The Ghost Bride: A Novel

Yangsze Choo

Aug 2013 · Sold by Harper Collins

About this ebook

Now a Netflix Mandarin original drama!

From the New York Times bestselling author of The Night Tiger, a Reese’s Book Club pick

Yangsze Choo’s stunning debut, The Ghost Bride, is a startlingly original novel infused with Chinese folklore, romantic intrigue, and unexpected supernatural twists.

Li Lan, the daughter of a respectable Chinese family in colonial Malaysia, hopes for a favorable marriage, but her father has lost his fortune, and she has few suitors. Instead, the wealthy Lim family urges her to become a “ghost bride” for their son, who has recently died under mysterious circumstances. Rarely practiced, a traditional ghost marriage is used to placate a restless spirit. Such a union would guarantee Li Lan a home for the rest of her days, but at what price?
 
Night after night, Li Lan is drawn into the shadowy parallel world of the Chinese afterlife, where she must uncover the Lim family’s darkest secrets—and the truth about her own family.

Reminiscent of Lisa See’s Peony in Love and Amy Tan’s The Bonesetter’s Daughter, The Ghost Bride is a wondrous coming-of-age story and from a remarkable new voice in fiction.

Ratings and reviews

3.5 stars. I rarely stay on a book if I can't connect to the main characters or find them frustrating. I did love the storyline, so I pushed on even when the characters were "weaker" than I expected. There is a lot of suspense, action, and drama, but ultimately, I am glad that the ending was befitting and gave me much relief when it came time.

Interesting, but put off half the time with the unnecessary drawn out descriptions that make the reader lose focus. The author could have spared these lengthy distractions and spent more time on the ending. The end was dry and left the reader unfulfilled.

I loved this book and will be buying the paperback edition of it. I loved learning about a different culture and it's history. Would have loved to have a glimpse into what her married life would have been like but it was still great.

About the author

Yangsze Choo is a fourth-generation Malaysian of Chinese descent. She lives in California with her husband and their two children, and loves to eat and read (often at the same time).