SYNOPSIS: On the day of the historic 1945 Jewel Voice Broadcast—in which Emperor Hirohito announced Japan’s surrender to the Allied forces, bringing an end to World War II—three men, flush with jubilation, made a pact. After their deaths, each year on the anniversary of the broadcast, their souls would return to the Chinese village of their younger days. It’s where they had fought—and survived—a war that shook the world and changed their own lives in unimaginable ways. Now, seventy years later, the pledge is being fulfilled by American missionary Pastor Billy, brash gunner’s mate Ian Ferguson, and local soldier Liu Zhaohu.

I love love love historical fiction, and I love WWII novels. this book had all of my favorite things wrapped up in one.

It was an interesting way to deliver a story but I loved how it was done. Through three main characters we get to travel to new worlds.

A Single Swallow written by Zhang Ling and translated by Shelly Bryant is the story of a young Chinese woman told through the eyes, and in the voices of three men who knew her during the second world war. The premise of the book is that these three comrades in arms who met during the war agreed to reunite after their deaths at the village where they all met, and when they do they inevitably begin to think of the girl they all loved in one way or another, and each called by a different name. The first of the narrators is Pastor Billy, an American missionary doctor who meets Stella, as he calls her in the aftermath of a brutal attack, and slowly nurses her back to health. The second is Liu Zhaohu, a local boy who grew up with Ah Yan as she was known to him, and was her prospective groom when the war began while the third is an American soldier Ian Ferguson who called her Wende and loved her in his own way.
Though the lives of these three men intersect around this young woman, and she is the linchpin of the story, she never has her own voice and this is one of the things I found frustrating about the book. I also found the inclusion of a section from the perspective of two of the character's dogs bizarre to say the least. There are moments of beauty balanced with moments of brutality and suffering, the author never lets you forget that a war is happening. The language is beautiful and flows well, and the translation seems very natural. I liked the detailed descriptions of the place and time, it felt like I had travelled back in time while I read.
I read and reviewed an ARC courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher, all opinions are my own.

Thank you NetGalley for an advanced copy of this novel.

This is a big story. Four lives are intertwined in an unforgettable way. Three men, well, actually their ghosts finally meet in the afterworld, brought together by one woman and the memories they share of her. Each of them loved her in his own way, to the detriment of her. Pastor Billy, an American missionary, gunner’s mate Ian Ferguson, and Chinese soldier Liu Zhaohu all love Ah Yan in their own way. This story spans several decades and is told through three different voices. It is a saga. It is complicated. It is unforgettable.

The reader is introduced to Ah Yan as a young girl and is taken along the journey of her life. What is interesting is she never tells her story in the first person. Her life is retold through the eyes of others, even though she is the central and most influential character. The intertwining of the three male voices is interesting but not as compelling as Ah Yan’s story. She is stronger than the three men put together, has sacrificed more of herself than even a mother would for her child and overcame incredible injustices so that she could save each of these men.

This novel took me quite a while to finish. I found myself reading.a few pages at a time and putting the book down, perhaps so that I could digest what had taken place or to reflect upon the lessons introduced. Some sections seemed to drag on a tad which is why I did not give a five star review. By the end of this novel, Ah Yan had completely endeared herself to me. Her strength, perseverance, and selflessness were compelling. The end was a surprise and it will leave the reader with a visceral reaction. I’m glad I took my time with this novel, I was sad to see it end.

A poignant and evocative read. Absolutely enjoyed this book for the slow burn it gave. It takes the reader to a time long gone, and showcases a very different world. An excellent read!

Brutal, poignant, explicit--Ling's epic, now translated into English, tells a unique tale of a Chinese woman during WWII, all through the eyes of the three soldiers who loved her (as friend, lover, and father), who they wait in the afterlife for. The story is so heart-breaking and beautiful all at once, but the part of the book that spoke to me most was how genuine a glimpse we get into the Chinese experience during and after it'd been occupied by Japan. It was eye-opening, at times graphic, but you never lose the sense of that TIME, or the impact it had on the characters, no matter where they came from. And that's all I'll say because I don't want to ruin it.

An important read!

A Single Swallow was a poignant story about a woman that affected three different men, and told through their points of view. Filled with sadness and devastation, this book left me hollowed out but in a good way.

I thought the description sounded good, but unfortunately I just did not like this. The writing was beautiful at times, but often dwelled too long on unnecessary parts and was just so slow. I’m not sure if perhaps I misunderstood the point of the book but I felt very uncomfortable with how the men talked about Ah Yan. They held her on some strange pedestal and I’ve never truly understood what the “male gaze” looked like until this book. Yes she seemed to be an incredible woman, but the way the men were obsessed with her felt strange. Then we had a chapter of dog diaries in the middle of the book? As I said some of the prose was beautiful, but unfortunately I just did not connect with the story.

This book encompasses a world of information: China under Japanese imperialism, Chinese life, Chinese family customs, poverty in Chinese villages, Chinese tea plantations, American missionaries in China, American troops in China prior to and following the bombing of Pearl Harbor and the Japanese invasion – to name a few. And then after the war, the advent of communism.

The story involves a Chinese girl and older boy who grew up in the same remote village. There is also an American medical missionary and a professional soldier who was American who figure prominently. The story is told via the points of view of each of these – in turn – but also involves points of view of others, as well, including a dog.

The story, which bounced around in time and place and POVs, was engaging enough to keep me reading. However, it was a difficult read. There were many “too long” descriptive passages. Bouncing around as it did made it difficult to keep track of the plot and characters. Also the story was in translation from Chinese. Throughout the reading of it, there were many phrases that were (to my mind) typically Chinese, but which did not translate well.

It was a beautiful and heartfelt story of people living through unspeakable horrors. I would certainly recommend it to anyone wanting to know about Chinese life prior to the 50s.

I received this Kindle edition from NetGalley and the publisher, Amazon Crossing, in exchange for an honest review.

Although I give it four stars, I have mixed feelings about "A Single Swallow."

It is a beautiful story of a woman, told through the view and experiences of three men that shaped her life after the three men have died. The story itself often flows at a nice pace, giving the reader just the right amount of tension and "ah-ha!" moments as the stories of the three men start to weave with each other.


It is wonderful to be able to experience the world through works from around the world-- but it is also difficult to know whether the book feels 'off' because of the translation or because of the book. For example, there was an interlude told from the perspective of two dogs. As much as I wanted to enjoy their perspective, the humanizing of the dogs in that particular point of the story didn't work for me. I don't know if it was because the translation made the animals awkward, or if it was the story itself.

The ending was not very satisfying- you know where a lot of the story is going to to because three of the main characters are dead at the beginning of the story. I give this 3.5 stars, rounded up to 4. Most of the story itself was an enjoyable read and I think there is a lot to learn about Chinese culture and society in WW2 and into the start of Communist China. This would make a great group read and discussion.

Thank you Netgalley and AmazonCrossing for an ARC copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I really struggled with this book and about halfway through decided it would be one I couldn't finish. For me the writing style dragged, with almost a stream of consciousness that moved too slowly, was at the same time too descriptive while lacking development, and seemed lost in it's explanation. It may be because of the translation process, but for me I could not connect with the writing and in the end not with the story either. There are multiple view points in the novel, some disturbing scene I didn't expect, and ultimately an interesting premise that fell flat for me.

This was my first book by this author, It was pretty enjoyable. I would give this book a 4.5 star rating! It was a pretty Quick and easy read!

I have read this book twice so far and will probably read many times again. It is the story of three men who survive war but so much more, I highly recommend

At the end of their lives three men meet again, after a hiatus of seventy-two years, to reminisce about the times they shared living in the same village during the Chinese-Japanese War between 1943-1945, and make sense of how their decisions big and small impacted the life of the woman they loved, to whom they each knew by a different name.

Using as backdrop Chinese history from 1943 to early 21st century, A Single Swallow is a sweeping epic at a personal level of how major outside forces impacted the life of a woman named Yao Ah Yan (a.k.a. Stella/Wende) in a small Chinese village, and how she had to abandon her village as a result, meeting two other men that would alter her life in fundamental ways.

Along the way, readers get a glimpse of life and relationship dynamics in a tranquil, riverside Chinese village, how the villagers earned their living by planting and harvesting tea leaves, and how the Japanese invasion during WWII disrupted their way of life. Men were conscripted to the armed forces. Then came war training in a village housing a military camp run by American forces. These were very successful passages as life in the camp, and skirmishes against Japanese forces were related vividly and in bitter and painstaking details. By contrast, the passages covering the Chinese Civil War leading to the Chinese Communist Revolution, the purges of collaborationists of the previous regime, the Great Famine, and the subsequent years, though equally personal in scope, were painted with softer strokes.

A Single Swallow reads easily and paints a striking picture of a remarkable woman who underwent unspeakable tragedies but overcame them with sheer determination and a great deal of forgiveness. It also puts in focus how the sobering and reassuring presence of a man would empower her for years to come.

Disclaimer: I received from the publisher a free e-book via Netgalley in exchange for my honest review.

A captivating story of a Chinese woman told through the eyes of three men who enter her life at different times and leave their imprint on her life through their own mistakes, shortcomings and weaknesses.

The three protagonists make a promise to each other that they would meet at a certain spot on a fixed date after their deaths and this story is the story of their memories of life, despite being narrated by “ghosts” the storyline doesn’t seem contrived or amusing in the least.

The narration begins with the account of Liu Zhaohu, who grew up along Ah Yan, a young girl, on her tea plantation in a small village.
He later on enlists in the army against The Japanese invasion abandoning Ah Yan at a crucial time.

The second narrative is that of Pastor Billy, an American missionary living and working as a doctor in China.
His support and protection ensures that Stella, a name he decides for Ah Yan, lives and survives despite the odds against her.

The third is that of Ian Ferguson, a military instructor training soldiers in the war against the Japanese forces.
He meets Ah Yan through Pastor Billy and falls in love with her.

The story is about Ah Yan as she struggles and grapples with the challenges of life and has her trust broken again and again despite having loved unconditionally.

The transformation of Ah Yan over the years is beautifully depicted and so are the depth and range of the emotions of those who loved and lost her and in many ways themselves too.

Loved the flowery language and the vivid description of places.
Despite being a translation, I can say the charm of this book has not been lost in translation.

I mostly enjoyed this story although I wasn't a big fan of the way the story is told. The ghosts of three men have met up and are each telling their story, especially as it relates to a woman that connects them all. As each man takes his turn, he addresses the others as 'you' basically making this feel like a 2nd person point of view fire about a quarter of the book, which made it harder for me to enjoy the story.

Liu Zhaohu's narrative was my favorite, I felt most connected to his story.


*received free digital arc from netgalley

It was.... interesting, but not something I enjoyed. The perspective was new to me, but the characters felt to entitled and the novel lacked a female voice. I enjoyed learning more about a culture I wasn't familiar with, but that's about all. I was eager to finish reading to see how it ends, which took forever because of all the descriptions. Also, that dog thing... nope, not a fan.

A Single Swallow
By Zhang Ling
Published by Amazon Crossing
Publish Date October 1 2020

This was a very delicately translated beautiful, but also brutal and explicit story of three men during and at the end of WWII. They all meet up as souls after their deaths to fulfill a pact they made to meet on the anniversary of the end of the war after they have all died. They each tell their stories of how the same woman, Ah Yan, (also known as Stella, Wende, and the Swallow,) touched their lives with love and dignity and each in very different ways.

Ah Yan suffered many horrific and cruel things, and even though she placed her trust in people, over and over she was let down and hurt during her lifetime, but she still had the endurance and grace to perservere and survive through it all.

This book takes a long time to read and digest. It feels like a character study for each of the three men and for the Swallow herself. I do wish there could have been a section about Ah Yan's story, instead of having her being implied, but it still works.
There is also a lot of historical information to read. I started this book, gave up, then restarted again. I am glad I did. It was long, but worth the read. It makes you really think about the book, and in the end, it is a beautiful, thought provoking story.

I would like to thank #Netgalley, Amazon Crossing publishers, and the author Zhang Ling for this advanced eARC, due to be published Oct 1, 2020. All opinions are my own.

what a beautifully written story, the translator did a great job in keeping the flow and narration whole. I overall enjoyed reading this.

The storyline is interesting and I did feel engaged in reading more. However, I felt annoyed that the voice of the woman who was the central focus of the story, was never really expressed. We read about her through the lens of three men. And we also for some reason get the perspective from two dogs and their narrative as well?

It was engaging, yet very confusing and at a time where women are still struggling to have a voice, it wasn’t enjoyable for me to read in that sense.

Thank you Netgalley for the free translated ebook.

Enjoyed this book. Different from what I've been reading lately so if was definitely a breath of fresh air. Lovely writing by a talented author that captures your heart and mind. Recommended.