As You Walk On By

 

My Thoughts:

Theo Jamal Wright is a good kid at heart, promise. However, he does not seem to say and do the right thing. But in this cute take on Breakfast Club with an odd assortment of kids hiding out in a bedroom at a raging party, the relationships made in the bedroom is great as long as the party lasts. However, what makes this story so sweet is the way Theo has to make things right in order to continue the progress they all made on that one night. Where the jock character in Breakfast Club talks about the fact that when they get back to school it will be like before, Theo knows he has to grow and face some truths about himself in order to reach out to his new friends that he has hurt. 

Theo is infuriating. I wanted to yell at him to stop so many times, but stick with him. He is worth the investment, at least the other in his life that stick with him think so. 

This is a great read for queer kids, non queer kids, misfits popular kids that feel like imposters, the ones that are silently suffering even if everyone thinks their life is so perfect. Don’t walk on by for this one. 

From the Publisher:

Seventeen-year-old Theo Wright has it all figured out. His plan (well, more like his dad's plan) is a foolproof strategy that involves exceling at his magnet school, getting scouted by college recruiters, and going to Duke on athletic scholarship. But for now, all Theo wants is a perfect prom night. After his best friend Jay dares Theo to prompose to his crush at Chloe Campbell's party, Theo's ready to throw caution to the wind and take his chances.

But when the promposal goes epically wrong, Theo seeks refuge in an empty bedroom while the party rages on downstairs. Having an existential crisis about who he really is with and without his so-called best friend wasn't on tonight's agenda. Though, as the night goes on, Theo finds he's not as alone as he thinks when, one by one, new classmates join him to avoid who they're supposed be outside the bedroom door. Among them, a familiar acquaintance, a quiet outsider, an old friend, and a new flame . . .

Publishing Information:

Author: Julian Winters. 

Publisher: Viking Books for Young Readers (January 17, 2023)

Foul Lady Fortune (audiobook)

 

My Thoughts:

Two brothers on different sides, two sisters, unaware of each other’s role in this war - everything coming crashing down and then the book ends. This was an exciting book of intrigue and sci fi experimentation taking place in 1930 Shanghai.  It is hard to give up too much as this is a story full of plot twists, mystery and intrigue. They are spies, double spies and even triple spies after all. Rosalind, known as Fortune, or Lady Fortune is paired up in a fake marriage to Orion Hong. Orion Hong, though knows her as Janie Mead, but as they partner up on their mission, there are so many things beside her real name that remain unknown to Orion. Rosalind knows that she is hiding many things, including her greatest secret, but she does not realize that Orion too has secrets of his own.

This is a fast paced read. Keep up.

From the Publisher:

It’s 1931 in Shanghai, and the stage is set for a new decade of intrigue.

Four years ago, Rosalind Lang was brought back from the brink of death, but the strange experiment that saved her also stopped her from sleeping and aging—and allows her to heal from any wound. In short, Rosalind cannot die. Now, desperate for redemption for her traitorous past, she uses her abilities as an assassin for her country.

Code name: Fortune.

But when the Japanese Imperial Army begins its invasion march, Rosalind’s mission pivots. A series of murders is causing unrest in Shanghai, and the Japanese are under suspicion. Rosalind’s new orders are to infiltrate foreign society and identify the culprits behind the terror plot before more of her people are killed.

To reduce suspicion, however, she must pose as the wife of another Nationalist spy, Orion Hong, and though Rosalind finds Orion’s cavalier attitude and playboy demeanor infuriating, she is willing to work with him for the greater good. But Orion has an agenda of his own, and Rosalind has secrets that she wants to keep buried. As they both attempt to unravel the conspiracy, the two spies soon find that there are deeper and more horrifying layers to this mystery than they ever imagined.

Publication Information:

Author: Chloe Gong

Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books (September 27, 2022)

Print length: 525 pages

Narrator: Emily Woo Zeller

Audio length: 18 hours 28 minutes

Rubi Ramos's Recipe for Success

 

My Thoughts:

After just finishing Fake Dates and Mooncakes, I wanted more YA romance that incorporated food or a food contest. However, what this book does not have that Mooncakes has is the more complex, mature, and rounded voices and lives of the characters. Although the premise, a child of immigrants, is similar, the way Rubi handles her different issues is very immature. Her lies, her arrogance, her ego and her ability to continue to create a false front for herself was getting really irritating. I found myself scolding Rubi throughout the book, which is never a great feeling. Ryan, her tutor turned love interest is cute enough, but he does not have an opportunity to really be anything beyond his stereotype privileged white surfer boy. 

What does save this book, though, is the actual debate and the contest. Although it was very fantastical and it took a lot of other characters to come forward for Rubi, what I appreciated was the way Rubi stayed with her Cuban roots to bake things on her own terms. In that way, she was able to show some respect to her parents and her culture. This book will be good for the middle school classroom library. 

From the Publisher:

Graduation is only a few months away, and Rubi Ramos’s “recipe for success” to get into prestigious Alma University is already off track.

When Alma waitlists Rubi’s application, Rubi will need to be distraction-free to make the grade and keep her parents—who have wanted this for her for years—from finding out. Which means falling for her cute surfer-slash-math tutor, Ryan, definitely won’t work. And neither will breaking her mother’s ban on baking—her parents didn’t leave Cuba so she could bake just like them.

But some recipes are begging to be tampered with.

When the First Annual Bake Off comes to town, Rubi’s passion for baking goes from subtle simmer to full boil. Add to the mix her crush on Ryan may be turning into a full-fledged relationship and Rubi’s life is suddenly so different from what it was. She’s not sure if she has what it takes to win the Bake Off, or where the relationship with Ryan is going, but there’s only one way to find out—even if it means going against her parents’ priorities.

Now Rubi must differentiate between the responsibility of unfulfilled dreams she holds and finding the path she’s meant for.

A joyful novel of first romance, new possibilities, and the chance to define yourself, Rubi Ramos’s Recipe for Success will find its way into your heart.

Publication Information:

Author: Jessica Parra

Publisher: Wednesday Books (May 16, 2023)

Print length: 313 pages

Fake Date and Mooncakes

 

My Thoughts:

If you have been paying attention to my reading over the years, there are book tropes that I will always fall for, whether I like the cover, know the artist or even like the title. My go to tropes when I want to forget about whatever deadlines I have looming is: fake date romance (any - hetero, gay, multi ethnic, mono ethnic - love is love) AND rom coms with FOOD involved. If the characters are Asian American, Native American, Pacific  Islander, or even not American at all, better yet. I find the generational cultural clashes more interesting.  

Fake Date and Mooncakes fits into all my categories for the perfect recipe for cuddling up and reading. What makes it different is that it has a rich/poor trope in the vein of Crazy Rich Asians where the economic difference for Theo Sommers' family is more egregious than Theo being gay.  Dylan Tang, the other main character and fake date material is so lovable and his values are so solid that it is hard to understand Theo's families worries. Dylan is easy to root for and if he just walks away, I would still cheer for him. 

As for the food part, Dylan has lost his mom and is living with his aunt. He is trying to keep their restaurant open and sees a local Mooncake contest as an opportunity to help his aunt keep her restaurant open. After delivering food and getting a horrible review from someone that seems like Theo's boyfriend, Dylan doesn't think twice about Theo despite the little spark. But Theo comes to the restaurant the next day to apologize and Dylan snags him with xiao long bao. Now that is a great reason to fake date someone. "You had me at xiao long bao." In addition, once Dylan decides to enter the mooncake contest, he chooses a  mooncake his grandmother made. The recipe is one he and his mother were going to make together, but when she dies, the recipe is gone and he needs to recreate it. This is just one example of how Ms. Lee weaves in real emotion and heart to a rom com that could have stayed light and funny. Be prepared to cry.

If your readers like this, try: 

• Café Con Lychee by Emery Lee
• Salt and Sugar by Rebecca Carvalho
• Fires on High by Elizabeth Acevedo
• A Phò Love Story by Loan Le
• An Appetite for Miracles by Laekan Zea Kemp

From the Publisher:

Dylan Tang wants to win a Mid-Autumn Festival mooncake-making competition for teen chefs—in memory of his mom, and to bring much-needed publicity to his aunt’s struggling Chinese takeout in Brooklyn.

Enter Theo Somers: charming, wealthy, with a smile that makes Dylan’s stomach do backflips. AKA a distraction. Their worlds are sun-and-moon apart, but Theo keeps showing up. He even convinces Dylan to be his fake date at a family wedding in the Hamptons.

In Theo’s glittering world of pomp, privilege, and crazy rich drama, their romance is supposed to be just pretend . . . but Dylan finds himself falling for Theo. For real. Then Theo’s relatives reveal their true colors—but with the mooncake contest looming, Dylan can’t risk being sidetracked by rich-people problems.

Can Dylan save his family’s business and follow his heart—or will he fail to do both?

Publisher Information:

Author: Sher Lee

Publisher: Underlined (May 16, 2023)

Paperback length: 272 pages

Grades 7-9

Sunhead: Graphic Novel

My Thoughts:

This is a love letter to those readers who find romance and friendship in books more than in people. This is for the readers who are obsessed with certain fictional characters and find the fictional world a much brighter place than reality. Although this takes place in Israel, this still feels like an American story. 

Rotem, the main character, is a Sunhead, or a fan of the international paranormal vampire series "Sunrise." Yes, it is a nod to Twilight, but the character uses this devotion to then tell the story of finding a friend IRL. I know this is supposed to be a coming of age romance, but the story is a little thin. Rotem's inner thoughts and motivation are a mystery to me. I could not get clues from the graphics and coloring either, so the story feels unfinished. The art is warm and light, but I just feel like there is more to be explored.

From the Publisher:

Rotem is a Sunhead, a fan of the international smash hit Sunrise series of books and films. She’s obsessed with the story’s love interest, Edmund, and no one else gets it. But all that changes when she befriends Ayala, a shy classmate and avid book lover who’s as swept away by the romance as she is. The two become fast friends, but as their deep connection grows stronger, Rotem starts to wonder: What exactly draws her to this story?

Alex Assan’s debut, Sunhead, is an earnest coming-of-age graphic novel that explores how the stories we love help us understand our friendships, our relationships, and ourselves.

Publication Information:

Author, Illustrator: Alex Assan

Publisher: HarperAlley (May 7, 2024)

 

Sound the Gong (Kingdom of Three, Book 2)

My Thoughts:

This is the conclusion to the duology The Kingdom of  Three, following the first book, Strike the Zither. You don’t need to know that this is based on a classic Chinese text. After all, it is thoroughly Americanized-ish to be led by women and sword sisters. You do, however, need to spend from now to this release in April to read the first book Strike the Zither. In fact, if you haven’t started the first book, read them closer to the April release date so that you can more easily keep track of all the characters. This is especially true because there are so many characters and connections to keep track of. It reads like a Russian novel/tome. 

The main character keeps changing bodies too, so I would appreciate a little character list like a play.

The one thing I want to talk about without giving away anything is the fact that this is American-ish. What that means is that the feminism is American. The filial piety is very Asian. In addition, the concept of deity is very non-American , especially Christian. This is not the all seeing, all knowing deity. Think Greek and Roman gods and goddesses with their loyalty and bickering. Also, they mess up and try to manipulate fate. 

What to read more like this? Check out other YA Asian fantasy books by Joan He (Descendant of the Crane), or Xiran Jay Zhao Iron Widow  for older YA or Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor for younger YA.

From the Publisher:

All her life, Zephyr has tried to rise above her humble origins as a no-name orphan. Now she is a god in a warrior’s body, and never has she felt more powerless.

The warlordess Xin Ren holds the Westlands, but her position is tenuous. In the north, the empress remains a puppet under Miasma’s thumb. In the south, the alliance with Cicada is in pieces.

Fate has a winner in mind for the three kingdoms, but Zephyr has no intentions of respecting it. She will pay any price to see Ren succeed—and she will make her enemies pay, especially the enigmatic Crow. What she’ll do when she finds out the truth. . . Only the heavens know.

Featuring gorgeous map art by Anna Frohmann and black-and-white portraits by Tida Kietsungden, Sound the Gong is the second book in Joan He's riveting Kindgom of Three duology.

Publication Informaton:

Author: Joan He

Publisher: Roaring Brook Press (April 30, 2024)

Print length: 320 pages

Gloria Buenrostro Is Not My Girlfriend

 

My Thoughts:

I enjoyed this awkward Vietnamese kid, Gary. His so called "best friend" is cringe worthy and the Roosters are just horrible, but I appreciate a kid who will ride his mother's tandem bike alone. Gloria is also a realistic and complex character. Gary and Gloria are nice kids, but they are also human. They can make each other laugh and also make each other cry as they both learn how to navigate changes in their life. I think what is especially cute is that they are human. Their voice is refreshing in this genre that is littered with characters that are immature, egocentric, privileged, and yucky. I want to root for these two kids.

In another blurb I read that this story is loosely based on the author's life, so perhaps that is why the reactions by the main characters seem so realistic and raw. This is not a stylized fairy tale. This is about real kids having real issues. This is about dreams and disappointments. This is about real families dealing with real issues. As the poor kid at a rich school, Gary is very mature in his values. He has a clear idea of right and wrong even if he does not always make the best choice at first. This is a perfect summer read for anyone wanting a feel good story with characters that you can root for. 

From the Publisher:

Gary Võ is one of the few Vietnamese kids in his school and has been shy for as long as he can remember―being ignored and excluded by his classmates comes with the territory. So when the most popular guy in his grade offers Gary the opportunity to break into his inner circle, Gary jumps at the chance. All he needs to do is steal the prized possession of the most beautiful and untouchable girl they know―Gloria Buenrostro.

But as Gary gets to know Gloria, he’s taken in by her authenticity and genuine interest in who he really is. Soon, they’re best friends. Being part of the “in crowd” has always been Gary’s dream, but as he comes closer to achieving infamy, he risks losing the first person who recognizes his true self. Gary must consider if any amount of popularity is worth losing a true friend.

Publication Information:

Author: Brandon Hoàng

Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR), June 27, 2023

Hardcover length: 304 pages

Canto Contigo

 

My Thoughts:

I realize that I have a lot of 4-star books. I also realize that I have not given 5 stars. 5 stars of any genre are saved not only for culturally relevant books, but books that I would buy as textbooks for my methods class. 5-star books are mentor texts. However, this is a GREAT book. I want to say that I enjoyed it. I believe that the author, Jonny Garza Villa, has a writing style that is easy to read. The characters are complex and also swoon worthy. The author is able to bring readers in for a light, romcom-y tale while also using words as political weapons to break stereotypes within the Mexican and Mexican American community. In the first Villa book I read, Ander & Santi Were Here,  the author takes on immigration and undocumented workers, including the stereotypes and vitriole other Mexican Americans feel toward the undocumented. 

In this book, the author examines the power of Mexican music, and more specifically, mariachi. But perhaps examine is not the right word. The author sheds light on the fact that mariachi, as a traditional art form, is also  queerphobic, transphobic, and racist. Rey and Rafie are courageous enough to shine unapologetically in mariachi. The two rivals-to-lovers are a lot, they are too much, but in a good way. Rafie is extra, extra, extra. He is arrogant, entitled, and as the author describes, Rafie has a god complex. However, Rey may seem like the more passive pair, but Rey is stronger than anticipated. 

This was a celebration of queer love and the passion of mariachi. This was a celebration of grief and family strength. This was a celebration of friendship. I don't know if universities with Spanish studies and Spanish arts like mariachi exist in the United States, but I hope they do exist. 

From the Publisher:

When a Mariachi star transfers schools, he expects to be handed his new group's lead vocalist spot―what he gets instead is a tenacious current lead with a very familiar, very kissable face.

In a twenty-four-hour span, Rafael Alvarez led North Amistad High School’s Mariachi Alma de la Frontera to their eleventh consecutive first-place win in the Mariachi Extravaganza de Nacional; and met, made out with, and almost hooked up with one of the cutest guys he’s ever met.

Now eight months later, Rafie’s ready for one final win. What he didn’t plan for is his family moving to San Antonio before his senior year, forcing him to leave behind his group while dealing with the loss of the most important person in his life―his beloved abuelo. Another hitch in his plan: The Selena Quintanilla-Perez Academy’s Mariachi Todos Colores already has a lead vocalist, Rey Chavez―the boy Rafie made out with―who now stands between him winning and being the great Mariachi Rafie's abuelo always believed him to be. Despite their newfound rivalry for center stage, Rafie can’t squash his feelings for Rey. Now he must decide between the people he’s known his entire life or the one just starting to get to know the real him.

Canto Contigo is a love letter to Mexican culture, family and legacy, the people who shape us, and allowing ourselves to forge our own path. At its heart, this is one of the most glorious rivals-to-lovers romance about finding the one who challenges you in the most extraordinary ways.

Publication Information:

Author: Jonny Garza Villa

Publisher: Wednesday Books (April 9, 2024)

Hardcover length: 352 pages

Tokyo Dreaming

 

My Thoughts:

I was not approved for this book on NetGalley, but I wanted to follow up on Akio and Izumi from the first book, Tokyo Ever After, so I am not averse to buying my own books. After all, I gave my Tokyo Ever After book I bought to one of my English teacher alum and I will do the same for this one. I did get the first book via NetGalley and liked it so much that I bought the hardcover. I have also book talked Ms. Jean's first book to students at Nanakuli Intermediate, so I know which teacher I am giving this to. 

This is a continuation of Izzy's time with her father as well as a continuation of the love story of her parents and her relationship with Akio. However, it is less com and more rom. There are twists and complications as all book 2s must have. Izzy has a lot of decisions to make and finds herself in a new fake relationship for a good cause until it becomes a love triangle. In addition, she has to decide what she wants to do - college, no college, expectations from the royal palace, to conform or not conform? What will our Izumi do?

What I liked about this second book is that the character, Izumi, is showing more maturity. Her Japanese is getting better and her relationship with the Shining Twins is quite hilarious. I wanted to know more about the Empress, but this was still a devour read good for high school. The other book could be read by middle grades, but there is a brief sex scene in this one. 

From the Publisher:

When Japanese-American Izumi Tanaka learned her father was the Crown Prince of Japan, she became a princess overnight. Now, she’s overcome conniving cousins, salacious press, and an imperial scandal to finally find a place she belongs. She has a perfect bodyguard turned boyfriend. Her stinky dog, Tamagotchi, is living with her in Tokyo. Her parents have even rekindled their college romance and are engaged. A royal wedding is on the horizon! Izumi’s life is a Tokyo dream come true. Only. . .

Her parents’ engagement hits a brick wall. The Imperial Household Council refuses to approve the marriage citing concerns about Izumi and her mother’s lack of pedigree. And on top of it all, her bodyguard turned boyfriend makes a shocking decision about their relationship. At the threat of everything falling apart, Izumi vows to do whatever it takes to help win over the council. Which means upping her newly acquired princess game.

But at what cost? Izumi will do anything to help her parents achieve their happily ever after, but what if playing the perfect princess means sacrificing her own? Will she find a way to forge her own path and follow her heart?

Publication Information:

Author: Emiko Jean

Publisher: Flatiron Books (May 31, 2022)

Hardcover Length: 336 pages

ASAP (An XOXO novel)

 

My Thoughts:

From Axie Oh comes another feel good bubblegum romance with another member of the XOXO K-pop band falling in love and taking himself off the market. This time, the story centers around Korean American member Nathaniel and model, and up and coming K-pop idol Sori, the daughter of their entertainment company CEO. 

Sori and Nathaniel were in a relationship a few years ago, but that was squashed by her mother, the CEO and her father, a rising politician. However, she was happiest with Nathaniel. When she realizes that she does not want to be an idol, and when Nathaniel is caught in a scandal, Sori offers to hide him. There is no need to guess with this one. Of course they will get together, but that is why readers like this kind of K-drama/romance. In addition, Jenny and Jaewoo, as well as other members of the band XOXO show up. In addition, when Sori realizes that she is good at helping to coach and manage a new member of the girl group ASAP, she also finds her solution for fulfilling her own dreams and ambitions over her mother's dreams and ambitions for her. This is a fast read and it will not disappoint. I hope Ms. Oh will tackle another XOXO member for her next book. 

From the Publisher:

Sori has worked her whole life to become a K-pop idol, until she realizes she doesn’t want a life forever in the spotlight. But that’s not actually up to Sori—she’s caught between her exacting mother’s entertainment company and her father’s presidential aspirations. And as the pressure to keep her flawless public image grows, the last person she should be thinking about is her ex-boyfriend.

Nathaniel is off limits—she knows this. A member of one of the biggest K-pop bands in the world and forbidden from dating, he isn’t any more of an option now than he was two years ago. Still, she can’t forget that their whirlwind romance was the last time she remembers being really happy. Or that his family welcomed her into their home when she needed it most. . . .

So when Nathaniel finds himself rocked by scandal, Sori offers him a hideaway with her. And back in close quarters, it’s hard to deny their old feelings. But when Sori gets an opportunity to break free from her parent’s expectations, she will have to decide: Is her future worth sacrificing for a second chance at love?

Publication Information:

Author: Axie Oh

Publisher: Harper Teen (February 6, 2024)

Hardcover length: 352 pages

Her Radiant Curse

 

My Thoughts:

When I was looking for more non-white normative fantasy, the only Asian author I knew who was doing fantasy was Julie Kagawa. But Julie Kagawaʻs early fantsy was still using white characters, even if they were not "human." And then there was a whole slew of Asian, mostly female, fantasy writers using their own cultural folklore to create worlds and stories that involved  both historic and new protagonists, mostly female. Elizabeth Lim is one of the OGs of this lady's  club of writers. Her Blood of Stars duology - Spin the Dawn  and Unravel the Dusk  is similar to this standalone in that there are no absolutes, beautiful, ugly, demon, not demon, love, obligation. The only absolute in Lim's book is perhaps the idea that all of her characters will need to pay a huge price for what they want, and even then, they may not get what they want. 

Finally like all of her books, including the Six Crimson Cranes duology with The Dragon's Promise, Her Radiant Curse will not give you the Disney happy ending/meet cute romance. If that is what you are looking for, she is not the author for you. 

For this book specifically, I like that this could easily have been a duology, but that Ms. Lim played out the story instead of chopping it. Channi is so narrowly focused on one thing, that when the unexpected happens and she is not in control of her fate, the book could have easily been over, but it was not. So it may start at a betrothal contest and the sisters trying to save each other, but it is also a quest to destroy a witch, only to find out that these characters are complicated. Some Disney tropes are still here, but filtered through an Asian world view. For example, there is the evil-ish step mother, but she is joined by the biological father, not as evil, but more as weak willed. 

Early on, when Channa's mom gives birth to Vanna and then gets very ill, Channa's dad knows that to save his wife, he needs to sacrifice the baby to a witch in the forest. But Vanna is born with a golden glow about her and anyone that is near her falls in love with her beauty and personality. Instead their father takes the older child, Channa and leaves her in the forest as a sacrifice. The demon witch/tiger does not take her. The king of snakes instead bites Channa. The venom scars her face and body while also making her blood poison and venomous. The demon witch does not want Channa but assures her that she will come back for Vanna when Vanna is grown. Channa spends her life training and searching for the demon witch and although they do meet again, it is not as expected.

The takeaway for readers is fairly simple: What is on the outside is not always a good indicator of what is on the inside. I appreciate the author putting all of this in one book. It makes it more complicated, but also more complex, which is good. 

From the Publisher:

One sister must fall for the other to rise.

Channi was not born a monster. But when her own father offers her in sacrifice to the Demon Witch, she is forever changed. Cursed with a serpent’s face, Channi is the exact opposite of her beautiful sister, Vanna—the only person in the village who looks at Channi and doesn’t see a monster. The only person she loves and trusts.

Now at seventeen, Vanna is to be married off in a vulgar contest that will enrich the coffers of the village leaders. Only Channi, who’s had to rely on her strength and cunning all these years, can defend her sister against the cruelest of the suitors. But in doing so, she becomes the target of his wrath—launching a grisly battle royale, a quest over land and sea, a romance between sworn enemies, and a choice that will strain Channi’s heart to its breaking point.

Weaving together elements of The Selection and Ember in the Ashes with classic tales like Beauty and the Beast, Helen of Troy, and Asian folklore, Elizabeth Lim is at the absolute top of her game in this thrilling yet heart-wrenching fantasy that explores the dark side of beauty and the deepest bonds of sisterhood.

Publication Information:

Author: Elizabeth Lim

Publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers (August 29, 2023)

Hardcover length: 432 pages

Song of the Six Realms

 

My Thoughts:

I think there is a whole club of Asian American female authors, like Judy I. Lin, Xiran Jay Zhao, Joan He and Elizabeth Lim,  who are able to tap into the mythology and classic stories of their culture to then create YA fantasy/romance/adventure stories with strong female protagonists. This book is definitely another book to add to that girl power book club. Following Lin’s successful duology, A Magic Steeped in Poison  and A Venom Dark and Sweet about young tea maker Ning, we are introduced to another artisan, Xue who is a musical prodigy of the qin. Although she is orphaned and her family name has been stricken from the books, she is well cared for by her uncle who makes sure she continues her playing. She is accepted into an entertainment house where she meets a mysterious patron who takes her back to his estate. She goes through trials, disappointments, mysteries, demonic attacks, jealousy, distrust. . .all the hurdles and nail biting for a true heroine. In addition, there is her patron/duke who seems like he needs to be saved by Xue. His weakness and his timing for saving her and then overexerting himself into illness is kind of charming. He is very different from the usual strong hero of the western tropes. It is refreshing and perhaps a trope for the Asian American fantasy books? 

Finally, what makes this stand out is that there are so many mysteries that are left open and weaving through this standalone novel. I’m not sure all the questions were answered. I will need to read this again. 

From the Publisher:

Xue, a talented young musician, has no past and probably no future. Orphaned at a young age, her kindly poet uncle took her in and arranged for an apprenticeship at one of the most esteemed entertainment houses in the kingdom. She doesn’t remember much from before entering the House of Flowing Water, and when her uncle is suddenly killed in a bandit attack, she is devastated to lose her last connection to a life outside of her indenture contract.

With no family and no patron, Xue is facing the possibility of a lifetime of servitude playing the qin for nobles that praise her talent with one breath and sneer at her lowly social status with the next. Then one night she is unexpectedly called to the garden to put on a private performance for the enigmatic Duke Meng. For a young man of nobility, he is strangely kind and awkward, and surprises Xue further with an irresistible offer: serve as a musician in residence at his manor for one year, and he’ll set her free of her indenture.

But the Duke’s motives become increasingly more suspect when he and Xue barely survive an attack by a nightmarish monster, and when he whisks her away to his estate, she discovers he’s not just some country noble: He’s the Duke of Dreams, one of the divine rulers of the Celestial Realm. There she learns the Six Realms are on the brink of disaster, and incursions by demonic beasts are growing more frequent.

The Duke needs Xue’s help to unlock memories from her past that could hold the answers to how to stop the impending war… but first Xue will need to survive being the target of every monster and deity in the Six Realms.

Publication Information:

Author: Judy I. Lin

Publisher: Feiwel and Friends (April 23, 2024)

Print length: 400 pages

Man Made Monsters

 

My Thoughts:

This is not my genre. I think I just said this a couple of weeks ago for She is a Haunting, but this collection of tales through an extended family of Cherokees is a terrifying romp through America. Although this is not my genre, this is my publishing house and I trust the diverse taste that the editors at Levine Querido provide, so I quickly picked this up.

This collection gave me Something Wicked This Way Comes vibes. The Ray Bradbury classic about a circus that comes to town, the seduction and promise with a pulse of horror is mirrored by this collection by Cherokee YA author Andrea Rogers in her debut that will be a classic. 

This book was so terrifying that I also borrowed the audiobook just to hear the pronunciation of the Cherokee language in my ear as I was listening and reading. It also has one of the best lines I have read in a long time:

Tsalagi should never have to live on human blood, but sometimes things just happen to sixteen-year-old girls.

The above quote is from the first story, "An Old-Fashioned Girl," about Ama Wilson. The German haunts me still.  With these types of books, I appreciate a good genealogy chart like this one, as well as language without translation. 

Some of the other stories that I am still thinking about include: "Maria Most Likely," "Amaʻs Boys," "Deer Women," "I Come From the Water," and the final story "The Zombies Attack the Drive-Inn!"

I gave away my advanced copy I picked up from NCTE, but I will definitely order more. 

From the Publishers:

Making her YA debut, Cherokee writer Andrea L. Rogers takes her place as one of the most striking voices of the horror renaissance that has swept the last decade.

Horror fans will get their thrills in this collection – from werewolves to vampires to zombies – all the time-worn horror baddies are there. But so are predators of a distinctly American variety – the horrors of empire, of intimate partner violence, of dispossession. And so too the monsters of Rogers’ imagination, that draw upon long-told Cherokee stories – of Deer Woman, fantastical sea creatures, and more.

Following one extended Cherokee family across the centuries, from the tribe’s homelands in Georgia in the 1830s to World War I, the Vietnam War, our own present, and well into the future, each story delivers a slice of a particular time period that will leave readers longing for more.

Alongside each story, Cherokee artist and language technologist Jeff Edwards delivers haunting illustrations that incorporate Cherokee syllabary.

But don’t just take it from us – award-winning writer of The Only Good Indians and Mongrels Stephen Graham Jones says that "Andrea Rogers writes like the house is on fire and her words are the only thing that can put it out."

Man-Made Monsters is a masterful, heartfelt, haunting collection ripe for crossover appeal – just don’t blame us if you start hearing things that go bump in the night.

Publication Information:

Author: Andrea Rogers

Illustrator: Jeff Edwards

Publisher: Levine Querido (October 4, 2022)

Print length: 306 pages