Sex and Vanity
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3.8 • 114 Ratings
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- $13.99
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- $13.99
Publisher Description
NATIONAL BESTSELLER
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
The iconic author of the bestselling phenomenon Crazy Rich Asians returns with a glittering tale of love and longing as a young woman finds herself torn between two worlds--the WASP establishment of her father's family and George Zao, a man she is desperately trying to avoid falling in love with.
On her very first morning on the jewel-like island of Capri, Lucie Churchill sets eyes on George Zao and she instantly can't stand him. She can't stand it when he gallantly offers to trade hotel rooms with her so that she can have the view of the Tyrrhenian Sea, she can't stand that he knows more about Curzio Malaparte than she does, and she really can't stand it when he kisses her in the darkness of the ancient ruins of a Roman villa and they are caught by her snobbish, disapproving cousin, Charlotte. "Your mother is Chinese so it's no surprise you'd be attracted to someone like him," Charlotte teases. Daughter of an American-born-Chinese mother and blue-blooded New York father, Lucie has always sublimated the Asian side of herself in favor of the white side, and she adamantly denies having feelings for George. But several years later, when George unexpectedly appears in East Hampton where Lucie is weekending with her new fiancé, Lucie finds herself drawn to George again. Soon, Lucy is spinning a web of deceit that involves her family, her fiancé, the co-op board of her Fifth Avenue apartment, and ultimately herself as she tries mightily to deny George entry into her world--and her heart. Moving between summer playgrounds of privilege, peppered with decadent food and extravagant fashion, Sex and Vanity is a truly modern love story, a daring homage to A Room with a View, and a brilliantly funny comedy of manners set between two cultures.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Kwan follows up his Crazy Rich Asians trilogy with an intoxicating, breezy update of E.M. Forster's A Room with a View. Lucie Tang Churchill, 19, a privileged "hapa" (she is half Chinese, half WASP) attends her richer friend Isabel's wedding in Capri. After Lucie meets Isabel's cousin George Zao, a rich, handsome, Chinese-Australian surfer, she becomes a "bundle of conflicting emotions," repulsed by her attraction to the "brooding weirdo took himself much too seriously." Still, they hook up, at risk of jeopardizing Lucie's reputation as an eligible bride. Four years later, Lucie and George's paths cross in New York, only now Lucie is engaged to Cecil Pike. However, Lucy can't get George out of her mind, and she is flummoxed by his kindness. When Lucy, George, and Cecil attend a film screening featuring a sex scene that reminds her of what she did with George in Capri, Lucie doubles down on suppressing her true desires. Kwan exploits the Forster frame for clever references including Merchant and Ivory and provides amusing footnotes. Kwan also relishes describing lavish meals and haute couture clothing, as well as Isabel's decadent wedding and Cecil's imaginative, over-the-top proposal. There are moments both catty and witty, but this delectable comedy of manners the literary equivalent of white truffle and caviar pizza is still pizza.
Customer Reviews
Similar to crazy rich asians
Duh they’re from the same author. The background of the characters are similar, but sex and vanity lacked the dramatic ups and downs and relatable element of crazy rich Asians. Some parts of the characters’ lives are just too perfect that it’s very cliche and unrealistic especially in the context of the year the story takes place in. The ending also felt very rushed. How did they get there? What happened? It felt like a big chunk of missing plot. Nevertheless, the story itself is still addicting and intriguing and Kevin Kwan describes the locations beautifully.