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“The world of social media, big tech and internet connectivity provides fertile new ground for humans to deceive, defraud and possibly murder one another.... Well rendered and charming.... Original and intriguing.” —The New York Times Book Review
Claudia is used to disregarding her fractious family’s model-minority expectations: she has no interest in finding either a conventional career or a nice Chinese boy. She’s also used to keeping secrets from them, such as that she prefers girls—and that she's just been stealth-recruited by Veracity, a referrals-only online-dating detective agency.
A lifelong mystery reader who wrote her senior thesis on Jane Austen, Claudia believes she's landed her ideal job. But when a client vanishes, Claudia breaks protocol to investigate—and uncovers a maelstrom of personal and corporate deceit. Part literary mystery, part family story, The Verifiers is a clever and incisive examination of how technology shapes our choices, and the nature of romantic love in the digital age.
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Creators
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Release date
February 22, 2022 -
Formats
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OverDrive Listen audiobook
- ISBN: 9780593554913
- File size: 339216 KB
- Duration: 11:46:41
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Languages
- English
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Reviews
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Publisher's Weekly
Starred review from December 13, 2021
Set in New York “circa early twenty-first century,” Pek’s thoughtful, well-constructed debut introduces irrepressible Claudia Lin, who has recently been hired by Veracity, a low-profile, referrals-only company that checks information for mistrustful clients who want to know whether the people they meet on online dating sites are telling the truth. As Claudia notes, “Matching only fully succeeds if the dating platforms have access to accurate, complete information about the people on them. Problem is, people lie. All the time, especially on the Internet, and extra especially where anything with the potential for romance is concerned.” One client, Iris Lettriste, is different. She “sits down and tells us about the guy she wants us to verify like she’s ordering her first coffee of an arduous morning and it’s vital the that the barista gets it right.” Ten days later, Iris is found dead, apparently having killed herself. Claudia, who’s an avid mystery reader, decides to investigate and is pulled into a conspiracy, all the while dealing with her complicated, dysfunctional family. Claudia’s entertaining references to Inspector Yuan, the hero of her “comfort-read murder mystery series,” cleverly elucidate her views on literary structure as well as provide investigative tips. This nuanced novel will leave readers eagerly awaiting Pek’s next book. Agent: Julie Barer, Book Group. -
Library Journal
Starred review from June 1, 2022
Eunice Wong's rollicking performance of Pek's debut novel teleports listeners to the busy streets of New York City. That is where the charming protagonist, 20-something, Taiwanese American Claudia Lin, zips across the boroughs on her trusty bicycle and shadows people for Veracity, her employer. Veracity is a rather shady, referrals-only business that investigates the potential romantic partners its clients have met on dating sites to verify these "matches" have been truthful in their online dating profiles and real-life interactions. When her first big client ends up dead under suspicious circumstances, Claudia tries to channel her inner Inspector Yuan, the hero of her favorite mystery series set in Imperial China, which leads to often hilarious, sometimes dangerous, results. Pek's clever and absorbing plot highlights the danger of the misuse of collected personal data, but it is Claudia and her dysfunctional immigrant family who steal the show. Wong absolutely nails her portrayals of the wonderfully idiosyncratic Claudia, her over-achieving brother Charles, fashionista sister Coraline, and their exasperating, constantly critical mother. VERDICT Most listeners will be left hoping that Pek (a Singapore-born, New York City-based lawyer at a global investment company) is already at work on a sequel.--Beth Farrell
Copyright 2022 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
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AudioFile Magazine
Eunice Wong performs this rightly praised debut novel with appropriate intensity and delicate humor; she is perfectly matched to the dry wit of Pek's writing and her utterly charming heroine, Claudia Lin. Unbeknownst to her interfering family, Claudia has quit her boring finance gig and taken a position with a start-up investigating bad behavior in the online matchmaking industry. Soon a slightly mysterious client disappears. Claudia, guided by her close reading of a mystery series featuring a Ming dynasty inspector named Yuan, feels sure the woman was murdered and that she can and should prove it, although no one, including her boss and the client's sister, wants her to. Detective story, rom-com, and funny but piquant family drama all at once, this audiobook is a find and a delight. B.G. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2022, Portland, Maine
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Formats
- OverDrive Listen audiobook
subjects
Languages
- English
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