I didn’t care for this one I felt it was not that engaging and felt the story wasn’t plotted and paced correctly.

Jingwen is a dancer at the Paramount in the 1930s with deep familial ties to the Blue Dawn gang. When she discovers that dancers have been getting their body parts removed (and attached to wealthier people) she goes on an adventure through the deep underbelly of Shanghai.

It has a lot going on - entrenched in the culture of China and sprinkled with magic, it feels truly original and like nothing I've read before. It’s ending is wrapped up nicely and it’s great to see a female heroine going on a “hero’s journey.”

While the story might have been engrossing the characters were not super strong. I didn't feel a connection with Jingwen and everyone else seemed more like noise or names that I couldn't remember. The plot changes gears pretty dramatically about halfway through, and it was hard for me to keep focus.

I really wanted to like this book. It was written well (although some of the metaphors were a bit much) and overall was a solid debut novel.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martins Press for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

P.S. why is it always fungus?

Beautiful writing, but ultimately a shallow story with awkward pacing issues...

Rating: 2.5/5 ✰

Background:
Daughter of Calamity is a story set in an alternate, fantastical 1930s Shanghai where seedy underground gangs reign supreme and ancient powers are commodified. I was immediately enchanted with the world, especially because the author's writing is absolutely stunning, but with time the feelings faded as the plot and characters became so messy. It felt like the author had certain plot ideas in mind, and instead of having the story unfold, characters were just pushed from situation to situation in order to hit these beats. The world either needed to be explained in more depth, or shortened more so that we're not left confused in the end.

There were just so many unnecessary details that took a lot of our time, with the plot (and characters) ending up suffering for it. This felt especially apparent with any fight scenes and the big shows; these things had so much buildup, but ended up only lasting a couple of pages before we needed to move on to the next part of the story. Don't even get me started with the romance... it's completely rushed and feels added in for fun instead of being an intentional aspect of the story. Either the author needed to flesh out their chemistry more, or the romance should've just been a lesson to Jingwen about idealism.

Characters:
The place where the book felt the most disappointing was the characters. In the beginning, I could really feel all their potential for complexity and expected a lot of interesting interactions between them, but in the end it felt like they were just vessels for the story without any real depth or strong traits. Jingwen spent a lot of time thinking and admiring the city, but it didn't ever really feel like she had her own unique voice. She didn't really seem to have a lot of values and changed her mind easily, which is incredibly ironic considering how randomly upset she got when she sees someone else do the same thing. If the author wanted her to feel like a hypocritical character, then I definitely think that needed more fleshing out. I don't think she's meant to be an unlikable character though, since she seems to be framed as morally just in situations where she's fighting with her grandmother or whatever else, so these moments all end up just feeling disconnected. I would've just liked more cohesion with her character.

A lot of the other characters in the book felt similarly shallow, with their relationships seeming to change really suddenly. My excitement and appreciation for them early on ended up just becoming apathy as time passed and they continued to lack any real exploration. Instead of adding more depth, the same descriptors are used over and over again (Li Beibei's catlike grace, Zikai's magnetic aura, Bailey's honeyed demeanor) so we never really learn much about them or get any kind of attachment. These things help describe their vibes, which is helpful in the beginning, but once you get a couple hundred pages in you expect to know more about them than just their vibes - especially if we're supposed to feel care and worry about them in this dangerous world.

Closing thoughts:
This is just so disappointing because the overall story idea was really good (especially that ending omg!!), but the execution needed more time and care to really make everything feel more meaningful. I honestly think that if this was a series instead of a standalone, and the author had more time to flesh out characters and build suspense, it would be one of my all-time favorites. Glad I got through this because I still found joy in the writing, but I really hope there's more polishing before release.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts are my own and not sponsored in any way.

Shanghai gangster historical fantasy is weirdly popular these days. It feels like such a cool, magical time in history when China was the epicenter of world culture and there was a lot of buzz around the city in particular. People were writing song after song about it- even in the west. Shanghai was rightfully looked at as this crazy magical lawless adventureland where anything could happen and you met people from all over the world making their fortunes in what was often a "faraway land". It was also a time of colonialism and a lot of cultural mixing for China. Theres this complicated beauty in the history of the time period being presented here that still keeps readers coming back and begging for more. In these books, Shanghai is as much the character as the characters themselves.

Daughter of Calamity is one of these books. To dismiss the beauty of Shanghai in this book and how lovingly the author writes about the city would be missing a lot, and it was my favorite part of the book.

This a debut and it shows. Some clunky writing and weird transitions. It sometimes felt like the author really wanted you to get caught up in the adventure she was hoping to frame, but it also takes her a long time to get to the point. Scene transitions can be a little odd and the dialogue comes across as forced and awkward at times.

I just never really got into the story the way I wanted to and struggled to care about something that conceptually is really cool. It was a little boring and just didn't catch me. I do think that historical fantasy fans and people who are really passionate about Chinese historical fiction will probably find a lot of enjoyment in this. It may be a better book for historical fiction fans who are used to the flow of these stories. while there are fantasy elements, the vibe is heavily historical fiction.

This was a really interesting concept for a 1930s re-imagining of Shanghai, it worked well with the description and I enjoyed the overall concept going on. It felt similar to the history but always different enough to where I wanted it to be. I enjoyed the dangers in this plot and how the characters interacted with them. Rosalie M. Lin does a great job in writing this and leaving me wanting more.

I have received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Daughter of Calamity is one of those books where you start to form questions and can't stop forming them until everything has been revealed. At times, I didn't even know if what we were reading was really happening or if it was the characters imagination due to the drugs/alcohol. Throw all of this into a gigantic city with so much mystery that it's hard to figure out who you can really trust.

After meeting Jingwen, our main character, I didn't know what to think. Most of the time I knew she was pretty naive about the world she was living in. She wanted nothing to do with her grandmother's practice or the gang members she worked with. Then there's her mother and lack of relationship that doesn't really changed throughout the book. The one thing we knew she loved to do was dance.

Once the attacks started happening, we kind of get a few hints about possible romances. Not necessarily a love triangle because it's hard to figure out what's real and what isn't. For the longest time, it felt like she was a pawn, or I guess you could say a puppet. Someone somewhere was pulling the strings and I just wanted to know what was going to happen next.

The betrayals came and went. There's also a little fight scene that goes by very quickly. Heck, I'm still trying to digest the last few chapters. In the end, I'm intrigued by this new version of Shanghai being built and wonder how long it's going to last. Will there be another attack? Nobody knows.

"Daughter of Calamity" navigates the intricate world of 1930s Shanghai through the lens of a cabaret dancer entangled in its dark, magical underworld. While the premise holds promise, the narrative encounters challenges in sustaining engagement. At various junctures, I found myself grappling with boredom, unable to foster a genuine investment in the characters or their fates. The narrative lacks depth in character development, stakes, and requires a more comprehensive exploration of the world's dynamics. In a story that should brim with life, the scarcity of vibrancy and explanations leaves the overall experience wanting. I’m giving it a rating of 2.5 stars, "Daughter of Calamity" falls short in delivering the anticipated richness and depth expected from its intriguing setting.

Thank you to @netgalley for this eARC in exchange for a review.

I loved being thrown into the eerie darkness of lavish clubs in Shanghai. We follow Jingwen, a young woman with multiple jobs that include being a dancer. I'm not sure if the author has a background in dancing, because a lot of the dialogue had some dancer terms. This was a slow burn crime fantasy that includes comradery and competition. I loved the splash of Gods and Deities as other plot points in the midst of the Shanghai club scene. I am hoping to read more from this author.

This is a dazzling fantasy story of a young woman who is being called to follow in the footsteps of her grandmother and graft new metal parts onto the people of Shanghai. But this isn't the life she wants. In the mornings, she trains to dance and has dreams of performing on stage. At night, she dances with men, hoping to earn money in exchange for dance cards. In each of these 2, she is in competition to the other women around her and she pushes and pulls to get her wins.

But one night, in the midst of dancing and meeting rich men, one of the girls on the dancefloor is attacked. It's so fast, no one saw what happened or who did what, but the girl is forever maimed. That night changes the world for our main character, and she can no longer hang on the outskirts hoping for things to happen - she must make her own destiny.

I found the Shanghai the mc gives us to be fancy and mysterious. I liked the competition and the eventual comradery of the dancing girls. The smoke was used so much, I was unsure at times what was real and what wasn't. I didn't find much use for either love interest. They felt more like pretty arm candy than affection. I wish there had been more interaction and time between those who'd raised the mc, as I found their characters and storylines a little flat but I was interested to know more. The gods sounded as gods should - terrifying and awful. I loved the danger and horror of the events and the twists and turns. It did keep me entertained. I liked it!

A huge thank you to the author and publisher for providing an e-ARC via Netgalley. This does not affect my opinion regarding the book.

Daughter of Calamity has the sort of intricate world that makes you want to stay in it for longer, and though I liked the mystery, I do feel like the pacing was a bit off. I didn't mind the characters, but I believe I am a more plot/world driven reader, and perhaps character-driven readers may feel differently.

withholding review as a direct result of the SMP review boycott. all we're asking for is accountability from SMP, and then we will return to the regularly scheduled reviews.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Daughter of Calamity follows a cabaret dancer who gets wrapped up in the dark, magical underworld of 1930's Shanghai.

I found myself bored at a lot of points, and it was hard to feel like I cared about the characters and what happened to them. Depth is missing from the characters, the stakes, and just generally needs better explanation of the world and what's going on. There is very little life in a book that is seemingly supposed to be full of it.

I received an ARC through the publisher in exchange for an honest review

Daughter of Calamity by Rosalie M. Lin is an adult historical fantasy set in Shanghai in the 1930s. Jingwen is a cabaret dancer whose grandmother is the doctor of one of the local gangs. On a night when Jingwen and several of her fellow dancers make a bet about who can attract the richest client, one of the dancer’s lips are stolen right on the dance floor, leading Jingwen to learn more about her own family and city.

Lin’s descriptions of Shanghai make the city feel like a character all its own, from the citizens to the sights and smells to its history and its present. I found a lot of the descriptions to be creative and revealing about Jingwen’s character as well as the person or thing being described. The characters had distinct personalities from Jingwen’s ambitions to Beibei’s arrogance to Bailey’s quiet calculations.

I found it really hard to put this book down several times, especially as more and more of the fantastical elements were slowly revealed and we got glimpses into how the fantastical coexists with the historical Shanghai setting. Jingwen has a voice that I want to read more of and would gladly devour another book following her.

I would recommend this to readers looking for historical fiction with light fantasy elements and readers interested in Shanghai during the Jazz era.

I received this DRC from NetGalley.

It felt like it took awhile to get to any fantasy elements, and then even after that, it felt slow. I didn't care about the characters, and the writing style wasn't for me. The dialogue felt stiff at times, and the writing was supposed to be flowery and beautiful and whatnot, but maybe was trying too hard.

I will, unfortunately, be abstaining from sharing my thoughts about this title until St. Martin's Press adequately addresses the current boycott and claims and questions.

*review copy courtesy of the punlisher*

This was dreamy, poetic, and very Chinese in its essence. I really liked Daughter of Calamity.

Jingwen, the main character, is cold, abrasive, and standoffish, but deep down, she has a strong moral core and loyalty to those she holds dear.

Like Shanghai itself, she has multiple faces and personalities. Her Shanghai is kitchy and brimming with life, while at the same time dark, seedy, and dilapidated. Crystal palaces and French cafes are interspersed with abandoned temples with crumbling paint, underground gangs are fighting for power in dark alleys, and foreign powers are exploiting city riches for their own gain. This Shanghai is true to its historical memory despite very strong fantasy elements.

Another delightful part of this book is its portrayal of Guanyin, who is usually like Mother Teresa of Chinese pantheon. Here she is Mother of Calamity and Destruction, assassinations in the dark, true to her demonic origin.

At last, the best part of this book for me is how much it's suffused with a passion for dance.

The beginning of the twentieth century was absolutely revolutionary for the dance world, very experimental and exciting. Jingwen lives and breathes by it.

And the performance which is a centerpiece of the book made me think of its historical counterpart in the shock value, possibly The Rites of Spring which was performed by Dyagilev ballet troupe in Paris at that time (look it up, pretty avant-garde stuff for its time!)

Secondary characters to Jingwen are all excellent. Li Beibei, who was way too cool for a support cast, deserves her own story. Her grandmother and mother, the two opposing gang members, even the despicable villain with his typical white man exploiting Asia attitude, they all had layers.

What else? The atmosphere was top notch, and the plot was fast-paced and exciting. Overall, 4.5 stars. This was totally my jam.

The review is posted on Goodreads under kara-karina and will be posted on the blog closer to the release, thank you!

This is the story/fantasy of a dancehall girl in Shanghai. I normally do not read fantasy. I find the multi - complexity of plots to be more convoluted than I care to read. This involves gang members with steel arms, shamen, gods from the past, men of wealth and dancing girls along with our heroine’s grandmother who raised her who was performing illegal surgeries and her mother who is an even more notorious dancing girl. Thanks to Net Galley and St. Martin’s Press for an ARC for an honest review.

Historical fiction set in Shanghai from the perspective of a second generation cabaret dancer. Infused with bouts of mystical adventure, glimpses of rich culture, and snippets of exhilarating performances. The story moves right along with the main character facing tests of friendship, familial ties, and professional duties.

4/5

A story of power, corruption, greed, and redemption. Jingwen is a cabaret dancer in 1930's Shanghai, where her main priority is to appeal to wealthy, foreign socialites. Her grandmother, though, is a surgeon with ties to the Blue Dawn gang. As Jingwen begins to understand the underworld of Shanghai, she gets pulled into conflict that she could have never imagined. With confrontations against gods, men, and shamans, this dark historical fiction is full of adventure.

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"Daughter of Calamity" was beautifully written, with Lin's vivid imagery painting amazing images into your head. The story was very interesting, with nuanced enemies, causing me to challenge my own understandings of "good" and "evil". But there were always conflicting ideals at play -- traditionalism vs. modernism, globalization vs. localization, technology vs. spirituality. Yet Lin's nuanced take showed there can be evil in any ideal, and maybe we just need to embrace change while actively working to ensure those we love are safe.

While I loved the way the story came together, it's definitely a slow burn. The author introduces many characters/ideas throughout the story, and you will think these are minor details until they aren't. Normally, I'm not interested in slow-paced reads, however, I'm so glad I gave this a chance. I will say, the first plot-driver happens around the 25% mark, the book picks up a bit more around the 50% mark, and then it's an absolute page-turner from the 70% mark until the end. Patience really is a virtue here!

I definitely recommend this book and I'm looking forward to future works by Rosalie M. Lin!

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for providing an ARC in exchange for my fair and honest review.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for an opportunity to read an ARC of this book. First, can we please talk about this gorgeous cover?! It sucked me in, and then I read Shanghai, gangs, and dancers losing faces. Heck yeah!

While the writing in this book is beautiful, and premise appears to promise a story of adventure and mystery, the pacing was overall slow and made it a bit of a slog. I thought I had reached the end and I couldn't figure out why there were 3 more chapters. I thought there would be much more story behind Jingwen, her mother and her grandmother, but I feel like that fell short.

This was a bit of a miss for me overall.