Pride and Preston Lin

Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice is one of the most beloved books of all time, and it’s no wonder it continues to inspire so many retellings. Just last week, a particularly special retelling came out: Pride and Preston Lin by Christina Hwang Dudley. A contemporary romance set in the San Francisco Bay Area, this adaptation highlights Chinese Americans of different classes, with the restaurant industry and competitive swimming as vital themes throughout.

Special thanks to Christina Hwang Dudley, Third State Books, and Austenprose PR for the review copy of this book!

Summary

Lissie Cheng works as a waitress at her aunt and uncle’s restaurant when the Lins and Bings are seated in her section. When she accidentally serves them a dish that one among the party is allergic to, it sets Lissie and Preston Lin against each other immediately. But when Lissie’s older sister Jenny starts dating Preston’s close friend Charles Bing, the new enemies are thrown into each other’s company again and again. Between restaurant mishaps, Lissie’s younger sister’s competitive swimming, and some secrets that eventually come out, these two are not on course to ever be friendly… or are they? With all the familiar beats of Pride and Prejudice, Lissie and Preston will soon learn to meet each other where they’re at and recognize that they may actually be perfect for each other.

Review

For me to want to read a retelling of a classic, it needs to bring something new to the table: a different setting, characters changed in some way, maybe a twist on whose perspective we follow. Pride and Preston Lin does exactly that, updating Pride and Prejudice for the modern world, setting the story in the San Francisco area, and highlighting Chinese American characters as our protagonists. There are some references to Crazy Rich Asians, but here it’s combined with the classic enemies-to-lovers arc that Jane Austen fans know so well.

Here, the bad blood all starts when Lissie Cheng, a waitress at her family’s restaurant, accidentally serves food to a table despite one among the party having an allergy to it. The whole ordeal becomes a bigger deal than it needed to be, and it sets Lissie and Preston Lin against each other. But Lissie’s sister Jenny starts dating Preston’s friend Charles, so they’ll be forced to see each other quite a bit over the following months. An added wrench thrown into everything is the swim team Lissie’s younger sister JoJo is on, currently captained by a certain Wayman Wang. Yes, he and Preston have history and differing versions of what actually happened.

Pride and Preston Lin is a contemporary romance, though despite being aimed for an adult audience, it does feel vaguely New Adult much of the time. The main characters are all in school, finishing up their Bachelor’s degrees (Lissie) or working towards a PhD (Preston). Their families play a big role in everything that’s going on, too.

One thing I enjoyed throughout the book is the frequent references to Pride and Prejudice. Lissie is writing a play partly inspired by Jane Austen’s classic novel. Lissie, Jenny, and their whole group of friends attend a dance that’s a movie-themed costume party, with the 2005 version of Pride and Prejudice being one that’s highlighted. They dress up as the main characters, learn the beautiful dance from the movie, and really bring in that well-known charm. On the nose, sure, but it works perfectly here.

Another thing I appreciated in Pride and Preston Lin is the depiction of Chinese American culture. Preston’s mom is, to put it mildly, unimpressed that Lissie doesn’t speak fluent Mandarin. But as Lissie describes, there are many ways to be Chinese in America, and depending on when your family immigrated, it will impact the language you use and how your culture is expressed.

Pride and Preston Lin has all the right beats from Pride and Prejudice, with characters that feel like Lizzie and Darcy, similar conflicts with surrounding characters, and that juicy, tell-all letter. While I wasn’t as invested in everything (the swimming parts went over my head a bit), I enjoyed the way this story gave a unique and modern update on the classic enemies-to-lovers story.

Final Thoughts

Christina Hwang Dudley has taken a beloved classic and made it her own, still honoring all the ups and downs of the original while making each character sparkle in their own right. Pride and Preston Lin is a wonderful contemporary retelling that Pride and Prejudice fans are sure to love.

Get the Book

You can buy Pride and Preston Lin here – it’s available as a paperback, ebook, and audiobook.

Pride and Preston Lin by Christina Hwang Dudley
Audience	Adult
Genre	Contemporary Romance
Setting	SF Bay Area; Seattle Area
Number of Pages	288
Format I Read	Paperback (ARC)
Original Publication Date	March 19, 2024
Publisher	Third State Books

Official Summary

In this modern-day retelling of Pride and Prejudice, the quick-witted and contrarian Lissie Cheng must navigate societal pressures and her growing attraction to the rich and enigmatic Preston Lin.

Lissie is the middle of three sisters, orphaned and taken in by their aunt and uncle. Both she and her older sister, Jenny, work in the family restaurant while pursuing their education and career dreams. When Lissie accidentally serves a dish containing shellfish paste to an allergic customer, she runs afoul of the wealthy Lin family. Their golden boy, Preston, star swimmer and Stanford Ph.D. student, is as handsome as he is self-righteous. Lissie hates him and everything he stands for, but circumstances keep bringing them together. Can she overcome her pride and her initial misgivings about Preston Lin and his condescending mother? Will love prevail, and will these enemies turn into lovers?

Pride and Preston Lin by popular Regency romance writer Christina Hwang Dudley is a hilarious and earnest contemporary riff on Jane Austen’s classic work. And readers will undoubtedly root for Lissie Cheng, a sassy new Elizabeth Bennet for our times, to find lasting love and happiness.