Scan barcode
A review by briarrose1021
Black Water Sister by Zen Cho
5.0
It wasn't until I had already begun listening to this book that I saw the brief description the author had given on her Twitter: “A stressed zillennial lesbian fights gods, ghosts, gangsters & grandmas in 21st century Penang.”
I had to laugh when I read it because it perfectly sums up this book. All the stressors Jess deals with, both of her own making and not, threaten to overwhelm her as she struggles to find her place in the world and with her family. Add to that the fact that she is suddenly being haunted by her dead grandmother, pulling her into the middle of a battle that goes back further than she realizes.
Listening to the audiobook brought all the emotions to the forefront. Catherine Ho did such a wonderful job with the narration that you can't help but empathize (and maybe sympathize if you know what it's like to interact with spirits) with Jess and everything she's going through.
With every new twist that occurred, I would think "surely this is the last thing; surely the author won't torture Jess more than this." And, inevitably, something else would happen. All the way up until the end, and that ending was just wow. Indeed, the last 2 hours were just damn.
I am definitely glad that I listened to this book, and I am looking forward to reading or listening to other books by Cho that are now on my TBR list.
I had to laugh when I read it because it perfectly sums up this book. All the stressors Jess deals with, both of her own making and not, threaten to overwhelm her as she struggles to find her place in the world and with her family. Add to that the fact that she is suddenly being haunted by her dead grandmother, pulling her into the middle of a battle that goes back further than she realizes.
Listening to the audiobook brought all the emotions to the forefront. Catherine Ho did such a wonderful job with the narration that you can't help but empathize (and maybe sympathize if you know what it's like to interact with spirits) with Jess and everything she's going through.
With every new twist that occurred, I would think "surely this is the last thing; surely the author won't torture Jess more than this." And, inevitably, something else would happen. All the way up until the end, and that ending was just wow. Indeed, the last 2 hours were just damn.
I am definitely glad that I listened to this book, and I am looking forward to reading or listening to other books by Cho that are now on my TBR list.