She decides to position herself as the best friend of the author and begins to edit and re-write Athena's latest unpublished manuscript, a novel about Chinese laborers in World War I.

Despite efforts to present herself as Asian, controversy surrounds the success of the novel, and June repeatedly fends off accusations of cultural appropriation and plagiarism on Twitter.

"[8] The New York Times gave the book a positive but reserved review, calling it "viciously satisfying" but "on-the-nose" and overly blunt.

"[10] The Chicago Review of Books wrote "where [Yellowface] shines is Kuang’s darkly witty tone, critiques of publishing and cultural exploitation, and the all-consuming nature of internet personas."

The Washington Post gave a critical review of the novel, saying that June's character was inconsistent and lacked depth, while the novel's depictions of the publishing industry were perfunctory and relied too heavily on replicating Twitter arguments in text.