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Friday, July 9, 2021

Blog Tour & Review: A Tiger Mom's Tale by Lyn Liao Butler

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A Tiger Mom's Tale
by Lyn Liao Butler

Thanks to Berkley for this free book and stop on the blog tour.

Publisher: Berkley
Publish Date: July 6, 2021
Kindle Edition
352 Pages
Standalone
Genres: Contemporary, Asian Lit

When an American woman inherits the wealth of her Taiwanese family, she travels to confront them about their betrayals of the past in this stunning debut by Lyn Liao Butler.

Lexa Thomas has never quite fit in. Having grown up in a family of blondes while more closely resembling Constance Wu, she's neither white enough nor Asian enough. Visiting her father in Taiwan as a child, Lexa thought she'd finally found a place where she belonged. But that was years ago, and even there, some never truly considered her to be Taiwanese.

When her estranged father dies unexpectedly, leaving the fate of his Taiwanese family in Lexa's hands, her safe life in New York City is no longer enough. She is faced with the choice to return to Taiwan and claim her place in her heritage . . . or leave her Taiwanese family to lose their home for good.

Armed with the advice of two half sisters (one American and the other Taiwanese, who can't stand each other), a mother who has rediscovered her sexuality, and a man whose kisses make her walk into walls, Lexa finally confronts the person who drove her away from Taiwan all those decades ago. As the truth of the last fateful summer in Taiwan slowly unfolds, Lexa must stand up for herself and open her heart to family and love, or allow the repercussions of her family's choices to forever dictate the path of her life. 

My Review:

This is such a cute story and it's a breath of fresh air to see more bi-racial representation where I can relate to SO MUCH MORE.  Completely understand being half white and half Asian and not being fully accepted in either country.  Butler also touches on the fetishization of Asian women and those scenes rang all too true unfortunately. And I certainly remember my mom wondering where the other 3 points went when I got a 97 on a test once. I HEAR YOU, Lexa & Hsu-Ling! 

This debut really teaches a few lessons and was relatable on so many levels.  I did find a few things that didn't *quite* work for me.  I felt that Lexa and Josh are eye rolly - too much too fast for how long they "knew" each other. Sometimes the dialogue didn't feel very natural and it could veer too much on the side of after school special.  I also don't care for men who continually questions if a woman actually doesn't want to have children when they say they don't... but I get it a little bit in this case.  Still made my butt pucker a bit.

What is absolutely FANTASTIC about this book are the lessons within.  I love, love, LOVE understanding so much how Lexa felt in Taiwan as that's how I feel in Korea all the time.  I love that there is queer and disabled represenation within this read. I love the dual storylines and the atmosphere the author gives us while we travel to Taiwan. Absolutely looking forward to the next book from this author.

★★★☆  


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