The Original Daughter

by Jemimah Wei
The Original Daughter cover
Good Books rating 4.17
Literary Fiction
Technical:
  • ID: 520
  • Added: 2025-09-13
  • Updated: 2025-09-13
  • ISBN: 9780385551021
  • Publisher: Doubleday
  • Published: 2025-05-06
  • Formats: 4
  • Reviews: 3
Buy online
Waterstones
Hardback • £18.99

Set in working-class Singapore between 1995 and 2015, The Original Daughter follows Genevieve Yang, who grows from an only child into a sister when Arin, her unexpected sibling, arrives as a secret legacy of their grandfather. The sisters navigate a fiercely competitive society demanding academic excellence and sacrifice, forging a bond that isolates them from outside friendships and leisure. When betrayal drives a wedge between them, Genevieve must confront the tension between ambition and familial love, home and the wider world, and loyalty to herself versus those who shaped her. Jemimah Wei’s debut novel offers emotional clarity and sharp social insight into family dynamics and the relentless pressures of a rapidly modernizing, winner-take-all world.

Reviews
Kirkus Reviews · 2025-09-13
insightful 4.00

The novel offers profound insights into identity and family dynamics, exploring how personal identity is shaped and challenged by familial relationships and societal forces.

Kirkus Reviews appreciates the novel for its depth in exploring the complexities of identity within the framework of family and societal expectations. The review notes the nuanced portrayal of the sisters' relationship and how the story reflects larger themes of belonging and self-understanding. This thoughtful examination positions the book as a meaningful literary debut with significant emotional and social resonance.

Quick quotes

    Wei's novel glistens with often profound insights about the complicated relationship between a person's identity and the dynamic forces of family and society.

    A promising debut novel.

    The story kept me interested.

Ashley Hajimirsadeghi's Blog · Ashley Hajimirsadeghi · 2025-09-13
masterful 4.00

The novel masterfully depicts the fragile and evolving dynamics of sisterhood, with vibrant characterization and a lively depiction of Singapore's ordinary people, despite a slower middle section.

Ashley found the novel to be a masterful exploration of how familial bonds, especially between sisters, can fracture and carry long-lasting resentment. She praises the vivid world-building and character development that brings Singapore's everyday life to the forefront, making the story feel alive and authentic. Although she experienced a slowdown in pacing around the middle of the book, she ultimately found the reading experience rewarding and recommends the book for its emotional richness and cultural insight.

Quick quotes

    This was quite the masterful novel when it comes to depicting relationships.

    The vibrant world they live in felt so alive to me.

    I highly recommend doing so I think it was definitely worth reading at least once.

Electric Literature · 2025-05-05
aching 4.50

The novel deeply explores the complex emotions of sisterhood and family love amid societal pressures in Singapore, portraying both the ache of betrayal and the enduring bond between sisters.

The reviewer highlights the emotional depth and authenticity Jemimah Wei brings to the story of two sisters growing up in a rapidly changing Singapore, emphasizing the themes of love, jealousy, and betrayal. They appreciate how the book captures the nuanced and imperfect realities of family relationships, making the narrative resonate with readers familiar with similar cultural and regional experiences. The story's setting in a hot, sticky Southeast Asian environment adds a vivid backdrop that enriches the emotional texture of the novel.

Quick quotes

    The Original Daughter is a novel about love and the ways love fractures.

    It aches with the weight of the unsaid, the scourge of perceived betrayal, and the bitter nut of jealousy.

    It captures a world that is imperfect yet undeniably true.

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