For Celeste Ng's first book - jeez. This was amazing. I have a whole lot to talk about but I'm going to try and keep it brief. The writing style is just the way I love it, not too simplistic, but poetic and emotional without being flowery. I could read an entire Les Mis-size book about making a sandwich if it was written in Ng's style. 
 As it is, thankfully, the plot was much more complex than sandwich making. It's very character driven (I seem to be on a character orientated kick at the minute) and every character had such complex pasts and motives, each with their own flaws and strengths and most of all, were realistic in a (very warped) family environment. Despite some of them doing terrible things, I just wanted to give each member of the Lee family a hug and a cup of hot chocolate, yet again testament to Ng's skill. 
 Of course, with the story centred around a Chinese-American family, it's more diverse than some of the other books I've read recently. I admit that I'm not well educated in the racism Chinese people faced in America in the past - coming from a primarily white part of Britain - but now this book has opened my eyes and has made me want to read more about it. I think we owe that. 
 Aside from having great characters, being so well-written and educational, the plot was also engaging and kept me thinking about it all the time I was in class. I blanked my friends at break so I could finish, which they're used to by now but I should probably still feel guilty for. My only complaint was that it was a teensy bit slow in places as it jumps back and forth between the 50s and 70s. If you're okay with a not so action packed narrative, this shouldn't be an issue. 
 Just as a note, Celeste Ng answers a lot of questions on Goodreads about the decisions she made throughout the book you might want to check out. It's so interesting to go back and see exactly why things were done and characters were the way they were. 
 Her next book LITTLE FIRES EVERYWHERE is out in autumn of this year and I'll definitely be picking it up!