Just days after her young, handsome husband dies in a car accident, Ellie Huang discovers that he had a mistress. Acting on impulse, Ellie cashes in Ian's life insurance policy for an extended stay at the luxurious Hotel du Cap-Eden-Roc in Antibes, France. Accompanying her is her free-spirited best friend, Mable Chou. Ellie hopes that the five-star resort on the French Riviera, with its stunning clientele and floral-scented cocktails, will be a heady escape from the real world. And at first it is. She and Mable meet an intriguing couple, Fauna and Robbie, and as their poolside chats roll into wine-soaked dinners, the four become increasingly intimate. But the sunlit getaway soon turns into a reckoning for Ellie, as long-simmering tensions and uncomfortable truths swirl to the surface.
Lin expends more narrative energy interrogating Ellie’s inner life than Ian’s infidelity, crafting a subtle, character-driven story about interracial marriage ... Lin is deft and never overbearing in her handling of race ... At times, You Can’t Stay Here Forever drifts listlessly through the aftermath of Ian’s death. There aren’t clearly drawn, propulsive questions in its pages.
Lin does expert work in painting a very specific picture of white-collar life at a corporate law firm ... The novel’s level of unpredictability drops significantly ... Missed opportunities to bring this world of wealth to life and say something larger about Ellie’s decisions in relation to her privilege ultimately flatten the plot ... An entertaining escape even if you’ll likely return home unchanged.
Ellie learns the power of human connections as she heals and finds the push she needs to move forward. Lin’s debut is a heartwarming novel about self-discovery after loss, as she explores grief, deep disappointment, female relationships, and the Asian American perspective of living in a dominantly wealthy and privileged white society.
