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Average rating4
In this “bold and dramatic portrayal of characters on the cusp of an impossible choice” (Publishers Weekly), two sisters from a wealthy Chinese-Indonesian family grapple with secrets and betrayal after one of them poisons their entire family. Gwendolyn and Estella have always been as close as sisters can be. Growing up in a wealthy, eminent, and sometimes deceitful family, they’ve relied on each other for support and confidence. But now Gwendolyn is lying in a coma, the sole survivor of Estella’s poisoning of their whole clan. As Gwendolyn struggles to regain consciousness, she desperately retraces her memories, trying to uncover the moment that led to this shocking act. Was it their aunt’s mysterious death at sea? Estella’s unhappy marriage to a dangerously brutish man? Or were the shifting loyalties and unspoken resentments at the heart of their opulent world too much to bear? Can Gwendolyn, at last, confront the carefully buried mysteries in their family’s past and the truth about who she and her sister really are? Traveling from the luxurious world of the rich and powerful in Indonesia to the most spectacular shows at Paris Fashion Week, from the sunny coasts of California to the melting pot of Melbourne’s university scene, The Majesties “is a thrilling, tender page-turner” (Krys Lee, author of Drifting House) as well as “a sobering look at the dark side of extreme wealth” (Kirkus Reviews).
Reviews with the most likes.
I would like to start this review by pushing the envelope on whether this novel is akin to Crazy Rich Asians. It's really nothing like it. Characterizing it as such is subtly racist–are we only ever able to understand the Asian experience based on the current popular Asian romance? It doesn't leave room for the depth this novel has about wealth, loyalty, and justice.
That being said, I felt the twist at the end was disingenuous and difficult to believe. I felt the plot had been very well-developed, then shattered. The author does a great job describing the excessive wealth and developing the moral questions that come about in this novel.
It's worth the read, I would say.
I think the publisher did Tsao a disservice by marketing this as a psychological thriller, because, as other reviewers have noted, it's a family drama. TBH, I found several sections very confusing, particularly the twin visits to Monterey. Disappointing.
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