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Start giftingThe Fortunes of Jaded Women
A Novel
Narrator
Vyvy Nguyen
This audiobook uses AI narration.
We’re taking steps to make sure AI narration is transparent.
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Length
9 hours 28 minutes
Language
English
Bookseller recommendation
“The book starts with a curse, but evolves into a realistic and recognizable story of family dynamics. Longstanding disagreements and grudges keep three adult sisters from talking with each other, and from talking with their mother. The sisters' children, all female cousins who are scattered around the world, have sporadic contact with each other and little contact with their mothers or grandmother. This saga about a Vietnamese family takes us through all the past issues that led the group to today's issues, and ultimately resolves those issues in a satisfying way. The author has confidently used Vietnames phrases and words throughout the story, often understandable by the context in which they are used. Other times, readers of different ethnicities may feel challenged (in a good way!) to translate the Vietnamese for a complete understanding of the writer's intention. This in no way hinders the story, but instead provokes curiosity and learning. Fun book! Family dynamics with a little bit of magical realism sprinkled in. Would make a great audiobook!”
— Camille • Completely Booked
For fans of Jonathan Tropper, Amy Tan, and Kevin Kwan, this “sharp, smart, and gloriously extra” (Nancy Jooyoun Kim, author of The Last Story of Mina Lee) novel follows a family of estranged Vietnamese women—cursed to never know love or happiness—as they reunite when a psychic makes a startling prediction.
Everyone in Orange County’s Little Saigon knew that the Duong sisters were cursed.
It started with their ancestor, Oanh, who dared to leave her marriage for true love—so a fearsome Vietnamese witch cursed Oanh and her descendants so that they would never find love or happiness, and the Duong women would only give birth to daughters.
Oanh’s current descendant Mai Nguyen knows this curse well. She’s divorced, and after an explosive disagreement a decade ago, estranged from her younger sisters, Minh Pham (the middle and the mediator) and Khuyen Lam (the youngest who swears she just runs humble coffee shops and nail salons, not Little Saigon’s underground). Though Mai’s three adult daughters, Priscilla, Thuy, and Thao, are successful in their careers (one of them is John Cho’s dermatologist!), the same can’t be said for their love lives. Mai is convinced they might drive her to an early grave.
Desperate for guidance, she consults Auntie Hua, her trusted psychic in Hawaii, who delivers an unexpected prediction: this year, her family will witness a marriage, a funeral, and the birth of a son. This prophecy will reunite estranged mothers, daughters, aunts, and cousins—for better or for worse.
A multi-narrative novel brimming with levity and candor, “The Fortunes of Jaded Women pulls off the magic trick of being a heartfelt, multi-generational epic as well as a fast-paced, hilarious romp. It is your good fortune to have this novel in your hands” (Camille Perri, author of When Katie Met Cassidy).
Carolyn Huynh grew up in Orange County, California, not appreciating the weather enough. She has a BA in journalism from Seattle University and an MS in human centered design from the University of Washington. The youngest daughter of Vietnamese refugees, her writing focuses on her mother’s tall tales, superstitions, the diaspora, and memory (both real and imaginary). She especially loves stories about messy Asian women who never learn from their mistakes. After living up and down the West Coast, she currently resides in Los Angeles with her rabbit and dog. She still doesn’t appreciate the weather enough. When she’s not writing, Carolyn daydreams about having iced coffee on a rooftop in Saigon. Follow her on Twitter @CarolynKHuynh.
