I wanted to enjoy this book so much. So so soooo much!
I added this book to my tbr last year convinced that I would love it. And this was its time to shine, to bring me out from one of my longest reading slumps in recent years.
It did bring me out from my reading slump, I automatically started something new but not for the reason I was hoping. I was in need of a... palate cleanser. yes, that. I needed to rub this book off of me.

Among the few this I did like about this book I would choose the aunties and their pack relationship as my top pick... I really liked them. I thought from the intro that Vanessa and her cousing would be like that too but I was wrong. None of her cousing ever show up again not even as a name drop or maybe one or two name drops but that's all. She has just 3 contacts in her new Paris phone??
I didn't enjoy anything else from this book either.
Vanessa is supposed to be 27 years old. She felt like a 15yo at best. She was dumb, inmature, entitled, opinionated, nosy and more. I couldn't connect with her at all. Not a problem in most cases, I've been able to read and enjoy books where I don't like or connect with the MC. This was not the case, probably because of the first person POV another reason could be the fact that I got to see first hand how hurtful her self-centered and egotistical ways were for everyone around her but she still chose to be like that because "stubborn is her character trait and she's not going to change that now".
The insta love was laughable. The magic power development and "resolution" was also laughable.
The fact that this bitch could live six months in Shanghai and learn 0 chinese words because she doesn't need other language than english?????
You're there to study!! If not to connect with your roots at least try to learn something to communicate more confortably with your teacher! She was happy to use her newly acquired boyfriend as translator for everything and as a personal chef. No wonder the author felt the need to give him a gambling problem (which was solved with the twirl of a magic wand and love). If not for that gambling issue this dude was perfect.
He can cook, draw, fluently speak at least 3 languages that we know of, he's tall, handsome, knowledgeable in art in various forms such as: painting, photography and architecture.
Whatever. I wanted a cozy, low stakes read and I got that.... I a way at least. Just not in the way I could enjoy and immerse myself in the read. This book was plagued with stuff that pulled me out of the story all the time. I'm sad and dissapointed with myself and this book for not liking it as much as I wanted to.