This book is magical, I enjoyed hearing about Malaysian/Chinese traditions and the superstitions. The audiobook is so good that I want to read a printed copy!

"Forty-four is an unlucky number for Chinese. It sounds like “die, definitely die,” and as a result, the number four and all its iterations are to be avoided. On that ill-fated day in June, I’d been working at my secret part-time job at the May Flower Dance Hall in Ipoh for exactly forty-four days."

Be sure to read the Author’s Note for a breakdown of the meaning behind names and numbers referenced throughout this story!

There is no doubt that this book is exquisitely written. The time that must have gone into fabricating such a story, I cannot fathom. Not only that, but the cultural detail is stunning. For how much I loved the thoroughness of this story, I really disliked other aspects of this story that, as a whole, were too glaring for me to ignore.

The Night Tiger follows several different characters, in particular, five “main” or prominent characters. The main protagonist is Ji Lin, aka Louise. Following her are Ren, Mr. William Acton, Lee Shin, and Dr. MacFarlane. Set in 1930’s British-occupied Malaya, The Night Tiger discusses a lot about how men and women’s roles differ greatly. Ji Lin desires to be a doctor, but due to the time, is unable. She winds up working in a dance hall--a rather promiscuous station for her timeframe where sexuality is heavily frowned upon--to pay off her mother’s debts. Ji Lin seems to take the lead between the multiple POVs.

The Night Tiger brims with elements of folklore and magical realism, that are sometimes simply odd. It's probably due to the fact that the story shifts between so many POVs that it felt unsettled. I found these shifts sometimes difficult to palette. I'm thinking multiple POVs is not my niche. Despite my qualms with the narration, I deeply appreciated the effort put into this unique story.

My Rating: ★★1/2

Another blend of fantasy and Chinese and Malaysian history. Set in the 1930s and rich with atmosphere, intermingling cultures and their folklore.

The first 100 pages are exceedingly slow and the weretiger angle feels cheap by the end reveals. I also had points taken off for a step-sibling relationship. That’s a pass for me, no matter what.

This book is great! Would definitely recommend. Thanks so much to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

I couldn’t get into this book at all. The pacing was slow and the story dragged on for me, and I couldn’t bring myself to care about the characters or what happened to them. I kept hearing great things, but I guess this book just wasn’t for me.

I enjoyed this author's first book, "The Ghost Bride", which is briefly referred to in this book. The setting, 1930s Malaya, isn't often seen in my reading and it's brought vividly to life. The setting was a big plus for me.

Ji Lin was a character I bought into, as well. She's from the town of Ipoh, which is about midway between Kuala Lumpur and Penang and which I have ambitions to visit someday. She's trying to make her own way in the world and also get her mother out of some mah jong debt. This means that in addition to apprenticing to a seamstress, she's working as a dance hall girl. Her mother is married to her cruel stepfather and her stepbrother (born on the same day that she was!) is in Singapore working to become a doctor. I was invested in Ji Lin's storyline. She was plucky, sassy, smart and brave.

Ren, the eleven year old boy who was the other main character, wasn't as interesting to me. Ren was on a mission to find his recently passed master's missing finger. According to Malayan lore, a spirit lingers near its former body for 49 days. The body must be whole, or the spirit won't be able to pass on correctly and may become a ghost or evil spirit. Ren goes to a friend of his old master's, a surgeon, and becomes part of his household as he looks for the finger.

This missing finger is the McGuffin that drives the plot. Ji Lin stumbles across it, Ren is looking for it, and it seems to generate bad luck.

I was really enjoying the story, although it seemed to be moving rather slowly. Ren and Ji Lin take forever to find each other. Meanwhile, Ji Lin is being helped by her stepbrother Xin, who she seems to have feelings for and may have some for her in return?

The book shifts tone about halfway through and becomes much more about this teased romance. Ji Lin and Xin's parents REALLY don't want these two together. Now, they are step-siblings, but there's no blood relationship there. (OR is there? It seems like the author is setting things up for some sort of sequel?) It made me wonder if I was missing something or if there's a really strong taboo against even step siblings being together. But I felt like I was missing a step. I also ended up cooling off on Xin. While initially he seemed to care about Ji Lin, after her started talking about making her "his" by having sex with her I started to find him creepy.

There's a mystery to be solved here, but I'm not sure enough clues were provided other than atmosphere to solve it as a reader. So, while I loved the setting and liked some of the characters, the plot was sort of formless and veered around and I ended up feeling like the end of the book was much weaker than its beginning.

I really enjoyed this book. It was the perfect balance of reality and folklore. The story was captivating and it was so interesting to see the individual stories come together.

It was well written, the characters were well developed, and I felt a connection to the characters.

My one drawback: it was a bit too long and felt that there were parts that could have been condensed without harming the plot.

The Night Tiger is a sweeping story of magic, mystery and romance. A must read for historical fiction fans.

Who would have thought a story around a dismembered finger could be so enthralling? Yet Choo did exactly that, drawing on Chinese folklore and superstition to create a story of murder, mystery, and even a bit of romance.

Atmospheric 1930's mystery swirls with the superstitions and folklore of Malaysia. A young seamstress who works a second job at a dancehall has a glass vial pressed into her hand. It contains a severed finger of unknown origin. In another town one Dr.McFarland's dying wish to his houseboy is that his long lost severed finger be found, and reunited with him in death. The plot is set in motion against the backdrop of lush jungles which surround thriving towns which teem with businesses, plantations, and hospitals, are the backdrop for murder, and the rumors of a Were tiger, lucky numbers, ghosts, twins, dreams, and Confucian virtues. The author has created a rich masterpiece of culture and history which should not be missed. Worthy of 4.5 stars.

A book about a finger. Say what?!? I had reservations going into this one and it took me a while to read it. Not because it was hard to get through – it just kept getting pushed for no good reason.

Ji Lin is a young girl kind of feeling stuck in life. Not sure what she wants to do or who she wants to be. When a dance partner leaves behind a gruesome souvenir, she’s excited to figure out the mystery behind it!

There’s a lot of superstition and modern idealism, in this one. But not too heavy – just the right amount in my opinion. I particularly liked the coming-of-age part and the storyline of forbidden love. So unique!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Flatiron Books for en eARC in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.

The Night Tiger is a murder mystery, wrapped in a fine coat of supernatural, and sprinkled with just a touch of fate. By the end, you’ll find yourself wondering what was real and what was just superstition.

This one was hard to rate, because it didn’t feel quite five stars to me. But I did immediately rush off to check out the author’s other work, so I rounded up. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

My Thoughts:

- This book is just rife with the supernatural and superstitions, which lends it a really spooky atmosphere that’ll lead you to question what’s real and what’s not. There’s numerology, which is really fascinating in particular, because in Chinese, numbers sound similar to other words, and that can determine whether the number is seen positively or negatively, based on this association. There’s a hint of fate or destiny in this in that souls can be somehow bonded or fated to be together (not necessarily romantically, but just part of each other’s lives). There’s even the idea of weretigers, and the debate of whether or not a human can transform into a tiger. All of this blends quite beautifully into the historical setting to create a magical realism that seems quite plausible in the real world, for the most part.

- Being that this is historical fiction, true to the time period, the British come in and just British everything up, like they do. Colonialism has always been an ugly thing, and this book does a good job of highlighting just what that means for the local people. There’s a very thinly veiled (and sometimes blatant) line of prejudice running through this book, which is realistic but also sometimes hard to read.

- Oh, my aching misogyny. 1930s in Malaysia? Not a great time for women. This is one of those things that’s true to the time period, but also super frustrating to read because you want justice for the characters and there’s obviously just not going to be any.

- There’s a really neat thread running through this story where all the main characters are named after Confucius’ Five Virtues. I can’t really say too much about this, because while the connection is stated early on, part of the fun is discovering just what this means for the novel.

- Move over werewolves, there’s a new beast in town, and it’s called a weretiger. Well, allegedly. My favorite thing about this is that it’s never concretely stated whether this is a thing or not. You get to decide for yourself. Like a lot of the supernatural elements in this book, it’s easy to make a case both for and against the weretiger actually existing.

Sticking Points:

- The romance was … problematic. And also a little rapey and stalkerish. I can’t really say much about it for fear of spoilers, but I didn’t have a problem with it for the same reason other people did. I was just a little creeped out by how possessive the guy was.

- The end was a little too open, where it felt like it didn’t fully conclude, and some of the plot points felt like they were left dangling a bit. I think this is a symptom of the book trying to do so dang much all at the same time, to the point where not everything felt completely finished. It almost feels like there could be a sequel, and I wouldn’t be opposed to that, but as far as I know, this was meant to be a standalone.

The cover of this book got me before any kind of plot summary - it's beautiful! The setting here was fascinating and not one that I had read about before, which had me interested immediately. The combination of folklore and the supernatural almost always leads to a great story, and this one didn't disappoint. It was easy to cling to the characters from the very start and not put the book down until you knew what happened to them. Recommended to anyone who loves history, culture, and the supernatural.

Ji Lin accidentally makes the find of a lifetime which puts events into place that become dangerous for some and deadly for others. Ren, a young boy, is on the hunt for what Ji Lin has found. It was his master’s dying wish to find it. After her accidental find, Ji Lin then desperately tries to set things right with the help of magical dreamscapes as well as friends and family she’s known for years and others that are revealed to her within a magical dreamscape.

The book has a beautifully written opening (below) that paints the setting so perfectly and is very well-written.

Set in 1930’s Malaysia, The Night Tiger is about a boy on a mission to find a lost finger for his former employer, and the young woman moonlighting as a dancehall girl to pay off her mother’s debts who pickpockets one off a customer. What comes next is a beautiful and at times heartbreaking story as the reader follows the characters over the next 49 days. Steeped in Chinese folklore and history, The Night Tiger is a mystery with a dash of romance and a hint of the supernatural. I adored Ji Lin and Ren, two of the main characters, who stole my heart from the first. There is so much to love about The Night Tiger, from its depth of character, it’s natural tie-in of the historical and political climate of the times as well as cultural superstitions and traditions, and the twists and turns the author took the various threads of the story. Yangsze Choo has proven again what an amazing author she is.

This was an enjoyable read. The peek into 1930s Malay culture was fascinating. I don't really feel that I can say a lot without giving too much away, but I enjoyed the connections the characters had with each other. This is one I'd like to reread.

Thanks to the author, publisher, and Netgalley for a copy of the ARC.

As with her previous novel, Yangsze Choo gets an A for Atmosphere. Her depiction of 1930s Malaya is so rich and evocative, it makes me want to be there. The characters, especially Ji Lin, a smart and resourceful girl with thwarted ambitions, are also excellent. The way that Choo weaves seemingly disparate plot elements together is deft and delightful. The magic is kept to a minimum, too good effect. And a particular romance trope used here is right up my alley too. This is a book that I won't soon forget!

My only issue is that the whole thing can come off a little bit twee, not only in a way that's common to magical realism, but also in a way that doesn't always match the darker and dare I say grislier plot points such as murder and dismemberment-by-tiger. It's difficult to balance tone and content in a tale like this, and the balance is not always achieved.

I really enjoyed this book - a clever narrative, a plot full of twists with characters whose very names invoked wonderful and meaningful imagery... this was a real joy to read. The layering of the five virtues and weretiger narratives alongside the alternating perspectives of Ren and Ji Lin was really effective and well done. I also enjoyed the perspective this shared on the experience of colonialism in Malaya, and some of the social context to this point in time in that society (the dance halls and marital expectations, for example).

This is one of the most devastatingly beautiful books I have read in a while. I was absolutely entranced by it; I couldn't put it down but I desperately didn't want it to end. I had to force myself to slow down several times, but I still flew right through it. Not only was the writing beautifully descriptive, but the mystery was so intriguing. I loved the way the author wove in folklore and a slight mystical element. The result was spooky and haunting in the most beautiful way. I cannot wait to read more of her work.

A few other things I needed to come back and add to my review:

I have a severe book hangover right now, which I think is the mark of a truly great story. I really felt like I was there, in a time and place I have never been. I absolutely loved Ren, he was one of my favorite parts of this story. The characters' personalities shone through the words so well, and my heart aches for each of them. I have a feeling I will think of them often, and I wonder what happens next to them in their lives. Do yourself a favor and stop reading the reviews and just go buy this beautiful book.

Ji Lin is an apprentice dressmaker, who also, works as a dancehall girl. Someone has to pay off her mother's debts. When one of her dance partners leaves behind a gruesome souvenir, she might get an adventure that she won't comeback from. This is one of the most descriptive beautiful books that I have ever read. To find out about the Night Tiger and it's history, you should definitely read this book. I loved it and will recommend it to all my friends. I received this amazing book from Net Galley and Flat iron Books for a honest review.