Baby's life is saved. . .but at what cost?

From China where the wrong class and kind of children are disposable, to New York where childless parents are handed someone needing love and a home - enter interested parties and governmental forces making decisions far from ones a mother would make.

Five people stand to lose their hearts, minds and lives in The Leftover Woman . A compelling read, well-written. Chinese policies, American economies, individual ethics and jealousies combine to shape this tale of disparities over the survival of an infant who wasn't supposed to. . .

Be ready for surprises with this one!

*A sincere thank you to Jean Kwok, William Morrow, and NetGalley for an ARC to read and independently review.* #TheLeftoverWoman #NetGalley

This book was slow to get going but was soon hard to put down. Lots of hard to believe coincidences but still a good read.

I loved the mystery in The Leftover Woman but I did find the pace was much slower than I like to read and it also took a very long time to get into the real heart of the story. The last 25% was miles above the first 75% so I am very glad I stuck it out and pushed through,

I liked the writing of this book and thought it was an overall interesting story. It did take forever for me to read, though.

A mother’s love is at the center of The Leftover Woman by Jean Kwok. Both Jasmine and Rebecca love Fionia. Jasmine had her daughter taken away and would do anything to find her and take her home. Rebecca loves her adopted little girl. This is a lovely story about the trials of motherhood. Throughout the novel, both ladies learn what is truly important and what sacrifices are often required to be made by mothers. We also have an inside view of the relationship between Rebecca and Brandon. Jasmine has a complicated situation between Anthony and Wen. Both women learn what is most important to them. A very good novel which keeps your interest and keeps you wondering what will happen next.

Thank you to NetGalley and William Morrow for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book threw me for a loop. Started out following 2 women , one who is living in China and flees to the United States and the second living a good life with a great job, her handsome and successful husband and beautiful adopted Chinese daughter.
You can see where this story is going right? Yes, follow along , we learn about the lives of these women, there strengths and weaknesses and then boom , life begins to get complicated and Rebecca's successful life starts to crumble while Jasmine also struggles as her money problems become too big to handle.
No secrets to be revealed because you have to experience the story for yourself. Check it out if your a fan of mysteries, suspense and thrillers tied into Women's fiction. A story that will stick with you for days.

I found "The Leftover Woman" to be an interesting and compelling read. I was quickly hooked on the story with Jasmine's storyline, both present and flashbacks. As a mother, I could relate to both Jasmine and Rebecca as they fought for their family! It was eye opening to see one person's point of view in coming to this country and the obstacles that they faced. Thank you to NetGalley and William Morrow for an advanced copy! All thoughts and opinions are my own!

Kwok always writes thought-provoking and powerful books and her latest adds to her collection.
I especially enjoyed the intermixing of her two characters' lives. One, a Chinese woman relentlessly doing everything to get her child back is juxtaposed against a white woman who has her own struggles. The story is so sensitively written that it's easy to empathize with all that's going on.
Kwok's rendering of the restrictions placed on China's childbearing women blend the plight of both women's challenges. Well done!

The Leftover Woman by Jean Kwok is about Jasmine Yang, a young girl from a rural Chinese village. She was sold to an abusive man at a very young age. She escapes through a human trafficking ring and lands in New York. She soon encounters Rebecca Whitney, an executive at a publishing house in New York. These two women from two very different walks of life are soon connected. If you enjoy mysteries, thrillers, and stories told from multiple points of view, The Leftover Woman is perfect for you. Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an advanced e-copy in exchange for an honest review.

I really really enjoyed this - thought-provoking, interesting, and despite generally knowing what was going on/what was going to happen the whole time, I was impressed by the suspense and intrigue the author was able to build. Several little twists and developments in the story kept me on my toes and wanting to continue turning the pages. Would highly recommend.

I was majorly disappointed by this book. I loved Kwok’s GIRL IN TRANSLATION because it made me feel seen. This book made me cringe with how many things the book got wrong. All the depictions of race, immigration, and sex work did not sit well with me — it really detracted from the whole plot for me.

It felt like this book was written to appease conservative white people who want to be reassured that Chinese immigrants are good people. Here are my issues with the book in detail:
- the trope of immigrants wanting nothing for themselves but something better for their children. LIES AND TROPE-Y. i’m done with this kind of immigration story bc immigrants want and desire! that’s why they immigrated
- the part where brandon professes his love for china and how he would never be loved back “bc of the color of my skin” BITCH YOU AIN’T GOT NO COLOR YOU ARE A WHITE MAN. why oh why would kwok write this. why give a white character those lines.
- i didn’t like that Jasmine saw her work at Opium as so shameful and disgusting. “instead of developing myself with art or English or cooking lessons, I used my appearance to make fast money” WTF why the slight towards sex workers… especially since some sex workers see that there isn’t any other choice. why the fucking shade and nose-turn.
- shallow & stereotypical descriptions of strip club and people who work there. seen through such a male gaze too. when jasmine first walks into Opium, she calls it “Asians exploiting Asians”…dude what the hell. what kind of internalized fuckery is this
- “i’ll be back someday and next time, i’ll do it legally.” WHAT THE GENUINE FUCK why the inclusion about doing it legally. asians make up a huge part of the undocumented population in the US. why the rub about needed to do it “right?” that was not necessary.
- lastly, i need to talk about the title. in chinese, 剩女 “leftover women” is a phrase used to refer to women who are 30 or older and unmarried. this is the context. why does Kwok not contextualize this? jasmine is 26 and unmarried, yes, but she has agency over her choice to leave her husband and so why adopt this hurtful term and play the victim? i’m still hashing this one out but i feel like using this term as the title for such a whitewashed book is an injustice in itself.

i’ll end here with the one quote that i liked from anthony talking about jasmine’s secrets: “when you love the house, you must love the crows on the roof as well.”

The Leftover Woman is a great story about the lengths a mom will go to in order to provide the best she can to her child. Fascinating characters in a story with lots of twists! Thank you NetGalley for the advanced digital copy.

The Leftover Woman was an interesting book that tells the story in essentially dual POVs of a Chinese woman named Jasmine and an affluent white woman named Rebecca. While the end had me hooked, I sort of had to trudge through the beginning of this book to make it to the "thriller" part. I did enjoy reading it, enjoyed the big twist, but it felt like there were so many holes that were just filled by an info dump way too far into the book to be acceptable. I enjoyed the character of Fifi so much as well as Jasmine, but it felt very repetitive at times. I also could not stand Rebecca for much of the book, her making such terrible choices for herself and her family. That being said, I am glad that I read the book because it was interesting to read about what lengths some might go to get and keep a family. It is also important to read books written by under represented authors, so I was appreciative to get the opportunity to do so with this book. Overall, I'd give it a 3/5 stars.

Thanks to the publishers and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book. All opinions within this review are my own.

I've enjoyed Jean Kwok's books since I received an advanced copy of Girl in Translation years ago. It earned a rightful place on my top 10 favorites of all time. Obviously, I have to always read her latest.

In The Leftover Woman, two women's lives intertwine over one child. Rebecca is a powerful New York publishing executive, raising her adopted Chinese daughter in New York City. Jasmine, a poor rural Chinese woman, has come to New York illegally in search of the daughter she had to give up for adoption. As the women's stories intersect, the connection to the child that binds them could tear everything apart.

As usual, I loved Jean Kwok's writing. Her books are always a one night read for me, not because of the length, but because I have to stay up until I have finished. With The Leftover Woman, I kept thinking, "I'll put it down next character switch," but each time I just had to read one more chapter. While the reader assumes that Fifi, the adopted daughter of Rebecca, is likely Jasmine's biological child, the story in how they relate keeps you interested.

Rounded up from 3.5 stars.

The Leftover Woman goes back and forth between the points of view of two vastly different women - Rebecca and Jasmine. Rebecca is a white woman who has adopted a Chinese daughter and is incredibly wealthy, facing nearly unrelatable problems in life. Jasmine has no documents in a foreign country and is forced to do what is necessary to survive after escaping a bad marriage in China.

Their lives collide, and there are explosions abound.

Overall, the book was slightly disappointing after chapters and chapters of build-up, but the writing was well-done. I didn't struggle to read this book and I read it quite quickly.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an eARC of this book in exchange for my fair and honest review!

The Leftover Woman is not exactly a thriller in the true sense of the genre , but it IS mysterious, especially the way it is told. The first few parts lay out the story from 2 POV's, Jasmine and Rebecca. You KNOW somehow their paths will cross but just not where or when. This is a family drama with elements of mystery and influence of outside factions to create a story that indeed had be riveted

Story told through two perspectives, a Chinese woman whose baby girl was stolen at birth and the American woman who adopts the stolen child. The author does a good job making both characters sympathetic.

Poignant, excellently written, and heart wrenching. A story that gives a glimpse into aspects of Chinese culture, immigrant struggles, and a fighting spirit.

I had the highest hopes for this book; the subject matter and synopsis sounded exactly like the kind of work I enjoy. But unfortunately, after multiple attempts at reading this one, I had to stop around 30%. I do not finish books I’m not enjoying. The dialogue felt forced and ruined my ability to get into the story.

An engrossing read that examines what it means to be a mother and how far you'd go for your children. I vacillated between rooting for one character over another, which made for a compelling story.