If a man told me to just move in with him after two months of knowing him into a flat he was paying for, why not say yes? Drop everything after not seeing one another for months to move to another continent? Only time will tell. Reading this was like reading Normal People or Conversations with Friends, so if you enjoyed those, this one should be right up your alley.
It’s safe to say that I powered through this book, going cover to cover in two days, which likely could have been narrowed down to two had I not had a crime show binge late at night when I only had a few chapters left. It really is a quick read, and I am all about those when you don’t have a lot of time on your hands but still want to read something good and worthwhile; this is definitely to book for that.
I’d say its short chapters could be torn through on your commute, but it’ll brighten lockdown too.
Holly Williams for The Guardian
And, here I’d have to agree with Williams. The book swims in uncertainties yes, but what life of a 20-something-year-old does not? But does it have carefully worded prose and positivity underscoring every page? Yes. There’s a fulfilling nature to this novel, one that people strive for and not always come about.
The protagonist is a 22-year-old woman who moves from Ireland to Hong Kong to teach English. With hating her job and complex love life, a troubled relationship with her family, and a self-deprecating stature, it is almost relatable at times, and at others, something that has an air of someone to aspire to. Reading this at 23 when you’re barely older than the lead gets complex, but there is an air of that weaved through the tale, making the life of Ava that more intriguing to the reader.
With a rating of four out of five stars on Goodreads, it shows that exciting times really resonated with me when I read it. It seems like one of those books that readers and critics wither love or hate, but for me, though feeling 5 is a little too much and 4 too little, and not having an option for 4.5, I’ve settled on the higher rating. The novel ends on a cliff hanger, which is not something that I am a big fan of, but I can let that one slide for the overall positive reaction I had to the rest of the text.
aga is reading 
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