My initial impression of this novel was that it was like the Southeast Asian version of the tv show Dynasty. It has: siblings duking it out for the CEO position of a business empire, attractive badass girlboss with bad taste in men, the-princess-and-the-pauper type of romance, tons of daddy issues, and a healthy sprinkling of backstabbing all around. This much is true. At one point it even started feeling like a Hallmark Christmas movie or those novels where a jaded workaholic reunites with their childhood sweetheart in their hometown while saving said hometown in the process.

However, what I did not expect was the casual acknowledgement of rampant corruption in the Malaysian government that makes it possible for businesses to go around laws meant to protect the environment. No one’s hands are clean, not even the protagonist. Romance as a genre is largely fantasy but that one aspect sure was grounded in reality. I would have liked to see more of the political fallout instead of a neat summary, but I can get how that might ruin the warm and fuzzy vibes expected of a romance novel.

This was such a fun contemporary romance read. I really enjoyed it. I found the character to be entertaining and the plot to move at a good pace that kept my interest throughout the novel as the plot went up and down

A deftly written contemporary romance between an ambitious, successful woman from a powerful (but unpleasant) family and an old flame who hurt her badly back in college and who for family reasons has ended up in a low-key, modest life in London. The relationship between the two leads feels real and appealing. Cho writes with careful nuance to the complex situations they find themselves in and offers a lot of well observed interactions between people and social settings. The story's HEA feels earned (including for secondary characters). A good read.