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A review by jcreads85
The Empress of Salt and Fortune by Nghi Vo
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
relaxing
medium-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
4.0
This is a reread for me but what I wrote back in 2021 still rings true, so I’ll share it here. I actually had forgotten I’d written it and am glad I hadn’t done a check of my Goodreads for plot or info before I decided to read so I could finally carry on with the series. The reveal at the end was just as neat the second time.
Book review circa 2021:
This book was a fairy tale. A travelers account. Full of folklore, love, and mystery. It was also a tale of forced marriage, exile, deception, and revenge.
I listened on audio and was thankful for the enunciation of the names (and the competent and engaging narrator). I was initially lost at parts, especially when we first get the tale going about the kingdom, royalty and inner court as I wasn’t able to wrap my head around who was who, but it quickly cleared.
I loved the set-up; how the tale unfolded from the lips of an old woman to a traveler. And the twist at the end was great - unexpected and powerful. “Angry mothers raise daughters fierce enough to fight wolves.”
And it was refreshing to step out of Western tales and into one envisioned from ancient Chinese culture & customs.
The writing felt poetic and the tale moved like water ripples, out from a center point showing how one thing lead to another until the whole of the empire was moved by an Empress thought to be wasting in exile.
I’ll definitely be picking up Nghi Vo’s other works.
Book review circa 2021:
This book was a fairy tale. A travelers account. Full of folklore, love, and mystery. It was also a tale of forced marriage, exile, deception, and revenge.
I listened on audio and was thankful for the enunciation of the names (and the competent and engaging narrator). I was initially lost at parts, especially when we first get the tale going about the kingdom, royalty and inner court as I wasn’t able to wrap my head around who was who, but it quickly cleared.
I loved the set-up; how the tale unfolded from the lips of an old woman to a traveler. And the twist at the end was great - unexpected and powerful. “Angry mothers raise daughters fierce enough to fight wolves.”
And it was refreshing to step out of Western tales and into one envisioned from ancient Chinese culture & customs.
The writing felt poetic and the tale moved like water ripples, out from a center point showing how one thing lead to another until the whole of the empire was moved by an Empress thought to be wasting in exile.
I’ll definitely be picking up Nghi Vo’s other works.