Wonderful novella full of heart and packs a punch.
Wow~ this novella is something else! It's lush and lyrical and wholly engrossing. The world-building, character development, plot, and even romance was so well actualized, especially for such a short story.
Since it's concise, I will keep my review aptly brief and void of any real spoilers.
Thanh is our protagonist. She is the third-born princess of Bìanh Hả and thus rendered insignificant due to her lack of ascension. This worthless narrative is reified consistently through sharp and nuanced - or explicit - interactions, plot points (e.g., her captors didn't bother to save her from a fire), ethnocentrism in a foreign land, and stringent social mores.
I loved Thanh's characterization and appreciated that she struggled with the trauma of abuse and anxiety from not only the narrowly escaped fire but also the repetitive dismissal or pain inflicted by those around her.
Her later relationship with her homeland court and Eldris, and old flame and now rival delegate, is affecting and fun to watch. All of Thanh's interactions felt real and made sense within her character.
I would be remiss if I also didn't note the clear yet nuanced commentary on colonization and the effects of trauma on the psyche. At times, we see Thanh drawn to others' toxic nature, making sense considering people become accustomed - even addicted - to stressful situations.
This story held quite a punch and deftly weave various storylines, complex characters, and social critique into every page for such a short novella
Book summary:
Award-winning author Aliette de Bodard returns with a powerful romantic fantasy that reads like The Goblin Emperor meets Howl’s Moving Castle in a pre-colonial Vietnamese-esque world.
Fire burns bright and has a long memory….
Quiet, thoughtful princess Thanh was sent away as a hostage to the powerful faraway country of Ephteria as a child. Now she’s returned to her mother’s imperial court, haunted not only by memories of her first romance, but by worrying magical echoes of a fire that devastated Ephteria’s royal palace.
Thanh’s new role as a diplomat places her once again in the path of her first love, the powerful and magnetic Eldris of Ephteria, who knows exactly what she wants: romance from Thanh and much more from Thanh’s home. Eldris won’t take no for an answer, on either front. But the fire that burned down one palace is tempting Thanh with the possibility of making her own dangerous decisions.
Can Thanh find the freedom to shape her country’s fate—and her own?