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    Family Trust: A Novel
    Family Trust: A Novel
    Family Trust: A Novel
    Audiobook14 hours

    Family Trust: A Novel

    Written by Kathy Wang

    Narrated by Joy Osmanski

    3.5/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    Some of us are more equal than others....

    Meet Stanley Huang: father, husband, ex-husband, man of unpredictable tastes and temper, aficionado of all-inclusive vacations and bargain luxury goods, newly diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. For years, Stanley has claimed that he’s worth a small fortune. But the time is now coming when the details of his estate will finally be revealed, and Stanley’s family is nervous.

    For his son Fred, the inheritance Stanley has long alluded to would soothe the pain caused by years of professional disappointment. By now, the Harvard Business School graduate had expected to be a financial tech god – not a minor investor at a middling corporate firm, where he isn’t even allowed to fly business class.

    Stanley’s daughter, Kate, is a middle manager with one of Silicon Valley’s most prestigious tech companies. She manages the capricious demands of her world-famous boss and the needs of her two young children all while supporting her would-be entrepreneur husband (just until his startup gets off the ground, which will surely be soon). But lately, Kate has been sensing something amiss; just because you say you have it all, it doesn’t mean that you actually do.   

    Stanley’s second wife, Mary Zhu, twenty-eight years his junior, has devoted herself to making her husband comfortable in every way—rubbing his feet, cooking his favorite dishes, massaging his ego.  But lately, her commitment has waned; caring for a dying old man is far more difficult than she expected.

    Linda Liang, Stanley’s first wife, knows her ex better than anyone. She worked hard for decades to ensure their financial security, and is determined to see her children get their due. Single for nearly a decade, she might finally be ready for some romantic companionship. But where does a seventy-two year old Chinese woman in California go to find an appropriate boyfriend?

    As Stanley’s death approaches, the Huangs are faced with unexpected challenges that upend them and eventually lead them to discover what they most value. A compelling tale of cultural expectations, career ambitions and our relationships with the people who know us best, Family Trust skewers the ambition and desires that drive Silicon Valley and draws a sharply loving portrait of modern American family life.

    This audiobook includes an episode of the Book Club Girl Podcast, featuring an interview with Kathy Wang about Family Trust.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHarperAudio
    Release dateOct 30, 2018
    ISBN9780062866257
    Family Trust: A Novel
    Author

    Kathy Wang

    Kathy Wang grew up in Northern California and holds degrees from UC Berkeley and Harvard Business School. She lives in the Bay Area with her husband and two children.

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    Reviews for Family Trust

    3.5/5

    127 ratings29 reviews

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    • 2/5
      This one fell flat for me. I was hoping it would be more entertaining as Crazy Rich Asians, but it doesn’t hold mustard. The characters weren’t loveable and certain aspects wasn’t realistic. A million bucks in inheritance is really NOT much money. Especially, when they were well off to begin with. That point bothered me.
    • 4/5
      Stanley Huang has learned he has cancer. Such sad news is the driver of this novel about family relationships good, bad, indifferent and possibly criminal. Stanley has a wife, and ex wife and two children. His daughter is married to a somewhat sketchy guy and his son is trying hard to be more than he is. The ex wife is concerned for her children’s inheritance but knows that Stanley is all talk. His current wife is all show and knows relatively little about the true nature of her husband.The book goes back and forth between all of the featured players, sharing how they deal not only Stanley’s diagnosis and decline but the whirlwind of their everyday lives. Fred is divorced and seeing a high maintenance woman who wants him to put a ring on it. He has puffed up his job significance and his importance in his field. She is a social climber and always looking to work an angle. Kate is married and has a very good job and supports her husband in his entrepreneurial dreams – until she can’t figure out exactly what it is he is doing all day long. When she starts to investigate she is not sure she is going to like what she finds out.Stanley’s ex is concerned for both of her children and wants to make sure they get their rightful inheritance as she did the heavy lifting in building whatever fortune Stanley may have. She put up with his temper and his emotional abuse until she left and found a freedom she didn’t realize she could have. Now she doesn’t want the upstart second wife to get what her children deserve – not that she thinks there is all that much there. The second wife is much younger and really, at this point only out for herself.There is a LOT going on in this book and I haven’t really even touched on half of it in the paragraphs above. There are Fred’s work problems, a catfishing subplot, a group of gossipy Ladies Who Lunch, rich prep school boys and an attempt to defraud the Thai government. And MORE!It’s a lot. Too much I think. A thread is picked up in one chapter then dropped and picked up a few chapters later. Maybe it’s me but I prefer a more linear story line. This way of writing works in many cases but when there is this.much going on it’s a little bit hard to keep track of it all.Or maybe I’m just getting old. I don’t know.The book is centered on an Asian family but the issues are, for the most part universal in that families can drive us all batty. Add in money and it gets downright insane.It was a solid read. The characters are many and the core family members are defined but many of the ancillary characters remain somewhat less rounded. The various plots and subplots for the most part all wrap up but I will admit to having some questions still at the end. I don’t know if I just missed something along the way – which is possible. There is a lot going on and my brain is my brain. – or if they were meant to remain ambiguous.
    • 4/5
      An enjoyable not too dramatic family-dynamic story with good characters
    • 5/5
      I don't want to like the Huangs, but I do. I feel for them, even Stanley- who is so throughly unlikable. Stanley is dying. This book is less about him taking stock and more about those he will leave behind. The author manages to pack a whole lot in, the absolute desperation of being left in poverty (relative), the place of the older woman in a society which judges and discards the old, the weak, and the unconventional, fitting in and standing out, entitlement and duty, boundaries and co-dependence.
      There is a lot of plot too, as the characters stretch and grow and it's all strangely uplifting as the Huangs find their place in the aftermath of tragedy, redemption, mishaps and mistakes. Oh, and it's really funny too.

    • 3/5
      The book jacket bills this as The Nest meets Crazy Rich Asians and I would add meets a tax form. Just a little too much business-y for me, but that is not my forte anyway. The Huang family is in turmoil. Stanley, the patriarch is dying, but whether he has a will or not is up for debate. And whether he has anything to leave in his will is another issue. His daughter Kate and son Fred both have plans for the money if it exists. Kate is in the throes of marriage turmoil. She is bankrolling her husband who is doing a start-up, but appears lately to be doing nothing. Fred meanwhile is unhappy in his work and is looking to make a change, but it will take a few million in investment to socially/business climb where he wants to be. His Harvard business degree isn’t giving him the competing edge in Silicon Valley and he is approached by some alums to invest in a Thai business venture. Linda, Stanley’s ex-wife is the one with money, but she wants to be sure his money goes to their kids instead of his second wife Mary and her money- grubbing immigrant sisters. She is also online dating on Tigerlily an exclusive Asian site. Dark comedy but needed more levity.
    • 4/5
      Stanley Huang is dying, and his family, which includes his ex-wife Linda, their children Fred and Kate, and much younger second wife Mary, are all in the dark about his net worth and his plans. This is a comedy of manners, set in Silicon Valley, with a family of immigrants at its center. Each is seeking their own American dream. Linda worked for years for IBM and has a sizable investment account. Fred is a Harvard MBA investment banker, seeking the next big score. Kate works for X corp, which develops new consumer products, while her husband stays home and is an entrepreneur. Mary immigrated from China and works only at keeping Stanley happy.This is a good read, and while it dwells on the problems of rich or nearly rich people, it also explores the dynamics of immigrant families, their expectations and struggles. I enjoyed it.
    • 2/5
      The open greed and the chaotic one-upmanship of this novel was too much for me. Yes, it was witty, but the globe-trotting characters were so one-dimensional.
    • 4/5
      I enjoyed this book very much.
    • 4/5
      I really enjoyed this one. Fans of the Crazy Rich Asians series will love this book, too. Looking forward to reading more books by Kathy Wang.
    • 3/5
      This family had a lot going on. The father is sick maybe has some money to leave behind and definitely has an second wife. The mother is smart and money savvy and decides to try online dating. The son and daughter are having issue with their careers and significant others. not really a book where I found myself rooting or any one person or outcome but it kept me reading.
    • 3/5
      This was just an ok read for me. It was difficult to connect with the characters who were overly concerned with fancy things. I agree this book is similar to The Nest, and I cant really say which I prefer. I felt like I was waiting for something to happen the entire time I was reading.
    • 3/5
      I grew up in San Jose--and, though I haven't actually lived there in over 25 years--I do enjoy reading books that take place in San Jose and the Bay Area in general. I am up there one or two times a year, so I'm no completely clueless about San Jose today. ———In some ways this book very much reminded me of [book:The Nest|25781157]--rich people want more more more. The multiple meanings of the titles is another similarity. And I struggle to care about characters who just want more. More money so they can do things they "can't afford"--like a back house or a house in Atherton. I find it very hard to relate to or care about characters (or real poeple lol) like this. The actual focus of these two books is quite different, however.In Family Trust we meet siblings Kate and Fred, her husband and kids and his girlfriend, their immigrant mother and father, and his second wife (of 9 years). While Linda and Stanley worked hard to move to "a good address" before their divorce, Kate buys a dream dump and fixes it up over years, and Fred drams of being in a very expensive zip code. Both have good Silicon Valley jobs. Linda enjoys her nice home, friends, and doing what she wants. Stanley and Mary take expensive trips and so forth.When Stanley is diagnosed with cancer, all of their focuses shift and all of their attitudes change. All want to live a little more happily and will take risks to do so.————There is interesting commentary on being Chinese/Asian in the US/Silicon Valley/Harvard Business School (advantages and disadvantages), as well as being a female executive. Solid writing, decent story, some slurs and stereotypes. A fair read, but I doubt I'll remember it for long.
    • 4/5
      This book appealed to me for several reasons.– it’s set in the San Francisco Bay Area and perhaps more importantly, not just the city itself but also the rest of the Bay Area. Don’t get me wrong, I like the city (well parts of it at least), the husband works there and all, but we live in the East Bay and it’s nice to see other parts of the area talked about.– it’s a story about East Asian immigrants. They are originally from Taiwan, as are many of those in the Bay Area and I’m always interested in stories about immigration, particularly from Asia.Also it opens with a whopper of a first sentence.“Stanley Huang sat, naked but for the thing cotton dressing gown crumpled against the sterile white paper in the hospital room, and listened to the young doctor describe how he would die.”He’s been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and this is the story of how he and his family deal with it.He has a son, Fred, Harvard Business School grad, who’s been trying to make it big in the fintech industry but hasn’t quite yet. His daughter Kate is doing well at a well-known Silicon Valley company but is struggling with the balance of home and work. Also something seems to be up with her husband who is trying to get his start-up going.Then there is their mother, Stanley’s ex-wife, Linda, perhaps a less-than-usual Asian woman of her time, one who continued working for decades, and yes, even divorced her husband. She’s even been thinking of dating again!“What was one supposed to say, when one’s now-ex-husband of thirty-four years was struck with such a diagnosis?”Stanley’s current wife Mary is 28 years younger than him. She’s a former waitress and has devoted her new life to caring for Stanley but now with Stanley dying, his family is suspicious of her motives.For Stanley has often hinted at his riches – in the millions! Who deserves it more, the one who’s been caring for him in recent years? His children? Linda is determined to make sure her kids get their fair share.Family Trust is a Silicon Valley story. It is also an Asian family story. It is also an American story. It’s a story about the pursuit of success, about money, about family obligation. There probably will be Crazy Rich Asians comparisons but as someone not a fan of that series, let me just say that Family Trust is better. Its characters are complex yet relatable, its observations of Silicon Valley life and family relationships are astute and witty. A great debut!Honestly, Linda has some of the best lines.“The woman likely didn’t even think she spoke English, regarding her as just another sexless Asian dotting her periphery – someone who could be ignored at will, like a houseplant.” And here’s another – apparently there are differences according to where you landed up as an immigrant.“Everyone knew that the best Chinese immigrants of their generation were settled in California, and mostly in the Bay Area. There were some in Los Angeles, but then you ran the risk of ending up with some sleazy import/exporter. And Linda had no intention of being matched with some grocery store operator in, say, Reno.” “She knew exactly how Americans saw women like the Mercedes driver – as indistinguishable from herself. An Asian lady consumed with the creation and consumption of money, who neglected to hug her children. Why did white people like to pick and choose from cultures with such zealous judgment? Of course they just loved Szechuan cuisine served by a young waitress in a cheap cheongsam, but as soon as you proved yourself just as adept at the form of capitalism they had invented? Then you were obsessed. Money crazed. Unworthy of sympathy.”
    • 3/5
      This book was much more slow-moving that I had anticipated. It was hyped as the next Crazy Rich Asians, but other than being about an Asian family living in the wealthy cities of the Bay Area....there wasn't any other connection. It was a slow drama, more like The Nest, than anything else. It wasn't amazing, but it wasn't terrible either. There were no twists, no moments of redemption, no areas for growth. The characters stayed in their naive little bubbles all throughout. Was that the point of the story? That the death of a patriarch doesn't call upon family to self-reflect and change ways?
    • 3/5
      A Chinese American family living in Silicon Valley is pursuing the American dream. When the father becomes ill with pancreatic cancer and death looms on the horizon, his ex-wife urges their two adult children to make sure the will is up to date and reflects that the children will receive their inheritance.This story of greed has well drawn characters who exhibit both the best and the worst characteristics of people we all probably know. Having been involved in the horrible experience of a family dispute over an inheritance, I could relate to this story. The author must have done a good job of portraying reality because the story evoked a lot of emotions in me - - particularly, why does someone automatically think he or she is entitled to an (unearned) inheritance? I felt the ending gave everyone exactly what they deserved.
    • 4/5
      Family Trust is a story of how a Silicon Valley Chinese family behave when the patriarch is diagnosed with terminal pancreatic cancer. When Stanley Huang discovers that he only has a few months to live, his adult children, ex-wife and wife all react to the news differently. Stanley has had a successful career and has been lavish with his spending, so everyone is eagerly anticipating a possible windfall. But will all the money go to Mary, the new wife? What about the kids? And shouldn't grandchildren count for something? With abundant dark humor, the story of a greedy dysfunctional family unfolds. Although it's hard to really like any of the characters, I found the descriptions of Silicon Valley and my home town, to be amazingly accurate. Yes our Whole Foods really does have a local craft beer section, dosa bar and more varieties of hummus than you can imagine. And it has the tiniest parking lot for any supermarket in the area. The descriptions of greed and the constant drive for success and wealth was also scarily accurate. Maybe I have my Pollyanna glasses on, but I do think that most people aren't as heartless as the Huang family, which made it difficult for me to really connect or care about their lives, but I still found myself not being able to put the book down.There are many human flaws discussed in this book which would make for a fascinating book club discussion.
    • 3/5
      This book was okay considering it's a debut book. The writing style was good, I like how each chapter was from a different characters story and point of view. That said, I really could not connect with any of the characters. They seemed cold and self absorbed. Everyone just wanted to know how much Stanley was worth and who he was leaving his money to. The book was slow paced, not much really happens throughout the book.
    • 4/5
      It took me awhile to get into this book but then I picked up speed. An interesting array of characters but they really weren't fully developed enough for me. The plot was basic and each of the family's story lines weren't delved into deeply. Everything was wrapped up nicely though. A good book, yes--a great book, no.
    • 4/5
      The plot of this novel can be summed up in one sentence. Stanley, a Chinese-American, is dying of pancreatic cancer, and his two children, exwife, and current wife are concerned about their inheritances. So many things about this book made me feel I wouldn’t like it. It was so slow going through the first 100 pages, all the characters were hard to like, and the emphasis on money and competition was very off putting to me. But I kept going and the story just kept getting better for me. I loved the family dynamics, the pacing picked up, and the humor was delightful. I’m glad I stayed with the book.
    • 4/5
      Stanley Huang has learned he has cancer. Such sad news is the driver of this novel about family relationships good, bad, indifferent and possibly criminal. Stanley has a wife, and ex wife and two children. His daughter is married to a somewhat sketchy guy and his son is trying hard to be more than he is. The ex wife is concerned for her children’s inheritance but knows that Stanley is all talk. His current wife is all show and knows relatively little about the true nature of her husband.The book goes back and forth between all of the featured players, sharing how they deal not only Stanley’s diagnosis and decline but the whirlwind of their everyday lives. Fred is divorced and seeing a high maintenance woman who wants him to put a ring on it. He has puffed up his job significance and his importance in his field. She is a social climber and always looking to work an angle. Kate is married and has a very good job and supports her husband in his entrepreneurial dreams – until she can’t figure out exactly what it is he is doing all day long. When she starts to investigate she is not sure she is going to like what she finds out.Stanley’s ex is concerned for both of her children and wants to make sure they get their rightful inheritance as she did the heavy lifting in building whatever fortune Stanley may have. She put up with his temper and his emotional abuse until she left and found a freedom she didn’t realize she could have. Now she doesn’t want the upstart second wife to get what her children deserve – not that she thinks there is all that much there. The second wife is much younger and really, at this point only out for herself.There is a LOT going on in this book and I haven’t really even touched on half of it in the paragraphs above. There are Fred’s work problems, a catfishing subplot, a group of gossipy Ladies Who Lunch, rich prep school boys and an attempt to defraud the Thai government. And MORE!It’s a lot. Too much I think. A thread is picked up in one chapter then dropped and picked up a few chapters later. Maybe it’s me but I prefer a more linear story line. This way of writing works in many cases but when there is this.much going on it’s a little bit hard to keep track of it all.Or maybe I’m just getting old. I don’t know.The book is centered on an Asian family but the issues are, for the most part universal in that families can drive us all batty. Add in money and it gets downright insane.It was a solid read. The characters are many and the core family members are defined but many of the ancillary characters remain somewhat less rounded. The various plots and subplots for the most part all wrap up but I will admit to having some questions still at the end. I don’t know if I just missed something along the way – which is possible. There is a lot going on and my brain is my brain. – or if they were meant to remain ambiguous.
    • 5/5
      Kathy Wang's fantastic novel Family Trust opens with Silicon Valley resident Stanley Huang being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. Divorced from his first wife Linda, married to his second, decades-younger wife Mary, father to two grown children, Fred and Kate, suddenly Stanley's life is turned upside down.Each chapter is narrated by one of the main characters- Linda, Fred, and Kate take the lead, with Stanley and Mary each taking on a smaller role. Linda has been divorced for many years, and has decided to take the advice of her friends and try online dating with Tigerlily, a dating service geared towards Asians.She connects with Winston online and he seems to be the opposite of Stanley. Winston appears to be an open, caring, outgoing man. Stanley was prone to violent outbursts, sometimes frightening his children.Linda was the financial wizard in the family, and although Stanley liked to portray himself as worth millions, Linda had her doubts. She kept pushing Fred and Kate to talk to Stanley and get information about his will. Whenever the topic was brought up, Stanley was very vague about details.Fred worked in finance, but he felt stuck in his role at Lion Capital. When an old college friend dangles a huge opportunity in front of him, Fred finally feels that his luck may be changing.Kate is married to Denny, and a mom to two young children. She works for X Corp, a huge Silicon Valley company, where she has been for several years and is a valued employee. Denny is trying to get a startup going, with little success (or ambition) so far.Fred and Kate both could use the money from their father's will to make their lives easier. Linda fears that Stanley will leave most of his money to his new wife, leaving their children out in the cold.I found Linda's story to be the most intriguing. She is a smart, tough, hardworking, clear-eyed woman. Her interactions with her circle of female friends and her sharp-tongued observations made me laugh.Mary had one chapter to tell her story and I found it surprising. Up to this point, we only saw her through the eyes of the others, it was a revelation to see her innermost thoughts.Family Trust is a remarkable novel. Each character's story draws the reader in, and each person''s story could stand on their own in their own novel. The ingenious way that Wang weaves their stories together is a marvel.It is a novel about a family who came to here to find the American dream. Both Stanley and Linda worked hard to make a good life for their children, pushed them to go to good schools and be successful. It has been compared to The Nest and Crazy Rich Asians, both of which I read and enjoyed, but Family Trust is the best of the three. Wang successfully combines humor and pathos in a deeply rich novel.
    • 3/5
      A book focused on contemporary life in the well off Asian American family of the Huangs who live in the bay area of California. The characters were well drawn if not especially likeable with the plot revolving around the family members of Stanley Huang who is dying of pancreatic cancer, with the members speculating on the possible fortune Stanley may leave behind to his children and wife. I read the first part of the book then started skipping pages as the story did not sustain my interest although I appreciated the author's attempts to balance her characters' faults with their positive virtues. And yes I did read the last chapter to see how it all turned out.
    • 4/5
      Money. And the expectation of future money. There's probably nothing else in this world more easily able to tear apart a family, at least a wealthy family. Children want their (unearned) inheritance. First wives and second wives are at odds. First (ex)wives want their children to come into the cash while second wives want compensation for the time they spent catering to the dying. It all sounds so privileged and crass. But that's what makes for such fascinating reading, right? The low, grubbiness of it all. Kathy Wang has certainly captured this, and so much more, in her new novel, Family Trust.Stanley Huang is dying of pancreatic cancer. His ex-wife Linda, who spent more than three decades with Stanley and is the mother of his children, wants to make sure that Fred and Kate inherit Stanley's wealth, a wealth she spent a lot of time building up for Stanley through shrewd investments and the like. Mary, Stanley's second, much younger wife, has no knowledge of his financial situation other than that they have money. With Stanley actively dying, she now has to worry what she will do once he's gone. Kate and Fred want to have some idea how much they each stand to inherit so they know how much their lives will be eased, especially once those lives descend into turmoil. But Stanley's cagey, not wanting to disclose anything to anyone. He just wants everyone to be there for him, doing his bidding whenever he wants. With who knows how much money on the line, Stanley's family tries, at least half-heartedly and sometimes more than a little grudgingly, to give him what he wants in the few months he has left.Before his diagnosis, Stanley was self-involved, possessed of a nasty temper, and desirous of being seen as a successful and smart man. First wife Linda is financially savvy, emotionally remote, and generally content in her life post-divorce, even if divorce is still a little scandalous in her group of friends. She has washed her hands of Stanley as best she can but their shared children and this terminal diagnosis mean she cannot completely walk away from him. Along with tending her garden, occasionally babysitting her grandchildren, and astutely managing her money, she is discovering the appeal of online dating for the first time. Fred is a Harvard Business School grad who bemoans his mediocrity, at least as measured by Silicon Valley culture. He is dating an attractive, blonde, Bulgarian woman who works in sales at Saks and he is generally content with her except when she pressures him about marriage and blithely spends money he can't really (or doesn't want to) afford to spend. Kate is a director at a highly successful tech company. Having gotten in on the ground floor of the business before it took off, ala Google and Apple, means that she can afford to support her husband after he quits his job to attempt his own start-up, even if his presence in his attic home office doesn't translate into a bigger role in raising their two young children. In fact, Kate doesn't have any idea what Denny does up in the attic all day anyway. She is afraid to want more for herself than the life she's settled for. Mary, Stanley's second wife, speaks very little English and her step-children don't seem to like her very much although it is clear that Stanley dotes on her. She has been devoted to his care and comfort for the nine years of their marriage but the months after his diagnosis are the most pressure filled and fraught of all as she faces her own family's interest in her future financial situation and her step-children's interests being diametrically opposed to hers.Wang carefully draws each of these characters and all of the factors going on in their lives as the novel progresses, slowly revealing what each character's ultimate desire is. The chapters alternate between the five main characters, although Mary doesn't have a chapter from her point of view until quite late in the novel, leaving her motives murky and subject to interpretation by the others for a long time. Because the reader sees each character's circumstances, Stanley's diagnosis is almost an after thought and the greedy need to know Stanley's intentions and the size of their bequests comes across as grasping and selfish. Of course, Silicon Valley, as portrayed here doesn't come off much better, nor does the insular, wealthy Taiwanese-American community. The Huang family's strained dynamic is on full display, only complimented by professional pressure and presumed, or sometimes very real, racism, sexism, nepotism, and cronyism. The novel starts off quite slowly and somewhat less than engagingly but it does eventually pick up, with the reader interested in finding out just how much money Stanley has, what Kate's husband is doing and whether she'll finally have the push to go after what she really wants, the truth about Linda's new online beau, and how Fred is going to improve his business standing and where his relationship is headed. Yes, there really are that many plot threads, and a few more besides. None of the characters are particularly sympathetic but their status seeking, family loyalty, and reactions to cultural pressures are interesting to watch as an outsider. This is very definitely a novel of "rich people problems" but don't we all sometimes fantasize about having these sorts of problems? Spending a few hours between the covers of this one will deliver just that, and maybe an appreciation for your own problems instead.
    • 3/5
      Kathy Wang gives us a portrait of an Asian-American family in crisis. Its patriarch is at the end of his life but instead of coming together to recognize his life, his family maneuvers to acquire shares of his financial legacy. In the final analysis, FAMILY TRUST is not a novel about trust at all but one about its absence. No one seems to be working in Stanley’s best interest, including Stanley himself. Thus none of Wang’s characters is particularly likeable. All seem to be motivated instead by things like greed, status, careerism, materialism, and self-interest. Despite an attempt at an uplifting finish, ultimately Wang fails to generate any real empathy for these people.As an Asian-American with a Harvard Business School and Silicon Valley background, Wang is eminently positioned to write about her chosen themes. Her main focus is the cultural and family pressures toward high achievement that seem to be common in certain Asian families living in America. Elite business school connections and the Silicon Valley setting only add gasoline to this fire. Wang uses these milieus to tackle some intriguing questions however. These include: What roles do luck vs. hard work play in success? How does racism manifest in these high-pressure environments? What are the pressures, expectations, and social calculations in high achieving Asian-Americans? How has American culture impacted the traditional Chinese values of family loyalty especially toward elders?Wang dedicates individual chapters to each family member. Stanley Huang is the patriarch with terminal cancer. He can be overbearing with a quick temper. He is not particularly adept with financial matters and is always on the lookout for a bargain. He tries to give his “Rolex” to his son without realizing that it is battery-operated and Rolex doesn’t make battery-driven watches. He has led his family to believe that his net worth is substantial but one senses early in the novel that this may not be the case. Stanley’s son, Fred, is a Harvard Business School graduate who always thought he would become a financial success, but feels that his career is floundering (The poor guy only makes $325,000 per year and doesn’t get to fly business class). He is divorced and dating a knockout Hungarian who sells high-end merchandise at Saks. He is beginning to sense she is too high maintenance and simply after marriage and his money. Their break-up leads to some dire but humorous consequences for poor Fred. The daughter, Kate, is struggling with trying to have it all. She is a middle manager at a prestigious tech firm. She works hard catering to the whims of her famous boss and two small children. Her husband is struggling to launch a start-up and thus has no income. Likewise he provides little help in raising the kids. For obvious reasons, this guy turns out to be the least likable of the lot. Wang portrays Fred and Kate as fairly generic American born Chinese (ABC’s). They reside at a nexus between the more traditional views of the previous generation and the high-tech society of their Bay Area peers. Much has been expected of them and both are indeed high achievers. However, both also struggle with low self-esteem. Fred thinks Kate has just been lucky, while he has struggled to launch his career. On the other hand, Kate feels like her career has been limited by her gender and race. A divorced female acquaintance urges her to be more assertive, advice she struggles to follow.Stanley’s two wives are represented by #1 Linda Liang, and #2 Mary Zhu. Linda views Stanley skeptically and makes an effort to keep her distance. She got little from him in the divorce settlement and is determined that her kids will get their fair share of his inheritance. Her success at achieving a comfortable life at age 72 speaks to her greater ability at managing money than Stanley. Although she clearly does not need another man in her life, she gets involved with a dubious Internet dating site with humorous consequences. Mary is much younger than Stanley. She is newly arrived from China with modest resources. She has catered to his every whim but has begun to tire from his needs in the waning months of his life. She clearly seeks the financial independence that she feels is her due for providing Stanley’s care. This leads to tawdry scenes of bickering between her, her sisters, and Stanley’s first family.Wang develops separate plots for each of the children as well as Stanley and Linda. These explore her various themes including the excesses of Silicon Valley, family dynamics among Asian families, marriage and relationships, ageing, and end of life issues. She injects enough humor and irony in the stories to make them engaging. However, their TV sitcom feeling and Wang’s third person narrative give the stories a superficial quality that seems to interfere with a deeper examination of her themes.
    • 4/5
      3.5 stars - rounded up to 4 for a good debut. This was a solid family drama about a wealthy Asian family in the Bay Area. Each chapter focused on a different family member and what was going on in their lives - divorced parents Linda and Stanley and their grown children, Fred and Kate. The story that is the main thread is Stanley's diagnosis with terminal cancer. It was well written but definitely a little slow at times. Thanks to LibraryThing for the ARC.
    • 3/5
      Early review copy (h/t LibraryThing) and it's a tricky one to review because I realize the work this represents from the author. I don't normally bat an eye at page count. But, for some reason, this felt daunting and took some fortitude to get through.It's not that it was poorly written. The characters, while I didn't like any of them, were fully realized. The storyline was cohesive and it made sense, it just didn't...wasn't my cup of tea.Closer to the point, this book left me on the chilly side of lukewarm. It's essentially an empty story of greed - an insatiable hunger for money, as well as the social status that confers. Remember the Rich Kids of Instagram? Well, this is kind of like that. Except with Harvard-educated adults from an Asian family. There were glimmers of humor, but I wouldn't call it entertaining and neither did it offer a particularly interesting or unique perspective on family.I was ready to take leave of this family as soon as I turned the final page (really, before...but I felt an obligation to finish it out). For the reading investment (of time, pages), I hoped to be left with something rewarding or insightful to leave prospective readers, but alas, I'm empty.
    • 3/5
      I'm kinda left with this empty feeling. It's like this book lacked heart and there was this coldness to it. And maybe that was intentional given so much of the focus is on what a dying man is leaving in his will and who will get what. In a family drama though I expect to feel more for the characters than I did with this one.Stanley Huang has been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. His ex-wife, Linda, encourages her adult children to get Stanley to divulge how much he is worth and who gets what so there are no problems with his second wife, Mary, after he dies. Linda wants to makes sure her kids get their fair share given she was the one who was the primary breadwinner when she and Stanley were married. With Stanley's death approaching, Linda, her two kids, and Mary will all face challenges that will make them question what is really important.The book gets off to a really slow start because there is too much focus on business and the lives of characters who really have nothing to do with the story. The book alternates chapters between different family members and so you are just getting to know the main characters but you're also getting all this unnecessary info which makes it overwhelming to read. Thankfully, after about 100 pages, you finally will feel like you are starting to understand this family a bit better.I liked the idea behind this book but I can't say I loved this story. If you are looking for a book that explores the business side of Silicon Valley and people motivated by money, this is a decent pick. But as a family drama, I just don't think this comes close to matching some of the other books I have read recently. I won a free copy of this book from LibraryThing's Early Reviewers program. I was under no obligation to post a review and all views expressed are my honest opinion.
    • 4/5
      This was one of those books that starts out slow and quietly reels you in until you are invested in seeing how it ends. I didn't feel that it lived up to all of the hype that has been built up, but it was an enjoyable book with an interesting storyline. My one complaint was the way it just kind of dropped what happened to Mary (the wife), and how everyone dealt with the reality of how much money their father had really left everyone.
    • 3/5
      Family Trust by Kathy Wang is a very readable, somewhat humorous take on the family drama. Wang’s prose flows nicely, conversations flow well, and the characters, though stereotypical, are well developed. That being said, I didn’t like the characters enough to care what happened to any of them and was repulsed by their greed. For me, this book didn’t live up to it’s hype.