's unique voice, and am excited to read more in the future!

I liked every moment of the struggle to move on after her husband just decides this is it for him. How does anyone cope with the ‘start up’ atmosphere. It’s toxic on so man6 levels the constant jockeying, immature reasoning of a woman’s capabilities. Edwinas husband is living his own nightmare. His father's death has left him at odds with reality and accusing her of cheating. It’s a rollercoaster of a story. Throughout it all the writing is a master stroke of pathos and redemption. Edwina has no port in this storm of uncertainty. It call to question not just her daily life but her belief system that hard work will be rewarded and love should endure. It reflective of our recent experience as a notion in a time of deep turmoil. Happy reading