Uhhhhmm... For some reason I was irritated with this book. “Literary Mystery” seems to be a new hot trend, not quite suspenseful, but more of a literary story that has an underlying mystery throughout. Literary mysteries focus more on character relationships and themes of family, love, journeys of self-discovery, etc. This is the third book in this genre I’ve read in the past several months (Miracle Creek, The Mother-in-Law).

I did like the setting of the Netherlands, intertwined with the culture of a Chinese family and how their traditions and familial customs affected the main character, Sylvie. But ultimately there were a lot of plot points and loopholes that fell flat for me.

These days, “suspense” for me is a riveting historical fiction or deeply emotionally epic love story.