Genres and generations collide with this story of 1930's Shanghai. In a world where wolves are made of mist and shaman and the Mother of Calamity reigns Jingwen, a dancer, learns the history of her culture, The Blue Dawn gangsters and the Court of Exiles clash. It is a world where human hearts can be replaced with a swan's heart, li[s and eyes are stolen and arms are replced with silver arms. Unsettled is the best word I can find to describe the feeling you get as you emerge yourself into this mystical world. With authentic Chinese words of desription I was very thankful for my online dictionary. This is a cross between historical fiction and fantasy that you won't want to miss.
Thanks to #NetGalley#StMartinsPress for the eARC and the suggestion.
#DaughterOfCalamity

I was so excited to read Daughter of Calamity. The synopsis sounded like an intriguing mix of fantasy/thriller set in Shanghai. But unfortunately, it just wasn't for me. I couldn't connect with any of the characters, and I felt it moved way too slow. I also don't know much about Shanghai or the culture, so the lore failed to hold my interest. But that being said, I feel like me and the book just weren't a match, but I know there are others who will love this book. I have one friend in particular who I know would devour this in one sitting, and I will most definitely recommend it to him. Thanks so much to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC.

Daughter of Calamity takes the reader to the occult underground of 1930s Shanghai and the author does a great job at evoking the moodiness of it all. The sensory descriptions of the locations and settings in this story created an eerie atmosphere that pulled me in as a reader. I only enjoyed the first one hundred pages or so because the atmosphere was nicely balanced with the creepy plot. The story got more and more complicated when many myths and folkloric aspects were included that made things confusing. I lost interest when many new elements to the story were introduced. The complexity of the plot took away from the dark atmosphere of the story which I felt was the star of the show.

I will never understand why authors do not ask appropriate, knowledgeable specialists for a read-through to make sure terminology is used correctly. In this case, the author is apparently a dancer, but her use of language about music is a big mess, and it pulled me right out of the story. Numerous other small things that made no sense (dancing barefoot on a stage used by tap dancers? um, no. Huge hazards there.) as well as uneven character development and world-building. The premise is good--a magical-realist Shanghai, full of angry gods and exploitation and gangs. Things happen a little too unbelievably fast at the beginning, and the pacing throughout is awkward and sometimes hard to follow. The characters don't have much depth, and they change their minds and loyalties with every cliche that comes from their mouths. There are characters who don't actually do much except smolder dramatically or are mysterious, but they have no charisma and are too often just filler--even those who are supposed to be important, such as the protagonist's mother and the protagonist's potential love interests. There's no spark. There's a very brief reference to queer sexuality, but everyone else lacks sex appeal, even when they're supposed to be making their livings off of it. The magic and power and technology of the world is revealed somewhat clunkily, and some of the metaphors involving those aspects are heavy-handed enough to make you bang your head on the wall. The geography of the city is unclear, and the city as an entity is uneven. There are continuity errors--one most noticeable one comes near the end, when a character holds up his hands in a surrender gesture, but then in the next sentence is just then pulling them out of his pockets. I feel like this needs one more really good developmental edit, to cut away the flotsam and jetsam, and it would be much better.

3.5/5 rounded up
Historical fiction with a thrilling peek into 1930’s Shanghai’s corruption and greed. Jingwen is a showgirl with multiple jobs as a dancer, plus one as a Money runner for her grandmother, who is working with the Blue Dawn gang. There is another gang who wants control of Shanghai and will stop at nothing to get it. This book I would describe as a historical crime fantasy with a splash of gods and deities.

For fans of slow burn historical crime fantasy, if you like one of these genres, I’m sure you will enjoy this book.

Thanks to St Martins Press, NetGalley, and the author for the arc of this book in exchange for my honest review.