Playing House is the first book in Lang’s new Uptown series. It’s actually more of short novella than a full-length book. Playing House tells the story of two Chinese-American, urban planners in NYC. They both find themselves in less than desirable places in their personal lives; one is divorced, the other unemployed. This is what I refer to as a fast, low impact read. The characters are remarkably well developed for such a short novella, and the conflict is minimal and low on angst. I enjoyed the growing emotions their fake relationship fostered upon them, and learning a bit about the architectural history of NYC is always a bonus!
Lang’s writing style is clean and very easy to read. Playing House was my first book by her, and it won’t be my last. My only hope is that subsequent books in this series are little longer, and the conflict a little meatier. This is an excellent introduction to what looks like a fun new series. Playing House is out now.