Thanks to Ecco for giving me access to a galley. After reading Chin's excellent, award-winning story collection "Though I Go Home" a few years ago, I knew I wanted to read her next book and couldn't wait to get my hands on this one once I learned of it. To be honest, I merely scanned the synopsis before diving in.

The novel follows the professional, marital, and bureaucratic trials of Edwina, an immigrant from Malaysia working as the only woman on the team of an AI-tech startup in New York while trying to figure out why her husband left, where he's gone, and how she can find him and secure their permanent resident status as the expiration on their visas approaches. All the plot elements could have added up to a novel vastly different in tone—this would make an illuminating pairing alongside Lisa Ko's "The Leavers." There are certainly serious sections of heartbreak and melancholy as Edwina deals with separation from her husband and her mother back home in Malaysia, but the overall balance of comic banter with blissfully ignorant friends, cringey office encounters, and some P.I.-lite investigation kept surprising me to the very end.

The anxieties of immigration bureaucracy give the whole narrative a through-line of ambient stress that occasionally shatters through the surface. Even as legal immigrants, the weight of visa expiration dates and the quest for green card sponsorship hums in the mind of the narrator. I found Chin's brilliance in keeping this apparent in the narrative without soliloquizing about it to be one of the real strong points of the novel, along with Edwina's patience in dealing with friends and coworkers blissfully unaware of her struggle. There's enough exposition to clue in readers without personal experience of it, but my own background in working abroad on a visa and of helping my wife in her years-long navigation of the U.S. immigration system made it really hit home.

I plan to read this one again, and to pay more attention to the moments when Edwina meditates on her motivations for immigrating. While the twists and turns of her tracking down Marlin kept up the momentum in the middle section, and Edwina's dietary experimentation added some psychological tension reminiscent of Han Kang's "The Vegetarian" (including a scene or two that truly shocked me), the ending surprised me. Certainly, the elements threaded throughout made it a logical and satisfying conclusion, but I believe it will reward a second read with renewed focus.

Overall, I did enjoy this book! Where I think this book really stands out is in how it highlights a woman in tech who is an immigrant looking to get a green card. This experience is one that the author has experienced herself, so it was poignant to learn what she went through and how she views her experiences in America. My favorite part of this book was hearing a first person perspective of how she felt in situations throughout her time in America being an immigrant, and that aspect of the book was very eye opening. Edwina felt very real as a character— the way she deals with heartbreak and being a woman in tech felt like I was hearing from a friend. There were a couple scenes that made me a little uncomfortable — the way Edwina talks about her body was very negative and while it was almost relatable, it became such a big side story that it made me more uncomfortable than relating. On a positive note, all of the characters in the book were really strong in their own ways — Marvin as the boyfriend perhaps had a bit of an unknown arc as we saw it through Edwina’s perspective, but overall I loved the way the characters were written. The themes of identity, lost love, and longing, along with a strong perspective about being an immigrant in America made this an overall book I truly enjoyed.

In Edge Case, author YZ Chin tells the affecting tale of Edwina, a Malaysian immigrant in the US who suddenly finds her marriage on the brinks when her husband leaves without warning. It’s the story of Edwina’s attempts to find her husband, of her navigation of life in the US while waiting to qualify for a green card, of the discovery that her identity is both fractured and hers to reconstruct.

YZ Chin’s writing is unique and appealing. The layers she exposes in her characters’ relationships are real and relatable. At times the characters seem a bit lacking in development, but I think that reflects the complexities of the relationships and Edwina’s own processes of discovery within them, including with herself. The window opened into what it’s like to be an immigrant in the US is absolutely essential, and for that, Edge Case is an important read.


My thanks to Netgalley for a review copy of this book!

Edge Case is a refreshing take on an immigrant story surrounding a couple from Malaysia. I could easily imagine Edwina and Marvin as friends or coworkers of my own, submerged in the depths of tech company culture. Chin captured the nuanced ways immigrants cautiously navigate the "American success story," and challenged the very meaning of identity when you leave your home behind. Unfortunately, midway through things begin to feel repetitive as Edwina cycles through hunting Marvin down and dealing with her ignorant tech colleagues. Overall I enjoyed Edge Case and would read more of Chin's work.

Edge Case by YZ Chin is an adult fiction novel about Edwina, whose husband named Marlin, suddenly packs up and leaves. Throughout the book, she struggles to figure out why Marlin might have left her. Edwina grapples with her identity and clashes with her view of herself, of her marriage, and of her immigration status. 

She flips between the ideas of her not being an adequate partner and the possibility that Marlin might have went back to Malaysia after giving up on securing their green cards or because of the grief of losing his father. 

The story takes place in New York City, setting a comforting, tough-love sort of tone — immigration and living in city have much in common. One escapes in either situation, more often than not, in search for a more fulfilling life with more opportunity. If you like atmospheric realism, this may be your cup of tea.

Edwina was an enjoyable character, with her dark humor and poignant descriptions of her relationship with her mother, her husband, and herself. However, the connection I had with her was short-lived and now unimportant. I did not particularly enjoy reading about any of the other characters, besides her mother who was a bit cartoonish and reminds me of my South Asian grandmother given her many allegories.

The story is a conversation between her and a therapist. Therefore, it read very well and easily, and yet was professional. 

The plot description was enticing, but the delivery was not what I expected it to be. I wanted more thrill, but I still enjoyed the story for what it was.

Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC.

I wasn't quite sure what to expect going into this novel but I was pleasantly wowed by the writing. I am from Singapore (the neighboring country of Malaysia) and also a transplant in NYC, so I knew I wanted to read this and I could absolutely identify with the character and what she was struggling with... although I am not sure if everyone else will. Chin did a beautiful jov of bringing us into the inner world of the protagonist Edwina, and I thought the before and after of her husband's depature actually worked very well and aided the unravelling of the plot. This being the uncorrected e-proof, there were some minor grammatical errors. I also feel like the title of the book "Edge Case" doesn't quite do the novel justice, Definitely will be recommending this to my friends to read!

This book was well-written but was not my type of book.  I am over 65, and I felt frustrated with the main character, who was in her late twenties or early thirties.  Her husband leaves without a word and, of course, she is upset and wants to find him.  But she goes through a whole lot of self-pity and introspection in the process, and she will seemingly do almost anything to get him back.  At some point, I grew tired of hearing her internal dialogue, and I decided not to finish the book.  I probably read over half and peaked at the ending, which does look interesting.  Does she go back home with her husband or stay in the US now that she has been promised a path to citizenship?  The reader is left guessing.

I think I grew impatient with this book largely because of my age.  As stated earlier, it was well-written.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC.

This is not a missing persons case. Well, it is, but now how it is being advertised. The person is missing in the sense that they have abandoned all pretenses of their former life. Our MC, then, must puzzle out what caused them to change so drastically in such a short period of time. Don't expect innocuous detritus that may in fact be clues, or tracking various timelines to figure out where the "missing person" may be.

The writing sings when Chin is writing about what it means to be an immigrant in 2018, one struggling to construct an identity as outsider: as an Asian green card holder (in which people love to play the game, where are you from?), as a female in the tech world, and as someone who relied on her husband to help present an unified front to an indifferent world.

The rest of the book is a slog.

Our narrator is trying to parse out how grief has fractured her husband's sense of being, but because he is a boring asshole before he started consulting with spirits, we have little motivation to actually figure him out. The tech bros are predictably terrible, the scenes set at work run the same formula every time, and her outside friends provide little solace. What we are left with is a woman circling the drain, having a short conversation and then pondering about its implications for the next five pages, offering no new insights into her husband's condition or her own path forward.

This book also falls victim to some of the worst trends in modern literature. We get "interesting" facts that are supposed to provide insight into the human condition but instead come across as the fruition of late-night Wikipedia sessions. Every emotional turn must be explained ad nauseum and the writer shows no trust in their readership. The minimal plot works as bare scaffolding for the author's musings about modern life, none of which are particularly insightful or thought-provoking.

Listen to full reviews at: https://bookclubbed.buzzsprout.com/

Edwina's husband suddenly and mysteriously leaves her. What she thought was a solid marriage suddenly is not and she is in many ways unmoored and adrift from other parts of her life she thought were certain too. She had come to the US dreaming of a new start, free of a mother who has never accepted her the way she is.   But in the midst of a week that almost seems like a fever dream she comes to realize that her efforts to blend in have led her to lose sight of who she really is. Her mother with her strange stories of past lives is more a part of her life than ever. Her job and its requirements are increasingly bizarre. She ends up doing things she never would have dreamed of doing a week before. Her search for her husband is in reality a search for herself. 

Edwina is a funny likeable charachter and narrator. I found myself rooting for her every step of the way. Far from action packed, this is a novel which is a page turner simply because you want to go along for the ride. I thoroughly enjoyed this novel and think at the end of the day it will be on many lists of the year's best books.

This novel definitely had it's smart and funny moments, but overall I didn't get it. There were themes in the story, such as being one of the few women in tech, which shone through, but the structure was a bit disorienting. Finally, at the end I understood, despite wondering what was really happening for much of the story. There are elements of this story that others may enjoy more than I did, but this one wasn't really for me.

Thanks to NetGalley and Ecco for providing me with a free advance copy of this book in return for an honest review.

	For her first novel, author YZ Chin has written a unique book about immigrants in America, one woman’s search for her husband as well as trying to find herself. The book is written from the perspective of Edwina, the wife of Marlin, both of whom are immigrants from Malaysia who are here on work permits and trying to navigate the complexities of life in the US.
	The uniqueness of the book starts from the beginning as this story is told as if we are Edwina’s therapist and she reveals much about the couples lives, work and the issues they encounter. We also find out that even though they are from Malaysia they have certain differences. Edwina is light-skinned, a vegetarian, heavy, has a rather difficult relationship with her mother and lacks much self-esteem. Marlin is dark-skinned, lean, a vegan, a computer coder and worships his recently deceased father. They work at different tech companies and both need to be sponsored in order to get their green card.
	Despite coming from the same country the differences are quite obvious and drive much of this novel. Edwina feels that all is going well with her marriage until one day she comes home and Marlin has left. Their suitcase is gone, as well as the couples cat/dog (a toy they made for themselves, not a real animal, but nonetheless something that had become a family pet). What had happened? Was he kidnapped, had he wandered off, and where had he gone?
	And so it is Edwina’s attempt to find Marlin, and all the while using us as her therapist to review her life, their life together and her experiences in New York. She tells us that something has changed in Marlin since they returned to the US after his father’s death, and tries to explore the full nature of these changes, whether she has done something to cause the changes and at the same time try to overcome the negative relationship she has with her mother. To put it mildly, Edwina has had to overcome a lot with her mother, who believes and tells Edwina stories as to why she is heavy, a vegetarian, has a mole on her face and much more. Even Marlin starts accusing her of having lovers, as it appears that he, too, has lost touch with reality prior to his disappearance.
	While searching for Marlin, Edwina begins to eat meat, change her own lifestyle and begins to come to grips with her own life, as well as why Marlin has left. She finds him, but that is only part of the story. Edge Case is not a typical lost person novel, but rather is a story that makes us all reflect upon the deeper things that drive our lives, our loves and our own self-worth.
This review was previously published at www.mysteryandsuspense.com

YZ Chin's writing is wonderful in this novel with well built scenes and subtle but spot on darkly humorous bits.  But, there seem to be a lot of threads and ideas floating around in this narrative that don't quite come together for me.

Edge Case tells the story of Edwina and Marlin, Chinese immigrants from Malaysia living in New York City working in the tech industry. We spend the book alternating between Edwina before and after her husband, Marlin, disappears and her searching for him weeks before their visas are set to expire. As someone who works in tech, I really appreciated the satirical takes on tech bro workplace culture and found myself both cringing and laughing empathetically at the office scenes. It highlighted the micro aggressions and trauma that many immigrants go through, and vividly illustrated the feeling of uprootedness one can feel when leaving their home behind. I really enjoyed this, thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the advance copy.

Edwina comes home from work to find that her husband, Marlin, has packed up and moved out.  Where did he go and why did he leave so abruptly?       While this may seem like a pretty straight-forward storyline, don't be fooled.  There are many threads woven in:  both characters having issues with parents (Marlin with his father's death, Edwina with her over-bearing mother); both working towards the coveted green card;  Edwina's unsatisfying tech job and her dealings with co-workers, to name a few.  But I felt that there were too many of these loose threads that ultimately never really came together.  I did enjoy the flashback chapters, but the rest just seemed muddled.  Another plus:  I did enjoy YZ Chin's writing style, and I will be looking for more of her work in the future.

Such a unique, tightly-controlled, self-aware, unpretentious, delightfully disturbing novel. Would love to interview this author. Can't wait to read what she writes next.

Thanks to Netgalley and Ecco for the early ebook. Edwina comes home to her New York apartment to find that her husband, Marlin, has packed a bag and left leaving no note. Thus begins a modern detective story as the story jumps back and forth as Edwina searches the recent past for clues: She and Marlin are from Malaysia and working in tech as the deadline approaches as they either have to secure a green card or go back. Marlin is also depressed as his father has recently passed away. Marlin has also been exploring alternative beliefs that leave Edwina mystified. Edwina gathers her clues, strays from her vegetarian diet and tries to deal with all her male coworkers who don’t seem to understand the first thing about how to deal with women. This is a very playful first novel that tackles a lot of tough issues with a great dark humor.

Edge Case is a unique story, told from a unique perspective. I frequently heard myself thinking as I read that I'd never been in the company of this narrative voice before: smart, sensitive, observant, contradictory, and always a joy to follow to the next page.

This book really feels like the emotional down-spiral of Edwina. While all her relationships seem off balance and distant, her relationship with her mother is deeply fucked. Through losing Marlin she has reflected on the ways that her mother has controlled her life . I think Chin makes an attempt to mend some of these relationships but I felt there was so much left unsaid. I wanted more closure for a character that had lived those days desperate and obsessive. All in all, I can’t say this book wasn’t written well and didn’t have complex characters - it’s just heavy with little solace. Overall interesting read if you like a dark .... sad books.

Edge Case is a fascinating, darkly humorous novel of identity. Edwina and her husband Marlin struggle with the meaning of “home” and “homeland,” as they are both immigrants from Malaysia. They also struggle with their own identities in light of their marriage.  Both of these areas take a toll upon them, leading to their separate needs to make life-changing decisions.  A novel of many layers, Edge Case is a timely and gripping mystery.

Edge Case concerns an immigrant couple of Chinese heritage from Malaysia trying to obtain their green cards, living in New York.  Edwina relates their story in therapeutic sessions, of how she comes home one day and Marlin has vanished.  Both work in tech, but the pressures of insecurity about their status and life away from family and home, plus Marlin's having lost his father relatively recently, strain their relationship.  The idea of this situation is a sound one, but the editing needed tightening and Edwina needed more definition.