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3.89 AVERAGE
3.89 AVERAGE
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
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
I read this book as part of the Storygraph Read the World Challenge for the Malaysia prompt.
I really enjoyed this book. The themes really hit home for me, especially the generational trauma, family issues and lgbt issues. It is a very easy read but also very emotional.
I would recommend this book to people who enjoy sci fi or supernatural stories, stories about generational trauma and overcoming grief and mental health issues.
I really enjoyed this book. The themes really hit home for me, especially the generational trauma, family issues and lgbt issues. It is a very easy read but also very emotional.
I would recommend this book to people who enjoy sci fi or supernatural stories, stories about generational trauma and overcoming grief and mental health issues.
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Cool premise, very slow execution. How can a story with mafia, ghosts, and gods be such a slog?
This is marketed as adult, but I think it's more of an older YA book. It is a sort of coming-of-age story for Jess. I found (maybe because YA isn't my taste) I was less interested in Jess and more interested in Ah Ma and the Black Water Sister.
I also thought it was a little lame that we solved the "Jess is the Black Water Sister's Medium now" plotline with....having the vengeful spirit-god overcome her trauma and move on?? In like 20 pages?? Certainly fixed the "Jess can't leave Penang to be gay with her gay girlfriend" problem. It felt too rushed and easy.
There's also an attempted SA toward the end of the book that was very jarring and unnecessary. I did not appreciate reading that.
This is marketed as adult, but I think it's more of an older YA book. It is a sort of coming-of-age story for Jess. I found (maybe because YA isn't my taste) I was less interested in Jess and more interested in Ah Ma and the Black Water Sister.
There's also an attempted SA toward the end of the book that was very jarring and unnecessary. I did not appreciate reading that.
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
More detailed review to come, but [a:Zen Cho|4632661|Zen Cho|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1466717964p2/4632661.jpg] is just pure brilliance.
I tried reading this book two times but DNFed it in the end. The plot just moved too slow for me.
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
*I didn't finish this* but I did get 75% of the way through. Considering I'm a completionist, the fact I couldn't bring myself to finish is not a good sign.
To be fair, I much prefer nonfiction and fantasy when it's fiction, so it's very possible that this just wasn't the genre for me.
I liked the description of the cultural differences, the representation of family tension, and generally the concepts of ghost haunting and gods. I just found myself frustrated by a protagonist who is consistently described as smart by the rest of her family and herself, but her actions don't reflect that. It was a tell, not show.
Furthermore, for a book with mafia, ghosts, corruption, family drama, being a secret gay, and religion, it was weirdly boring. In a way, it felt like the protagonist's reactions and interrogations ruined a lot of the interest these things should have had. For the aim of being realistic, it slowed the excitement of the events being experienced.
Also *and this part is a spoiler*
If your longterm girlfriend wants to break up after a Month of not communicating As Much, knowing you had been Hearing Voices for a while, after Moving to a Different Country, that's not a good sign. I don't even know if they stay split up, but I'm gonna pretend they do. It feels like both of them need to work on themselves before being in a serious relationship.
To be fair, I much prefer nonfiction and fantasy when it's fiction, so it's very possible that this just wasn't the genre for me.
I liked the description of the cultural differences, the representation of family tension, and generally the concepts of ghost haunting and gods. I just found myself frustrated by a protagonist who is consistently described as smart by the rest of her family and herself, but her actions don't reflect that. It was a tell, not show.
Furthermore, for a book with mafia, ghosts, corruption, family drama, being a secret gay, and religion, it was weirdly boring. In a way, it felt like the protagonist's reactions and interrogations ruined a lot of the interest these things should have had. For the aim of being realistic, it slowed the excitement of the events being experienced.
Also *and this part is a spoiler*
If your longterm girlfriend wants to break up after a Month of not communicating As Much, knowing you had been Hearing Voices for a while, after Moving to a Different Country, that's not a good sign. I don't even know if they stay split up, but I'm gonna pretend they do. It feels like both of them need to work on themselves before being in a serious relationship.
adventurous
mysterious
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:
Yes
I was initially disappointed by this book feeling that it lacked the whimsical charm of Cho's earlier novels, which are for young adults. This felt like a "new adult" novel, about Jess, a first generation immigrant Malaysian Chinese girl who has just graduated from Harvard and moved back to Malaysia with her parents, who have suffered a reverse in fortunes. Maybe because I was listening to the book, it seemed to take a long time to get to the fantasy part, based on Chinese and Malay folklore, which gives this book its dark power and eventually transforms it into a page turner. Eventually I gave up and read it with my eyes.
So, Jess is being haunted by her formerly unknown grandmother, Ah Mah, who was the semi-willing medium of a minor but still pretty damned powerful local deity known as Black Water Sister. Hence, the name. There is a crooked Malay company trying to destroy the deity's small temple so they can build more condos on the site. There is also a secret about the head of the company.
As with Cho's previous books which also feature magical old women, I was most interested in the magical grandmother, who is tough, funny, street smart, and just sort of irresistible. Cho has a wonderful knack for rendering this kind of character accessible to an outside audience. She portrays them with love and her portrayal has what Brenda Ueland, the author of "If You Want to Write," referred to as "microscopic truthfulness." I would bet money they are all based on someone or some ones in her own life.
I was less interested in Jess's own problems, like how to break it to her parents that she was gay and in a lesbian relationship, and how to get out of Penang without hurting their feelings and how to keep her relationship going. I felt it was unrealistic that such an ambitious and accomplished young woman would hang around Penang endlesslessly because her parents "needed settling in." But maybe that is exactly what will appeal to another reader. You never know.
So, Jess is being haunted by her formerly unknown grandmother, Ah Mah, who was the semi-willing medium of a minor but still pretty damned powerful local deity known as Black Water Sister. Hence, the name. There is a crooked Malay company trying to destroy the deity's small temple so they can build more condos on the site. There is also a secret about the head of the company.
As with Cho's previous books which also feature magical old women, I was most interested in the magical grandmother, who is tough, funny, street smart, and just sort of irresistible. Cho has a wonderful knack for rendering this kind of character accessible to an outside audience. She portrays them with love and her portrayal has what Brenda Ueland, the author of "If You Want to Write," referred to as "microscopic truthfulness." I would bet money they are all based on someone or some ones in her own life.
I was less interested in Jess's own problems, like how to break it to her parents that she was gay and in a lesbian relationship, and how to get out of Penang without hurting their feelings and how to keep her relationship going. I felt it was unrealistic that such an ambitious and accomplished young woman would hang around Penang endlesslessly because her parents "needed settling in." But maybe that is exactly what will appeal to another reader. You never know.
It was alright. Maybe I had my hopes up too high? I think this kind of story was just not really for me. What didn't help was that I didn't like Jess at all. I could kind of understand why she acted the way she did sometimes, but largely I was annoyed and frustrated at her.
tldr: not a bad book, not a great book! Probably better suited for people who are into spook stories.
tldr: not a bad book, not a great book! Probably better suited for people who are into spook stories.