For fans of Amy Tan and Kevin Kwan, this sharp and tender debut follows a family of estranged Vietnamese women – cursed to never know love or happiness – as they reunite when a psychic makes a startling prediction.
Everyone in Orange County’s Little Saigon knew that the Duong sisters were cursed. Their ancestor Oanh dared to leave her marriage for true love – and was cursed for it: her descendants are doomed never to find love or happiness, and to give birth only to daughters, never sons.?
Oanh’s current descendant Mai Nguyen knows this curse well. She’s divorced, and after an explosive disagreement a decade ago, she’s estranged from her younger sisters, Minh Pham (the middle and the mediator) and Khuyen Lam (the youngest who swears she just runs humble coffee shops and nail salons … not Little Saigon’s underground). Mai’s three adult daughters, Priscilla, Thuy and Thao, are successful in their careers, but the same can’t be said for their love life.
Desperate for guidance, she consults Auntie Hua, her trusted psychic, who delivers an unexpected prediction: this year, her family will witness a marriage, a funeral and the birth of a son. This prophecy will reunite estranged mothers, daughters, aunts and cousins – for better or for worse.
Filled with joy and humour, The Fortunes of Jaded Women is about mourning, meddling, celebrating and healing together as a family.
About the Author
Carolyn Huynh grew up in Orange County, California, not appreciating the weather enough. She has a BA in journalism from Seattle University and an MS in human centered design from the University of Washington. The youngest daughter of Vietnamese refugees, her writing focuses on her mother’s tall tales, superstitions, the diaspora, and memory (both real and imaginary). She especially loves stories about messy Asian women who never learn from their mistakes. After living up and down the West Coast, she currently resides in Los Angeles with her rabbit and dog. She still doesn’t appreciate the weather enough. When she’s not writing, Carolyn daydreams about having iced coffee on a rooftop in Saigon.
Industry Reviews
‘Written with crackling humour and a shrewd, intimate understanding of Vietnamese American family life … You will laugh along with the Duongs, but you’ll also find yourself cheering for their reconciliation as they learn, “there was nothing wrong with having Vietnamese daughters. It was how the world treated them that turned it into a curse.” A funny, sharp, and insightful look at family bonds and the effects of tradition on modern life.’
