I love a book based on sisters. There is so much growth in books like this and I feel like I can resonate with stories like this. Gen is the older sister and when Arin comes into the picture everything changes for her, but being the chill mannered person that she is she takes it in stride and takes being a new and older sister serious. But the way Arin came into their lives was for the soap operas because the drama was pipping hot, and then years later? with Gen's own dad??? DRAMA. As they get older and Gen is trying to do something with her life, Arin tends to get the attention and even advances in life and Gen is just going through the motions, even now as her mom is asking for Arin to come home, and of course Gen has to do it. Having siblings comes with challenges especially being the oldest, i seriously adored Gen.

The setting:
Singapore, 1996-2015. Narrative shifts in time--starts at end, then backpedals to fill in story. WOW!

Genevieve [Gen], is an only child, living with her parents and grandmother in a single-room flat in working-class Bedok. Until Arin arrives--an unexpected sibling carrying the shameful legacy of a grandfather long believed dead. The "sisters" become close--until...

The shoji screen in the apartment is almost a character in the book!

Family/bonds, hardships, dysfunction, betrayal. ambition, search for self, haves vs. have nots/discrimination, academics. Grief. Mothers and daughters, and sisters. Father--and his role/story. And an almost unknown grandmother. Gossip "aunties". A slice of life in Singapore. All informative/revealing and enjoyable.

Descriptions:
"Complaining was one of the last pure pleasures life held for my grandmother and she indulged in it every chance she got."
"...I moved like a scythe through the day's chores"
"...drift silently around the house like a deflated ghost"
"mechanincally enacting the gessures of living, though with a little less light"
"...canvas of her face succumbed to its selected history"
And so many more than caught my fancy!

And then New Zealand--when the novel shifts there for a time.

Great character development. And often heartbreaking. I love a book in a setting where one can learn about the culture and norms.

Debut novel; looking forward to more by Jemimah Wei!

4.5, but not rounding up though HIGHLY RECOMMEND!

This was such a beautiful, emotional tale about a family in Singapore with a particular focus on the bond between sisters Genevieve and Arin. At the beginning of the book, Genevieve tends to her mother who has only a few weeks to live. The singular request she has for her daughter is for her to call Arin after years of no contact. From there, we jump into the past and learn how these two girls first became joined at the hip and what led to their fallout.

We witness handfuls of grudges and mistakes from every character that bring about major consequences. Sometimes they make up, and sometimes it's much harder. I enjoyed the fact that both sisters and their parents were flawed. It felt believable and made their journey more intriguing.

I have a great relationship with my family, but after finishing this incredible debut, I immediately wanted to call each one of them and remind them how much I love them. I even got a little teary near the end and appreciated the progression of these two sisters.

Genevieve Yang was an only child in Singapore until Arin, a girl a year younger than her, arrived to become part of their family. As the two navigate their relationship and places within the family, they become friends. Years later, Arin is a successful actress partly due to her betrayal of Genevieve. Can they ever reconcile? This was a hard book to love because it was trying to do too much, which ultimately made it feel disjointed. I liked the parts, but disliked the whole.

Genevieve Yang was an only child, living with her parents and grandmother in a small one room flat in Bedok, Singapore. Even though they struggled financially, they were happy. Then news arrived that the grandfather they all believed had died years ago, actually had run away and started another family. Now he was dead, and his other son could not afford to keep all of his children, so he was sending his youngest child, a daughter, to live with them. After the shock wore off, Genevieve was excited about the idea of getting a slightly younger sister. At first, Arin refused to engage with the family, and was intent on going back home. However, when she realized that her biological family truly did not want her, and wanted nothig else to do with her, she & Genevieve became true sisters. They did everything together, and Genevieve mentored Arin to become an excellent student and to excel once she got in college. But the more Arin's star continued to rise, the more Genevieve's began to fade. She felt left behind. Then, when Arin betrayed her in the worst way imaginable, Genevieve cut her out of her life for good.

This book was amazing. I loved this debut novel, and can't wait to read many more by this very talented author. At times Genevieve was likeable (usually when she and Arin were getting along like best friends), but when jealousy and hurt reared up, not so much. I could see both points of view, and I could empathize with Genevieve. It had to feel like she was being replaced, and at times used, by Arin. The final scenes with their mother left me in tears. This book would be great for book clubs, I feel like. I highly recommend this one!

The Original Daughter, a captivating tale of two sisters, held me in its spell throughout the day. The story was so compelling that I couldn’t put it down. Although I’ve never had a sister, I understand the complexities that can arise in family relationships.

Set mostly in Singapore with a short detour to New Zealand, this book is about family and the complex twists and turns of relationships between its members. As a young child, Genevieve Kang is surprised when she is learns she is getting a sibling from another country - someone called Arin. As an only child, she is initially confused but soon assumes responsibility for being the older sister, a decision that forever changes the trajectory of her life. For a debut author, the book was impressive, engaging, and held my attention. I enjoyed the settings, which highlighted life in the two locations, particularly Singapore. I felt the first two-thirds was nicely paced, the last third dragged a bit and I was hoping for a quicker wrap up, until it did - a bit abruptly - I thought. Can’t account for fickle readers like me! Overall, I enjoyed the book and I’m looking forward to the authors next publication. Many thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Jemimiah Wei's debut novel is full of richly developed characters and familial drama. We meet the Yang family in Singapore, three generations in one, cramped apartment. Gen is used to being an only child among the adults. When the family learns that Gen's grandfather, long believed to be dead, has only recently died and left behind another family. Gen's half-sister Arin comes to live with the Yang family and it turns her world on its head.

Beautifully written and tender, The Original Daughter is sure to appeal to fans of complex family dynamics. I can't wait to see what she writes next.

Can their fractured relationship recover from all that broke it?

In a small and cramped flat in a working class part of Singapore lives the Yang family...grandmother, son Wei Ming, daughter-in-law Su, and granddaughter Genevieve. Life is far from perfect...the flat they live in is owned by the grandmother so she rules the family and is generally not pleasant about it. Genevieve works hard and excels at school, an important achievement in a culture driven by achievements in academics and beyond. Their existence is forever altered when they discover that the grandfather, long presumed to have died during a period of political upheaval had in fact survived and created a new life (and a new family) in Malaysia. He has only recently died, and his adult son can no longer support his wife and large family. They are sending one of the daughters to live with and be a part of the Yang family in Singapore, a decision agreed to by the grandmother, much to the dismay of the rest of the family who wonder how their cramped quarters and marginal existence can support another person. Arin arrives, shocked that her family has so casually disposed of her and not truly believing that it will be permanent. Genevieve is determined to be a good big sister to her, and over time the two become very close....true sisters of the heart. They form an alliance against the world, determined to succeed and create a better opportunity for themselves. Genevieve at times is her own worst enemy and makes questionable decisions, and Arin makes the choice to put her own ambition ahead of the love of family in a manner which Genevieve sees as a betrayal. Genevieve experiences failure after failure and ends up living with their mother in the cramped flat she had tried so hard to escape, all while Arin claims worldwide success and fame. The two have not communicated in years, and Arin has stayed away from their home...but now Su is dying and wants nothing more than for the two girls to put the anger and jealousies of the past aside and reconnect. Can they put aside their pride and their anger, or have they let the bad feelings fester for too long? Is it ever too late to reconnect?
WIth beautiful prose and a well-crafted portrayal of emotions which resonate throughout the narrative, author Jemimah Wei has created a story of sisterhood, family, ambition, and a particular culture. Genevieve, who serves as the narrator for the story, is complex and definitely flawed...she is insecure which leads to jealousy and failures for which she herself is mostly to blame. She isn't exactly likable, but I did feel a measure of empathy for her as she wrestles with a life that hasn't lived up to early promise and a mother who (like the grandmother before her) can be critical and hard to be around. The reader gets to see Arin through her sister's eyes and given that Genevieve was likely an unreliable narrator I had the sense that there was more to the story than Genevieve was disclosing. There are moments of humor woven into a tale with otherwise heavy emotions, and the Yangs are a decidedly dysfunctional family. I wish that some of the secondary characters had more developed backstories, and the ending was not all that I hoped it would be. It is still overall a beautifully rendered story of family, love and loss, a novel that will appeal to readers of Celeste Ng, Rachel Khong and Elena Ferrante. My thanks to NetGalley and Doubleday Books for allowing me access to The Original Daughter in exchange for my honest review.

There is nothing I love more than an unreliable narrator, they make for the best stroytellers and force the reader to parce throught everything they say to see what is true and what is not. The idea of the power of communnication is so strong in this book, we see so many situations where the problem could easily be solved by women talkinng to each other. The symbolism of the differnnt objects, and materialistic things adds so much to the book and moves this debut nnovel into the next level.

I read many family dramas and this one stood out! Wei wrote these characters and their relationships beautifully. Told over the course 20 years The Original Daughter follows Arin and Gen as they navigate their relationship after being thrown together as young girls.

This one had a slow start for me, but as we started unraveling the tightly woven aspects of the story and its characters/key players, I was fully invested. I'd been interested in Wei's work for years, as I first learned of her work during her MFA, and I really enjoyed the novel--which is fitting, as it feels like I've been waiting for it for a while now!

3 star review - it was a good read. Read well and it kept me engaged. Thank you for the author and team, for the chance of an arc.

A very strong debut novel. Wei gives us so much to chew on: sister rivalry, found family, the feeling of one's wasted potential, and more. The writing was lush and so, so smooth. Where I struggled was by the end of the book, I didn't feel like I knew the mother much at all. I wish there'd been more exploration of her life before her daughters to really bring out the emotion I should've felt when she eventually passed.

Set in turn-of-the-millennium Singapore, this compelling story explores the intricate bonds of sisterhood and ambition within a family navigating change, tradition, and personal dreams. The characters are well developed, and Wei writes with emotional depth. I like the way the quiet tensions and fierce love that often exist in close-knit families is portrayed.

A heartfelt read — perfect for fans of complex family stories with cultural nuance and emotional insight.

Very mixed feelings about this novel. Beautifully written but I felt it needed more editing as some parts went on far too long after the point being made was made. Most of the characters were not very likeable or admirable, especially the main character, Genevieve, who was her own worst enemy. I understand her anger at her younger half-sister, Arin, who appropriated something terrible as if it had happened to her and profited off of that story. However, sisters often do terrible things to each other and forgiveness is essential to going forward with your life. The fact that Genevieve envied so many others and resented their succeeding at things more than she did, did not make her a particularly likeable character. The only I disliked more was her grandfather who deserted his wife and created another family and her father who also ended up deserting his family. Lots of potential but possibly giving the characters some redeeming qualities that would make the reader like them more? Although I received an Advanced Review Copy, my opinions are my own and freely shared. 3.5 rounded up to a 4 as this was a debut novel.

A novel about sisterhood, family, ambition and communication. The Original Daughter is the story of an only child, Genevieve, whose life is toppled when a previously unknown half-sibling, Arin, unexpectedly joins the family. Arin’s arrival changes the family’s dynamics. The sisters navigate this new relationship from childhood to adulthood. Their relationship goes through various stages from friendship to rivalry from support to estrangement from achievement to disappointment. The book is set in Singapore and provides interesting background on the pressures of growing up in that country. While I enjoyed the writing and the story, I wanted Genevieve to gain more confidence in herself and be more of a risk-taker. She was a little too self-defeating to be sympathetic. Thanks to NetGalley and Doubleday Books for an advanced readers copy of this book. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.

The Original Daughter is a gorgeously written debut that blends sharp wit with emotional depth. Jemimah Wei crafts a layered story about family, expectations, and the complicated ties that both define and confine us. The novel follows a young woman grappling with her place in a family where perfection is the unspoken currency—and where love and loyalty are not always easy to untangle.

Wei’s prose is luminous, often balancing humor and heartbreak in the same breath. The characters feel authentic, particularly the nuanced portrayal of the mother-daughter relationship, which shifts between tenderness, resentment, and longing. The themes of cultural expectation and personal rebellion are handled with both sensitivity and bite.

At times, the pacing slowed a little too much in the second act, and a few plot turns felt slightly predictable. Still, the emotional truths at the heart of the story—and the voice Wei brings to the page—make this a standout debut.

If you enjoy character-driven novels that feel both intimate and expansive, The Original Daughter is well worth your time.

Compelling characters, a turbulent relationship, and family drama, this story has it all. Plus I learned more about colorful Singapore.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advance copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

The original daughter is Genevieve. She lives with her parents and her grandmother in Singapore. One day, a man shows up with Arin, the progeny of the grandfather long thought dead. The novel tells the story of how the family functions, how Arin and Genevieve get through tests within the Singapore school system. Toss in deaths, betrayals, and job loss. The plot is punctuated by side stories that make it hard to follow what is going on.