Women of Good Fortune

In Wan’s crackling debut, a bride and her friends plot to steal the gift money at her wedding. Lulu is about to marry one of Shanghai’s most eligible bachelors, and the ceremony is sure to net a large sum of cash from the guests. She and her friends Jane and Rina view the money as a way out of their unhappy lives; their initial scheme involves swapping out the real safe containing the envelopes of cash for a fake one. At 27, Lulu would rather explore foreign lands and find her true self than settle down, while Jane wants to divorce her husband and get plastic surgery. Rina’s plan is to freeze her eggs and concentrate on climbing the corporate ladder. Unexpected developments lead each woman to reconsider whether their original goals are worth the risk and the sacrifices they entail. The novel moves along briskly while dutifully adhering to the tropes of the heist genre, but this stands out for its unexpected depth; Wan expertly delves into her protagonists’ emotional backstories and reveals their complexities. Suggesting that the women’s desire for independence need not necessarily clash with the expectations of family and patriarchal society, she shows that friendships and self-worth are fortunes worth treasuring. Wan pulls this off without a hitch. (Mar.)