Releases: 6/3/2025

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Thank you to NetGalley and Hyperion Avenue for the ARC!

This is for alllll the little girls (and guys) that whipped a broomstick around their living room to recreate the ‘I’ll Make a Man Out of You’ (aka a musical masterpiece) choreography!!! No..?? Just me and my sister???

I absolutely adored this but as you can probably see from above, that may be partially due to a personal bias. This was my intro to Jesse Q. Sutanto and I will DEFINITELY be picking up her other books after this!

I loved the topic of gender norms that was woven into the story, especially since it fits so well with the essence of the original. I also really enjoyed seeing the perspective of how these gender norms are dealt with in modern times in Chinese and Chinese-American families. I also loved the inclusion of the immigrant representation!

My only complaint was how long the secret was kept from Shang, I think this doesn’t really make sense in a real world and modern perspective. Howeverrrr, I do think with a retelling you’re dealt these difficulties when trying to modernize them but simultaneously stay true to the source material. Especially since, in the Disney version, obviously Mulan would be executed if she ever admitted her lie or was found out so it automatically adds such high stakes that make sense with keeping a lie for as long as possible or no matter what happens between her and Shang. I think this is a lottt more difficult to replicate in a modern world but the author tried her best to relate this aspect of the story!

Favorite Quote:
““My fellow immigrant families,” he says again, softly this time. “You are all so strong,” he murmurs to the crowd in general. “I forgot what real strength is. This”—he gestures to the ballroom of women—“is real strength.”

I really enjoyed this retelling of Mulan. I loved the update and the corporate banking world. The characters were enjoyable and the pacing good.

I honestly wish I had more to say about this book, but ultimately it was so meh that all I can say is this: Somehow Worth Fighting For ending up being simultaneously not close enough to Mulan to be enjoyable as an adaptation, and yet it managed to stick too close to the tropes of the original to actually work as a good story. Not badly written or anything, just disappointing.

3/5

This was a little fluffy romance read. I didn't care for the instalove vibe. For me it was missing any type of banter or even tension. It wasn't quite deep enough for a women's fiction romance and not funny enough for a rom-com.

A modern day retelling of Mulan from the Meant to be Series. Expected release: June 3, 2025

Mulan challenges gender-roles and sexism, and this book does the same. I think the author did well really showing Asian culture and realistic gender expectations in this culture. (Though at times it was repetetive "finance bros" etc, it was still relevant).

Obviously, if you know the story of Mulan, then the book could feel predictable at times. The flow of the book wasn't perfect, but as a whole this was still entertaining and enjoyable.

3.5⭐ (rounding up)

Tropes:
- Modern Disney retelling
- Female empowerment and gender equality
- POC representation
- Mentions of sexism and misogyny
- Closed-door romance

Many Thanks to Jesse Q. Sutanto, Hyperion Avenue, and NetGalley for providing me with an eARC in exchange for my review!

As one of my most anticipated books of the year, this was a colossal disappointment, especially with the framework for the story already well-established. The gender-bending element of the story we all know would have had such a strong impact, but instead Mulan takes on her father's identity by name alone. The prose is too adolescent for an older cast, the phrase "finance bro" is used too often to have any effect, and despite having great rep on the surface, it could have gone more into depth to really ILLUSTRATE (rather than constantly spell out) Mulan's struggle. All tell, very little show, with flat characters who don't resonate.

The Vibes
Love at First Sight
Mulan Retelling
Only One Bed
Third Act Breakup
BIPOC Rep

Overall I think this whole series is pretty fun.
Updated Disney movies into romcoms.
As far as this Mulan retelling it was pretty middle of the road for me. Entertaining but not a new favorite.
Mulan needs to finish out an acquisition of a whiskey company while her father is in the hospital so pretends she has been the one talking to the CEO this whole time.
A little campy, slapstick type of humor.

Thanks to netgalley and Hyperion for an eARC

I’ve enjoyed several books from Sutanto in the past, so when I saw that she was writing a Mulan retelling, I was so excited to read it! The humor in this book was just as good as I was hoping it would be - I loved the portrayal of Mushu, and all the scenes at the family ranch! It was also fitting that female empowerment be such a big part of this book. I really appreciated reading about the main character’s struggle between honoring her elders and tradition and asserting her own opinions and abilities.
The one thing that threw me off was the names, which might feel like a small thing - but it did feel a little weird to be reading about people named directly after the characters from the movie I’m so familiar with.

I received an ARC version of this novel through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley.

Worth fighting for" is a modern retelling of Mulan where Mulan is wrapped up in the finance bro world, and after her father grows sick, she has to step up to close a deal with the Li Family to try to buy out their whiskey company, Wutai Gold. She ends up meeting the family under the pretense that she is her father Zhou assuming his identity knowing that she could not show up to the meeting as Mulan and be accepted, and is invited to their ranch for a family gathering where she has to prove to the family that has VERY traditional values in woman's roles that she is worthy of acquiring their company despite being a woman.

Shang is the leading male and the CEO of Wutai Gold and while he was raised in a traditional Chinese household, that has strong beliefs and are very misogynistic, Shang is determined to redefine his roots by supporting woman and taking up household chores that are better suited to traditionally woman's roles, such as cooking and cleaning.

While I did enjoy the book, I also found it a bit slow to build up to my tastes. I wanted to love it because I love the Mulan movie (the classic animated one, not the live-action remake), and I was so excited for this book, but for me, it just was hard to dive into. I will preface with the fact that I have not read any of the other novels in the "Meant to be" collection, but as each is are standalone, I thought that it would be fine to jump right into this one, and I was a little bit disappointed.

The first ~10% of the book, I was a bit questionable about pushing through this book as it was very heavy on the Gen-Z way of talking and reading similarly and i had a hard time connecting with the main character's voice for the first third of the book, however, once the plot started to pick up it made it a bit easier to read, but I did struggle to get there. The next ~20% of the book was spent learning about all the aunties and uncles and cousins, and it seemed like it introduced like 20 characters and seemed to be a lot, and I wished it got to the meat of the story sooner. Once they got to the Ranch, though, I felt like it started to go a bit more. It was a bit slow for me, but I still would recommend the book and have already to a coworker.

I enjoyed all the references to Chinese culture, and learned from them that were scattered throughout the novel.

Tropes include:
Love at first sight
Headstrong and Intelligent FMC
Mulan Retelling
Chinese Culture
One bed
Rediscovering who you are
Women supporting Women

I really enjoyed this book. I loved how it empowered the women in the story. I loved Mulan growing up and I thought the story stayed close to the story but too close so it was repetitive.

I loved this retelling of “Mulan” by Jesse Q. Sutanto. Was it silly at times? Yes, but ridiculous in an entertaining way. Mulan’s struggle with how to be herself is extremely relatable. She’s had years of trying to fit in as a finance bro and to please her parents as an only child. The antics she gets into when she poses as her father and gets roped into an overnight camping/farm trip are great. I love Shang and his family dynamics. Shang is the ultimate golden retriever MMC. This story has a lot of heart, and I ate it up. This is my first book by Jesse Q. Sutanto, and I will read more by her! This retelling is part of the “Meant to Be” series, which I’ve read most of (you don’t have to, it stands alone as well). My favorites include “Kiss the Girl” by Zoraida Cordova and “Tangled” by Christina Lauren.

If you’re looking for a cute, funny, closed-door romance with a lot of heart, this is for you. I’d recommend this book to everyone.

Thank you, NetGalley, Jesse Q. Sutanto, and Hyperion Ave, for an advanced digital copy of this book.

I’ve read a few of Jesse Q. Sutanto’s books, and it’s been a bit hit or miss for me, but this one was okay. Worth Fighting For is a modern-day Mulan retelling with a fun twist, and while it’s not a new favorite, it was definitely entertaining, easy to follow, and a super quick read.

I didn’t realize this was part of a series, but it reads well as a standalone, which I actually prefer most of the time!

The premise: Mulan works at her father Zhao’s company. When Zhao suffers a heart attack and is out of commission, Mulan steps in to take over a major business deal. Her goal? Secure an investment in a whiskey company on her father’s behalf. She does this by pretending to be Zhao, not as a man, just under his name, to get the job done.

It’s a light, clever twist on the classic Mulan story, without the full disguise or gender-bending elements, but still with that sense of familial duty and personal courage.

If you’re in the mood for a breezy, modern retelling with some business drama and heart, this might be worth checking out!


Thank you to NetGalley and Hyperion Avenue for the eARC

This modern Mulan retelling is super cute and I overall really enjoyed it! I hadn’t read any of the others in this Disney retelling series yet but really love Jesse Q. Sutanto’s Vera series so I wanted to check this one out.

To get my complaints out of the way: I wish there was more time spent on the romance between Mulan and Shang. It felt somewhat rushed and I liked what there was but wished it was a bigger focal point.

As for the things that worked well for me: the family dynamics in the Li family, the friendship between Mulan and Mushu, Mulan’s relationship with her parents, and Mulan’s struggle to maintain femininity while also having to prove herself in the male-dominated finance field.

Definitely worth the read if you also grew up loving Mulan and Disney. Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC!

Mulan is one of my all-time favorite Disney movies, so I jumped at the chance to read this retelling. I think this book really captured the vibe of the movie and did a great job including all the important themes without being too obvious. I wasn’t sure if this was going to be a story about a woman pretending to be a man (and was worried about how that would play out) and I was pleased to realize Mulan is just assuming her fathers identity by taking his name and backstory. I loved her misadventures on the ranch, trying to look like she knew what she was doing. Mushu was a great character and really felt silly and ridiculous like the dragon, but made into a person who is believable. I kept picturing Awkwafina for her character. Overall it was really fun and did justice to one of the best movies ever.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

4.5 stars!

The Meant To Be series is back with a new retelling of a classic Disney movie and another fabulous author taking the helm. It’s time to reenter the world of Mulan with some moser. day twists as told by Jesse Q. Sutanto. Mulan just wants to make her dad proud. She has worked hard to make it in the business company he created, and her ba’s heart attack only makes her try harder. Staring with winning over family owned Wutai Gold, the whiskey company with a penchant for masculinity and patriarchy, and convincing them to sell. They don’t want to work with a woman, so Mulan assumes her father’s name and role and sets off to prove her worth to the Li family. What she doesn’t count on is hot, feminist minded Shang or how difficult it is to pretend to be an expert at all things farm and camping related. Can she win this close minded family over with her strong persona? Or will she lose everything she’s worked hard to gain?

I am a sucker for all things Disney, and Jesse Q. Sutanto hits it out of the park with Worth Fighting For! It’s familiar, throwing back to scenes we all know and love from the animated movie. It’s got woman supporting woman and cultural value and respect. Everything about this book is so well done, with so many pleasant spins. You don’t feel overwhelmed with movie references, and you really feel yourself rooting for each character (well not some of the old school patriarchal characters, but you know what I mean)! You’ll be rooting for Mulan the whole time. A must read for any and all Disney fans and romance readers!

Thank you Netgalley and Hyperion Avenue for an ARC of this novel!

I wanted to love this, as Mulan is one of my favorite Disney movies.

However, while I expected misogyny, the sheer amount was so overwhelming that it took me out of the story. If I ever hear the phrase "finance bros" again, it will be too soon. I don't want to stop you from reading this. It is a very close retelling of Mulan, just set in the modern world of (damn it) finance bros. Shang and Mulan are cute together, even with the insta-love. Mushu was a lot of fun and provided much-needed comedic relief. I still recommend reading this if you love Mulan or the Meant to Be series.

Thank you to Hyperion Books for the gifted book in exchange for an honest review.

my first experience with this series! i enjoyed it, but i wasn't blown away. i liked the modern take on the Mulan story and enjoyed seeing the cultural nuances, while watching Mulan defy the odds and kick ass.

Mulan was a Disney movie that I really enjoyed as a kid. I was a little older when it came out (8) vs toddler, which is when the ones that are faves to this day are from (probably because I watched them repeatedly), but it still has great songs and the story, which I forgot for a second was based on a true one until reading this book's acknowledgements, was interesting and fun. So when I read the Disney adaptations series was putting out a Mulan retelling, I was here for it, and was thrilled I got an ARC. It took me a little bit to get into it, this story about Mulan as a finance 'bro' working for her father's company and looking to acquire a whisky company that Shang's family owns. Her dad gets sick, she pretends to be him because Shang's family is known to be sexist and wouldn't deal with a woman but they'd only communicated with her Ba via email so they were surprised but rolled with it reluctantly. Her cousin, Mushu, who works as an assistant and gets Mulan into all sorts of hijinks by talking her up (lies), etc., goes with her to their family ranch and distillery, which is when the story picked up for me. Over their time there, she somehow manages to gain their favor. She also shares a tent with Shang and the attraction between them leads to a kiss, and then more once they're back. But he still knows her as Zhou and the secret will come out. I thought the discussions of gender and equality were well done in this book, and the ending, a coming together of strong women, made me tear up, which also seemed appropriate when the author said she and her cousins always cried at the part in the movie where Mulan makes it to the top of the pole and gets the arrow, because they saw a woman, someone who looked like them, being strong and succeeding. Overall, I ended up enjoying myself finding all the similarities to the original, and it made me want to watch the movie again and research more about the historical Mulan.
•disability rep: arthritis (side char.)
•BIPOC rep: Chinese characters (all main and major side char.)
•queer rep (side char.)
•Out June 3/25 (thank you to Hyperion for the ARC!)

*3.5

This was cute but it was a little bit boring. I think if this were a movie I would really enjoy it but as a book it was just missing something. The part of the book where they are actually together should have been longer. It was so short that it didn't really have an impact on me when it stopped.

I received an arc through netgalley.

3.5 Stars

Worth Fighting For by Jesse Q. Sutanto is a modern-day Mulan retelling with a corporate twist—and honestly, I’m mad at myself for not picking it up sooner. This was my first book in the series, and now I’m wondering what took me so long.

Mulan is a financial analyst working in a toxic, male-dominated world of finance bros. After her father falls ill, she steps in to run his pet acquisition company (yes, really)—and to protect his reputation, she pretends to be him. That gets complicated real fast when she has to negotiate with Shang, the heir to a whiskey empire, and his very traditional family. Cue the drama, the mistaken identity tension, and the insta-love vibes.

I’m usually not a fan of deception/false identity plots, but I made an exception for this one because it’s Mulan—and I’m glad I did. Jesse Q. Sutanto’s writing is sharp, witty, and fun. The romance is quick, but there’s enough heart and pressure in the storyline to make it work. Mulan’s cousin Mushu was also a great addition—funny without being too much, and a nice emotional anchor in the story.

That said, it was frustrating to watch Mulan constantly having to prove herself to men, but that comes with the territory when you’re retelling Mulan, I guess. It didn’t surprise me, but it did wear on me a bit. Still, the book balances humour, cultural nuance, and romance in a really satisfying way.

If you like workplace romance, a bit of chaos, and stories about women kicking ass in spaces not built for them—this one’s worth checking out.
Thank you to Jesse Q Sutanto, Hyperion Avenue, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this ARC. On Sale June 3rd, 2025