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yourbookishbff's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
informative
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
The story-within-a-story framework for this cycle of novellas is so well-executed, and I loved the road-trip version we get in this installment. While this felt more plot-driven than the two previous novellas, I still really enjoyed it, and loved the wuxia elements, in particular.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence, Murder, Death, and Injury/Injury detail
legs_n_chins's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
hopeful
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
I’m reading Vo’s novellas sort of out of order, in a sense, so I read Empress of Salt most recently and didn't get to Tiger Came Down in between. I don’t know what the style of storytelling is in Tiger so I don’t have a good frame of reference, but the stark difference between Empress and this one was a little surprising and disappointing. I really, really enjoyed the style of Empress and had hoped that the other novellas would be in the same sort of switching POV, though I do understand how that might get exhausting or repetitive quickly. So, fair enough that this is a very different style.
That said, this is the first of Vo’s works so far I didn’t give a full 5 stars to. Partially for my slight disappointment in the writing style shift, but also because I didn’t find it quite as immersive as her other works. Maybe it was my mood today, I don’t know. Regardless, I preferred how Empress kept the action of the story and the present moments separate. It really wove well into the meta narrative of storytelling as an act, I felt, and having Chih be in a more active setting was a little jarring. Though still an observer, it felt strange to see them at the center of the action rather than the action being communicated through story. Again, I get how it would grow boring to have the same style over and over — and this is the third of Vo’s novellas in this collection so if she’d done them all the same it would certainly be stale by now — but I wasn’t as big a fan of it is all.
But aside from all of that, I really liked the theme of this one. The way stories are all interconnected and all the same but all different. It reminds me so much of Black Sails which does a lot of the same thing. Stories are told and they are passed on, that’s the point of Chih and Almost Brilliant, so they naturally shift and change and grow. It’s all about what someone has seen and what they then say and how they tell it. I really liked the story of Wild Pig Yi and Gravewraith Chen (btw absolutely incredible character name) and their song as they killed the Hollow Hands. I do just wish that wasn’t the only real story told in this one, it felt so short. Understandably, with the theme, Chih had to observe the rest, but I do wish some of the other tales they touched on had been spun out a little more. I think I maybe lost some of the power of how they were connected because I couldn’t quite grasp the plot of the other mentioned stories. Still, for the length, Vo continues to create immersive settings and characters I really care about and I just think that’s so powerful. I love all these characters dearly and I only had them for 100 pages.
A story is true, a story is untrue.
That said, this is the first of Vo’s works so far I didn’t give a full 5 stars to. Partially for my slight disappointment in the writing style shift, but also because I didn’t find it quite as immersive as her other works. Maybe it was my mood today, I don’t know. Regardless, I preferred how Empress kept the action of the story and the present moments separate. It really wove well into the meta narrative of storytelling as an act, I felt, and having Chih be in a more active setting was a little jarring. Though still an observer, it felt strange to see them at the center of the action rather than the action being communicated through story. Again, I get how it would grow boring to have the same style over and over — and this is the third of Vo’s novellas in this collection so if she’d done them all the same it would certainly be stale by now — but I wasn’t as big a fan of it is all.
But aside from all of that, I really liked the theme of this one. The way stories are all interconnected and all the same but all different. It reminds me so much of Black Sails which does a lot of the same thing. Stories are told and they are passed on, that’s the point of Chih and Almost Brilliant, so they naturally shift and change and grow. It’s all about what someone has seen and what they then say and how they tell it. I really liked the story of Wild Pig Yi and Gravewraith Chen (btw absolutely incredible character name) and their song as they killed the Hollow Hands. I do just wish that wasn’t the only real story told in this one, it felt so short. Understandably, with the theme, Chih had to observe the rest, but I do wish some of the other tales they touched on had been spun out a little more. I think I maybe lost some of the power of how they were connected because I couldn’t quite grasp the plot of the other mentioned stories. Still, for the length, Vo continues to create immersive settings and characters I really care about and I just think that’s so powerful. I love all these characters dearly and I only had them for 100 pages.
A story is true, a story is untrue.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence and Death
Moderate: War and Blood
devynreadsnovels's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Blood, Physical abuse, Murder, Violence, Death, Grief, and Injury/Injury detail
green_amaryllis's review
adventurous
tense
medium-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? No
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Murder, and Violence
ozymandias272's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
Moderate: Violence and War
raptorq's review against another edition
adventurous
reflective
fast-paced
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence and Death
Minor: Kidnapping
thebetterstory's review against another edition
adventurous
reflective
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? No
4.5
Brilliant writing, and my favourite of the Singing Hills Cycle by far. I can't believe I almost stopped at the second. I want to spend so much more time with these characters, even though that isn't at all the point of a novella or even what the novella is trying to say―the briefness and incompleteness of what you get to find out about them is the point.
Throughout this series, Vo's had clever things to say about the act and art of storytelling, how that relates to history and entertainment and the lives of the people the stories come from, and here it felt like many of those themes showed themselves off to their best advantage. I particularly love what the story does with the word "beautiful" and when it's used to describe women in stories, when it isn't, and how that relates to the ways real people see and love each other.
Throughout this series, Vo's had clever things to say about the act and art of storytelling, how that relates to history and entertainment and the lives of the people the stories come from, and here it felt like many of those themes showed themselves off to their best advantage. I particularly love what the story does with the word "beautiful" and when it's used to describe women in stories, when it isn't, and how that relates to the ways real people see and love each other.
Content Warnings
Minor: Violence, Death, and Infidelity
linblythe_pub22's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
Moderate: Violence
Minor: Death of parent, Blood, and Abandonment
daniellekat's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
3.5
Solid and entertaining, but I didn't love it as much as The Empress of Salt and Fortune. The story within the story was a bit less narrative this time, and I found it less interesting and more difficult to follow. These novellas really need to be read over a very short time frame to get the most out of them.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence
Moderate: Death
librarymouse's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
I continue to adore these novellas. I wish there were more, and I'm eternally glad Nghi Vo is continuing to publish them. The prose is beautiful and I am a sucker for a continually evolving/changing story that doesn't necessarily need to be told linearly. from poly elders who have adored each other long enough for their love to become that of legend, to non-romantic sworn bonds, to fast friendships, this novella shows the enormous breath of what is possible in relationships and love, beyond the narrow definitions often ascribed to marriage and friendship. Nghi Vo writes the most gorgeous fully realized characters.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Grief, War, Violence, and Injury/Injury detail