The Leftover Woman by Jean Kwok (Review by Sara D’Onofrio)

Rating: 3.8/5

I want to start off by saying I LOVED the concept of this book, and how everything was tied together slowly. The book started off a little boring for me, and I didn’t have a strong desire to pick it up in moments of free time; however, once the author started to drop hints and reveal truths, I found myself needing to keep going to get more details! I loved how it switched between the two perspectives, and how once the big secret was revealed, you were able to see the sequence of events from Jasmine’s point of view. I enjoy it when authors make it seem like one thing is happening for most of the story, but then cleverly drop a bomb that what you spent this who time thinking is something else entirely. The situation with Carey, Mason, and Rebecca was the perfect example of this, and the way Kwok delivered the blow to the reader was so well done. I find myself stopping and thinking about how impressed I am with an author’s writing skills and imagination in those moments. Unfortunately, I was left feeling wanting with ending. After everything came to a head, I really wanted to see how Jasmine was able to get her happy ending. While the author obviously alluded to the fact Fiona and Jasmine were about to embark on a relationship finally, I felt disappointed that it was only after 15 more years apart. You feel like you spend so much time invested in the characters’ story and following their journey to a better life, and it felt lackluster to have it summed up in a few short pages.