The Leftover Woman follows an undocumented Chinese immigrant, Jasmine who needs to pay back a huge debt to the people that helped her enter America, while also hiding from an abusive husband she ran from. Rebecca works in publishing as an editor, she and her husband Brandon adopted a young girl from China and are raising her in New York. Coming from vastly different backgrounds their stories parallel to each other, both women are haunted by men of their past.

I was invested in Jasmine’s story from the start, it was emotional and heartbreaking. On the other hand, Rebecca had many imposter feelings that stemmed from her infertility. This story has many messages and themes relating to motherhood, immigration and adoption, especially relating to Chinese issues. I thought it was written very well and to the point, it kept me interested in the outcome. The ending felt a little rushed but overall a great finale to reflect on the various themes.

The Leftover Woman comes out on October 10th

Thank you to William Morrow and NetGalley for the ARC to review.

Title: The Leftover Woman
Author: Jean Kwok
Genre: Suspense/Mystery, Contemporary Fiction
Rating: 4/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️