Ex Marks the Spot

September 16, 2024
Taiwanese American 18-year-old Gemma Sun is used to being considered boring and socially awkward, especially compared to her popular and charismatic Taiwanese American ex-boyfriend Xander Pan, whom she detests after an unpleasant breakup (“He accused me of being no fun”) and whose connection to their culture she envies. Then she’s contacted by an attorney, who tells her that her grandfather recently died and that he’d left Gemma old newspaper clippings with a secret message prompting her to visit his apartment in Taipei. The news causes a rift between Gemma and her mother; she told Gemma that he’d died a long time ago, and Gemma now blames her for her loneliness and disconnect with her heritage. Reluctantly, she enlists Xander, whose involvement in the Taiwanese American Roots Pursuit program helps secure Gemma a trip to Taiwan. As a non-Mandarin speaker, Gemma struggles to decipher her grandfather’s elaborate clues, prompting Xander to persuade Gemma into letting him help her in exchange for part of whatever’s at the end of their search. What follows is a whirlwind adventure through Taipei, which Chao (When You Wish Upon a Lantern) depicts using vivid prose that details Taiwanese tourist life alongside a simmering second-chance romance. Ages 12–up.