Good Fortune

C.K. Chau’s Good Fortune reimagines Pride and Prejudice in modern Chinatown.

Instead of waiting for Netherfeld Hall to be let at last, social-climbing realtor Mrs. Chen manages to sell the broken-down local community center to wealthy investors. Even better, they’re wealthy, single investors.  The themes of urban real estate and gentrification are a good modernization of the class themes in the original novel. Sure, the Chens may meet Darcy Wong socially, but there’s still a world of difference in their backgrounds.

I enjoyed the revamping of Elizabeth’s relationships outside of the romantic plot. Like in Katie Cotugno’s Meet The Benedettos, there’s a focus on sisterhood and the relationships between the girls. The Chens live in a tiny apartment. It’s no Longbourn Hall, with the entail and the anxiety around the inheritance, but their cramped apartment is a solid updating, because of course the social-climbing Mrs Chen would also want the cheapest apartment possible with a good Manhattan mailing address.

Elizabeth’s long friendship with Charlotte feels realistic, and their care and affection for each other adds to the story. Actually, I think that was the highlight for me, reading about two good friends with different goals.

While I enjoyed Good Fortune overall, I have to say this wasn’t my favorite Elizabeth-Darcy romance. Darcy Wong is loaded and handsome, and Elizabeth Chen is great, but I felt like the romance was slightly flat. Maybe it’s the interesting depth of the secondary characters in this book, or maybe just that comparing a perfectly-fine romance with the original Pride and Prejudice is an unfair comparison.

This was still a fun read, with a great Chinatown setting, even if the love story doesn’t fully shine.

For fans of this one, Pride and Preston Lin is another fun Chinese-American Austen reimagining.