The Bride Test

This book, remarkably, had the exact opposite outcome of [b:The Kiss Quotient|36199084|The Kiss Quotient (The Kiss Quotient, #1)|Helen Hoang|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1527983633s/36199084.jpg|57828311] for me. Where Kiss Quotient started strong and fizzled, where it lacked tension and ending with a decidedly unsexy grand gesture, creepy even...

Well, THE BRIDE TEST delivers. I thought the start was a little harder to get into, but not much. The second half, however, I read in one sitting--just now. My emotional connection to Esme & Khai was complete, the tension was thick, and the characters nicely developed. Again, we have an outstanding family dynamic particularly on the part of the hero. Lovely cultural richness, and show more immigrant heroine doing her best. It's good stuff. It's funny, it's moving, and I ended up liking this much more than I expected.

I probably have more to say--and one more point in which this stands in contrast to TKQ is that I could pick this up again, anytime, and that I will probably like it more the more I think about it. show less

Helen Hoang is now on my instabuy list. The Kiss Quotient was one of my favorite books of 2018, and it's hard to believe, but The Bride Test was even better. There is no sophomore slump here! I loved Esme. I wanted to wrap her in a giant blanket and feed her all the tea. She's an amazing character. Full of strength, determination, smarts, and heart, but held back by her circumstance in life. I cheered for her and Khai the entire book.

The afterword shows me just how deeply personal this book was for Hoang, and it honestly shows. There was a depth here that was honest and resonated.

Also, I really hope Quan gets his own book in the future. I adore him.

Esme Tran is just getting by working as a maid in hotel in her native Vietnam when a chance encounter drops the chance of a lifetime in her lap: go to America for the summer and try to convince Khai Diep to marry her. Esme feels obliged to try for the sake of her daughter and the photo of Khai that his mother shows Esme doesn't hurt either. But Khai is on the autism spectrum and he's convinced that love isn't something he can feel and thus refuses to be in a relationship. Can Esme help Khai change his mind or will she return to Vietnam at the end of the summer?

I thoroughly enjoyed this second novel from Helen Hoang, which pleased me as her first novel was solid but a little TOO steamy for me (and as a regular romance reader, that's show more saying something). Esme and Khai's tale is an excellent romance along with a solid exploration of an immigrant experience for Esme and Khai's struggles with understanding emotions of both others and himself as a result of his autism. Recommended for contemporary romance readers. show less

[b:The Bride Test|39338454|The Bride Test (The Kiss Quotient, #2)|Helen Hoang|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1548428073l/39338454._SY75_.jpg|60976615]
The Kiss Quotient Book Two
I am an obnoxiously picky reader of romance. Give me a thriller any day of the week. Romance not so much. The funny thing about that though is I am a hopeless romantic. I try and try but don't often find one that captivates me. But Helen Hoang just NAILS this genre for me. I adored The Kiss Quotient so much that reading this was a no brainer. I love every beat, every story-line, every character. Her dialogue sings and the relationships feel deep and real. The story is also very relatable and that makes it so much easier and show more quicker to read. Hoang writes with humor, empathy, and truth. Just perfectly lovely. And as someone whose brain doesn't work like most people's, I especially love her neurodivergent leads, who are sexy and smart and wonderful. This is a gem that everyone should read. Make sure you read the Author's Note at the end show less

For our anniversary, Andrew took the whole family to the bookstore and let us each pick out a book. I kind of surprised myself by picking out this one. I don't read a lot of romance these days, but people I like on social media have been raving about Hoang, and then I checked out the back cover. See, I've recently noticed that I have a tendency to fall for autism-spectrum characters on TV shows, but they rarely get satisfying romantic arcs. So, I picked this.

And I loved it. I read it cover to cover the next day. I loved Esme and Khai and their cultural/class/neuro differences that caused them to repeated misunderstand each other. I loved all the supporting characters and the way many of them were looking out for each other. I loved show more Esme's stubborn insistence on doing things her own way. I wanted so fiercely for them all to find their HEAs, which of course they did.

I'm sure I'll be looking out for The Kiss Quotient and any future books Hoang writes. I never really got the appeal of romance series before, but now I'd be especially curious to see a future book featuring Quan.

Love. show less

Last year, The Kiss Quotient was one of my favourite books. This year, I think The Bride Test will be right up there. Helen Hoang writes romantic fiction with such freshness and detail that you can’t help but fall for her characters and their world. This is the kind of read that pastes big goofy smiles on your face and reminds you of why reading is such a delight.

If you haven’t read The Kiss Quotient, where have you been? Seriously though, The Bride Test can be read as a standalone very easily because Khai, the main character, only got just enough page time in the previous book for readers to notice his star potential. If you have read the first book, you can delight in a wedding that occurs during the book. This story focuses on show more Khai and his quest for a bride. Except that Khai is not interested in getting married because he is of the firm belief that he is incapable of love or any kind of giant overwhelming feelings. In true Khai fashion, he thinks that is unfair on any woman because he can’t love her back how she would expect. Khai has autism and his life is carefully organised, right down to haircuts. Khai’s mum disagrees with his assessment of his ability to feel and decides to go to Vietnam to find him a bride. In a hotel bathroom, she finds My and is impressed by her independence, offering her a summer in America to try to win Khai’s heart. As a poor single mother, this could turn My’s fortunes around and give her an opportunity to meet her long-lost father. So she accepts the offer and giving herself an American name (Esmeralda), she flies to San Francisco for a big summer. Khai is unique but resistant to Esme’s charms. The problem is that Esme is falling for him, but can she convince Khai that he can love her?

Esme is a true delight (as all Helen Hoang’s characters are). She’s not in the US solely to get a man, but to educate herself – learn English, finish high school and work (while managing to keep most of this a secret). She’s determined, independent and fiercely caring. She wants to show Khai that she has knowledge outside of education, cooking and gardening. She is also a very caring person to Khai, his friends and family. Khai is also a sweetheart, concerned for everyone else but managing to screw it up at really awkward moments. He knows what he’s good at (book learning) and when he applies that to feelings, it doesn’t always go smoothly. (That’s where his brother Quan shines, as a caring brother and man of the world. I can’t wait to read his story next, it’s sure to be funny and hot). Their story is unconventional and cute but with a good dose of what it’s like to be a fish out of water in a new country. Esme’s stumbles with the language, the comparative wealth of the American people and the hoops for a student visa and green card…they are big hurdles to climb and gave me even more respect for Esme. The writing is easy, approachable and just full of fun.

The ending of The Bride Test was gorgeous. I can see this making an excellent film as the finale had humour, almost-too-late plot elements and a very happy ending. The epilogue was great in that it wrapped things up, but in true Khai and Esme fashion, not how you expected. Helen Hoang, you’re on my list of Must Read Anything You Write.

Thank you to Allen & Unwin for the copy of this book. My review is honest.

http://samstillreading.wordpress.com show less

DNF @48%

Normally I DNF books bc of the writing, the characters, the utter insanity of plot leading me to be super sarcastic.

In this case its bc I had trouble staying focused on the story.

I enjoyed this book the most before Khai and Esme meet and begin their courting. There is a lot that is inspiring about Esme as she'd practical and optimistic without feeling forced. Her determination to make the most of the circumstance - to give it her all is a highlight.

Khai as well is a great hero. I can't speak to the autism rep, but he came across authentic and genuine. He felt he understood himself. And honestly he likely did, but the guy is in a romance as the Love Interest so he must and will change that belief.

Unfortunately a lot of the issues show more between Khai and Esme are founded on my least favorite trope (miscommunication). Not even the fact that they're miscommunicating with each other (as they both, in their own ways, tried hard to bridge the logic gap between their two thoughts), but everyone else.

This is unfortunate as I had pushed for it to be our work's book club pick for December and I just could not go on without grinding my teeth. show less