Ava Wong has always played it safe. On paper, she has the perfect life: working as a lawyer, married to a surgeon and a wonderful nanny to help with her young son. That is until Winnie Fang, her former college roommate shows up in her life again. The once-awkward girl fresh from Mainland China that Ava knew was now a confident, stylish woman decked out in luxury goods and with a lucrative business proposal for her. Winnie has created a counterfeit scheme, working with manufacturers in China to create near-perfect replicas and she needs Ava’s help. That is until their operation is threatened and Winnie disappears, leaving Ava to face the consequences.
Mostly told through Ava’s point of view as she’s sharing her story to a detective that’s “off camera” (off page, I guess?), she paints the picture of the history she has with Winnie, and how this woman lead her into a life of crime. It’s an interesting look into the world of luxury goods, from manufacturing to retail to consumer. There were also, sadly, some familiar instances of micro-aggressions that get acknowledged differently by the two Asian women due to their environment and upbringing. The underlying theme of the importance of appearances in a variety of ways is woven throughout the story.
Understanding that this was perhaps a writing or editing style, but I found it challenging at times to distinguish when people were actually saying something or if it was Ava’s narration to the detective because there were no use of quotation marks. (TBC if that was just in the advanced e-copy I read and not in the final version) There were moments earlier on in the book that I was a bit wary about how this would play out, feeling like Ava was just going to be the Rachel to Winnie’s Anna Delvey but their dynamic was so much more nuanced and complex than that.
Overall Counterfeit had some great exposition in the pacing of the narrative with wonderfully satisfying revelations. This felt perfect for fans of Inventing Anna and other similar luxury scam or heist-type stories.
Review: ★ ★ ★ ★ (4 /5 stars)
Available: June 7, 2022
Goodreads | Indigo | Book Depository | Amazon
A copy of this book was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review
JUST A LIL LOST 