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rainydaze_ronan 's review for:
Shanghai Immortal
by A.Y. Chao
"I always wondered why it never rained in yin Shanghai."
Who knew Hell was so full of deities, dragons, and a Mahjong council?
Lady Jing has the (mis?)fortune of being half vampire, half Hulijing fox-spirit, which is quite the story of "How my mom met my dad and had me" meme and you could say Lady Jing's life is kind of crazy. Being nearly 100 years young, she is full of snark, sarcasm, and more. Jing has the pleasure of being a ward to the King of Hell, Big Wang, and is sent to retrieve a delivery, only to find out it was a mortal man. Forgoing her vampire instinct, she takes Tony Lee to Big Wang and finds out that Mr Lee wants to help establish a central bank of Hell with the help of Big Wang. Is there more to this scheme than he is letting on? Quite a trip for a mortal to take a trip to immortal Shanghai to talk finances. But we'll listen to his ideas.
If this wasn't the only problem, Jing discovers a plot regarding theft of a dragon pearl, said to be incredibly powerful, and it will take all of her wits to get to the bottom of it. From the dark, spirit-filled world of immortal Shanghai to the jazzy, war-torn lands of mortal Shanghai, Jing finds herself in the middle of more than what she originally bargained for.
This was a rollercoaster of a story. I'll start with the things I liked most.
The imagery of both worlds of Shanghai were beautifully written. From the tales of Immortal Shanghai ever-changing to keep up with the mortal realm, to the bustle of the Mahjong council that takes place, it felt like I was really in this world, getting to see the different spirits that inhabited it. A world where temples and pavilions were nestled among hotels and nightclubs. We also get a glimpse into mortal Shanghai where we see the influence of multiple world powers and how Shanghai has adopted some of their culture while still retaining their own traditions.
The sight-seeing in both worlds were some of my favorite scenes. The description of the food, the atmosphere of the club scene really made this book more enjoyable for me. The 1930s era was a fascinating period for this story, and Chao did a good job with tying in the various elements of fashion, food, and entertainment that came with it.
The cast is interesting. Jing for the most part of the book is rather childish and immature, though this may be a large turn-off for some, as you continue to read on, you start to understand the meaning for her behavior and attitude. As she learned more of the world around her, she grew as an individual, but old habits take a heavy hold on her personality, so be prepared to deal with her snarky commentary throughout.
Mr Lee is a bit more of an enigma and as he and Jing spend more time together, we get to see more of his backstory and his feelings for Jing. Is there a future for these two despite their differences?
The side cast is quite an assortment of personality. We have the "frenemy" Gigi, the quirky Lord Black, the questionable Lady Soo, and many more. Even some celestial deities make appearances and it is enjoyable to see them engage in mortal activities. Also the King of Hell doesn't seem too bad. He did take in Lady Jing as a ward, so that should qualify for something right?
Something else I think was interesting was the concept of this Hell. Throughout the book, it definitely gives off more a purgatory vibe. I am not well-versed in Chinese mythology but the various mentions of ceremonies involving reincarnation, crossing the bridge, and indentured servitude kept me wanting to look more into this as I read the book. Chao presents this realm in a truly interesting manner and it definitely gives more nuance to the "Hell" setting.
There is also a slow-burn element. I prefer these in stories and I think it was well-done for the most part. It could have used a little work in execution, but overall, it was enough to please me. Others may find it a bit lacking, but being part one of a trilogy, I think there will be room for more.
As for what I did not care for or felt could be improved-
I'll be blunt, the phrase "piss-fart" (and variations of 'fart') and "ta-tas" appear way too frequently. Repetitive phrases quickly destroy a vibe for a book, and much of it comes from the childish behavior of Jing. Even at her age, she could have used a few different words to get the same meaning across. The amount of times I read these phrases did lower my interest and honestly took an entire star from the rating. In the upcoming books I really hope there is less, or even no more use of these phrases.
While we see some scenes of action, there are fairly short-lived. The book is more adventure rather than action, which is not bad, but I hoped to see more of Jing's abilities be featured in more ways. For talk about multiple combat stances and forms, the fight scenes felt over before they started. I hope as the series continues we get to see more of the celestial powers be used as most of the fighting scenes typically involved weapons, some being magical but nothing much beyond.
Character development is another one. We do see Jing go through a bit of growth in the story, and we see instances of backstory revealed in others, it just seems there is a lot of room for potential growth and throughout most of the book, Jing had moments of maturity, but it felt a lot of it did not really seem relevant or impactful. For the events that she experienced, I suppose I expected a slight shift to be noticeable in her actions and mannerisms. I hope that we get more scenes that give Jing a chance to become more of a fleshed-out individual. The same goes for Mr Lee because I feel he deserves WAY more development than what he got here.
Overall, a solid book and a fun introduction to a new fantasy trilogy. The magical aspects kept me interested as did the gorgeous imagery, while the characters were unique, some side-characters definitely stuck with me more than others (perhaps more than the MCs at times) though I truly did enjoy this book. I also hope Jing finds a thesaurus because I really don't want to read the same phrase thirty-seven times again. For those who enjoy a fun adventure through a Jazz Age Shanghai with mythical elements and unique stakes, I recommend this to you!
3.5/5 stars
Who knew Hell was so full of deities, dragons, and a Mahjong council?
Lady Jing has the (mis?)fortune of being half vampire, half Hulijing fox-spirit, which is quite the story of "How my mom met my dad and had me" meme and you could say Lady Jing's life is kind of crazy. Being nearly 100 years young, she is full of snark, sarcasm, and more. Jing has the pleasure of being a ward to the King of Hell, Big Wang, and is sent to retrieve a delivery, only to find out it was a mortal man. Forgoing her vampire instinct, she takes Tony Lee to Big Wang and finds out that Mr Lee wants to help establish a central bank of Hell with the help of Big Wang. Is there more to this scheme than he is letting on? Quite a trip for a mortal to take a trip to immortal Shanghai to talk finances. But we'll listen to his ideas.
If this wasn't the only problem, Jing discovers a plot regarding theft of a dragon pearl, said to be incredibly powerful, and it will take all of her wits to get to the bottom of it. From the dark, spirit-filled world of immortal Shanghai to the jazzy, war-torn lands of mortal Shanghai, Jing finds herself in the middle of more than what she originally bargained for.
This was a rollercoaster of a story. I'll start with the things I liked most.
The imagery of both worlds of Shanghai were beautifully written. From the tales of Immortal Shanghai ever-changing to keep up with the mortal realm, to the bustle of the Mahjong council that takes place, it felt like I was really in this world, getting to see the different spirits that inhabited it. A world where temples and pavilions were nestled among hotels and nightclubs. We also get a glimpse into mortal Shanghai where we see the influence of multiple world powers and how Shanghai has adopted some of their culture while still retaining their own traditions.
The sight-seeing in both worlds were some of my favorite scenes. The description of the food, the atmosphere of the club scene really made this book more enjoyable for me. The 1930s era was a fascinating period for this story, and Chao did a good job with tying in the various elements of fashion, food, and entertainment that came with it.
The cast is interesting. Jing for the most part of the book is rather childish and immature, though this may be a large turn-off for some, as you continue to read on, you start to understand the meaning for her behavior and attitude. As she learned more of the world around her, she grew as an individual, but old habits take a heavy hold on her personality, so be prepared to deal with her snarky commentary throughout.
Mr Lee is a bit more of an enigma and as he and Jing spend more time together, we get to see more of his backstory and his feelings for Jing. Is there a future for these two despite their differences?
The side cast is quite an assortment of personality. We have the "frenemy" Gigi, the quirky Lord Black, the questionable Lady Soo, and many more. Even some celestial deities make appearances and it is enjoyable to see them engage in mortal activities. Also the King of Hell doesn't seem too bad. He did take in Lady Jing as a ward, so that should qualify for something right?
Something else I think was interesting was the concept of this Hell. Throughout the book, it definitely gives off more a purgatory vibe. I am not well-versed in Chinese mythology but the various mentions of ceremonies involving reincarnation, crossing the bridge, and indentured servitude kept me wanting to look more into this as I read the book. Chao presents this realm in a truly interesting manner and it definitely gives more nuance to the "Hell" setting.
There is also a slow-burn element. I prefer these in stories and I think it was well-done for the most part. It could have used a little work in execution, but overall, it was enough to please me. Others may find it a bit lacking, but being part one of a trilogy, I think there will be room for more.
As for what I did not care for or felt could be improved-
I'll be blunt, the phrase "piss-fart" (and variations of 'fart') and "ta-tas" appear way too frequently. Repetitive phrases quickly destroy a vibe for a book, and much of it comes from the childish behavior of Jing. Even at her age, she could have used a few different words to get the same meaning across. The amount of times I read these phrases did lower my interest and honestly took an entire star from the rating. In the upcoming books I really hope there is less, or even no more use of these phrases.
While we see some scenes of action, there are fairly short-lived. The book is more adventure rather than action, which is not bad, but I hoped to see more of Jing's abilities be featured in more ways. For talk about multiple combat stances and forms, the fight scenes felt over before they started. I hope as the series continues we get to see more of the celestial powers be used as most of the fighting scenes typically involved weapons, some being magical but nothing much beyond.
Character development is another one. We do see Jing go through a bit of growth in the story, and we see instances of backstory revealed in others, it just seems there is a lot of room for potential growth and throughout most of the book, Jing had moments of maturity, but it felt a lot of it did not really seem relevant or impactful. For the events that she experienced, I suppose I expected a slight shift to be noticeable in her actions and mannerisms. I hope that we get more scenes that give Jing a chance to become more of a fleshed-out individual. The same goes for Mr Lee because I feel he deserves WAY more development than what he got here.
Overall, a solid book and a fun introduction to a new fantasy trilogy. The magical aspects kept me interested as did the gorgeous imagery, while the characters were unique, some side-characters definitely stuck with me more than others (perhaps more than the MCs at times) though I truly did enjoy this book. I also hope Jing finds a thesaurus because I really don't want to read the same phrase thirty-seven times again. For those who enjoy a fun adventure through a Jazz Age Shanghai with mythical elements and unique stakes, I recommend this to you!
3.5/5 stars