Review: 3:5 Stars

A Mulan retelling set in the modern day world?!! I’m sold as Mulan has always been one of my favorite Disney movies. This is set in the world of finance where Mulan’s dad's firm is interested in acquiring a whiskey company, Wutai Gold, who only wants to deal with her father. Unfortunately for Mulan, the company refuses to deal with anyone else but her father and thus, begins her role to impersonate her father to play the part.

I love Jesse’s writing. There were so many scenes where I felt for Mulan and would cringe in embarrassment and lol'd so hard because of the scenarios she put herself in. Of course, there is Shang, the CEO of Wutai Gold who she has undeniable chemistry with.

I love the depiction of Mulan here as she grew up with some childhood trauma and thus, feel the need to prove herself as the best possible child her parents need her to be. She wears so many facets of herself such as the dutiful daughter or the “finance bro” mask to get what she needs. It was lovely to see how Mulan went through a journey of self-discovery to find herself and her character development was relatable.

Shang on the other hand grew up with a single mum and was raised in a very misogynistic external family of uncles, cousins and aunts. There is a very interesting contrast he brings where he is amazing at cooking and household tasks which others would see as un-masculine. And of course, we have Mushu, who is Mulan’s cousin and she brings the hilarious moments in the book.

My favourite plot moments were the moments in the ranch. Poor Mulan where in the quest of proving herself, she went through a good amount of incidents such as falling in cow dung to do so. There were some moments where the talk was very heavy on the Gen-Z slang and the trope got very trope-y buttt I still enjoy reading it as the storyline flows pretty well.

My only issue with this book is the romance…there were more lust moments than romance…and when they finally got together, the time spent together was in summarized format and more attention was given to the overall plot points of resolving the overarching plot. I need more to make the romance more believable.

Overall, it was a fun and relatable read!

3.5 stars rounded up

Worth Fighting For is the fifth book in the Disney Meant to be collection, and I was so excited to read it!

Mulan has a finance degree from Princeton and works for her father’s hedge fund company. Despite her credentials, she has to work hard to be taken seriously in such a male-dominated field. While in the process of acquiring a family-owned whiskey company, Mulan’s father gets sick and puts his daughter in charge. Desperate to impress the Li family and make the deal, Mulan pretends to be her father, who had only corresponded with the company’s CEO via email. When she meets CEO Shang, sparks fly and her job suddenly gets a lot more difficult.

-Insta-love
-Girl power
-Only one tent

This was a sweet story and I wanted to love it! Unfortunately, the romance fell flat for me. I didn’t feel the chemistry between Mulan and Shang. I enjoyed the family relationships, especially between Mulan and her parents and Shang and his mom. The male family members were incredibly unlikable, although I know that was the point. I just wasn’t hooked and I found myself skimming some of the chapters wishing there was a little bit more emotion.

Thank you to NetGalley and Hyperion Avenue for this arc in exchange for my honest review!

4.25 - this was an amazing edition to the meant to be series. I was so interested on how this story would portray the Mulan we all grew up with and I thought it was perfect! I loved the different relationships Mulan had, especially with Mushu. There were some moments I truly laughed out loud too. There were also moments I could totally resonate as a woman in finance.

Mulan is a VP at her dad’s private equity firm.
She works in a field dominated by men while also having grown up in a culture that values sons over daughters. After Mulan’s dad, Zhou, has a heart attack and is unable to make a meeting with a whiskey company he wants to acquire, Mulan assumes his place as the whiskey owners have never interacted with Zhou outside of email.

I love the Mulan movie so I was interested enough in the storyline to finish this book, but it wasn’t great. It was extremely repetitive with Mulan finding herself in situations she didn’t want to be in, but would just “man up” and do them. Usually horribly. I also didn’t feel like we got to know Shang very well aside from him being nice to his mom. It was also as closed door as you can get. I will concede that Mushu, Mulan’s cousin, was entertaining.

This was the first book I've read by Jesse Q. Sutanto. I love the Ment to be series! retelling are my favorite. After reading the acknowledgments (which I never do) and reading of their excitement in being selected for this one and why it ment so much, first off I cried and second this was the perfect introduction to their writing!
Mulan retelling but turn up the empowerment to 11!
thank you netgalley, Jesse Q. Sutanto and hyperion avenue for the e-arc

I love this series so much! Every book in it is fun and clever and a super creative, modern reimaging of a Disney Princess story. This latest addition to the series continues the brilliance. In it, Mulan is a financial analyst at her father's hedge fund. When her father has a heart attack, she steps in in his place to try and win over a very patriarchal and sexist whiskey company. With help from her trusty cousin Mushu, Mulan heads out to their ranch to show them just how manly she can be. The author's love of both the movie and the original legend of Mulan shine through in this retelling. Highly recommended!

A cute, fluffy, and freaking hilarious, modern day retelling of Mulan, that i devoured within 24 hours.

"Finance-bro", Mulan and Mushu, ( her cousin as well as her assistant), takes the "whiskey-making-rancher", Shang as well as him big family HEADON! &it is absolutely a hilarious and great time, along with an endearing ending to their story.

Mushu is a side character with main character energy and is also the comedian of the family. (as well as my fav character...shhh)

Shang's family is stuck in their traditional ways.... so more of a women cook and serve food to other before serving themselves, while men care to the "manly" side of things... && dear Mulan is there to prove she be a "manly-man" with the best of them, in hopes they'll choose her company to buy their whiskey business

It is just a fun and giggly time!

thank you so much Jesse Sutanto, Netgalley, and Hyperion Avenure for me arc copy.

This book brought back my Disney filled childhood. I have read all of the other Meant To Be series and this one was just as good as the others! I love the modern twist on the old Disney tales, making it more relatable to us that grew up on those movies! I honestly was not one that watched Mulan much as a kid, but I loved this version so much more!

I had such a good time with this book! I loved how Mulan’s personality, family, and career were developed for a modern retelling. Her story worked really well within the finance setting to illustrate how challenging it still is for women in male-dominated fields. I appreciated how this touched upon immigrant struggles too. I also just adored Shang. Their banter was SO delightful. His relationship with his mom was precious as well. Auntie Jiayi’s whole character really enhanced this story. Definitely a very idealistic ending, but a happily ever after was to be expected!

This is a modern and updated version of Mulan (yes, THAT Mulan). From the characters’ names, to the elders who hold sexist and misogynistic views, to the idea of family honor above all else, this story was predictable. That being said, I did enjoy it. Jesse Q Sutanto’s writing is always a hit. Her wit, pacing, and story telling mixed with the perfect blend of American and Asian cultures makes for a quick and fantastic read. I wanted to fight the patriarchy with Mulan and tell the Li family a thing or two! It’s a fun read from one of my favorite authors and a twist on a classic tale.

I just love the concept of this series!! Love the female empowerment message in the book (as a lady lawyer). Some parts did feel a little cringey though (mostly in word choicing) and I think with the concept of Disney retellings, I could have done without some of the innuendos found in this story!

I didn’t hate this, but I definitely didn’t love it. I rolled my eyes a lot the first 50% because it was so hard to feel bad for Mulan when she kept making bad, and quite frankly stupid, decisions. But, I was satisfied with how it ended and loved all the female empowerment (duh). Enjoyed how Shang wasn’t super macho masculine. Best part was being at the ranch… let me eat the food and literally be there! Sounded heavenly.

Thank you for the ARC NetGalley & Hyperion Avenue.

Worth Fighting For by Jesse Q. Sutanto is the second book I have read from the Disney-inspired Meant to Be book series. This book is such a fun tribute to the classic Disney movie "Mulan", but is a dazzling story all on its own, so you don't have to be a Disney adult to enjoy it! The characters were so well developed in this book, and I loved the writing. I found myself laughing out loud and hollering at the banter in this steaming hot forbidden love slow burn romance!

This was so fun! Mulan has always been one of my favorite Disney animated movies and I loved this story reimagined. I appreciate the author including so many of the fun characters, jokes, and nostalgia from the original while also keeping it culturally authentic and including a lot of Chinese culture/language. My husband is a finance bro so all of the silly references to them cracked me up. Would recommend to anyone who loves Mulan and romance novels.

This is just another example of why retelling of classic stories is gold. Worth Fighting For by Jesse Q. Sutanto is fun! This fake dating turned falling in love telling of Mulan with fianace and family pressure was a great addition to this series by Disney Publication. I am so excited for them to continue this journey or retellings.

Dang it! I was so excited about this book and I just couldn’t get invested. The writing is strong and the point of view is clear.

This was such an interesting way to re-tell a story! I usually struggle with these, but I had been hearing amazing things and I am glad I took the chance. Without giving too much away, Hua Mulan was a good representation of what it feels like being an underrepresented person in the workforce. I felt myself going “YES” repeatedly through the inner monolouge. Mushu was a fun addition, and I love the way she was portrayed. Shang was a good romantic lead- there is growth and understanding. The romance felt a little rushed, but the adventure was fun.

4.0/5.0 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
0.5/5.0 🌶️

Modern Day Mulan and Shang x navigating finding who you are within family and life

Financey-Bro Mulan is trying to help her father acquire Wutai Gold, a family run whiskey company. Enter in the handsome CEO, Shang. Chaos ensues as she and her ever loyal cousin, Mushu, navigate the bumpy road to either success or failure.

This book was cute and an easy read. It did take some time to get into it, which could have been some of the shock factor of Mushu’s character. Mulan’s character growth progressed through the entirety of the book as she discovered who she truly was and recognized what was holding her back: perfection.

Shang’s character acts as a FOIL to Mulan’s. His authenticity around her and the lies/self doubt that surrounds her, helps to break her walls down.

If you want a romance of Mulan and Shang, with havoc along the way, this book is for you!

Thank you to NetGalley and Hyperion Avenue for the ARC!

I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This is another installment in the Meant to Be series, a reimagining of various Disney movies. This was Sutanto’s take on Mulan. Mulan is one of my favorite Disney movies so I was excited to hear that it would be a part of the series. I think one of the themes that I appreciate about this story is the treatment and view of women in different cultures. This is especially timely as we are seeing women’s rights being systematically dismantled in the US. I loved that Shang got a back story which explained his progressive perspective. His mom was a fantastic character and I loved this iteration of Mushu.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a free copy of this book in exchange for honest feedback.

This is now my second book in the Meant to Be series. Though I know each book has a different author, I wasn’t expecting the use of the original character names. The other book I read, Tangled Up in You, didn’t use them, so it caught me a little off guard—not in a bad way, just an observation.

While I don’t know the real story of Mulan, the Disney version was one of my favorites growing up. It was the closest I got to seeing someone “like me” (Filipino, not Chinese) in a Disney film, which made it special to me. I did enjoy this retelling, but there were a few plot points that were a bit hard to ignore.

The biggest one for me was how Mulan’s deception went unnoticed for so long. She’s posing as her father, Zhou, in order to meet with potential client Wutai Gold. Zhou has been communicating with them via email for some time. Surely, Wutai Gold would have done their research on the company they were considering working with, meaning they’d know its history—even if they didn’t know what Zhou looked like. And yet, Mulan is 28. Zhou is the founder of the company, which has likely been around longer than she’s been alive. It seems like a pretty big plot hole that no one would immediately realize something didn’t add up.

On top of that, if Mulan was going to go through with this plan, she should have done more research herself. She read up on what it’s like to be a rancher, sure, but there’s a moment when Mushu references something from the email exchange between Shang and Zhou, and Mulan seems surprised by it. Since Mushu is her cousin and therefore on her side, this wasn’t a public moment that exposed her lie—but it still didn’t make sense that she wouldn’t be fully caught up on the correspondence.

There’s also a callback to the Disney version—“why is my reflection someone I don’t know”—that, while a nice homage, felt a little forced.

Beyond that, some of the scene transitions felt abrupt. One example is when Auntie Jiayi asks Mulan to go to the backyard to help Shang with the meats. The very next paragraph jumps straight to dialogue between Mulan and Shang, but there’s no transition—no exposition about her heading outside, no line break to indicate a shift. It just felt jarring.

Also, Mulan must have a ridiculously low tolerance because she was hungover after just two shots of tequila, which felt disingenuous—I certainly wouldn’t be hungover from that!

That said, I really did enjoy the book. It took the classic Disney story and wove in more adult themes without going over the top. There were implications and innuendos but no overly descriptive sex scenes. There was some swearing, but it was minimal. And I really appreciated how understanding Shang was at the end. So often in stories like this, the love interest reacts too strongly to the deception, either refusing to hear an explanation or still being angry even after learning the full context. Here, Shang’s reaction felt refreshingly reasonable.

I always root for a strong female lead, and I wasn’t disappointed. I especially loved how Mulan and Auntie Jiayi teamed up to save the day—at a Women’s Entrepreneurship event, no less. Uncle Hong’s obsession with keeping the whiskey company masculine made more sense later on, but his treatment of the women in the family was still frustratingly outdated.

It took me longer to finish this book, but that had nothing to do with the story itself—I started it during a particularly stressful and busy time at work and just didn’t have as much time to read as I would have liked.

Overall, while there were some bumps in the execution, I enjoyed this retelling and appreciated its balance between nostalgia and fresh storytelling.