Money can’t buy happiness
But it can buy a decent fake

Ava is a rule-following lawyer on sabbatical from work to care for her young son. Her husband is a successful surgeon and they seem to have a picture perfect life. Winnie is Ava’s old college roommate who abruptly left Stanford after a cheating scandal. She turns up, a more charismatic and affluent woman looking for Ava to get involved in her new shady business. Ava isn’t built for staying at home and decides to do her friend a favour. But one favour leads to many more and Ava must decide to either cut and run or risk everything.

I knew absolutely nothing about counterfeit designer bags before I read Counterfeit but I found this book intriguing. Written mainly from the point of view of Ava, she recounts her story in the form of a confession to a detective who is interviewing her. There are so many twists and turns in this story and it really had a Big Little Lies vibe going on.

Counterfeit definitely pokes fun at the obsession with designer fashion and the global power of commercialism. The author also tackles racism from a Chinese and Asian American standpoint which really added to the story. I found it a really fun read. Thoroughly enjoyable and a real page turner.

Loved the protagonists Ava and Winnie and the author really developed their characters throughout this book. Ava’s story of her struggles as a stay at home mother will resonate with many readers. Be prepared to be shocked at the number of bombshell revelations as the story unfolds.

Thanks to NetGalley & publishers for the arc. Counterfeit is out now!

Counterfeit by Kirstin Chen.

Now a Reecebookclub Pic!

Thirty something accomplished lawyer Ava Wong seems to have it all. A talented husband who is a top surgeon and doting Dad to adorable toddler Henri . She has a beautiful home next to all the top schools. What more could she ask for? Out of the blue her former roommate from College Winne Fang turns up looking for a favour. She is literally dripping from head to toe in designer labels. Most noticeably a dazzling duffel-size Birkin. Ava soon becomes embroiled into Winnes world of counterfeit designer bags.

A pacy Summer-mystery read poking fun at our obsession with designer bags and commercialism.

Thank you to Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review

I came in not knowing what to expect but I devoured the book in one day! Such a fun book and with a few turns that keep you on the edge. I also enjoyed the plot around counterfeit handbags.

When Ava, a high achieving lawyer who has taken a career break to raise her son, bumps into Winnie, her old college roommate, it seems like fate has thrown them together. Ava is beginning to realise that she doesn't want to be a stay at home mum, and Winnie needs some help with her new found business. Knowing that Winnie's business is underhanded Ava is reluctant to get involved, but when she finds herself in a desperate situation she has nowhere else to turn, and before long Ava is in too deep to get out.

I should start by saying that fashion, handbags and designer labels aren't something that have ever interested me, so part of my lack of enthusiasm for this book is probably due to the fact that those things are fairly central to the story. I probably wouldn't have requested it from NetGalley if the blurb had detailed the nature of the business.

Aside from the fashion side of things, there was a couple of other things that made me not keen on this one. The primary one is the writing style. The majority of the book is written as a confession, as if Ava is talking directly to a police detective. There's a distinct lack of speech marks which is a pet peeve of mine - I find it just makes the story hard to read, and doesn't actually add anything. The confession style of writing also means that it feels quite flat and matter of fact, there's not a lot of embelishment to the plot.

The second thing that bothered me was that I didn't think the characters were particularly well developed, and I didn't connect with any of them. I feel like the author is aiming for us to feel some sort of empathy or understanding with Ava and her family difficulties but I really didn't. I mean come on, the woman can't even bring herself to look after her own son properly! The story is mostly told from her point of view, so not connecting with her definitely impacted my enjoyment of the book.

On a positive note it's a fast paced read, it doesn't take long to get in to the crux of the plot, and there's not really a dull or slow moment. I read it in a day which is quick even for me.
There's definitely a point of interest here too, the world of counterfeit goods is something I've never really considered, and honestly it had never crossed my mind that there could be so much money in it (mainly because I would never pay thousands for a handbag!) Chen also touches on the fact that it isn't just fashion that is subject to counterfeiting, but that actually there are a lot of industries that face this problem, including some that you really wouldn't want to hear about. I would have loved it if the book had looked at this side of things a bit more.

When all is said and done I think this just isn't my sort of book, but I can see that it will be a huge hit for some readers. If you want something fast paced and are open to different writing styles then it's one you should consider picking up.

Ava Wong appears to have it all, a high-flying career aas a lawyer, a surgeon as a husband and a beautiful little toddler who she is currently staying at home with. She is suddenly reunited with her old college room mate, Winnie Fang. Winnie was the college misfit who nobody missed when she suddenly left. Ava is beginning to realise that things aren’t quite as easy as she was expecting, before she knows it she finds herself involved with Winnie’s counterfeit handbag business.

This was a slow read for me, I put it away for a while and came back to it which made it a little better, maybe I just wasn’t in the right frame of mind for it. It wasn’t the exciting read I had expected from the blurb. We listen to Ava’s retelling of how she ended up getting involved with Winnie. The characters were mildly entertaining and while there were some twists and turns i didn’t feel I connected to it as well as I could have. Not a bad read at all but not the one for me today.

Two old college roommates suddenly reunited: Ava Wong appears to have the all American dream - high-powered career as a lawyer, French surgeon for a husband, toddler; whereas Winnie Fang was the college misfit who nobody seemed to really miss when she suddenly left. Fast forward to today and we’re quickly ensconced in Ava’s world where everything isn’t actually the bed of roses she was expecting. Along comes Winnie offering an edgy, more exciting lifestyle and before Ava knows it she finds herself involved in Winnie’s counterfeit handbag business.

I couldn’t put this down and read it in a couple of days.. I found the narrative style of Ava talking drew me in and had me gasping at some of the audacious acts they got up to. Both Ava and Winnie are great characters and you feel like you get to know them well. It’s fast paced, easy to read, has a few good twists and turns, and I found it highly entertaining.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read an early copy in exchange for a review.

The blurb sounded interesting and I liked the style of writing. Unfortunately it's very slow and didn't keep my attention.
Not my cup of tea.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

This book started off a bit slow and I nearly decided not to read it, but I had another go and soon got into it. Not a lot happens, we are 'listening' to Ava's retelling of how she got into Winnie's counterfeit bag scam. There were a few twists and turns in the story and kept me interested throughout.

A change of genre to what I'm used to but the description gripped me and it sounded like a fun read. It was. I didnt really like any of the characters but I did enjoy the story and I loved how the book was mostly written as the protagonist retelling their story to a dectective - really smart writing!

Novels about the world of designer goods and the counterfeiting that goes hand in hand with it are not really my bag! I will never understand why people are prepared to pay thousands for somewhere to store their phone and lipstick.

Two college room mates meet up some years later and start a counterfeiting operation. Needless to say after a successful beginning, the business starts to unravel. The plot focuses on their attempts to avoid going to jail. The characters aren't particularly likeable and rather stereotypical. The pace of the action was a little uneven. This just wasn't a book for me.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Harper Collins for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

In a Nutshell: A quick and easy women’s fiction, though stereotypical in some parts. Read with your analytical glasses kept aside to enjoy it better.

Story:
Thirty-seven year old Chinese-American Ava, ex-lawyer, married to a French-American surgeon, mother to a toddler Henri, living a picture-perfect life at least in theory. But Ava knows the cracks in the façade and is dissatisfied with the status quo. She has been contacted after about two decades by her college roommate Winnie, who was awkward and shy then but is evidently a successful businesswoman now. Winnie asks Ava for a favour involving her counterfeit luxury handbag trade, but soon the “favours” turn more frequent and Ava finds herself caught in the shady activities.


Where the book worked for me:
✔ The book is divided in various parts. The first part is written in Ava’s first person perspective, whereby she is narrating her experiences with Winnie and also her personal issues to the detective handling the case. After a while, it became very clear that Ava was quite self-centred and whiny, and her insecurities had been manipulated by Winnie, thereby making her an unwilling participant in her nefarious business. And then comes Part II, where you are forced to question whatever you read till then. I liked Part I but it is Part II and what came beyond that enhanced the book from a 3 star to a higher rating.
✔ The story offers some interesting insights into the luxury handbags business (both genuine and counterfeit). I am the “Jon Snow” of luxury brands; I know nothing! So reading this fun take on the overpriced goods market and also seeing the companies getting a bit of comeuppance was enjoyable.
✔ I loved the main character development (though you need to have a lot of patience to discover the development.) Neither Ava nor Winnie function on a WYSIWYG model – they are complex, sometimes irritating and sometimes vulnerable. Henri the toddler is l’enfant terrible. While I don’t enjoy children being portrayed in such a way, Henri’s behaviour adds a further layer of complexity to Ava’s arc as her parenting skills depict her attitude towards life.
✔ The story takes an almost satirical look at modern day consumerism, including the use-and-throw culture and brand fetishes.
✔ It is a very quick read, and not at all taxing on the brain.

Where the book could have worked better for me:
❌ Other than Ava and Winnie, the characters don’t stand out. Most are quite flat and come on a need-be basis into the story.
❌ There are no quotation marks for dialogues in Ava’s narration to the detective. I don’t like this writing style.
❌ There’s too much of talk and too little action, especially in the first half. The second half is much better.
❌ While the “whats” of the story are detailed out, the “whys” aren’t. The motivation/rationale behind most character decisions isn’t explained at all.
❌ It is somewhat stereotypical of Chinese-Americans and the Chinese. (A part of the stereotypical thinking is what Ava uses to gain sympathy in the eyes of the detective. I am not sure if this is a stereotypical portrayal of the culture or Ava’s attempt to capitalise on white people’s stereotypes about her culture. But even otherwise, there are a few clichéd ideas about Asians.)

All in all, this is a nice chick-lit kind of mystery-drama. It is light and relaxing fun, not to be read too analytically and not to be taken too seriously. It has its share of appealing and irritating moments, but overall, it is a decent entertainer.
3.5 stars.
My thanks to HarperCollins UK and NetGalley for the DRC of “Counterfeit”. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.

Ava has everything you could ever wish for on paper- a stellar education, a high paying job, an accomplished husband and a beautiful son. Winnie on the other hand is a bit of a mystery, dropping out of Stanford, disappearing for years and returning as a fashionista. Even her job is a little ambiguous- something to do with handbags? When the two women are reunited their lives become entwined and it sets Ava on a whole new, not entirely legal path. So why Ava recounting their relationship to a detective?

I am conflicted about this book. Though I found it really readable to start with, my interest waned after a while. There’s a lot of brands and particular handbags which didn’t mean much to me and I was kind of wondering what the big deal is. Generally, the plot points felt like they were covered quite superficially - I wasn’t excited and rooting for the duo to succeed. There could have been a strong message about the conditions these counterfeits are made in but it was only covered briefly and then eventually turned on its head. It’s all good to have a reliable narrator, I love that in fiction but it meant I never felt I got the actual dynamic between the two women and as such it meant the ending wasn’t very satisfying.

Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for a chance to review an advanced copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

Ava is a super-successful young Chinese American woman living in San Francisco on a career break while she takes care of her son. On paper she has everything but she's struggling to cope, her child is has challenging issues, her husband is out of town all the time, her friends are high achievers and she's feeling lost in life. A random meeting with an old university roommate Winnie sends her life spinning in a different direction.

Winnie explains that her job - as a go-between for Chinese factories and American retailers- is more murky than that, as she deals in fantastic replica handbags, otherwise known as counterfeit. She has connections in Chinese businesses and can get identical models at a snip of the price; the perfect victimless crime. Ava gets drawn into Winnie's world , and the ties between the two of them get stronger as this happens.

The story is told as a monologue by Ava, speaking to a police investigator and explaining what has brought them to where we are now. She is very open and honest about why she has acted as she has, explaining the pressures she was under and the influence that Winnie had on her.

I appreciated the other storylines about how far the counterfeit world has spread, with dealings in so many areas - its quite terrifying when you think about it.

For me, the first section of the story dragged a bit and i wasn't very invested in what happened to any of the characters; then there's a twist around 2/3 through which picks up the pace a bit and makes it all a lot more interesting. It was very well executed and changed a lot of my thoughts about the book, but it took too long to get to that point so my overall mark is 3/5

I wasn’t too sure about Counterfeit at first, thinking that the story might not be very relatable to someone who doesn’t care much about fashion. However, at under 300 pages it’s a fast paced read and most of it is a monologue of main character Ava describing her involvement in a handbag counterfeit ring to a nameless Detective which makes it light and engaging to dive into. There is quite a lot of detail that’s a bit unnecessary – lots of relationship issues with Ava’s husband and stories about her child with behavioural issues which could have been edited down in places. This does help you empathise with Ava though, and you certainly do find yourself rooting for her even though you can see she’s talking to a Detective so it can’t have gone too well!

At around 70% there’s a great twist that I honestly did not see coming and really turned the narrative on its head. Another point of view is introduced here but the characters are written very similarly which was a shame. None of the characters in the book are particularly likeable either, you only feel a connection to Ava because you spend so long in her head. Some of the decisions that she makes also seem unrealistic and a little silly but these do help to solidify the story and build to the ending.

Overall Counterfeit is a quick and engaging read with a nice twist ending. Thank you to NetGalley & Harper Collins UK – Harper Fiction & The Borough Press for the chance to read the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

really enjoyed this book and the story about chinese countifits

thanks to the publisher and netgalley for the arc of this book in exchange for this review

Counterfeit is a fast paced, enjoyably fun book which I sped through. I enjoyed the characters, although I did not like them. All in all this was a good read.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for my ARC.

I was drawn to Counterfeit by the blurb although wasn't entirely sure what to expect but it was an absolutely brilliant read. I think Kirstin's writing is fantastic. It is fresh, observant and somehow tells an incredible story without a wasted word. Few of the characters are likeable but this didn't stop me enjoying the book, indeed I don't think it would have had the same impact if they were!

Ava and Winnie are the central characters and whilst both have similarities and a bit of a shared past, they are very different women in adulthood. Ava comes across as both spoilt and put upon. Her husband is a busy transplant surgeon who works all hours. When they got together, Ava was a successful lawyer and her earning power outstripped her would be husband. As seems to be often the case, after starting a family, Ava put her career on hold. Her son is portrayed as being quite challenging at times and Ava has a nanny to help her look after him to allow her to put in a few hours at a more mundane job. She doesn't feel overly fulfilled with her life but hasn't really figured out how she can make a change that suits her. Winnie first met Ava at college when they were roommates for a while. She disappeared suddenly and they didn't keep in touch so it was a real shock to Ava when she reappears casually into her life. Almost without realising it, Ava finds herself beholden to Winnie and her run-of-the-mill life starts to get a lot more interesting than she would have wanted!

Winnie is a much more interesting character than Ava but I think the two work very well together. We learn a lot about their backstories and their motivations for their actions. I found it hard to feel much sympathy for Ava as she never seemed to do herself any favours and although Winnie is the one dripping in designer goods, it seemed more like Ava was the one who craved the 'perfect' outer appearance. Each has a very different response under pressure and it was fascinating to see how they reacted to when things started to unravel. We travel back and forth between California and China and I loved the change of pace and the insight into family life for the women.

Counterfeit is a comparatively short read but it really packs in a lot of story and is one that you'll find yourself caught up in early on and not want to put down. A cracking read in my opinion - a bit different and very nicely told.

On paper, Ava Wong has it all. A degree from Stanford, a career break to raise her toddler Henri, a lovely house in the suburbs of San Francisco, a French husband who is also a well renowned surgeon, plus a nanny.
Unfortunately Ava isn't enjoying her life. Her husband works long hours, leading to arguments, she no longer wants to return to work as a lawyer and her baby screams constantly. Ava bumps into former classmate, Winnie, in a coffee shop. Winnie has an interesting business proposition and Ava is intrigued. And then Winnie offers/blackmails Ava into a lucrative job. Counterfeit designer handbags.

I wanted to like this book a lot more than I did. It has some super interesting elements, the premise is great, its fast paced, the story is told by Ava via flashbacks, and as though she's describing the whole story to a detective. It touches on topics such as sweatshops and consumerism within the luxury product industry. There was however, scope for making the characters more than two dimensional, which the book badly needed. And the ending, although a huge twist, has put me right off rating the book higher.

I had such a good time with this book.

We follow Ava as she struggles with her new life. Once a high flying lawyer, she’s now a stay at home mum while her Husband (a Doctor no less) is away working all the hours. She’s bored and fed up… until Winnie shows up. Winnie is a blast from the past, but is she trouble?!

I enjoyed the way this book was written, with Ava directing her dialogue mainly to the Detective (A character we never truly meet, but who I could have been!). I felt immersed in the story and at times almost took on the persona of the detective, as if Ava was speaking directly to me!

There was a little twist I didn’t see coming but then things started slotting into place and made more sense. We were given a new perspective and this altered the narrative slightly.

If you’re looking for an easy, fun and intriguing read then this is for you. At times it felt quite predictable and I didn’t love Ava, but I can’t deny that I enjoyed it.

*I was kindly gifted this eArc from Netgalley for a fair and honest review.

With a ‘could this happen in real life’ storyline that makes you wonder if such things actually go on, the story draws you in and although I didn’t really like the way she told her story I did enjoy the book and would love to see this as a film