“Mulan" has been my favorite Disney movie since its release in 1998 because it featured a strong woman who wasn't rescued by a handsome prince—she saved herself. I was absolutely delighted to discover that the "Meant To Be" series, which had previously adapted other Disney movies into contemporary romance novels, was tackling Mulan. "Worth Fighting For" by Jesse Q. Sutanto did not disappoint!In this modern adaptation, Mulan fights to fulfill her father's business dreams rather than battling in the military. She takes her father's place by pretending to be him in business meetings to impress fellow business owner Shang. The novel features strong character development, delightful settings, and clear connections to the original Disney story.If you've enjoyed other books in the series or are simply a fan of the Mulan movie, I definitely encourage you to pick this one up. Thank you to Hyperion Publishing and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this advance copy!

Mulan is one of my favorite Disney movies and I love the Meant to Be Series. Was "Worth Fighting For" my favorite? No, but it was a solid modern retelling. I had a hard time liking the characters, which is quite different from the movie. Just the general take wasn't for me but I know it will hit right for others. 3/5 for me.

A fun Mulan retelling set in modern times. I liked the friendship between Mulan and Mushu. The characterization of Shana’s mom was good. The story was fun and light; it was a little predictable.
Shang’s character could have been more developed, as well as James. This book had closed door romance and no frills writing. At times it read a little like YA.
Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the digital ARC; all opinions are my own.

Another great addition to the Meant To Be series, this adaptation of Mulan will have fans swooning.

I’m not a diehard Disney fan, but I have been enjoying the Meant To Be series. For those unfamiliar, this series does modern remakes of classic stories that Disney has based movies on. A different, popular romance author writes each book, and they are written for a more adult audience. This is the fifth book in the series, and I knew I had to read it because I am a massive fan of Jesse Q. Sutanto. I honestly couldn’t think of a better author to tell this story.

In my opinion, the coolest thing about this series is that the authors appear to have been given quite a bit of artistic license. These really are adaptations, and it has been so fun to see how the authors would modernize these classic stories into something that feels fresh and new. Worth Fighting For is no exception. Actually, at first I had a bit of a hard time getting into it, if I’m honest. In the book, Mulan is a bigwig at her father's finance company. She’s had to work very hard to get where she is, and is surrounded by finance bros constantly mansplaining things to her. When her father has a heart attack, she has to step up and take over as the lead on a new acquisition that is really important to her father. Except that the whiskey company they are trying to buy is owned by a very traditional company that won’t deal with anyone but Mulan’s father, and so she pretends to be her dad to save the deal. This is a very different take on the Mulan story, and at first, it didn’t feel high-stakes enough to me compared to the original. I’m happy to say that I changed my mind as I got more into the story. The themes are all there, and they are just right.

Of course, things don’t go as planned, and soon Mulan finds herself at the ranch of the family who owns the whiskey business, trying to prove she’s “manly” enough to lead their company. A city gal through and through, Mulan faces a number of new challenges like cattle wrangling and sheep shearing. At night, she furiously watches how-to TikTok videos and then she fakes her way through various situations with funny and delightful results. It was so fun to read as Mulan fumbles with some tasks and nails others. I was definitely cheering for her. Perhaps the best part about it is watching Mulan grow in confidence with each new job she tackles.

One of my favourite characters in the book is Mushu. In this book, Mushu is Mulan’s cousin who works at the finance company with her and accompanies her to the ranch as moral support. She is hilarious. Most people see Mushu as a bit of a disaster; she only got the job with the company because her uncle owns it, for example, but as the story goes on, readers will see how smart and capable she is in her own right. I won’t spoil it for you, but Mushu does get her own version of a happy ending that had me cheering.

Jesse is well-known for her books featuring incredible Asian Aunties and I’m delighted to say there is one in this story. There are a few actually, but Shang’s mom Auntie Jiayi is the one that really shines. She is not front and centre for most of the story but she plays an instrumental role near the end that I just loved.
Now this is a modern romance after all, so I’d be remiss if I didn’t talk about the chemistry between Mulan and Shang. Shang is a bit of an enigma at the beginning of this book. He comes across as severe and like the rest of his family (that is, misogynistic) when we first meet him. As the story progresses, we get to know him a little better through his actions, and we come to realize he is not like his family at all. I just loved Shang. The attraction between him and Mulan is fairly immediate, but they take their time getting to know each other because of the business deal. I liked this for them. It felt more realistic. At the ranch, they get thrown together in a few different ways, including a delicious forced proximity evening when the whole group goes camping for an evening. Only one tent! Need I say more? This book isn’t particularly spicy; it is pretty closed-door for the most part. Overall, I loved Mulan and Shang together.

Whether you’re a Disney fan or not, Worth Fighting For is a fun read for all romance lovers.

Thank you, Disney Publishing Group and Hyperion Avenue, for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

What a great retelling of this classic Chinese tale and the fun Disney version. The author did a fantastic job reinventing the themes and plot points from the movie. If you love Mulan, you will love this book.
Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the ebook to read and review. All opinions are my own.

Worth Fighting For is a bold, empowering retelling of Mulan . It’s full of heart, rebellion, and unstoppable courage. i loved it and it definitely did not disappoint!

I had so much hype in my head about this book, between my love for Mulan and my previous read of Jesse Q Sutanto. It did not disappoint!

A modern retelling of Mulan full of hilarious turns. It was a joy to read.

Jesse Q. Sutanto does it again—with humor, heart, and a bold heroine I rooted for from page one. Worth Fighting For reimagines Mulan not on the battlefield, but in the high-stakes world of corporate takeovers. And somehow, it works brilliantly. Mulan, now the sharp and resourceful daughter of a private equity mogul, is thrown into the lion’s den when she impersonates her ailing father to secure a critical deal. What follows is a week of whiskey tastings, team-building retreats, and awkward axe-throwing—all while maintaining her cover. And then there’s Shang, the stressed, brooding (and very attractive) exec who slowly becomes more than just an obstacle. Sutanto strikes the perfect balance between laugh-out-loud moments and meaningful commentary on gender roles, cultural expectations, and imposter syndrome. Mulan's voice is funny, vulnerable, and incredibly relatable. The romantic tension is deliciously slow-burn, and when it pays off, it really pays off.

✨️Mulan retelling
✨️Insta- love
✨️Forbidden romance
✨️one bed

This is very a close retelling of the classic Mulan but set in modern day, which is set in the world of high-stakes finance and whiskey dynasties. It did start out to be rather slow. The insta love between Shang and Mulan was very cute though. It wasn't super cheesy. The experiencing the Chinese culture through story form was one of my favorite aspects of the book. This was an adorable sweet read.


A big thanks to Netgalley and Hyperion Avenue Publishing for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

expected publication June 3, 2025

A Mulan retelling? Sign me up. This whole series (series? interconnected stories? collection?) is so fun as a Millennial who grew up watching all of these movies in VHS form. I love that they're getting retellings & we're now seeing them in the romance world. So fun! This one was perfect & a fun take on the story of Mulan. I think it did a great job of taking the messages of Mulan -- female independence, having to work harder because of being a female, etc. -- and set them in a more relatable and current world, where people who are reading this face those issues daily.

This series is a joy and it's newest edition is no exception. I love the way Mulan was adapted to a corporate setting. Mushu was the star of the show. (Sorry Mulan!)

I love Mulan. It's one of my all-time favorite Disney movies. I do own the first 4 in this series but haven't read them all yet.

I love that they're stand alone. You can read them in any order.

This was good. I definitely got Mulan vibes! I enjoyed the modern day retelling.

I absolutely HATED MUSHU though! I kind of wish she was an animal or something and not an annoying female 🤦‍♀️ I could not with her character.

I'd give this 3.75 stars! Thank you for the ARC.

Unfortunately, I DNF'd this 10% of the way in. I found the writing to be too juvenile and disjointed for my taste. I was also confused by the FMC's voice - at first she's all "I'm a boss woman in this all-male world" and I loved that for her but then a few pages later she was completely the opposite and had no self-esteem going for her. I feel like I had whiplash.

So fun. Mulan's story has always been one for pushing the boundaries of what a woman is and defying expectations from the men who see her as lower than. Unfortunately, this is something that rings true in the 21st century, and I loved how relevant it felt for today's climate of being a woman in so many male-dominated spaces. Mulan and Shang were lovely in this book, and seeing their love story play out in the corporate world was fun.

Minus a star cause I think it dragged in some places.

"When I came to this country, I only had one wish: the American dream. This dream is what drives this country. It is built by immigrants, all of us who have left our countries behind."

💕 Tropes
- Insta-Love
- Mulan Retelling
- Chinese Culture
- Forbidden Romance

💭 My Thoughts
Maybe I'm biased because of my love for classic Disney films, but I had a great time with this one! I loved the way all of the characters were written (especially Mushu, who I adore as the sassy, full-of-life cousin of Mulan). I appreciated how Worth Fighting For was not only able to provide a fun, hilarious time but also give insight into the realities of sexism women often face in male-dominated fields. It was also great to see the way Chinese immigrant culture was woven throughout the story, including the impact it can have on multiple generations. As a whole, Jesse did a great job reimagining the tale we all know and love while still staying true to the heart of it.

A huge thank you to NetGalley and Hyperion Avenue for a free digital copy! All opinions are my own.

A Mulan reimagining set in the Bay Area amongst finance bros. What a ride.

Mulan works at her father's finance company. Zhao wants to invest in a misogynistic whiskey company. The deal hinges on him, the only one the whiskey company will do business with. When he falls ill, Mulan pretends to be him.

Who owns the whiskey company? None other than Shang, his mother, and her incredibly anti-female brothers and nephews. James is the worst. His father and uncles are a close second. Shang is dreamy.

3 stars

Let me start off by saying I love mulan, and was excited to get an arc of a mulan re-telling but for me personally it felt a little to exact with the lyric references and almost exact story line in a different font. It didn’t help that we spent the first 30% of the book getting to know a generous amount of side characters, and the fact that it was quite insta love but I didn’t mind too much. What really saved it for me was the female empowerment and how women in men’s fields in tough, and obviously Shang because who wouldn’t want one. Overall I would say that I would recommend this book if you love the movie mulan, believe in gender equality no matter the field, and lastly if you want a man like a prince.

Mulan pretends to be her father when he falls ill to secure the deal with whiskey company, Wutai Gold. When the CEO, Shang, invites her to a retreat at their ranch, chaos (and romance) ensues.

Read if you like:
- Rom-coms
- Personal growth
- Fish Out of Water

If you dreamed of being Mulan as a kid and you’re still obsessed, then you need to read this! A modern retelling with romance at the forefront and humor sprinkled throughout.

3.5 a good retelling!

I did feel like the first 30% of the book was spent learning about 20 different characters. It was a lot, and I don’t think I needed as much info about so many individual characters. I was ready to dive into the story sooner! Overall, I think this will be a popular book. It was a little bit slow for me, but I wouldn’t discourage the read.

Thank you to the publisher for the gifted ARC

"It hits me then how exhausting simply existing as a woman, and a woman of color at that, has been in the finance industry."

Mulan's father was in a middle of acquiring a whiskey company when he fell ill. Mulan took it upon herself to seal the deal, but the company is old-fashioned so she pretended to be her father.

I don't know why it took me so long to read a Mulan reimagining but I am here for it.

Premise sounded really intriguing and I wanted a fresh take of a fake identity trope so I was excited to read this book especially with the Mulan retelling.

"All my life, I’ve felt pressured to hide my true self, because everything centers the men in my life. Trying to impress them, or prove them wrong, or make sure they’re not disappointed."

Love the Chinese representation this book brought. The whole chaotic family dynamic added a lot of plot to the book itself that made me laugh out loud, and I did love Shang and how he was written.

I resonate with Mulan so much, I love her right off the bat. She's smart, knows how to navigate the finance worldand persistent, but behind all that, all she wanted was to make her parents proud.

"Shang brought me back into myself, a self that I’d thought was missing. And I don’t want to lose that self again."

The romance was also good. I love how both Shang and Mulan was just their true self when they were with one another.

Overall, a great Mulan retelling!