Tag: asian

Posted on by — Leave a comment

Book Review: The Jade Setter of Janloon

The Jade Setter of Janloon is a novella by Fonda Lee. It takes place before the events of Green Bone Saga, in the same jade studded world. Since Green Bone Saga is one of my favorite trilogies (and I miss Kaul Hilo too much), I had to get my hands on this short story. Good news: it didn’t disappoint!

Plot

The Jade Setter of Janloon follows Pulo, an apprentice to Isin, the most revered Jade Setter in Kekon. Even Ayt Mada, the Pillar of the Mountain Clan has her jade setted by Isin. But when someone steals Ayt Mada’s moon blade from Isin’s shop, the stakes get very steep, very fast.

Short as it is, Fonda Lee weaves well paced drama about all the characters of the jade shop. You really start to feel their anxiety as their situation worsens. One thing I always enjoy about Green Bone is how authentic the Eastern themes are, and how the characters deal with the paradigms they have grown up with versus the modern culture and world. In the trilogy there were big themes of honor, family vs individuality, upholding your culture vs managing westernism, etc.

Here it is the master-student relationship which the author grapples with. This theme wasn’t explored so much in the main trilogy, so special nod to Fonda Lee for finding yet something else that’s ancient and incorporating it into her jade world seamlessly. She also raised a very important social issue in this novella (it would be a spoiler if I say it) so kudos for that!

Appearances

Yes, Hilo (still a Fist, not yet the Horn) has a major appearance with the Maik brothers. LOVE THIS. Not just Hilo, but Lan and Ayt Mada have their moments as well. I did miss Wen and Shae terribly, though I see how the plot would be forced if they were to be incorporated into this particular storyline.

As for the main characters of the novella, I didn’t feel so much for Pulo, but his character did get major development. Malla is an interesting character – I’d love to get to know more too. I think Pulo and Malla’s romantic relationship was a bit forced, but it’s a minor complaint.

In the end, if you loved the trilogy, I think you’d have a great time with this novella!

Posted on by — Leave a comment

Book Review: Crying in H Mart

I don’t read a lot of nonfiction, but Crying in H Mart was recommended to me on #booktwt because I was looking for similar vibes to On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong. I’m glad I picked Crying in H Mart up! Michelle Zauner’s writing is moving, right in your face, and yet manages to be compassionate and loving.

Main Themes

This memoir deals with the loss of the author’s mother due to cancer, and is as such necessarily painful. I feel the book does justice to the experience though (that’s a bad way of saying it, like what can ever do justice to an experience of losing your mother). But I guess what I’m trying to say is the writing isn’t flippant – it has gravitas. The topic of life and death is handled with care – something that is always tricky to do.

Crying in H Mart is also about identity. Being half Korean and half American, the author goes through self-identity crisis and search which is amplified when her connection with Korean culture is cut short because of her mother’s death. The author writes about how she slowly finds her way back to it through food and cooking. This is something which is surely relatable to everyone who has ever dealt with identity and cultural crisis. As such, anyone who loves books about food (especially Korean food) will also be attracted to Crying in H Mart.

Writing Style

Although nonfiction, the memoir nature of the book results in me reading it like a fiction, so I wasn’t bored at all. I didn’t cry (these days it’s loving relationships that make me cry, not sorrow) but I was very moved and ate a lot of ramen and shrimp prawn chips while I read it. The prose is to the point when necessary, but also poetic in certain scenes – perhaps because she writes songs!

PS: Here’s a shout out to Post Bookshop, a book shop in Pasar (market) Santa from where I ordered it. The delivery was quick, the packaging lovely, and the handwritten note so sweet! Friends in Indo, please support this bookshop!

Posted on by — Leave a comment

Series Review: Green Bone Saga

My friends, pick this up right now. I’m telling you, I read a lot of fantasy, and Green Bone Saga is UP THERE. One of the best fantasy series I’ve read so far – although it’s not the fairy tale, dragons, and wizard type of fantasy. Seriously, I can’t stop gushing about this series.

Jade City

The first book of the Green Bone Saga introduces us to the iconic Kaul family. The Kauls are the head of the No Peak Clan in the city of Janloon. Janloon is rather like 1970s Hong Kong except with jade. Jade in the whole series is a source of magical powers which Green Bones can tap into, endowing them with superhuman abilities. Naturally, such a substance is coveted throughout the whole world, from street rats to presidents.

Fonda Lee‘s worldbuilding is superb, complete with political power plays that reminded me of the first book of Game of Thrones. Of course, Green Bone Saga quickly exceeds Game of Thrones, in my opinion. The Kaul family relationships and dynamics drive the whole series. Let me say that I love every single one of them! All the characters in the Kaul family are complex and morally gray, but HEAVEN HELP ME I am in love. Their struggles are so relatable, especially if you’re Asian or familiar with Asian culture and the clash with “modernity”.

Jade War

The second installment took the whole thing to another level. As the political groundwork was so meticulously laid out, the pay off and stakes are visibly high. Plot wise Jade War is riveting. But the greatest joy of this book is seeing the main characters of the Kaul family really grow into leadership. Not only that, they also start influencing the wider world.

Kaul Hilo, I have no words. I am simping over this character – literally drooling. Anden Emery, the adopted son of the Kauls, actually has the most unexpected arc. His being half in and half out is an issue for him (though not for anyone else, it seems) and he really grows a lot in this book. Now Kaul Shae, this lady is larger than life here. There is a scene in which Shae duels the long-time family enemy: Ayt Mada of the Mountain Clan. This has got to be the most exciting scene in the whole series. Fonda Lee really knows her action flow.

Jade Legacy

The last and thickest book of the series (I finished it in two days) is thoroughly satisfying in story, but heartbreaking. I’m shattered, and will likely never recover.

Jade Legacy uses time jumps to cover the span of the decades. Some readers on Goodreads mention this to be skimming the story. I don’t mind because it actually works as a storytelling device, allowing characters to look back and reflect on key events. In this way we can also see the impact of those events on the characters’ lives. Fonda Lee milks these internal dialogues so that we really get closer the characters.

The arcs of the “main” generation of Kauls: Hilo, his wife Wen, his sister Shae, and his brother Anden, all wrap up very well. Even Ayt Mada’s arc was well resolved. The younger generation, Niko, Ru, Jaya, could have been given more treatment but then that’s probably a whole new series in itself. Which I wouldn’t mind, by the way.

There is one trope in this book that seemed to be a repeat of something in Jade Legacy, so that was kind of cliche for me. Other than that, however, I find myself a complete fan of the series, and will be reading the novella The Jadesetter of Janloon. After my jade withdrawal symptoms have slightly receded, of course.

Bonus

Since I’m a fan of booktok aesthetics, here is the best fan made aesthetic I’ve come across so far for Jade City. Oh and the sexy voice? Kaul Hilo would approve.

@thahminareads

I Present The Best #Fantasy #Mafia #greenbonesaga #JadeCity #JadeWar #JadeLegacy #FondaLee #BookTok #SmutTok #Bookish #SpicyTikTok #bookrecommendation

♬ original sound – Thahmina Akhtar
Posted on by — Leave a comment

Book Review: Six Crimson Cranes

Yeay for more representation of Asian fantasy in western bookstores! Six Crimson Cranes by Elizabeth Lim has a gorgeous cover which winks at me every time I walk into Periplus. Irresistible.

Expectations Check

I think the cover got me too excited though, because I started Six Crimson Cranes with too high expectations. The writing is poetic, fairy tale like, and quite enjoyable. However I couldn’t connect with the main character Princess Shiori, nor any of the other characters except maybe Raikama. She is the stepmother who fondly takes me back to memories of Pai Su Chen the White Snake! Princess Shiori, on the other hand, falls flat, although to her credit she got more interesting towards the end.

Plot (MILD SPOILERS!)

The middle section is draggy for me, and rather repetitive. The plot twist at the end is very much appreciated because if not Six Crimson Cranes would have been nothing new. Another story we’ve all heard before. Granted the tale might be new to a western reader, but as someone who grew up watching Chinese, Korean, Japanese, and Indonesian dramas, well…let’s just say there’s not enough of a hook.

Arranged Marriage Trope

Maybe I just can’t find it in me to appreciate arranged marriage tropes, which is the crux of the whole book. Princess Shiori is to marry a lower lord, and she despises him (whom she’s never met). Then when she actually gets to know the said Lord Takkan, and Shiori (of course) falls in love.

I suppose it sounds romantic for someone (perhaps from a non Asian culture) who hasn’t actually ever been forced into a setup. But for someone who’s gone through that whole process: sorry, I gotta say I hate the trope. Not to mention I am of the belief that marriage itself is an institution that is outdated (it has its roots in women as property) and well I’m just gonna rail off so let’s stop here.

All in all, if you ask me what I didn’t like about this book, it has nothing to do with the writing, and more to do with the fact that I just don’t like the story because of personal taste and experiences. If I do read the sequel, it will be because I’m interested in Eastern Dragons and would really like to see how the author fleshes out the dragon court. (Yes, I wished this book was more about Seryu than Shiori.)

If you like a good female power (feminist!) Asian vibe fantasy, do try She Who Became the Sun, or Land of Sand and Song by Singaporean author Joyce Chua.

Posted on by — Leave a comment

Movie Review: Turning Red

My hubby thinks I’m so weird for bawling my eyes out over this “cute panda” movie. Turning Red hits home for Asian girls though, and YOU ALL KNOW IT! Krisandryka from The Mad Tea Book Club first recommended this to me so here I am sniffing my snot.

Themes in Turning Red

The “tiger mom” culture. The pressure to continue a line of tradition which you don’t really understand fully. The constant demand of having to behave well. Those themes are all explored in this animation. But when our protagonist, 13 year-old Meilin activates the family curse and turns into a “monstrous” red panda, how is she supposed to behave? Herein is the main message of the animation: that you CAN be ugly. You CAN get angry, let your emotions out. In fact, if you try to always bottle it in, there can be disastrous effects. Like what we see with Meilin’s mother. Y’all, I’m just so glad themes like these are being brought up into popular culture. Finally.

Cringe Factor

There is definitely a lot of cringe factor (like their craze over boybands) but I think it’s special in that way! So few movies raise up this unabashed feminine side. How does a teenage girl go through puberty? In that way Turning Red is courageously controversial! I honestly think that teenage girls are the smartest representatives of humankind. Because of that, society cracks down during that crucial period and tries to conform girls into “the way women should be”.

Menstruation

This topic can be a whole NOVEL but let me try to condense a bit here. Raised up as a conservative Christian, it’s been pounded into me from the sacred book that a woman is dirty when she is in her period. Great, thanks. Add to this the social stigma of not being able to talk openly about my periods, how to deal with it, what to do when it really hurts, when I’m PMSing, and we have ourselves a continued rejection of the very way our body works. What a sad twist on how amazing our reproduction cycle is. And yet women are also baby machines. The irony is complete.

That’s why I think Turning Red is controversial but also so important for teenage girls to watch: so we know our cycles are to be celebrated, not to be hidden away in shame. Another similarly empowering movie for teenage girls is Netflix Enola Holmes.

Posted on by — Leave a comment

Book Review: Land of Sand and Song

I came across this book on Jacq’s bookstagram account and have since been really curious about it. I wasn’t let down! I’m always looking for good fantasy, especially good Eastern fantasy written by Asians. Land of Sand and Song by Singaporean author Joyce Chua satisfied that thirst beautifully.

Joyce Chua’s writing style reminds me of fairytale storytellers such as Marissa Meyer and Shannon Hale – that poetic undercurrent explicit during descriptions. It’s a style I enjoy because I’m a sucker for fairytale retellings. Plot-wise Land of Sand and Song is a bit on the predictable end but I don’t mind because most fairy tale story vibes are like that. Having said so, I didn’t expect there to be a love triangle between the protagonist Desert Rose and the two princes so hey that was a little yummy bonus!

Another thing I liked about this book was the strong women characters. Desert Rose is pretty kick-ass and can hold herself up in any situation. The organization she is a part of is an organization of women assassins: of course, I’m gonna love it.

I think anyone who is into Eastern fantasy, Asian myths, and strong women characters would enjoy this read. I’m definitely looking forward to the sequel! Another Asian (historical) fantasy I would recommend is She Who Became the Sun by Shelley Parker-Chan.

Posted on by — 2 Comments

Book Review: She Who Became the Sun

I loved everything about She Who Became the Sun, happy sigh. And General Ouyang? I get that he’s a eunuch and he doesn’t swing my direction, but I’m still swooning over him. Okay, so what’s this book about?

Historical Fantasy

She Who Became the Sun is a historical fantasy retelling of Zhu Yuanzhang, the Emperor who founded the Ming Dynasty, expelled the Mongols, and unified China. The topic is already something I’m incredibly interested in – China’s deliciously dramatic history. Add to that the twist of Zhu being a girl? Automatic read. It does have Mulan vibes but it’s much more – think Mulan slash Daenerys Targaryen of Game of Thrones.

Shelley Parker-Chan‘s writing is gripping from the very first sentence to the very end. One thing I especially like are her analogies – Zhongli village lying in the heat of the sun like a dead dog? Amazing. The book has many such sentences like this, which brings the atmosphere of ancient China alive for me. They way she retells and brings alive the characters: the to-be Empress Ma, General Ouyang, and of course Zhu makes these historical figures into people I won’t forget.

Women Empowerment

Exactly as the title promises, the empowerment narrative is good. As someone with Chinese heritage, I feel Shelley gets the idea so well that it hits home. Girls in the Chinese culture were just so itemized, so unimportant, so…nothing compared to boys. Boys are everything. Girls are meaningless, expendable. I lived this growing up. So I loved that in this fantasy, at least, we can show that we are not meaningless.

Women too can have mandates of heaven, lead armies, and leave a legacy of our names.

If you’re into women empowerment fantasy, check out my Nishaverse series.