I always looked up onto Choo’s writing about strong girl character, you may read my review on her first book (The Ghost Bride – here), did you know it will be 6 episodes adaptation of this novel coming on Netflix this year? Im all head over hills into it. Back to this review, you sees, as a woman/girl we do have many limitations as fragile as we are. But deep inside, there always something blossoming about being a girl, and this book was all it was. Its a relief that sometimes its good to be emotional.
English, 363 Pages|Publisher: Flatiron Books| Historical, Fantasy Fiction, Mystery Solving Investigation |Rate : ★★★★★
Goodreads Summary : A sweeping historical novel about a dancehall girl and an orphan boy whose fates entangle over an old Chinese superstition about men who turn into tigers.
Centered in Malaya, five people (few were ghosts as I recall) tangled in a matter of living and dead. Which lead to self-discovery, sin to be regret and what matter of all, of course; love.
It was like a curse, one of those dark tales when you try to discard something but it always return to you. – Ji Lin
On this Choo’s writing, I extremely devoured by her skills of blending the words with other people inner thoughts as though I’ve been in that person mind instead. I really like the ideas of putting ‘a paragraph’ to breathe, the kind of delaying on what will coming afterward to deepen the intimate connection with the characters. Save the best part for the last, right?
It occurred to me that just this afternoon I’d asked Hui to tell Mama I wouldn’t be in for the rest of the week because my mother was sick. How flippant I’d been! And now, like a curse, my words had come to roost. _ Ji Lin
Characters development was written emotionally powerful, with all the thoughts and decision making. I remember how it stabs my heart several times and kept me with a weird feeling lurking in my stomach.
A choking loneliness that made my teeth ache. – Ji Lin
Whereas the background setting, the author must have plentiful research to set up such a place. The Malaya was explained in a beautiful yet oldies way, just I imagined how it used to be (re-imagine from P Ramlee movies of course).
My advice, please do not read this book on the public area as you’ll grin like a mad person before you realize it and do not read it on a dark night, where everyone falls asleep because in lonesome you’ll find the eerie side of this book. I still sometimes get the goosebump from it.
Goodby to my old life, and hello to the rest of it, whatever it might bring. – Ji Lin
There are no reason to object the relationship involved, as it was totally legal as far that I’ve research (in muslim ways) – not know about chinese but I thought it will be the same. But it all again got back into superstitious and the fear that people will talk – I’ll leave the rest into your own judgment as I already had my stand on this matter.
After all, this was a medium reading, not that heavy because it was all about emotion, but you may experience slow reading pace grabbing all the emotions back. Yet, the words used was that light and encouraging even for a beginner.
A slight heavy on the romantic side, well balanced in blending of the mysterious and problem-solving riddle. Also, a book which resembles how it was to be a decent girl living in Malaya on 1931. Tho it has alternate character perspectives, but still, the girl is the dominant and ace of all.
Why you need to read it?
In spite of the curiosity to know of what actually the connection between these five people with the Confucian name, the reader will be served with lots of inner view to what it felt to be a girl with not so good background. We will experience how crucial his/her past experience in determining their later decision. Also a sprinkled bit of hope in loving line – a forbidden love story perhaps? Everyone was curious to know how it end, well, Choo’s has her own way to make the character live even when you have already finished the book. 🙂