Women of Good Fortune delves into various aspects of Chinese society, including family expectations, the influence of relationships, gender roles, beauty standards, and the implications of the one-child policy. The narrative follows three friends: Lulu, Jane, and Rina. With Lulu’s wedding approaching, she feels uncertain about marrying but decides to proceed to honor her family’s wishes. However, her friends devise a scheme to steal the red envelopes to allow Lulu to leave town without disgracing her family.

As the plot unfolds, the book explores the depth of their friendship and their personal growth over time. While the story is engaging, some parts feel unrealistic and slow-paced. Additionally, a few characters are underdeveloped and could have been omitted without impacting the overall narrative.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing an advanced copy.

Guilted into an arranged marriage, Lulu's feet are getting colder the closer she gets to the wedding date. Under the stress of a fiancé she does not love (or even really know), an overbearing mother-in-law-to-be who has personally told her she is not good enough for her son, and a family that is pushing her into this marriage to help themselves financially, Lulu is subconsciously relieved when her two friends, Jane and Rina, offer her a way out that is crazy but might actually work.

I've become huge fan of novels featuring a glimpse into Asian culture, which jumped onto the scene with Kevin Kwan's bestsellers. This book has a great look into the culture, but is more serious than Kwan's work. Good summer read if you are looking for something a little different and thought-provoking!

Crazy Rich Asians but make it even more niche! This arranged marriage book was great! I loved getting to see different cultural views and preferences!

This book reminded me a lot of Cray Rich Asians. There's an arranged marriage and she's not because she is in love, but because she wants to help her family financially. She's marrying into a rich family. I really enjoyed this story and I enjoyed the audiobook so much I followed along in the ebook.

Dnf’ed at 20%. I love female scammer books, I love books about ridiculous rich people, and I love books set around weddings. So I should have loved this one. I really wanted to! But I think this was a case of great premise and a disappointing execution. The characters were meh and not interesting enough to keep me invested. Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for the opportunity to review!

I always enjoy a good heist story and this one done by women is especially fun because it highlights their relationships and the effect the plan is having on them. I enjoyed the different viewpoints and I loved the short chapters. The fast pace kept my interest level high. I especially enjoyed the ending and I think this book would be a great one to inspire a book club discussion.

"Women of Good Fortune" delivers a riveting blend of suspense and introspection, weaving a tale that delves into the complex tapestry of cultural pressures and generational burdens in Chinese society. The narrative swiftly moves through themes of beauty ideals, the nuances of the one-child policy, and the expectations placed on both genders, presenting a rich panorama of contemporary challenges.

The story is anchored by a daring heist that not only propels the plot but also symbolizes the struggle for autonomy faced by the three main characters: Lulu, who grapples with her family's deep-seated guilt; Jane, whose self-worth has been undermined by harsh societal judgments; and Rina, whose fear of losing control dominates her life. Their friendship is a central pillar of the story, offering a heartfelt exploration of loyalty and the pursuit of freedom.

While the novel touches on many elements of their lives, from family dynamics to romantic entanglements, it manages to craft a vivid portrayal of their personal growth against the backdrop of societal expectations. Some relationships in the story might benefit from further development, yet the overall narrative arc satisfyingly converges to a thoughtful conclusion.

"Women of Good Fortune" skillfully captures the essence of its setting and the internal conflicts of its characters, making it a compelling read and an impressive debut for Sophie Wan. This novel is a poignant reminder that even in the most opulent environments, freedom can be elusive.

Thank you HarperCollins Canada for the eARC!

Thank you NetGalley and HarperCollins for an EARC of this book in exchange for my honest review

I enjoyed this book but I was also confused. It was slow and also fast. I was expecting more heist and less romance. It had really interesting topics and the plot was good but just something was missing. It reminded me of crazy rich asians and I loved that but I just couldn't connect to the characters and maybe thats why overall the book wasn't super exciting to me. I think there could of been more added to the heist plot line and it would of made the book flow better

3.5 Rounded up for Netgalley! The premise of this was super interesting and I was very excited for this, but the execution itself was a bit lackluster. I just really struggled to understand the motives for the heist since realistically, none of their lives were as horrible as they made them out to be? I still enjoyed it though, there was just a bit of disconnect.

Women of Good Fortune is a novel set in Shanghai and features a strong female friendship and the events leading up to an elaborate wedding celebration. I am glad that I had the opportunity to listen to the audiobook as I probably would have mispronounced names and words used in the book. I enjoyed the themes of equality between men and women, family, familial bonds, friendship and even a bit of a romance element. There is even a bit of comedy in this book.

I recommend this book for readers who enjoyed Crazy Rich Asians.

This book was good but could have used a bit more character development. I really liked the way it ended, I think it allowed for the characters to grow as people and come together.

I do think the three main people’s friendship could have used more building, especially how it fell apart and what hadn’t worked over the years. Similarly, I wish I’d seen a bit more about how they come back together.

The romance and heist plotting was very interesting in this book.

So many things in life we don't think about, how are others affected? This was a fun romp. Plenty of twists in what will happen.

Set against a high-society Shanghai wedding, a heartfelt, funny, dazzling novel about a reluctant bride and her two best friends, each with their own motives and fed up with the way society treats women, who forge a plan to steal all the gift money on the big day

Good, story line. I highly recommend it and will read again. I also enjoyed the cover of this novel. I will definitely check out the other wirks by this author.

A fun, quick read. It's a great read to celebrate Asian and Pacific Islanders month. The heist made it feel a bit like the Finlay Donovan books.

Three women plot to steal the wedding money of one of them since she is not in love with her fiance. As they plot though, they realize there might be bigger consequences than expected.

I wanted to like this one, but I think my biggest problem was the way time passed in the book. At some times, we just got a brief chapter and then it was suddenly a month alter. I think it just made it feel jumpy and less cohesive.

I have to stop reading y'alls reviews when I'm still reading the book because it really does fuel the unkind belief I have that we are losing reading comprehension as a society.

Now I wouldn't say that any of the women featured here have snuck their way into being my favorite character, and at times they weren't the most fun to listen to. Still, most of the issues I had with them were actually addressed by the narrative and were brought up by characters in the book. It feels silly to penalize what was so clearly a deliberate decision on the part of Wan to craft this particular book.

I'll also say that I might not be the worlds biggest believer in the heist novel. I've read a few, and few have worked. I think that it's simply one of those things that works better in a movie where the moving parts feel cinematic in montage, but the feat of keeping all the moving pieces in the air in a book is harder. It's easier to pick out the flaws when there's nothing for them to hide behind. I don't think that's necessarily what I was doing here, but still actually reading about the heist wasn't as fun as reading about the planning.

I do appreciate stories about friendship; particularly stories where friendship starts to be tested and people start to call into question how real it all was and how much of it was self serving. Wan was able to strike that balance really well and have all the tensions really boil over in the third act. Honestly I thought that it was smart to move some of the conflict to the interpersonal connection of the three women and the strain the whole endeavor on their friendship and not rely on the actual heist to deliver all of the conflict and tension of the story.

So yeah, there were times where I did struggle to see the issues in their lives as they did. As an outsider it was easy for me to think that at times they were reacting in a way that felt outlandish, but it gave the characters somewhere to grow. Or even for them to convince me that I was simply in the wrong and not seeing things as they did. In the end it was an enjoyable time, certainly a good time, and one worth reading.

This was a thoughtful book about misogyny and the way women are undermined and underestimated wrapped in a crime caper. While the book leaned heavily on the insecurities of the characters, in the end Wan gives us the growth and change that each character needs. It was also a realistic portrait of women's friendships and how they can be challenging, but in the end loyalty wins out. I also really loved how the caper plays out in the end. Overall it was a fun read that manages to also keep you thinking. It could have been a bit better paced in the first half, but I would recommend.

I was excited for this book - best friends pulling off a heist set against the backdrop of Shanghai? A fun and engaging read that weaves the tension between loyalty, family expectations, and adventure between life-long friends.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing/Graydon House for an ARC!

Had the opportunity to devour this tale on a flight back and fell in love with these characters. I'd like to think of it as the anti-Crazy Rich Asians book and I absolutely adored every minute of it!

This was a fun idea but missed on the execution. I struggled with the main characters and their arcs through the novel. In the middle, they fell flat and lost what felt like their purpose. While characters certainly don’t have to be likeable, the middle of the book lagged significantly when all three were hard to connect with. The actual heist was interesting and I could see it translate to the tv screen.