This debut is a genre blend of mystery and fantasy with some amazing world building. Readers will enjoy being transported to a new world. Fans of fantasy will want to know Lin’s name.
Jingwen is abrasive, despite the loyalty and love she shows to those she holds dear, and often downright frustrating in her flatness ... Similarly, the magic that Jingwen is exposed to lacks an explanation that would make it feel like a tangible part of the world ... The author’s love for Shanghai is clear from the early pages, and her descriptions of the Jazz Age and its effects on the city unfold in gorgeous, vivid detail.
Atmospheric if overwritten ... Unfortunately, the story often gets buried under purple prose... breaking the spell and making it difficult to follow what’s happening. Readers will need a high tolerance for labored metaphor to get through this.
Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay[/caption]
