‘Counterfeit’ book review: Fun and exciting

‘Counterfeit’ by Kirstin Chen could very well be made into a movie. It reads like one. Maybe it’s already being adapted for the screen as the book was Reese Witherspoon’s book club pick in June last year. It’s basically about complicated friendships and fake handbags and it’s really fun. Counterfeit will remind you of ‘Sex and the City’ and ‘Crazy Rich Asians’ both of which are highly enjoyable books and movies. 

The story is narrated in the first person by Ava. She meets an old friend, Winnie, who used to be her roommate during her freshman year of college. Winnie had disappeared under mysterious circumstances—pulled out of college after roughly six months. Now, she’s back and she runs a successful business. The catch is it’s not entirely legal. High-end luxury handbags are bought and then ‘superfakes’ (top-quality fakes) are returned in their place. The originals are then sold at slightly cheaper prices than their retail values. The scam is highly profitable but Winnie needs help with it. 

Ava is reluctant to help out at first but then she’s bored of being a stay-at-home mother. Despite having been a highly-paid lawyer, she enjoyed going on extended maternity leave because she secretly hates her job. Now, she wants some change in life. After an incident where she finds herself broke and alone in Hong Kong (her husband cuts her access to their joint bank account), she is forced to join Winnie. We find out about Winnie’s business as Ava tells the story to a detective. Winne has vanished and Ava claims to be the victim. We also hear Winnie’s side of the story in the second half of the book. Who is telling the truth? And what is really going on? These are the questions that compel you to keep turning the pages. 

Counterfeit is original and fresh. I hadn’t read anything like it before. It’s a fairly quick and easy read given the captivating plot. If you ask me, reading it is a great way to spend your Saturday afternoon.

Four stars

Counterfeit

Kirstin Chen

Published: 2022

Publisher: Harper Collins

Pages: 274, Paperback