Grand Central Publishing
The Sun Sets in Singapore: A Today Show Read with Jenna Book Club Pick
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A Today Show #ReadWithJenna Book Club Pick
Basking in Singapore's nonstop sunshine, Dara, Amaka, and Lillian are living the glamorous expat dream--until a mysterious (not to mention handsome) new arrival infiltrates their tight-knit community and ruins everything: "Wanderlust-inducing" (Lola Akinmade Åkerström, international bestselling author).
The Lion City has gone by many names and is famous for many things--its decadent street food, its world-class shopping, its lush gardens that burst with tropical blooms. But paradise is always hiding a snake.
For Dara, a workaholic lawyer from the UK, Singapore is opportunity. Every day, brokering deals for her firm's wealthy clientele, she gets closer to her ultimate goal: making partner. For Amaka, a sharp-tongued banker from Nigeria, Singapore is extravagance. Gucci, Prada, Hermès--she loves nothing more than to luxuriate in the major department stores that call her name on Orchard Road. And for Lillian, a former pianist turned "trailing spouse" from the U.S., Singapore is reinvention. In a stunning apartment with 360° views, the island seems to glitter as far as the eye can see.
But complications are looming in the form of an enigmatic stranger, whose presence exposes cracks in Singapore's beguiling façade. Dara's ambitions mean she has no life outside the firm, and her insecurities are threatening to derail the promotion she's spent the last six years striving for. Amaka is desperate to escape the chaos she left behind at home and hiding a spiraling shopping addiction that's endangering her very sense of self. And while Lillian's life may be the envy of outsiders, a new obsession is imperiling everything--and everyone--around her.
In The Sun Sets in Singapore, Kehinde Fadipe captures the richness of this metropolis through the eyes of three tenacious women, who are about to learn that unfinished history can follow you anywhere, no matter how far you run from home.
Includes a Reading Group Guide.
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Book Details
ISBN:
9781538741504
EAN:
9781538741504
Binding:
Paperback
Pages:
368
Authors:
Kehinde Fadipe
Publisher:
Grand Central Publishing
Published Date: 2024-09-07
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Makes sense in the end, keep reading. Almost gave up but stuck with it and was glad. Singapore was the perfect setting.
This was a Jenna pick, which I usually enjoy, but this one missed the mark for me.The story is about 3 women who meet in Singapore, each with different ambitions.Dara is a UK lawyer, who is trying to make partner, but the firm brings in a new male attorney, Lani, and she feels threatened. Amaka is a Nigerian banker, with a shopping obsession that she cannot afford. Lillian is a US former pianist who has followed her spouse to Singapore.The story revolves around these 3 women, their love lives, or lack thereof, and their work life. I wasn't interested in any of it.
While this was more soap-opera-y than I typically like, this contemporary fiction set in Singapore (surprise!😆) is book club worthy reading. The three main characters are well-developed and flawed. I appreciate that the man who affected each them didn’t do so in the typical way.
“The Sun Sets in Singapore” was a wonderful book for me to read; it opened my mind and my senses to life in Singapore, particularly for alien residents and especially ones from Africa, most particularly from Nigeria. The book also helped educate me about the myriad regions and different tribes of Africa.What makes this debut novel by Kehinde Fadipe interesting and unique is the complex relationships among its main characters, a small group of black women with a connection to Nigeria and their difficult or dysfunctional relationships with their families and significant others. The introduction of a new, male character into their mix throws things completely out of balance. Most significantly, the story demonstrates that you cannot outrun your past; it follows you wherever you go.Ms. Fadipe’s prose is beautifully crafted, richly invoking the beauty of the story’s physical surroundings, and deftly intertwines the lives of three extremely complex characters, aptly making the reader empathize with their complicated and sometimes erratic emotions. The story’s tension builds slowly throughout the book until the unexpected happens, bringing the story to its to climax and, ultimately, resolution.Ms. Fadipe is a superb storyteller, and I cannot wait to see what she has in store for me to read. I am thankful to Ms. Fadipe, Grand Central Publishing, and NetGalley for letting me read the uncorrected, digital, advanced version of “The Sun Sets in Singapore.” My review of the book is completely voluntary.
I really enjoyed this book. The story line for each of the three main characters was excellent and held my interest. I highly recommend.
