Whatever strange mood I was in when I read this the first time has obviously gone because this is a great book. I enjoyed Khai as a character in the first book because his diagnosis of autism was a connection to Stella, the heroine of the book.
When Khai’s mom goes to Vietnam to find him a bride, she meets My in the ladies restroom of the hotel where she is interviewing potential brides. When My passes the initial bride test, she quickly finds her self on a plane heading to California to become Khai’s fiancé . Now known as Esmeralda, or Esme for short, My finds herself living with a handsome but aloof and confusing man.
Author Hoang draws on her own spectrum experience to write about the difficulties of a couple dealing with cultural clashes, language issues, and each partner dealling with their own insecurities. I really enjoyed the way the relationship slowly unfurls because it seemed so realistic. Emotionally Esme is far ahead of Khai but feels the lack of education and sophistication. Khai has a great job and material things but he’s a baby when it comes to a relationship.
It was pretty wonderful when the man who thinks he has no feelings discovers that he does and the woman who thinks she has no value finds out she is truly a gem. The HEA is so satisfying because of the seeming impossibility at the beginning of the story.
Bring on Quan’s book, please!
