A young woman trying to salvage her career takes on a seemingly impossible task: finding soulmates for senior citizens. As she gets to know her clients, she learns to take a chance on love for herself. Author Roselle Lim returns with another frothy story that doesn’t delve deep enough into many scenarios in Sophie Go’s Lonely Hearts Club.

Sophie Go is home from Shanghai and ready to launch her career. After spending three years in matchmaking school, she knows she can bring couples together and help them on their way to lifelong commitment and happiness. It’s her job, after all.

She comes back to Toronto and takes the first big leap as an adult: moving out of her childhood home into her own apartment. Even though it’s in a much nicer building that she’d normally be able to afford, Sophie has her savings and a list of matchmaking leads from her best friend. She knows if she hits the ground running, she’ll be making matches and getting paid in no time. Everything will be fine. And she doesn’t have to hyperventilate every time her parents call her for money.

Because they do. A lot. Sophie’s mother is demanding and unyielding. She tells Sophie point blank that being a dutiful daughter means supporting her family. Translation: pay for her father’s acupuncture appointments, her mother’s birthday dinner in a Michelin-starred restaurant, and a whole list of things. It’s all Sophie can do to keep up with it all.

Now, though, she has matchmaking. Something she’s done for herself. Until everyone finds out at her first society party that she got kicked out of matchmaking school. Gossip starts spreading through Toronto’s Chinese community that Sophie is bad news.

When she runs across a group of elderly Chinese gentlemen in her building who call themselves the Old Ducks, Sophie realizes they might be the key to putting her life back on track. If she can find successful matches for the Old Ducks, that means she can match anyone.

As Sophie gets to know the Old Ducks, she learns the true meaning of parental figures and friendship. She finds both in abundance in these men who present her with their problems and their heartaches all at the same time. Along the way, as others start trusting her again with their love lives, Sophie realizes she has just as much a right to love as anyone. No matter what her overbearing, toxic mother says.

Author Roselle Lim offers readers a look once again into Chinese culture and how it interacts—and sometimes clashes—with Western sensibilities. The lighthearted tone of the book in some of its most serious parts might put readers off, however. Sophie’s parents have absolutely no redeeming qualities; from start to finish, they gaslight and guilt Sophie into their idea of what a dutiful daughter should look like.

Asian and Asian Western readers may understand Sophie’s sense of obligation to her family, yet it doesn’t always land because of how self-aware Sophie is about her parents. Had she not understood the full extent of her mother’s destructive behavior, Sophie would have come across as a more sympathetic character. Instead, readers might wonder how someone who can so accurately pinpoint the problem doesn’t have the guts to pursue a solution, especially as she gains increasing security in herself in other ways, professional and personal, throughout the book.

Another issue with the novel is the Old Ducks. While the narrative tries to distinguish between the seven men, at times they feel interchangeable with the exception of Sophie’s nicknames for them. They have individual character traits, yes, but they’re all older gentlemen looking for love.

Given the legacy of honor and tradition many Asian cultures foster, it’s surprising so many of the Old Ducks are willing to overlook Sophie’s “failure” at matchmaking school and jump into the venture with her. It’s clear Lim gave Sophie the Old Ducks to balance the negative adults in her life with more positive influences, and Sophie gets that in spades. Even if they’re hard to distinguish from one another at times, there’s no doubt these men adore Sophie and want only what’s best for her.

The twist at the end seems engineered to give Sophie a chance to face her parents as well as to reiterate the idea that family doesn’t necessarily mean blood. The book also doesn’t quite dig deep enough into the beauty of the Chinese culture. For those who want a surface-level look at matchmaking and its place in modern society, this is an easy one to read.

I adored the magic of this book in the threads that Sophie can see between those she matchmakes. I loved the clients she finds and how she gets them together.

But I did not like her mother which you aren't supposed to. I get that some parents are strict and harsh and sometimes it's cultural but usually it's for a well meaning reason. This woman was gaslighting, demeaning, selfish, cruel and demoralizing with no chance of redemption. Some people play the victim as they victimize all of those around them. And her father was an enabler. I think I got anxiety whenever her mom popped up just cause she wasn't defending herself and just taking it trying to be the good daughter. But nothing she did was enough and she couldn't give enough. She just wanted to be loved.

But in her matchmaking she made a community and a found family to replace the one she didn't have.

The sweet romances and these chances at love so late in life are my favorite. It's never too late to try something new, to learn new hobbies, to fall in love for the first or last time.

Thank you berkleyromance and netgalley for the e-ARC for my honest and voluntary review.

Roselle Lim did a fantastic job of mixing heartbreaking topics alongside a novel that was heartwarming. Adding in the amazing ability to describe food that made me wishing I was eating alongside it, I am now digging into Lim's backlist wondering what I have missed.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Random House Berkley for gifting me a digital ARC of the new book by Roselle Lim - 4.5 stars!

Sophie Go is a matchmaker - she sees those red threads between potential perfect matches. She went to Singapore to matchmaking school and has come back to Toronto to start her business. But she never really got her certification - something she is trying to keep secret until she can get recertified. She finally moves out of her parents' home and meets a group of seniors in her apartments, affectionately known as the Old Ducks. They become her first clients.

This is a wonderful mix of magical realism, romance and a heartfelt story - I loved it! The thought of those thick, tangled glowing red threads between a perfect pair is a wonderful image. Sophie's confidence and backbone have been tested throughout her life by a mean and domineering mother and she struggles to get move forward. This book showcases the power of a wonderful, honest friend as well as those new friends that become like family. I loved the nicknames of the Old Ducks and how their different personalities really came through but in a true way, not demeaning or stereotypical. Just a great read!

I loved this heartwarming, feel-good coming of age story featuring a young Chinese Canadian woman who returns home to Toronto to help establish herself as a matchmaker.

I loved the touch of magical realism in this story that has Sophie gifted to see people's 'red strings' - the thing that indicates someone's potential for love matches. Sophie gets taken in by a group of seniors she calls the old 'ducks' and sets about making matches to win them over and get endorsements. She also has to deal with a toxic mother who belittles her work and is constantly putting her down.

Truly a pleasure to read, this was a magical story in so many ways, full of found family, memorable characters and perfect for fans of books like Jean Meltzer's Mr. Perfect on paper. Much thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review!

5/5 ✨ Many thanks to the publisher for inviting me to review Sophie Go's Lonely Hearts Club! Happy Publication Day to the book as well. I am so excited to see what others think about this wonderful and unique novel!

Magical realism + a wholesome plot is honestly one of the best combinations in books! The entire storyline of SGLHC felt like something out of a booklover's dream - the characters, the unique approach to a well-used plot device (matchmaking), the description of different foods, etc made the book stand out!

I enjoy books about friendships between an older generation of people and Millennials/ Gen-Z, and I felt the same way about SGLHC! The friendship that Sophie formed with the Old Ducks ~ her matchmaking clients was my favourite part of the book! I highlighted so many of their interactions with each other - there was so much to learn and reflect! I cannot stop thinking about the characters tbh. Speaking of friendship, Sophie's relationship with Yanmei, her best friend won my heart too. Their friendship was so lovable and healthy - LOVE TO SEE THAT.

Romance wasn't the main plot of the book, but it was still written beautifully! I loved how everything player out. The portrayal of toxic family relationships - the one Sophie shared with her mother in this book, was well-written too. I cheered for Sophie all throughout her journey towards growth and self-realization. The ending won my heart! ❤️😭 The elements of magical realism surrounding Matchmaking was so fascinating as well.

I am so glad that I got the chance to read this beautiful book early. Everyone, do me a favor and order this beautiful book already!

Sophie Go’s Lonely Hearts Club is my new favorite of Roselle Lim’s books so far. This early, I’m declaring it as one of my Top 22 Reads of 2022.

Weaving filial piety, magical realism, found family, friendship, the Beatles, food, and romance into a cohesive story requires mad skills and loads of talent. Ms. Lim has those in abundance.

Sophie Go is relatable, sympathetic, and lovable. Her interactions with her parents made my heart ache and helped me appreciate my own more, especially my mother who is as loud in declaring how proud she is of me as Irene Go is in denouncing her daughter.

Sophie’s long-distance friendship with Singapore resident Yanmei resonated loudly with me as I have similar tight friendships in the same country, Thailand, Indonesia, and the Philippines. The kind of brutally honest, steadfast support they have is something to aspire for.

The slow build-up of her romance with a certain Mr. who hired her to matchmake for him was sweet and almost satisfied my romantic requirements in a story. I say almost because I always want more. Can never have enough romance.

Finally, the most entertaining, the most heartfelt, and the best part of this book-–Sophie’s connection with the Old Ducks, the seven septuagenarians who became her matchmaking clients, her friends, and her family. Ms. Lim gave each man such wonderfully distinct personalities, they really came alive in my mind. I think someone should adapt this book into a movie just to showcase these amazing characters.

2.5 stars! I really wanted to like this one so much! I almost DNF'd it in the middle but pressed on because I have a hard time DNF'ing books.

A book of matchmaking, helping sweet septuagenarians's find love, and self-discovery of not only herself but finding confidence in her abilities and worth. This book is marketed for romance, but is primarily woman's fiction with romance elements to me.

The concept was great, I think I just did not vibe with the execution. Objectively I think there is a lot in this book that people will enjoy. I loved learning about red thread which I have read in a few other books and think it's so cool! There were so many sweet moments between Sophie and her Old Ducks that gave the book some charm.

I think ultimately there were a lot of storylines happening, as well as some severely unlikeable characters which just made me not look forward to continuing reading the book. Sophie's mother made me so mad throughout the book which made the experience unenjoyable. Unfortunately, this was one that fell short and flat for me.

Thank you Netgalley and Berkley for access to this arc.

There are two sides to this book: the fun and happy part of Sophie with her Old Ducks and the awful part that encompasses Sophie’s relationship with her mother and father. Let me just repeat (and I don’t use this word lightly) that mom is a toxic bitch. She’s hateful, demanding of, demeaning to, and humiliates Sophie while also bossing around her husband. She’s social climbing, grasping, greedy, and a general suck-up to people with whom she wants to get in good. Sophie’s dad goes along with her and her actions rather than making any fuss. Theirs is a sick relationship. Mom is also venal in that she expects Sophie to pony up money to support her mom’s lifestyle all while repeating how dutiful a Chinese daughter Sophie should be. Sophie remembers how her mother was belittled by her own mother for not having the social status and lifestyle of her more successful younger sister but no, there really is no excuse for Sophie’s mom and her dad is more pathetic than anything else.

Now on to the good stuff. Though I wasn’t expecting the magical realism of the “red threads” and despite the fact that they’re mentioned fairly often, they didn’t bother me much. Sophie can see them but she relies more on her skills to make matches and just watches the threads to see if her matches are good ones. And she does have mad skillz. Plus honesty and care for her clients. I loved this as Sophie never does wild or weird matchmaking but puts time and effort into finding potential matches she thinks would work.

I was afraid that the seven older men would be portrayed as jokes for a desperate Sophie to use to attain her goals and little else. Instead the men are all fully fleshed characters and, better still, easy to remember and keep apart. Sophie designates them by a secret code name (something that all matchmakers do to be sure to maintain client privacy) but we meet each one and along with Sophie get to know him. TBH, most of her matches are made fairly easily but the delight in watching them is how Sophie picks up on clues, pushes for her clients to be honest with her and themselves about what they really want, and the follow up care that she gives each one.

I also enjoyed her relationship with her fellow matching making school friend who didn’t hold back on telling Sophie some home truths. The resolution of her relationship with her family took most of the book and a lot of support from her friends but she was the one who finally spoke up for herself. It was more an emotional snap for Sophie that I hope she follows up with some therapy to help her. I think that there would have been enough emotional depth in just watching the Old Ducks deal with their issues without the addition of the ghastly parents. Also though there is a romantic relationship for her – it’s small and a lesser part of the plot. I liked most of the book but, yeah, not the parents. B-

Sophie Go's Lonely Hearts Club
by Roselle Lim
Berkley Publishing Group, Berkley
Pub Date: Aug 16

Sophie, the diffident but lovable MC, is a matchmaker without credentials trying to succeed in the tough Toronto market. Her mother is emotionally abusive and it's no wonder Sophie lacks confidence.

But all that is soon to change when she discovers a secret group -- the Old Ducks -- in her condo community. They're seventy-something men looking for love and the relationship she develops with them is my favorite part of the book. Poignant, hopeful, utterly compelling, and highly recommended!

Thanks to the author, Berkley Publishing Group, Berkley, and NetGalley for the ARC. Opinions are mine.

#SophieGosLonelyHeartsClub #Roselle Lim #berkleypublishinggroup #NetGalley #matchmakerfiction #HEAfiction #bookstagramcommunity

From the first pages, Sophie Go’s Lonely Hearts Club is an engrossing and charming novel. The titular character has made a big career change, and she’s full of ambition and enthusiasm as she begins her dream job as a matchmaker. There’s also a hint of magic: Sophie can see red threads spreading from people’s hearts. If they’re in a relationship, their thread ties with that of their partner. If they’re single and looking for love, their thread floats listlessly, sometimes perking up around potential matches. Sophie’s job is to help her clients find the best possible match, whether it’s their forever partner or just a short and sweet fling.

Despite her excitement to start helping clients, Sophie has some self-doubt and financial constraints – both of which largely stem from her parents. I’ll talk more about that in a moment, but suffice it to say, it’s all Sophie can do to keep her eyes on her matchmaking prize.

Luckily, she does indeed go after clients, ending up taking on a group of seven septuagenarians. Calling themselves the Old Ducks, these 70-something men may be higher up in years, but they still crave love. Some are widowers, others never found The One. Sophie will do all she can to help each of them. Sophie’s friendship with the elderly bachelors is perhaps my favorite aspect of the novel. It’s not often that I get to read about older characters, and especially rare to see friendships form between people separated by so many decades. But just as Sophie helps these kind bachelors find love, they help her grow more confident in herself.

Sophie also has a wonderful friend who’s living in Singapore. Though it’s a long-distance friendship now, Yanmei always stands by Sophie’s side and pushes her in the right direction… sometimes too forcefully, but it comes from a good place!

One fun quirk is that each of Sophie’s male clients is known only by a nickname she gives them. Among the Old Ducks, for example, there is Mr. Sorrow, a widower who hasn’t yet moved on, and Mr. Porcupine, a prickly and distrustful man who doesn’t like her right away. Readers never do learn their real names! (Except for one, but you’ll have to read to find out who and what it is.)

While Sophie’s matching up her clients, she has no time for dating of her own. Does she even want it? She eventually does get a bit of her own romance, but it’s a secondary subplot here. Even so, I quite enjoyed the gentle relationship that eventually blossomed for her.

The biggest conflict in Sophie Go’s Lonely Hearts Club really is Sophie’s toxic relationship with her parents. Her mother is unaffectionate and critical at best, but often turns downright mean and emotionally abusive. Sophie’s dad, though seemingly loving, always chooses his wife over his daughter. Both parents make constant financial demands – often for things that cost thousands of dollars – leaving Sophie barely able to afford rent and her meager diet of ramen. Her parents aren’t just people that can’t get along with their only daughter; they’re full-on villains. Sophie’s mom may be the most evil character I’ve read, at least within this genre. I hated her, and I hated how small she made Sophie feel. It was often hard for me to understand why Sophie constantly gave into them and allowed their abuse to continue, though I do recognize that filial piety is an important aspect in Chinese culture. These attacks from Sophie’s parents got to be a bit much for me, lowering my rating, even though I loved the rest of the book.

Some final, cute details: Fans of the Beatles and various types of candy will likely have fun making note of the various songs and candy brands that are mentioned throughout the novel. And if you love baked goods (as I do), your mouth will be watering thanks to Mr. Regret’s frequent culinary experiments. Yum!

Sophie Go’s Lonely Hearts Club is a fun yet tender novel that balances magic, love for all ages, and family drama. Sophie is a conflicted yet relatable character, and I loved seeing her find friendship, love, and career success. This is a sweet novel… in more ways than one!

Sophie Go's Lonely Hearts Club has a bit of magical realism, which just added to the beautiful story. This book was just magical, and I cannot recommend it enough!

Review: I really enjoyed this book! Sophie was a delightful main character. The supporting characters were all great. The writing was lovely. I loved the epilogue! Overall, I would definitely recommend this novel to anyone who thinks it sounds good! :)

I received an e-ARC from the publisher.

Matchmaking is a nice interest of mine in literature. I could never be a matchmaker, but I love this premise and Lim infuses it with magic. All of Roselle Lim's books have this cozy magical feeling to it and Sophie Go's Lonely Hearts Club is no exception. Besides the mouth watering food descriptions - that's another Lim trademark! Immediately, Sophie Go's Lonely Hearts Club is a book that focuses on Sophie fighting for her own future, but also navigating her complex family. The pressure of their disapproval with her necessity to fight for herself.

And this made my heart weep for Sophie. Because she is determined, resilient, and passionate even as she struggles to fight for her dreams. Asserting our sense of self and responsibility with our own parents is a theme I would love to see explored more in fiction. And Sophie Go's Lonely Hearts Club fits the bill. This struggle grounds this fiction with plenty of romance and matchmaking on Sophie's character. On how matchmakers have to find the pieces of ourselves we hide and find others who can speak to us.

This book is seriously adorable and at times very touching. Sophie becomes an outcast after it was found out that she didn’t actually graduate from matchmaking school.
.
She needs some clients and somehow finds them in a secret club called the Old Ducks. The Old Ducks are made up of seven septuagenarian bachelors who have never been married. This will be her hardest challenge yet.
.
Huge thank you @berkleypub @and @netgalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.
.

Sophie Go moves out of her demanding and demeaning parents' home, determined to make it on her own as a matchmaker in Toronto, even though she is not accredited by the matchmaking school. Her skills are challenged by the Old Ducks, a group of lonely 70-year-old Chinese Canadian men, who hire her to find them suitable wives or partners.

Sophie is a very sympathetic individual as she struggles to help support her parents as well as herself, while trying to show she can do the job she has always dreamed of. She becomes close to the Old Ducks, the septuagenarians who are her clients, mostly likeable characters, each personality having his own foibles, quirks, and skill sets.

The character delineations as well as the clever plot make this novel. Sophie becomes close to the Old Ducks while trying to find them love partners, and you wonder if she will also find her own match along the way.

Magical realism makes this rom com unique. Sophie can see the "red threads" of people's hearts that flare to indicate their interest or willingness to meet a special someone. The matchmaking society or association to which she belongs is a group of people with special magical insights and skills.

This is another absolutely charming and delicious book by Roselle Lim. With the light magical touch ever present but never overwhelming, this story is perfect for no-steam romance readers and contemporary fiction readers alike. Reading about the way Sophie's parents treat her like an ATM and their lack of support for her (and her mother's active acts of sabotage) is difficult and definitely provides plenty of tension for this book as she finds a group of found family members and grows in her confidence as a matchmaker.

A moving story about finding your true family and learning to believe in yourself. Despite being very readable, it took until almost the halfway point for the book to really pull me in, and there were a few elements that didn't quite click for me, personally. The plot thread about the heroine's relationship with her abusive parents was well done but hard to read and much darker than anything I expected going into this book. On the other hand, I fell head over heels for the Old Ducks and for the heroine's amazing bestie Yanmei — we should all have people like them in our corner. Still, I can only recommend this with reservations, for the reasons stated above and because the final act falls into a common trap for books with elderly characters, which I won't spoil but that you can probably guess.

My thanks to NetGalley and Berkley for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Read if you like
❤️Romances
❤️Magic Realism
❤️Matchmaking

This one really looked at self-growth a lot and was filled with such wonderful messaging where it really leans more toward women’s fiction than a romance for most of the book.

I also loved that through that, the messaging to love yourself and that being such a foundation for other areas of life was explored.

The use of supporting characters was so well done in this one as well! I highly recommend other check this out as it was beautifully written!

A delightfully whimsical romance, full of mouth watering confections, and single septuagenarians.

Sophie Go returns to Toronto after attending a prestigious matchmaking school in Shanghai, she is excited to move into her own place and acquire a list of clients. But when it is revealed that her credentials are lacking, she finds herself scrambling for clients to keep her dream alive, offering her services to a group of seven single men in their seventies.

A romantic comedy about a young woman finding her way, and making new friends, with elements of magical realism. A quick and light-hearted read, fun, with great cultural flavor. I loved how Sophie not only brought people together with her job, but also how they became her friends.

I found her parents to be horrifically manipulative and abusive to her, physically, financially, verbally, and emotionally. And I think that it played into the honor and shame culture, but her parents were just so jarringly terrible and outrageous that it took away from the book as a whole.

Overall, a fun, quick read about finding love and finding yourself, in a magical Toronto setting filled with delicious sweets, and steadfast friends.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

*clean whimsical romance with moderate swearing, strong Asian representation and culture, as well as a m-m storyline