Having spent a short time in Malaysia whilst backpacking nearly 10 years ago, I really found a romanticisation of this book and all the memorable food and flavours. This added an extra character to the book, who wasn't human, and allowed me to enter into the realm of these affluent families. Without my experience there, I'm not sure the book would have hit the same. Nick's family and their need to force themselves into his happiness was insufferable and I found myself hopeful that Nick and Rachel would make it through after the demise of Astrid and Michael. I will definitely be watching the film adaptation, and adding the successive books of the series into my TBR pile. I also listened to the audiobook whilst reading, which added an essence of a play as they emphasised the singlish.