“Golden Poppy Awards 2022″—California Independent Booksellers Alliance
“Best of the Year: The 15 Best Mysteries and Thrillers of 2022″—Audible
“But for all its juicy intrigue, the novel is perhaps most remarkable for how it takes an ostensibly straightforward story of a well-to-do woman breaking bad and pulls the rug out from under us. The book plays a kind of brilliant trick to make readers reconsider how we see someone like Ava.”—San Francisco Chronicle
“Kirstin Chen’s new novel explores the model minority myth through a counterfeit handbag scheme”—Boston Globe
“A con artist story, a pop-feminist caper, a fashionable romp . . . Counterfeit is an entertaining, luxurious read—but beneath its glitz and flash, it is also a shrewd deconstruction of the American dream and the myth of the model minority. . . . Chen is up to something innovative and subversive here.”—Camilly Perri, The New York Times
“A startling, gleeful look at the American Dream and what counts as real in a world obsessed with image…Chen’s use of story structure is masterful, as are her complicated, compelling characters.”—Grace D. Li, The Washington Post
“A fast-paced read full of twists and turns and maybe-not-so-reliable-narrators … This book will have you turning the pages as you easily immerse yourself in the topsy-turvy world of counterfeit retail, and a friendship where not all is what it seems.”—Today Show
“Counterfeit is fast-paced and fun, with smart commentary on the cultural differences between Asia and America.”—Time
“Ingeniously constructed, this cinematic novel of friendship, ambition, and wanting more out of life will leave you guessing until the end.”—Oprah Daily
“Chen’s third novel is sly and subversive, an examination of motherhood and an incisive look at culture and class.”—Booklist (Starred Review)
“Chen spins a clever tale offering two sides of a story involving a complicated friendship and knockoff handbags…The story is further deepened by the author’s sharp, convincing details of the fashion industry and its shadow market, which lends this tale of fakes the tang of authenticity. Readers will be left guessing at the truth until the last page.”—Publishers Weekly
“13 Writers to Watch in 2022″—BookPage
“Chen comes up with a winner in this clever, sharp, and slyly funny novel about a long con…A delightfully different caper novel with a Gone Girl–style plot twist.”—Kirkus
“Propulsive and captivating . . . A provocative story of fashion, friendship, and fakes (in more ways than one), with characters that both subvert and capitalize on the model-minority myth. No surprise that the sly feminist caper was the subject of a fierce eight-way bidding war for TV rights.”—Vogue
“TriStar Lands TV Rights to Kirstin Chen’s Novel ‘Counterfeit'”—Deadline
“Four Women’s Voices Reshaping Asian and Asian-American Immigrant Stories”—Los Angeles Review of Books
“I just don’t understand how a book can be this good and this beautiful and this heart-wrenching all at once, and if you only read one of the books on this list: make sure it’s this one.”—Book Riot
“Cultural Appropriation in Fiction and Who Gets to Write What, featuring Kirstin Chen”—Write-minded podcast
“Chen brilliantly captures the complex and terrifying post-Trump world we’re living in, as families torn apart becomes more of reality than ever before.”—Elle
“Writers on writing: Abbie Waxman and Kirstin Chen” —KCUI 88.9 FM’s Writers on Writing
“Chen captures the complex and terrifying political environment of the time through San San’s horrifying experience trying to reach her family, as well as through the depiction of the consequences of family loyalty over party loyalty. This is a fascinating family portrait.”—Publishers Weekly (Starred Review)
“Kirstin Chen Ventures Out Of Singapore With Novel Set In 1950s Maoist China.”—Forbes
“Historic and contemporary themes related to refugees, immigrants and periods of social, political and cultural unrest add significance and immediacy to Chen’s fast-paced novel.”—The Mercury News
“Am I Chinese Enough To Tell This Story? Kirstin Chen on writing about a family fleeing Maoist China”—Literary Hub
“Her action-packed story is a delight to read…it provides a rare glimpse into the little-documented history of such people during Mao’s era.”—San Francisco Chronicle
“Epic and suspenseful, navigating universal themes of family and sacrifice while building a clear and empathetic picture of a precise historical moment in Maoist China.”—SFGate
“Chen is a precise writer, with enviable control on the page. Bury What We Cannot Take is completely immersive, and the only times I stepped out of the story was to admire the perfection of her word choice.”—KQED Arts
“The 5 Best New Books to Read This Month”—InStyle
“Family Perils: A Conversation with Yang Huang and Kirstin Chen”—AAWW The Margins
“Complex and rich, Chen’s story serves as a fascinating window into a unique period of history and the plight of one displaced family.”—Harper’s Bazaar
“Achingly beautiful, powerful, and taut.” —KQED Arts
“With its striking title about the sacrifice (the “burying”) of those who are left behind, the novel succeeds in drawing a very striking portrait of this turbulent period of Chinese history.” —The Millions
“Writers on writing: Lara Vapnyar and Kirstin Chen” —KCUI 88.9 FM’s Writers on Writing
“Novel Interweaves Family Loyalties, Singapore’s Food Scene, Artisanal Soy Sauce” —NPR’s Here and Now
“Chen’s language is vivid and sensuous and mouthwatering…Her knowledge of Singapore’s complexities and contradictions gives the novel a radiant, multifaceted backdrop.” —Washington Independent Review of Books
“New Voices: Kirstin Chen, Soy Sauce for Beginners” —USA Today
“Ten Titles That Will Broaden Your Point of View” —O, The Oprah Magazine
“The perfect blend of family drama, complicated romance, and behind-the-scenes artisanal brewing of the world’s most unsung condiment.” —Glamour