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badger_ti_robespierre's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Great setting for a story. The writing was way better than book 1
rabbiting's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
val_eris's review against another edition
4.0
I wish I could give this a nuanced review but all I can focus on is what a god damn himbo the love interest is. Like the man literally does not know how to use silverware and yet they’re constantly describing how muscular and powerful and brawny he is. At one point he suggests that the protagonist should kill him and decides he needs to get topless for this, as if a sword that can gut him can’t cut through fabric. He tries to tell her he doesn’t want to see her while grinning because he’s so happy to see her. What an idiot I love him.
Anyway I’ve been team tiger spirit from the first moment he appeared in book one and I still am, awaiting a 3rd book in this series where, I am confident, Li-Lin will finally get the dumb and supportive beefcake she deserves.
Anyway I’ve been team tiger spirit from the first moment he appeared in book one and I still am, awaiting a 3rd book in this series where, I am confident, Li-Lin will finally get the dumb and supportive beefcake she deserves.
aspire's review against another edition
5.0
Another incredible story!!!!! Cannot WAIT for book 3!!!!!!
Just awesome on so many levels, to keep it extremely brief. Need to read book one, "The Girl With Ghost Eyes" to fully appreciate this second book. Book doesn't end on a cliff-hanger, but Please hurry up and get book three out for us to devour!!!
Just awesome on so many levels, to keep it extremely brief. Need to read book one, "The Girl With Ghost Eyes" to fully appreciate this second book. Book doesn't end on a cliff-hanger, but Please hurry up and get book three out for us to devour!!!
tashadandelion's review against another edition
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
onelemonylime's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
A skillfully blended tale full of colorful characters and Chinese-American history. Look forward to ghost trains and an eerie reconstructed Song-era palace in the midst of late-1800s San Francisco. The story also touches on some uncomfortable situations that reinforce the tenuous social position that women occupied in that period, including but not limited to a complicated father-daughter relationship.
It was a little difficult to follow the parallel plots unfolding between the vampire tree and the Ghost Magistrate, which IMO were only loosely connected. The ending resolves one but sets up the other for the next installment in the series. Some of Li-Lian’s leaps in logic were also a little hard to believe…
Some highlights: the fight against that big jerk Biaozu; Mr. Yanqiu (as always); Mamian and Niutou. Hope the latter get the happy ending they deserve!!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Murder, and Violence
Moderate: Self harm, Gore, Misogyny, Sexism, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Bullying, Slavery, and Trafficking
erinsteffens's review against another edition
5.0
An absolute perfect book. I thought the first one was good but this one blew it out of the water. Li-lin is one of my favorite main characters ever written and it makes me happy to know she is loosely inspired by Buffy. In this book, she is faced with constant conflicts and twists. This book doesn't let up or bore you at any point. It addresses many heavy themes appropriately, including loss, tradition, slavery, imperialism, misogyny, and exploitation. I'm so impressed with the author's writing and I can't wait for his next releases.
justgina93's review against another edition
5.0
Loved Mr win shu (the eyeball spirit) he was the best along with the little girl with no face. She was cute as well. All the lore was pretty great and I loved the continuation of the story line from the first one.
kblincoln's review against another edition
4.0
I loved the first book in this series (The Girl with Ghost Eyes). In the sequel which picks up right after the end of the first book, we are thrust head-first back into Li-Lin's world of a historical 19th century San Francisco Chinatown where actual ghosts, yurei, gods, and monsters walk-- all kept at bay by folks like Li-Lin and her Daoist father.
And I still love Li-lin to pieces. She's fairly awesome, but she's definitely got daddy issues (as he kind of disowned her at the end of the last book) and she's lost and sad. She's also getting mixed up with some mysterious girls--one with no face, one that died mysteriously, and the daughter of her current mob boss; Bok Choy. Still she gets to be clever at various parts of the book; including one where she is in an impossible battle against demons and her friends and does a clever attack. (wish I could say more! rat shishkebab! Don't want to spoil!)
The monsters and demons just keep on coming in this one-- which is part of the gory fun. Li-lin's trusty sidekick Mr. Yanqui (the spirit of her father's eyeball) and the buddhist monk tiger with multiple tails who is in love with her also help out.
I want to tell you about the main bad guy....but that would spoil everything. The reveal of just what and who are causing problems touches on alot of touchy issues-- including Chinese slavery in Peru.
But Boroson never flinches from both the gory details and the complicated reactions to the crimes that his villains experience.
There is a major thought digression in the middle of the book when Li-lin is almost captured by the main baddie by being put under a love curse. The consequences of the love curse from the perspective of a female already in a mostly powerless role is described at length in all its horrible ramifications...something I don't think I've ever come across before in all my years of fantasy reading. Kudos to Boroson for venturing into that thorny tangle of a topic in a way that seems to speak to sexual slavery in the non-magical world as well. This sequel is worth reading solely for that part. (and then the blind fighting sequence afterwards as well)
So why only 4 instead of the first book's 5 stars? It took me about a third of the book before I started investing emotionally again. Part of it is that all the emotional relationships are set up in the first book and the second just assumes we've got all that covered. This is a tricky thing to pull off in a second book. So I recommend reading the first book soon before this one. Don't do what i did and wait for a year or longer!
For tackling real-world ethical issues, a gory and entertaining parade of monsters and gods, and a clever, conflicted heroine, definitely dip into this series...but with the first book first.
And I still love Li-lin to pieces. She's fairly awesome, but she's definitely got daddy issues (as he kind of disowned her at the end of the last book) and she's lost and sad. She's also getting mixed up with some mysterious girls--one with no face, one that died mysteriously, and the daughter of her current mob boss; Bok Choy. Still she gets to be clever at various parts of the book; including one where she is in an impossible battle against demons and her friends and does a clever attack. (wish I could say more! rat shishkebab! Don't want to spoil!)
The monsters and demons just keep on coming in this one-- which is part of the gory fun. Li-lin's trusty sidekick Mr. Yanqui (the spirit of her father's eyeball) and the buddhist monk tiger with multiple tails who is in love with her also help out.
I want to tell you about the main bad guy....but that would spoil everything. The reveal of just what and who are causing problems touches on alot of touchy issues-- including Chinese slavery in Peru.
But Boroson never flinches from both the gory details and the complicated reactions to the crimes that his villains experience.
There is a major thought digression in the middle of the book when Li-lin is almost captured by the main baddie by being put under a love curse. The consequences of the love curse from the perspective of a female already in a mostly powerless role is described at length in all its horrible ramifications...something I don't think I've ever come across before in all my years of fantasy reading. Kudos to Boroson for venturing into that thorny tangle of a topic in a way that seems to speak to sexual slavery in the non-magical world as well. This sequel is worth reading solely for that part. (and then the blind fighting sequence afterwards as well)
So why only 4 instead of the first book's 5 stars? It took me about a third of the book before I started investing emotionally again. Part of it is that all the emotional relationships are set up in the first book and the second just assumes we've got all that covered. This is a tricky thing to pull off in a second book. So I recommend reading the first book soon before this one. Don't do what i did and wait for a year or longer!
For tackling real-world ethical issues, a gory and entertaining parade of monsters and gods, and a clever, conflicted heroine, definitely dip into this series...but with the first book first.
cassandrat's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
I really like this series. I like historical urban fantasy. I like supernatural. I like families and communities. I like San Francisco. It's everything. The protagonist is more powerful and successful in this installment than I remember her being in the previous.