Chasing Moonflowers by Pauline Chow
2025 is the year of the vampire in the best way possible. Seems like all of the authors got the memo that we needed something fresh and they have delivered. Chasing Moonflowers is a vampiric story taking place in the Kowloon district of Hong Kong during the 1920s. Normally, I’m not a huge fan of reading books from this specific era (I think after Gatsby it’s a bit overdone) but it being set in Hong Kong immediately piqued my interest. Because of the setting and the time period, you really got an in depth vision of what it means to be a monster, but literally and figuratively. With the British colonization of Hong Kong, political uprising, and the cut away chapters in the Guineas where the sailors have been held captive and forced into slavery, there so much going on and yet it all fit in beautifully into the story. I had my suspicions about some of the characters and was right about one and completely wrong about another. I loved that along with the traditional idea of the vampire (coupled with our main girl Ling literally reading Carmilla) the eastern legends and myths were intertwined. One quick note for readers with possible triggers- there are eyes- literal eyes floating around in this book. If that grosses you out, you may want to skip this one.
This was my first book by Pauline Chow, but I hope to read more! Thank you to NetGalley and Victory Editing | Ghastly Goings-On Press for the advanced copy. I devoured this one!

3.5 stars.

As a biracial Chinese person who spent a large part of their adolescence in Hong Kong, there was a sense of familiarity when reading this, from the culture, the food and the traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). I particularly liked the use of TCM and herbalism to ward off evil spirits and keep vampiric symptoms at bay.

The story moves at an engaging pace - I read this book in about 7 hours - and I enjoyed the setting, having grown up in Hong Kong. The book also had a good conclusion that wasn’t ambiguous, and one or two plot points that may have been unresolved weren’t significant enough to ruin the ending.

Ling is a complex and realistic MC, and I enjoyed her transformation and character development throughout the book. I thought that the themes of the book were well woven together - the commentary on the colonisation of HK, white supremacy, patriarchy and labour strikes with the supernatural. However, I did feel that the other characters could have been fleshed out more - sometimes Ling's relationships with the other characters felt a bit underdeveloped.

A lot is happening in the book, and I think that diluted some of the other plot points, as I couldn’t understand the relevance. For example, at the beginning of the book, Ling is reading Carmilla by Sheridan Le Fanu, which is mentioned again several times throughout the book, but I’m not sure why. After finishing it, I can see that this book is a subtle nod to Carmilla, however, it can’t be assumed that all readers of this book have read it. Perhaps it only serves to highlight that the thought of vampires is at the forefront of Ling's mind, which is why she is so readily able to deduce that vampires are plaguing her town.

I found the writing style quite formal and somewhat constrained, which affected the flow when reading. It also made the dialogue between characters seem stilted, as this isn’t how people would naturally speak with each other.
I’m unsure whether this was intentionally written like this or not. Is it to appear as if the dialogue is between people speaking English as a second language? Although the dialogue was like this between all characters, I would assume that Ling and her family members would speak to each other in Cantonese rather than English.

Although I enjoyed this book and think that others would probably like it, I wouldn’t read it again.

I got this as an arc on Netgalley and it will come out in July. This was pretty great if you like gothic non western stories! There was a lot happening but all of it good and well woven together.

I love how layered this is. I dont usually read the authors notes but i feel it is very important for this novel. The artwork made me feel like this was a statement piece and then i read the note, got a bit into the book and a little more… war time especially in those time was hard on the people and what you make of your life during it is important. This book is very layered. Yes it is a gothic horror and has some very cool graphic scenes in it VERY COOL WRITING STYLE. But this is also very original and opinionated.

Chasing Moonflowers by Pauline Chow is one in a lifetime book. I loved this story so much. I couldn't put it down for a second. So so good.

I didn’t expect to fall this hard for a historical fantasy, but here we are—completely obsessed. This book pulled me in from the first chapter and refused to let go. The worldbuilding? Impeccable. The unraveling of long-buried secrets and ancestral threads? Absolutely addictive.

Ling was such a standout protagonist—complex, determined, and achingly real. Her transformation over the course of the story gave me chills, and by the time I reached the epilogue, I was an emotional mess (in the best way). That final reflection on her strength? Perfection.

This story was transportive, moving, and full of heart. I’ll be shouting about it to anyone who’ll listen—and yes, a reread is definitely in my future. Can’t wait to see what this author does next.

thank you to the publisher and netgalley for the e-arc!!

it seems i am in the minority because i am not rating this five stars. i will say i liked the world that was set up, 1920s Hong Kong filled with magic and vampires that blends well with the themes of oppression from conquerors and the labour strikes. i thought those themes were done wonderfully and i fully enjoyed it.

my gripe is that it took too long for the story to get going. i slogged through at least 50% of it to really get into it. it was a lot of Ling running around getting information. personally i found that information came to our protagonist Ling a little to easily via conveniently found medical texts or literal knowledge transferrence from another vampire.

however i did like the familial bonds between Ling, her brothers, her uncle, Ahma (as someone who does know chinese, why does she call her mother that? it could a different dialect but it means grandmother to me and is so jarring) and even her long lost father. the length she does to save her uncle from being falsely accused of murder, rescue her brothers from Wupo and finding her father again is really what kept me flipping the pages throughout.

i thought the ending was the best part. it was realistic. because when faced with immense power? most cannot resist the call, and Ling is an excellent representation of someone who has needed this power all her life, not just some pure hearted protagonist. her turning down Enlai's proposal (ngl i did like his character a lot, i just wish he was fleshed out a lot more than just being a childhood friend who betrayed her and joined the Red Society but loves her) and leaving her family was the only path she could have gone down.

the epilogue was fantastic, with Xie's letter to her and her reply that she would come back sometime.

might read this again some other time to see if i would like it more.

I LOVED this book! I was hooked from the beginning and read it in 3 days. I just started getting into historical fantasy, and this really set a high bar! I loved the secrets and mysteries that were held within this story. I love some good Family Lore! I was completely transported into this world. I love Ling, the main character of this book. The epilogue made me tear up, "I am in my own power" Ling writes, and I think that captures her journey throughout quite perfectly. I would definitely recommend this book and would absolutely return to it to reread. I look forward to more books from this author.