"When his difficulties with processing emotions complicate the search for his bride, a Vietnamese-American on the autism spectrum is pursued by a hopelessly smitten girl from the Ho Chi Min City slums. By the author of ""The Kiss Quotient"". Original." - (Baker & Taylor)
Believing he cannot experience big emotions--like love, or grief, Khai Diep avoids relationships, until his mother travels to Vietnam and returns with Esme Tran. - (Baker & Taylor)
"Khai Diep has no feelings. Well, he feels irritation when people move his things or contentment when ledgers balance down to the penny, but he doesn't experience big, important emotions like love and grief. Rather than believing he processes emotions differently due to being autistic, he concludes that he's defective and decides to avoid romantic relationships. So his mother, driven to desperation, takes matters into her own hands and returns to Vietnam to find him the perfect mail-order bride. As a mixed-race girl living in the slums of Ho Chi Minh City, Esme Tran has always felt out of place. When the opportunity to marry an American arises, she leaps at it, thinking that it could be the break her family needs. Seducing Khai, however, doesn't go as planned. Esme's lessons in love seem to be working...but only on herself. She's hopelessly smitten with a man who believes he can never return her affection. Esme must convince Khai that there is more than one way to love. And Khai must figure out the innerworkings of his heart before Esme goes home and is an ocean away"-- - (Baker & Taylor)
"From the critically acclaimed author of The Kiss Quotient comes a romantic novel about love that crosses international borders and all boundaries of the heart... Khai Diep has no feelings. Well, he feels irritation when people move his things or contentment when ledgers balance down to the penny, but not big, important emotions--like grief. And love. He thinks he's defective. His family knows better--that his autism means he just processes emotions differently. When he steadfastly avoids relationships,his mother takes matters into her own hands and returns to Vietnam to find him the perfect bride. As a mixed-race girl living in the slums of Ho Chi Minh City, Esme Tran has always felt out of place. When the opportunity arises to come to America and meet a potential husband, she can't turn it down, thinking this could be the break her family needs. Seducing Khai, however, doesn't go as planned. Esme's lessons in love seem to be working...but only on herself. She's hopelessly smitten with a man who's convinced he can never return her affection. With Esme's time in the United States dwindling, Khai is forced to understand he's been wrong all along. And there's more than one way to love"-- - (Baker & Taylor)
From the USA Today bestselling author of The Kiss Quotient comes a romantic novel about love that crosses international borders and all boundaries of the heart...
Khai Diep has no feelings. Well, he feels irritation when people move his things or contentment when ledgers balance down to the penny, but not big, important emotions—like grief. And love. He thinks he's defective. His family knows better—that his autism means he just processes emotions differently. When he steadfastly avoids relationships, his mother takes matters into her own hands and returns to Vietnam to find him the perfect bride.
As a mixed-race girl living in the slums of Ho Chi Minh City, Esme Tran has always felt out of place. When the opportunity arises to come to America and meet a potential husband, she can't turn it down, thinking this could be the break her family needs. Seducing Khai, however, doesn't go as planned. Esme's lessons in love seem to be working...but only on herself. She's hopelessly smitten with a man who's convinced he can never return her affection.
With Esme's time in the United States dwindling, Khai is forced to understand he's been wrong all along. And there's more than one way to love. - (Penguin Putnam)
Helen Hoang is that shy person who never talks. Until she does. And the worst things fly out of her mouth. She read her first romance novel in eighth grade and has been addicted ever since. In 2016, she was diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder in line with what was previously known as Asperger's Syndrome. Her journey inspired The Kiss Quotient. - (Penguin Putnam)
Booklist Reviews
Hoang follows her well-received The Kiss Quotient (2018) with another charming and steamy romance featuring unlikely lovers. Khai Diep, who has autism, has trouble expressing emotions and doesn't think he'll ever fall in love, so his mother decides to play matchmaker. She returns to Vietnam to search for a likely bride and meets Esme, a young single mother and domestic worker living with her mother, grandmother, and daughter. She's never even met her American father, but being of mixed-race has always made her feel out of place. When Khai's mother suggests that Esme return to California with her to try to woo Khai, Esme embraces the plan as an opportunity to create a better life for her family. Drawing on her own and her family's experiences, Hoang again tells a winning love story that gives a voice to underrepresented characters. Readers will also enjoy cameo appearances from The Kiss Quotient cast of characters, including Michael and Stella. This is sure to be an ardently requested title. Copyright 2019 Booklist Reviews.
Kirkus Reviews
A young Vietnamese woman seizes an opportunity to travel to America in hopes of finding a husband and a better life. Esme Tran isn't ashamed that she supports her family by working as a maid in a Ho Chi Minh City hotel, but she secretly wishes for a different life for herself and her 5-year-old daughter. After a chance encounter, a wealthy American woman invites Esme to spend the summer in the U.S., hoping Esme might be a good match for her son. Meanwhile, back in California, Khai is horrified to find that his mother has taken this drastic step, but he agrees to host Esme if his mother promises never to interfere in his life again. Hoang (The Kiss Quotient, 2018) has a gift for developing layered, complex, and dynamic characters. As a man with autism, Khai has dealt with the traumas of his past by convincing himself he has a heart of stone and is literally unable to love. Esme wants a better life for herself but wonders if Khai could ever be interested in her if he knew the t ruth: She's uneducated and has a young daughter she's hasn't told him about. Their misunderstandings and attempts to connect are full of grace, humor, and pathos. After an awkward sexual encounter, Khai asks his brother for sex advice in a painfully funny scene, and Esme's feelings of anger and hurt are just as lovingly crafted. As Khai and Esme spend more time together, they find that despite their differences, they are a perfect match. Their individual character arcs—Khai learning to understand his own heart and Esme's determination to pursue her goals and dreams—are just as pleasing and powerful as their evolution as a couple. A stunning, superior romance. Copyright Kirkus 2019 Kirkus/BPI Communications. All rights reserved.
Publishers Weekly Reviews
Hoang's touching second contemporary romance (after The Kiss Quotient) explores what the American dream might mean to a young, mixed-race Vietnamese woman and the autistic Vietnamese-American man she's matched up with. California-born Khai processes emotions differently than most people do; at age 16, when he doesn't grieve in a conventional way over the death of a cousin, he thinks he's incapable of feeling love. Ten years later, he's a wealthy accountant, and his matchmaking mother informs him that Esme, an uneducated janitor she met in Vietnam, will be staying with him for the summer and is meant to be his eventual wife. Khai resolves to make the best of things until he can send Esme home, but their instant mutual attraction complicates matters. As they fumble toward understanding each other, Esme searches for her American father and pursues higher education. Class and cultural differences and mistaken beliefs prove to be greater barriers to their romance than differences of mental wiring. The evolution of Khai's feelings toward Esme, and the way she comes to understand and care for him, are beautifully developed, and the relationship they form feels delicate yet bursting with hope. With serious moments offset by spot-on humor, this romance has broad appeal, and it will find a special place in the hearts of autistic people and those who love them. Agent: Kim Lionetti, Bookends. (May)
Copyright 2019 Publishers Weekly.
Publishers Weekly Reviews
Hoang's touching second contemporary romance (after The Kiss Quotient) explores what the American dream might mean to a young, mixed-race Vietnamese woman and the autistic Vietnamese-American man she's matched up with. California-born Khai processes emotions differently than most people do; at age 16, when he doesn't grieve in a conventional way over the death of a cousin, he thinks he's incapable of feeling love. Ten years later, he's a wealthy accountant, and his matchmaking mother informs him that Esme, an uneducated janitor she met in Vietnam, will be staying with him for the summer and is meant to be his eventual wife. Khai resolves to make the best of things until he can send Esme home, but their instant mutual attraction complicates matters. As they fumble toward understanding each other, Esme searches for her American father and pursues higher education. Class and cultural differences and mistaken beliefs prove to be greater barriers to their romance than differences of mental wiring. The evolution of Khai's feelings toward Esme, and the way she comes to understand and care for him, are beautifully developed, and the relationship they form feels delicate yet bursting with hope. With serious moments offset by spot-on humor, this romance has broad appeal, and it will find a special place in the hearts of autistic people and those who love them. Agent: Kim Lionetti, Bookends. (May)
Copyright 2019 Publishers Weekly.