Rich People Problems
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Rich People Problems The outrageously funny summer read

Kevin Kwan2019
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER 'Flashy, funny ... Delicious ... A memorable, laugh-out-loud Asian glitz fest that's a pure pleasure to read.' USA Today Nicholas Young's grandmother Su Yi is on her deathbed. While he rushes to be by her bedside, he's not the only one. The entire Shang-Young clan has convened from all corners of the globe to stake claim on their matriarch's massive fortune. With all parties vying to inherit a trophy estate in the heart of Singapore, Nicholas's childhood home turns into a hotbed of sabotage and scandal. Taking us from the elegantly appointed mansions of Manila to the secluded private islands in the Sulu Sea, Kevin Kwan's final installment in this irresistible trilogy reveals the long-buried secrets of Asia's most privileged families and their rich people problems. Kevin Kwan's new novel SEX AND VANITY is available now!
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Reviews

Photo of H.
H.@dimlitnitwit
4.5 stars
Feb 17, 2025

loved this the most in the series!! something about a satisfying conclusion but also seeing the characters get fleshed out to the full and make all their growth... loved seeing more depth to su yi, be it her backstory or just her having no patience with eddie heheh... I think I just really enjoy tyserall park as a setting (one can live vicariously, no?) so i also loved the glimpses into the lives of some of the servants... truly the characters at their most complex while still being bearable I think, loved it!!

Photo of Quinn Tenorio
Quinn Tenorio@qkt
4 stars
Dec 26, 2023

After finishing up China Rich Girlfriend in no time, I turned to this and was a little disappointed with the lack of continuation of the cliffhanger in the 2nd book. However, I enjoyed this and all three books. I wasn't fully expecting Kwan to cover the stories of everyone in all three books, it seems like there are dozens of characters floating around, I'm surprised how well-tracked most of them were through the three books. I can see the critiques of other reviews, but for something quick and fun, I liked this and the other two. I can definitely tell that some stories were just filler, but he was able to tie them all together at the end.

Photo of Briar's Reviews
Briar's Reviews@briarsreviews
2 stars
Jul 31, 2023

Rich People Problems is the finale to the best-selling Crazy Rich Asians series. This time around, the matriarch of the family, Su Yi, is dying and the entire family flock to come see her. You might be thinking, because they desperately love her? Oh no, because they would like a piece of that cash, and property, and jewelry and whatever else rich people hold. But that's not all! Oh no! Astrid and Charlie become a scandal when his wife loses it over their affair, Rachel and Nick seem to be enjoying blissful married life, Eddie wants respect, and Kitty still seems crazy. The first book in this series blew my socks off and the sequel felt kinda meh. The third book in this series didn't hit me well either, which left me feeling super disappointed. The thing is, this book is SUPER well written. I absolutely love Kevin Kwan's writing! Not only does he have a unique, easy-to-read, yet super descriptive style but he also makes it super educational. I don't know a lot of the terminology and words from other languages, so I loved being able to take a peek inside of this world. This book is also packed tight full of wild drama and crazy rich people! What's not to love? I think my biggest problem with this book is that there are so many characters to follow, and I really only wanted to follow the lives of Rachel, Astrid and Araminta. Everybody else didn't connect with me and I just felt very bored seeing into their lives. The funny thing is, their lives aren't boring! I just wanted way more of the characters I fell in love with during book one. In my mind, a lot of this book didn't need to be there to make it good. It felt like a lot of these characters were filler, but maybe that was just me. The other little thing that irked me - the last book focused so heavily on Rachel and then she basically disappeared. It hurt a little, since she was one of my fave characters, but it's likely Kevin didn't have much else to do with her. I would have really liked to see her more... Honestly, this made me lose interest more than anything. Despite the fact that I didn't enjoy this book, I still believe it was super charming. It's lovable, quirky and absolutely hilarious at times! It's well worth the read, in my humble opinion. I clearly had a very high standard that Kevin wasn't going to hit, especially after reading the first book (and watching the movie, because OMG. When are we getting these two books as movies?!). These wild, manipulative characters make this book full of crazy drama and gossip, so it's an absolutely, wildly fun ride! Overall, this soap opera was a delight to read. It's a fun series for those who love gossip-y, crazy, soap opera drama! Two out of five stars.

Photo of Vicky (A City Girl's Thoughts)
Vicky (A City Girl's Thoughts)@acitygirlsthoughts
3 stars
May 16, 2023

I'm glad authors are giving their characters, especially the villians, a fleshed-out backstory. Villians aren't born but made - especially by transgressions that could've been avoided. Many of the characters in Rich People Problems would have turned out different if they weren't raised to live up to the one percent's ideal social standard: More material goods, plus "old money" lineage (ex: royal ancestors) with a heap of misogyny do not equal happiness, but - as the saying goes - old habits die hard, thus increasing the amount of sorrow and pain each person carries. That doesn't excuse anyone for their wrongdoings but it does help us understand them better. Overall this story was ok; Nick returns home to visit his dying grandmother Su Yi but is met by his gossipy relatives who are extremely annoying. While everyone is speculating on who will get what in Su Yi's Will, Kwan has us catch up on leftover drama from China Rich Girlfriend while tying up loose ends. The good ones receive a happy ending while the villians are either punished or change, but I felt their were too many stories being told while trying to tie them into the main plot, leaving some loose ends. A new character was introduced - and then dismissed - in the Prologue for no reason, never returning throughout the remainder of this novel, plus some relationships were either revealed at the last minute or left undisclosed. Regardless of the abovementioned (and the usual gossip these characters engage in) this novel ended with (almost) everyone looking towards life with a deeper commitment to personally understand others and not just worry about how much money, homes, cars, designer labels, and publicity they need to be "The current hottest topic."

Photo of alexandra
alexandra@twirlingpages
3 stars
May 14, 2023

i thiiiiink this is my FAVORITE of the series???? and that's saying something since this series itself is already one of my favorites

Photo of Albert Dong
Albert Dong@albertdong23
4 stars
Jan 28, 2023

A good ending

Photo of Rachel Kanyid
Rachel Kanyid@mccallmekanyid
4 stars
Jan 15, 2023

Liked this one a lot more than book two. Loved how this all wrapped up.

Photo of Steph L
Steph L @paigesofnovels
4 stars
Aug 14, 2022

Truly 4.5 but Good Reads makes me only use full star ratings. I enjoyed this book and it was one of my favorite books in the series. I wish there had been more drama in this book as there had been in the others. That's why this was not a five star read.

Photo of Lindsey Davis Blanchard
Lindsey Davis Blanchard @lindseyrose
2.5 stars
Aug 11, 2022

the plot was really interesting but i think the style of writing for the series just wasn’t for me

Photo of Mariane Ferrantino
Mariane Ferrantino @marfer
4 stars
Jul 11, 2022

This series was seriously so fun. This one tied everything up in a neat little bow for everyone; everyone who deserved it lived happily ever after, and the villains got theirs, and sometimes you just need to read something like that.

Photo of Rebeca Keren Nuñez
Rebeca Keren Nuñez@rebecanunez
4 stars
Jun 17, 2022

Sorpresivo, intrigante y entretenido, es un final a la altura de la saga. Lo disfrute mucho! Se lee muy rapido, mi demora fue porque tuve un monton de cosas que se cruzaron en el medio. Muero por ver como lo terminan adaptando, si es que lo hacen al final.

Photo of M
M@mywtyw
3 stars
Jun 6, 2022

This series is solid for escapism, in the reality TV kind of way. I think the first one's the best, as it's grounded in a fish-out-of-water story with relatable stakes (although the movie is better imo). The sequels get a bit too bogged down in glamorous details and drama that swings from fun into tiresome. But because the POV changes from chapter to chapter, it's easy to skim through the side plots that drag. If you don't mind keeping up with a lot of names, they're solid beach-type reads.

Photo of Melissa Schwartz
Melissa Schwartz@melschwa18
5 stars
Mar 15, 2022

I miss the characters already. Great series! Hoping for more

Photo of Flavia Louise
Flavia Louise@flaviaaalouise
4 stars
Mar 7, 2022

I enjoyed this book a lot. :)

Photo of Eveline
Eveline@evienoryarevalo
5 stars
Feb 26, 2022

I HIGHLY recommend this book ! My favorite one of the trilogy !! Great way to end this beautiful trilogy. Light & funny as always it had me going from happiness to sadness to nostalgia even ! Loved every bits of it !!

Photo of Shanthu
Shanthu@lunaxsprouse
4 stars
Feb 11, 2022

A RELALY really good read. Love this whole series so much and would revommend to anyone. This book was the perfect ending to wrap up the young’s. Nick and Rachel will always be that couple i Stan😩🤩

+4
Photo of Lauren Attaway
Lauren Attaway@camcray
5 stars
Jan 26, 2022

I've been reading this series-does three books count as a series?- faithfully since the first Crazy Rich Asians. I would gladly drop in on these characters every few years for as long as Kevin Kwan wants to keep going. This book continues the series routine of multiple storylines, and I was genuinely surprised that Nick (a professor who initially brought his now-wife Rachel into this culture of exceptionally wealthy Asians) and Rachel took such a backseat to the rest of the characters in this novel. In this book, Nick Young's grandmother is near death and his relatives all begin to scheme over her belongings, most importantly the one-of-a-kind house that's frequently referred to as the largest private estate in Singapore.Prior to his estrangement with his grandmother, Nick's family believed he would be willed the family home, but his relatives now see an opportunity in Nick's absence. Nick's cousin Astrid is the only other relative more concerned with losing their grandmother than what she might leave them. Astrid's in the middle of a nasty divorce and she's trying to be happy without completely alienating her parents. I don't want to forge to mention the social-climber Kitty Pong, because she's back and still spending money as fast as she can come into contact with it. She's at a self-imposed war with her stepdaughter to see who can make the biggest splash the fastest. As with the two earlier works, I was immediately pulled into Young family's world of luxuries and laughter. Families are crazy, period, and this family's wealth does nothing but create more sources of craziness for them. I especially loved the chance to get a better understanding of the family's matriarch, who was previously only really discussed as another plot point. Astrid also had a higher page count this time around, and while I enjoyed the deepening of her character I was sad to see she still had so many problems. If you enjoyed the rest of the series you'll find plenty to like here, but newcomers may find themselves struggling with why they care. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

Photo of Saskia P
Saskia P@stahrwars
5 stars
Jan 19, 2022

i will miss them all so much

Photo of taryn
taryn@tarynbrickner
4 stars
Jan 7, 2022

3.5

Photo of Sahi K
Sahi K@sahibooknerd
4 stars
Jan 5, 2022

I definitely enjoyed this finale more than its predecessor. The whole drama surrounding the inheritance, all the family members vying for their share, and the unexpected revelations made for a lot of entertainment. But I was pleasantly surprised when the revelations happened almost at the halfway mark and I wasn’t sure what more story could be left, but I actually liked the latter half of the book more. The ending was such an interesting resolution and I absolutely adored the arcs for both Astrid’s story as well as Nick’s. This series may have been superficial and pretentious, but I did have a great time listening to the audiobooks and were the exact kind of books I needed during this time. Just pure fun.

Photo of Francesca G
Francesca G@franeeh
3 stars
Jan 1, 2022

Oh well. Here it goes I guess. So, from the premise, I knew that I was going to feel very on edge for most of this book. I don't particularly deal well with the incoming feeling that something important for the story might or might not happen. And Rich People Problems made it happen at the weirdest of times. So, half of the book I was on edge, the other half I spent trying to figure out whether I was happy or not Kwan took the plaster off when he did. Ultimately I wasn't unhappy with it because he had a big enough margin to explain the aftermath, so he tied up all the knots that needed it. The writing style is the same as the other two books in the trilogy, but only in this one I realised it was giving me a headache. Nothing wrong with it, apparently, but an omniscient third person narrator can be awful, I don't necessarily need to know what everyone is thinking at all times, thank you very much. That being said, I loved Astrid's character in this one and the third person narration did give it an interesting curve. Overall, even if I didn't love it, I would say it's a satisfying conclusion to the Crazy Rich Asians Trilogy. I was very glad that with every one of the books I learned something more about a culture I knew very little about.

Photo of POLAINE ELISE PAULINO
POLAINE ELISE PAULINO@polainepaulino
3.5 stars
Dec 1, 2021

It was a slow burn for me first versus the first 2 books but it got better eventually. It definitely more relaxed than the others in a way? Especially since it touched on the Youngs more and how they related to each other. It was a nice relaxed read for sure. I would miss the characters!

+2
Photo of Amanda Wells
Amanda Wells@amandawells
4 stars
Nov 25, 2021

Well, I picked this up at the library because I'd heard of the series... and it sounds fun! I fully expected to have to put it down again quickly, because this is # 3 in the series, and I've not read #1 and #2, but actually it worked fine on its own - you get the idea of people who were featured in previous books, without having to go in depth with them. It is a fun book, a little exhausting at times - just because of the flawed nature of these characters. I enjoyed where it all ended up, and it even avoided the 'easy' resolution that I suspected might happen.

Photo of Lisa W.
Lisa W.@babeinlibrary
4 stars
Nov 17, 2021

Oh Kevin Kwan has truly done it again. What a fantastic trilogy. This book is actually a 4.5. I was completely shocked that the book lasted after after the death of Su Yi but he has plenty to share. I especially like the ending wrapped up perfectly I’m a bow. Nice finishing touches. Character break down below. Eddie Cheng is and will always be scum of the earth . Sometimes you want to think otherwise but then realize, nope he is still trash. Alastair Cheng is someone I wish I got To know more of. We would always here his name and he would have minor parts in the story but turns out there something I could have really liked about him. Oliver Tsein is a confusing character. You never know where to really place him because he plays for whatever side will suit him. I find him to be the the master of secrets like lord Varys. My major issue with him was his relationship to Kitty. She treats you like dirt and still you give her all of the tools to make her successful. No amount of spinning could ever make me like Kitty. I was really quite happy Colette was besting her left and right even though I couldn’t stand Colette either. The fact that everyone had to tell you how to be a boss chick means you never deserved what you had. Ambitious with no sense to make it work, what a tragedy. Colette has the game, she is cunning and plays the long hand. No matter how much you dislike her you’ve got to give it to her. She is a beast. I hated what she did to Carlton but ultimately he bounced back. What an icon! Astrid has always been a gem and I absolutely adore Charlie. I shipped the hard it wasn’t even funny. Their story was by far the most interest in one. Gosh I hated that michael didn’t get what he deserved but Astrid being ever so the lady doesn’t care about revenge. As always Nick and Rachel are constant and adorable.

Highlights

Photo of Shanthu
Shanthu@lunaxsprouse

“Decades had passed since that day, but now Nick stood in the middle of a forest with his nanny overwhelmed with guilt. This was a woman who had dedicated nearly her entire life to serving his family, leaving her own parents and siblings behind in China and only seeing them once every few years when she had saved up enough to go back. Ah Ling, Ah Ching the head chef, Jacob the gardener, Ahmad the chauffeur, all these people had served his family for most of their lives. This was their home, and now they were about to lose it too. Now he was letting them all down. As if reading his mind, Ah Ling came over and put her hand on his face. “Don’t look so sad, Nicky. It’s not the end of the world.” Suddenly, tears began to spring from his eyes uncontrollably. Ah Ling embraced him, in the way she had so many times when he cried as a child, stroking the back of his head as he wept quietly against her shoulder. Nick hadn’t shed a single tear during the entire week of his grandmother’s funeral, and now he was letting it all out.” Excerpt From Rich People Problems Kevin Kwan This material may be protected by copyright.

Nicky being sad makes me sad. he’s really overwhelmed because of his Ah-ma it makes me really sad :(

This highlight contains a spoiler