Counterfeit by Kirsten Chen

Winnie Fang and Ava Wong roomed together as students. After a scandal broke out over cheating in tests, Winnie gave up her degree course and returned to China. Twenty years later, she walks back into Ava’s life. Winnie is no longer the dowdy student who relied on Ava to explain American customs. Now she’s a confident, attractive young woman who wears Louboutins and carries a ridiculously expensive bag. She looks ‘Asian-tourist rich. Mainland-Chinese rich. Rich-rich.’

Ava seems conflicted about her Chinese heritage, but she has complied with her parents’ wishes by completing her degree and ticking the boxes to fulfil the American dream. She has married a handsome surgeon and given birth to a son. They live in a beautiful house in a desirable area, and two-year-old Henri has a nanny he adores. However, Ava’s world is not as perfect as it appears to be. Her husband Olivier is never home. Ava’s hopes of signing Henri up for an outstanding private school are destroyed by his terrible tantrums and refusal to share. Her career in law has fallen apart due to crushing maternal guilt, so she is dependent on Olivier’s income. Compared with her own stressful existence, Winnie’s independent lifestyle as a wealthy divorcée looks idyllic.

Winnie tells Ava that she handles contracts for multi-national companies. In fact, she is supplied with superb counterfeit designer handbags by her former lover and father figure, Boss Mak. One at a time, she takes these copies to reputable stores, claims to have bought them there and asks for a refund. She also sells the fake handbags in online stores.

After one of Winnie’s contacts enrols Henri in a good school, Ava becomes dependent on her for support. Eventually Winnie persuades her to take part in the handbag scam. At this point my belief wavered, because it seemed impossible that a woman with Ava’s background would succumb to this kind of pressure. But the crime appears to be victimless, Ava urgently needs money for Henri’s education and Winnie pays generously. Once I put myself in Ava’s shoes, her actions made sense.

A trip to visit her extended family in Hong Kong makes Ava vulnerable to further manipulation by Winnie. She crosses the border to China to inspect new stock at an illegal factory. From then on, the plot becomes darker as the reader learns about the real victims of the counterfeiting industry.

Counterfeit is a multi-faceted novel. It is an exciting crime story, an exploration of female friendships, an examination of modern values, an exposé of the counterfeit industry and a window into Chinese American culture. The characters are convincing and the conclusion is satisfying. I recommend it for a pacy and entertaining read with an intriguingly dark side.