Source:
https://scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/books/article/3113601/rent-boyfriend-gloria-chao-fun-and-flirty-asian
Post Magazine/ Books

Rent a Boyfriend by Gloria Chao is a fun and flirty Asian-American romantic comedy

Trained as a dentist, in her latest novel Gloria Chao draws on the teenage experience to tell the story of Chloe Wang, a student who hires a fake partner to divert her parents’ attention from her single status

In some Asian countries, singles hire people to stand in as their partners when they return home for major holidays. Gloria Chao's latest novel, Rent a Boyfriend, offers a fun and flirty take on the practice. Photo: Shutterstock

Rent a Boyfriend by Gloria Chao, Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers

Holidays can be extremely stressful, especially for singles returning home to visit their parents. In China and other Asian countries, some women resort to hiring partners during the Lunar New Year to appease concerned parents. Gloria Chao, an American author known for her examination of intergenerational culture clashes, centres her third young adult novel, Rent a Boyfriend, on this concept.

In Chao’s latest book, Chloe Wang turns to a company that provides fake dates for this very purpose. Although she is still an economics undergraduate at the University of Chicago, her parents plan to marry her off to Hongbo Kuo, the son of a wealthy family friend. Chloe not only feels she’s too young for marriage – her parents wouldn’t let her date in high school – but she also finds Hongbo an entitled chauvinist.

So when Chloe returns to California for Thanksgiving break, she spends most of her meagre savings to hire Andrew Chan from the company, Rent for Your ‘Rents. Chloe has no expectations from Andrew other than he stick to his role and divert her parents’ attention away from Hongbo.

Rent a Boyfriend by Gloria Chao. Photo: Handout
Rent a Boyfriend by Gloria Chao. Photo: Handout

Andrew, who goes by Drew, seems like a dream come true. He speaks Taiwan-accented Mandarin like Chloe and her family, pretends to be a University of Chicago student bound for med school, and brings the Wangs a box of fancy mooncakes. Neither does he flinch at the sight of the Thanksgiving table adorned with dumplings, sesame noodles, and tong choy. But as Chloe’s and Andrew’s lies pile up, it becomes difficult for them to keep their stories straight.

Per the formula that seems required of young adult romcom fiction, it’s inevitable that Chloe and Drew develop feelings for one another and struggle to hide their real relationship from the Wang parents. Drew’s passion is art, a creative field Chloe knows her parents would never approve of. Yet Rent a Boyfriend is a scrumptious tale of bonding over late-night texting about mooncakes, stinky tofu, and Sichuan food.

Chao was born in the United States to parents who grew up in Taiwan after their families left China. Trained as a dentist, she became interested in young adult fiction to alleviate the stress of the anatomy lab. So she knows what it’s like to eschew parents’ hopes and desires and turn to a creative career.

While her novels do not always draw directly from her experiences, she adeptly translates the sentiments from her teenage years into likeable characters, whose rapport is fun and flirty.

A natural with romantic comedy, Chao keeps the reader engaged with Chinese customs and Asian culinary delicacies that bring Chloe and Drew together.