The Asians are still rich and crazy, but a sprinkling of sex and vanity infuses the milieu as Kevin Kwan, author of the bestselling Crazy Rich Asians trilogy — Crazy Rich Asians, China Rich Girlfriend and Rich People Problems — ups the glamour quotient in his new novel, Sex and Vanity.

The backdrop has shifted from the modern high rises of Singapore to the resplendent coastline and faraglioni of the islands of Capri. An obscenely extravagant destination wedding serves as the mise en scene, where we first meet the story’s protagonist, Lucie, and a host of filthy rich, eccentric characters. Staying true to the adage ‘money talks and wealth whispers’, we see the lengths to which the affluent will go to make their wealth whisper. This is a world where old money dresses down, not up; where only Mayflower descendants count as the true elite; and where the only length that matters is the length of one’s yacht.

The first part of the book reads like something straight out of the magazine Conde Nast Traveller. Kwan takes us on a picturesque journey through Capri, from the cobbled streets and turquoise ocean vistas to the ritzy, seven-star hotels hosting the wedding guests. His skilful use of language and verdant descriptions help to create an ambience that effortlessly immerses the reader into this golden, gilded world.

Here, we are introduced to young Lucie who is half Mayflower-descendant from her father’s side and of Chinese heritage from her mother’s side. Lucie’s racial fusion features heavily in the story as we see her silently struggle with her biracial identity. As the story unfolds, we also see the subtle, yet ever-present, pressures she is under to preserve her reputation by not indulging in any ‘activity’ not suited to a young lady of her class and stature.

On a deeper level, the reader witnesses ample examples of the micro-aggressions she has to face growing up with half-Asian ancestry. Her Mayflower Society grandmother condescendingly calls her “my china doll” and her brother, who possesses more Caucasian features, is the family’s blue-eyed boy. The burden of her Asian features weighs so heavily on Lucie that when she meets, and thereafter has an amorous interaction with, the kind and gorgeous George — loaded, surfer, Harvard graduate — she never even considers a future with him because he is Asian.

Kevin Kwan’s latest novel ups the glamour quotient, but his characters never move you enough to care about their crazy rich lives

The story then moves five years ahead to Manhattan’s Upper East Side where, if your address is not pre-war (where the homeowner’s associations only approve old money), no amount of success can avail you an invitation into the desired social circles. The right address is accompanied by the right private schools and the right lunch club memberships. The only acceptable place to summer is in the Hamptons, but heaven help you if you don’t own a summer house and actually have to rent a place. The old Mayflower guard is relentless and shuns newcomers with a cool, steely vengeance.

At this point, we come face-to-page with Lucie’s fiancé, the “Billennial” (billionaire millennial) “Mocialite” (male socialite) Cecil Pike. He is as newly minted as they come. The word ‘understated’ doesn’t exist in Cecil’s repertoire.

Every word of her grandmother’s toast carried a veiled insult. It was an insult to her mother, it was an insult to Cecil and Renée, and it was a dagger in her heart. To Granny, no matter how graciously she behaved, no matter what she accomplished, she would always only ever be the poor little china doll. — Excerpt from the book

Cecil enters the mix with all the bells and whistles that established families cringe at. He proposes to Lucie using a flamboyant, over-the-top, flash mob and a 26.5 million dollar ring, which he readily shows to anyone who is interested... or not. Cecil’s world revolves around flying to Gstaad in Switzerland for the season (even though he doesn’t ski), taking the perfect Instagram picture and then endlessly obsessing over the number of likes he gets.

Predictably, the situation gets complicated as the handsome George makes a re-appearance, throwing Lucie’s picture-perfect life into a tailspin. Lucie is torn between her powerful attraction towards George, and the right credentials and racial profile that Cecil — who is white — provides. Who will Lucie choose? Will she listen to her heart or her WASPy family aunties?

Kwan has peppered Sex and Vanity with all the glitz and over-the-top glamour that made the Crazy Rich Asians trilogy such a global phenomenon. I truly believe that reading books with diverse representation is imperative in current times. We need to have Own Voices stories relayed to the mainstream public and it is heart-warming to see people of colour reclaiming their power.

Where this book falls short, however, is that none of the characters move you enough to really care about their lives. Lucie’s character development didn’t really lend itself to the reader emotionally investing in her life. Where the protagonists of Crazy Rich Asians seemed to be real — albeit very rich — people, the characters in Sex and Vanity seem more caricature-driven. To his credit, Kwan does try to delve into the topic of racial identity and intersectionality, but this is performed at such a perfunctory level that one never fully realises the enormity of the issues that the characters face.

What I did enjoy, though, were the vivid descriptions of all the exotic locales. Kwan takes us on a vicarious ride along the beaten paths of Italy, which seem even more enticing at a time where travel seems like a long-lost dream. He also has a knack for getting into the detailed minutiae of the upper classes that only someone very closely associated with them would be privy to. This is a light-hearted read for when you don’t want to use your brain cells too much.

The reviewer is co-founder of My Bookshelf, an online library which delivers books to you and picks them up when you’re done reading.
www.mybookshelf.com.pk, @mybookshelfpk

Sex and Vanity
By Kevin Kwan
Hutchinson, UK
ISBN: 978-1786332288
368pp.

Published in Dawn, Books & Authors, June 27th, 2021