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About The Year of Cicily by Lisa Lin
Title: The Year of Cicily
Author: Lisa Lin
Series: From Sunset Park, With Love #1
Genre: Contemporary Romance
This is the year of Cecily Chang.
San Francisco attorney Cecily Chang is ready to tackle the New Year head on, so she creates a list of resolutions guaranteed to reboot her life—right after her dutiful visit home to Sunset Park, Brooklyn, for the Lunar New Year. Cecily prepares to face her critical, meddling mother, nosy relatives, and the chaos and drama family togetherness brings. At least the food will be delicious. This holiday, Cecily vows to remain calm—as long as she doesn’t see him.
Jeffrey Lee deeply regrets how he ended things with Cecily ten years ago, but he felt it was best for her at the time. When he runs into her again during the New Year, he sees it as a sign. Now a successful screenwriter, Jeffrey is determined to win back Cecily’s heart.
But Cecily doesn’t believe in signs or second chances and embraces her new resolutions. This time, Jeffrey won’t give up—and he’s convinced he can write them a new Hollywood happy ending.
Excerpt from The Year of Cicily
© 2023
Lisa Lin
“Come quick! It’s cold.” Judith ushered her up the steps, every inch the nagging mother hen Cecily had known her whole life. Quick as lightning, she grabbed Cecily’s luggage, and schlepped it with effort.
“Ma, stop it. Put my suitcase down before you hurt yourself,” Cecily scolded.
“I don’t like your tone.” Her mother scowled. It was too early to break Resolution 3, Cecily reminded herself. She hadn’t even walked into the house yet. Surely, she could last more than five minutes before being provoked by her family? That would be an inauspicious start to the New Year festivities.
With a heavy, world-weary sigh, she waited for her mother to open the door and entered the foyer. Immediately she was assaulted by a whirlwind of noise and activity. She saw her sister Gillian and brother-in-law Peter, her brother Owen and his girlfriend Sonia embroiled in a vicious game of Monopoly. Her cousin Molly was manning the stove, and a bevy of aunts and uncles, cousins, and nieces and nephews were running around. It was pandemonium and the familiarity and sheer nostalgia of it all hit her like a punch and almost made her weepy.
Cecily took off her shoes, set her luggage by the foot of the stairs, laid her jacket on top of it, and made her way to the kitchen. She could smell daikon, star anise, and chilies. That could only mean one thing.
“Sit down, sit down. I made beef noodle soup for you with a soy braised egg and pressed tofu on the side, your favorite with some bean sprouts. Fan chay chao dan with rice if you want that too. And went to the bakery and got you a bo-lo,” Judith said, referring to the classic pineapple bun. Cecily took a deep sniff and started salivating. Her stomach rumbled.
“Molly, get your cousin a bowl of soup. Ai-ya,” Judith tsked. “You’re too skinny. Before you were too fat and I told you to lose weight but now you’re too skinny. Not look good.” And right on cue, the nagging, backward compliments, and criticism. Yep, it was good to be home. It was good to know some things never changed—it wouldn’t feel like home otherwise.
Just then, her father walked into the room. Paul Chang was dressed in khakis and a sweater vest and looked like the absent-minded professor he was. He blinked in surprise when he saw her.
“Cecily! What are you doing here?” A big smile crossed his face, and he embraced her with a hearty hug. Cecily clung for a beat longer than necessary, savoring the moment.
“Dad. Didn’t Mom tell you I was coming home for New Year?”
“Your mother doesn’t tell me anything.” For which he received a glare and painful swat on the arm from his wife.
“Hey, sis!” Owen shouted. “Come over here and join my team. We’re destroying Gill and Peter.” He was twenty-eight, her youngest sibling, and lived up to the reputation of the annoyingly obnoxious baby brother.
“Only because you’re cheating,” Gillian huffed.
“You always were a sore loser.”
“Enough!” Judith exclaimed. “Leave your sister alone,” she scolded Owen. “She just flew across the country. She needs to eat. What’s wrong with you?” She then turned to Cecily. “Eat! I didn’t spend all day making this for you for nothing.”
Ah. There was no place like home.
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About Lisa Lin
Lisa has been an avid romance reader and fan since she read her first Nora Roberts novel at the age of 13 after wandering the aisles of her local bookstore. Lisa loves that romance has the power to inspire, and believes that HEAs are for everyone.
Lisa writes light contemporary romantic comedies with a liberal dash of snark and banter. She enjoys delving into the complexity of Asian and immigrant family experiences, and celebrates female friendships in her trademark dry, witty style. As an Asian-American author writing own voices Asian American stories, Lisa hopes that her books will show the diversity of the Asian-American experience, and the importance of every reader being able to see themselves represented on the page.
Having grown up in Pennsylvania and helping out at her parents’ restaurant, Lisa has never bothered to learn to cook. She has two liberal arts undergraduate degrees and a J.D, and in her former life she was an intern, then Legislative Assistant for a PA State Representative. She also worked as a paralegal at a boutique law firm. Lisa is a politics junkie (don’t get her started on the wonder that is The West Wing!), indulges in naps whenever possible, and believes Netflixing in her pajamas and ordering take out qualifies as the perfect weekend.
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