The following version of this book was used to create the guide: Chen, Kristen. Counterfeit. William Morrow, 2022.

Kirsten Chen’s first-person narrative, Counterfeit, follows the life of Ava Wong as she participates in a fraudulent luxury handbag scheme. Throughout the novel, Ava gives testimony to a detective about her involvement with Winnie Fang, the mastermind behind the scam. She and Winnie met at Stanford when they were assigned as roommates. While they spent some time together, Winnie left during the first semester. Years later, she reentered Ava’s life under the pretenses of wanting to find a liver transplant for a friend; she heard that Ava’s husband was a surgeon. At this moment in her life, Ava was feeling dissatisfied and lost; she did not want to return to work at the law firm but was unsure how she could justify being a stay at home mom. When Oli rented an apartment near work, without consulting her, she booked a flight to Hong Kong to get back at him. In China, Ava discovered that he cut off her access to the credit cards and she had no money. Desperate, Ava contacted Winnie who had a gig for her. Winnie explained that all Ava needed to do was inspect a shipment of counterfeit handbags, check their quality and send photos, and she would deposit money directly to her account.

As the narrative progresses, Ava continues to expound on her remorse and desire for an escape from the fraudulent scheme. She tells the detective that she planned to cut off her contact with Winnie, but her old classmate manipulated her into further participation. When she suggested that Ava begin making purchases and returns at California boutiques, she insinuated that it was the only way Ava would be able to pay for her son’s speech therapy. As Boss Mak’s health declined, his daughter took over control of the factory and proposed a new scheme. She planned to build a black factory next to their legitimate designer factory, in Dongguan. Ava testifies that she was terrified of the new plan and warned Winnie against it.

In Part 2, the author shifts to the third person limited point of view and grants the reader access to Winnie’s life in the narrative present. While Ava is testifying to law enforcement, Winnie is hiding in Beijing, plotting a new endeavor involving counterfeit diamonds. When she and Ava discovered that their business was infiltrated by the police, they knew they had to recalculate their plan. Ava, who had been instrumental in growing the knockoff handbag business, suggested that she turn herself in and redirect the investigation. She knew that law enforcement would give her a minimum sentence if she could hand over Boss Mak. During her testimony, Ava continued to communicate with Mak International and promised them that Boss Mak would receive a transplant in America. However, as soon as he landed in the airport, law enforcement arrested him. At her trial, Ava is given two years' probation with no jail time. The detective believed her meek and remorseful persona. At the close of the novel, Ava and Winnie reunite in New Hampshire and congratulate themselves for outwitting the system and forming their own version of success.