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A review by wildwolverine
My Beautiful Enemy by Sherry Thomas
4.0
Picking up where The Hidden Blade started, My Beautiful Enemy chronicles how Ying-Ying and Leighton Atwood met, fell in love, fell apart, reunited, and came back together. It's a beautiful, moving story while also touching on a lot social and political topics that would have been relevant to the time period, setting it apart from other romance novels. The blended wuxi (Chinese martial arts novel) and romance novel elements worked really harmoniously together, and I highly recommend this book, with some caveats.
When you meet Ying-Ying/Catherine Blade and Leighton Atwood, the two are already exes. Their reunion is bittersweet, and the way it's described - Ying-Ying is shocked that she didn't succeed in killing him after all - only makes me want to read on further. Honestly, I don't think this story could've worked any other way. Leighton was always dignified and honorable with regards to his fiancee while slowly falling back in love with Ying-Ying. For her part, Ying-Ying was equal parts devoted to her work and to Leighton. Their emotions were palpable, and I really felt for them. The writing between these two is well done!
This book stands apart from other romance novel because of the strong wuxia elements threaded throughout the story. Ying-Ying's commitment to her mission and her devotion to her blended family is unique to Eastern cultures, but it's no less poignant for being unfamiliar. Even though I didn't grow up in the same structures or with the same values, I felt how torn Ying-Ying was between personal desire and duty. For his part, Leighton had the same dilemmas, and while this initially tore them apart, it also brought them back together. It really was quite fulfilling.
So, what are my caveats? Well, readers may recognize this story, as it is very heavily "inspired" by the wuxia film Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, if Ziyi Zhang's character then went to England in the latter half of the story. The whole cave scenes were pretty much lifted straight from the movie, complete with bandits. Rest assured. As this is a romance novel, it ends on a happier note than the film does.
Another point that irritated me is the character of Leighton Atwood's fiancée, Miss Chase. She seemed well-written until it was no longer convenient for her to be so.
I know the prequel is only a novella, but I highly recommend reading it before this novel. There are lots of characters and references in the prequel that really aid in understanding this novel. You could read this as a standalone, but you would miss so much of the growth and sacrifice of these characters if you read them out of order. The two stories together create a wonderful and compelling story with a heartfelt romance at its core.
When you meet Ying-Ying/Catherine Blade and Leighton Atwood, the two are already exes. Their reunion is bittersweet, and the way it's described - Ying-Ying is shocked that she didn't succeed in killing him after all - only makes me want to read on further. Honestly, I don't think this story could've worked any other way. Leighton was always dignified and honorable with regards to his fiancee while slowly falling back in love with Ying-Ying. For her part, Ying-Ying was equal parts devoted to her work and to Leighton. Their emotions were palpable, and I really felt for them. The writing between these two is well done!
This book stands apart from other romance novel because of the strong wuxia elements threaded throughout the story. Ying-Ying's commitment to her mission and her devotion to her blended family is unique to Eastern cultures, but it's no less poignant for being unfamiliar. Even though I didn't grow up in the same structures or with the same values, I felt how torn Ying-Ying was between personal desire and duty. For his part, Leighton had the same dilemmas, and while this initially tore them apart, it also brought them back together. It really was quite fulfilling.
So, what are my caveats? Well, readers may recognize this story, as it is very heavily "inspired" by the wuxia film Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, if Ziyi Zhang's character then went to England in the latter half of the story. The whole cave scenes were pretty much lifted straight from the movie, complete with bandits. Rest assured. As this is a romance novel, it ends on a happier note than the film does.
Another point that irritated me is the character of Leighton Atwood's fiancée, Miss Chase. She seemed well-written until it was no longer convenient for her to be so.
Spoiler
Miss Chase starts out as a sweet yet intelligent woman who very much cares for Leighton yet recognizes she is losing him to Catherine Blade (Ying-Ying). When this happens, she doesn't meekly stand aside or fall in love with someone else, which is typical of romance novels to absolve the hero of guilt. Miss Chase fights to keep Leighton in the ways that would've been socially acceptable for her to do so. Yet, Thomas falls victim to tired romance tropes, and if Miss Chase can't be an angel, she must be a devil in disguise. Without explanation, she is turned into a villain and then summarily dismissed as someone who only wanted Leighton's money, despite there never being any evidence to this. It felt very cheap, lazy, and it really derailed the story for me.I know the prequel is only a novella, but I highly recommend reading it before this novel. There are lots of characters and references in the prequel that really aid in understanding this novel. You could read this as a standalone, but you would miss so much of the growth and sacrifice of these characters if you read them out of order. The two stories together create a wonderful and compelling story with a heartfelt romance at its core.