Historical Fiction, Magic, and High Fantasy; and Other Books

 Re-reading

The Poppy War by R.F. Kuang, May 1, 2018; Harper Voyager

Genre: historical fiction, fantasy, high fantasy, magic 

I had started this historical fantasy but not finished. Now, I'm in the mood for fantastic martial arts, magic, Chinese mythology, fantastic creatures, gods,  and feats, and a female main character who went from a poor village to the highest military academy and honors. It's a mistake, I find, to try to link the events and wars and places to real Chinese history and places, as they have been so changed for the purposes of fiction. 

(post reprinted from Book Bird Dog ( Book Dilettante), my other book blog.) The Poppy War is an epic historical military fantasy, inspired by the bloody history of China’s twentieth century and filled with treachery and magic. I had to read this to see why it received all the awards and accolades. Apart from being a Goodreads Choice Award for 2018, the first book received 

Nebula Award Nominee for Best Novel (2018), Locus Award Nominee for First Novel (2019), World Fantasy Award Nominee for Best Novel (2019), Compton Crook Award (2019), British Fantasy Award Nominee for Best Newcomer (Sydney J. Bounds Award) (2019), and several other award nominations

The other books in the fantasy trilogy are

The Dragon Republic and 

The Burning God. All three books won the Goodreads Choice and the last two were also nominated for awards.

R. F. Kuang is also the author of Babel, Yellowface 

Also reading

Set in the Toronto neighbourhood of “Little Jamaica,” Frying Plantain  (June 4, 2019) follows a girl from elementary school to high school graduation as she navigates the tensions between mothers and daughters, second-generation immigrants experiencing first-generation cultural expectations, and Black identity in a predominantly white society.

ZALIKA REID-BENTA, a Canadian writer, whose debut novel RIVER MUMMA has been shortlisted for the 2024 Trillium Book Award and  received starred reviews from Publishers Weekly and Booklist Magazine. RIVER MUMMA is an Amazon Books Editors' Pick for Best Science Fiction and Fantasy and was selected a Best Book of the Month for Apple Books in February 2024. It has been listed as one of the best fiction books of 2023 on platforms, including CBC Books, Indigo Books, Kobo Books and The Walrus.

Reid-Benta's debut short story collection FRYING PLANTAIN won the Danuta Gleed Literary Award and the Rakuten Kobo Emerging Writer Prize for Literary Fiction in 2020. It was longlisted for the 2020 Scotiabank Giller Prize, and shortlisted for the 2020 Toronto Book Award, the 2020 Trillium  Book Award, the 2021 White Pine Award and the 2020 Evergreen Award.

In 2025, Tundra Books will publish Zalika's first picture book, TWELVE DAYS OF JAMAICAN CHRISTMAS.

What are you reading, watching, or listening to this week? 

Memes:  The Sunday Post, It's Monday: What Are You Reading, Sunday Salon, and Stacking the Shelves, Mailbox Monday, Book Blogger Hop

The Hungry Tide by Amitav Ghosh, a review

 Book post reprinted from my other book blog, BookBirdDog (Book Dilettante)

The Hungry Tide by Amitav Ghosh
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Published June 11, 2020; Mariner Books

Genre: Indian literature, historical fiction, award winning novel

A young Indian marine biologist, Piya Roy, travels to the remote Sunderbans area of West Bengal, India near the border with Bangladesh, to find and study the habits of two rare river dolphins, one of them the Irawaddy dolphin. She gets help from an illiterate yet knowledgeable boatman, Fokir, who knows and understands the extensive mangroves, the shifting tides of the river, and the multiple small islands that make up the marshland area. He is able to take her to where the dolphins regularlly gather to feed.

I loved the extensive and detailed descriptions of the Sunderbans islands, the poetic vision of man and nature and their interactions. The tenacious and determined personality of Piya and her bravery and courage in her research fits well with the astute and competent boatman Fokir, and their attraction to each other does not come as a surprise.

The force of nature and its effects on humans and their frail habitations in a wilderness of wood and water is made over and over again when the incoming tides completely cover many of the islands each day. The main event for the inhabitants is when a cyclone threatens their lives and houses in the Sunderbans. The mangroves are also home to ferocious tigers, crocodiles, and snakes.

The main character is the land - the land of wood, water, and the tides that swallow them up at will. The love story between Piya and Fokir is also heart breaking. But the redemption of having environmental groups fund Piya's further study of the Sunderbans is a reward for her efforts.

 

AMITAV GHOSH was born in Calcutta, and grew up in India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka; he studied in Delhi, Oxford and Alexandria. He is the author of several acclaimed works of fiction and non-fiction including the Booker-shortlisted Sea of Poppies, the first novel in  The Ibis Trilogy, The Glass Palace and The Hungry Tide. His non-fiction writing includes The Great Derangement, The Nutmeg’s Curse and Smoke and Ashes: Opium’s Hidden Histories, which was shortlisted for the Cundill History Prize.
Amitav Ghosh’s work has been translated into more than thirty languages. He was a finalist of the Man Booker International Prize and was the first English-language writer to be the recipient of the Jnanpith Award, India’s highest literary honour. In 2024 Amitav Ghosh was awarded the Erasmus Prize. 

Historical Novels, Fantasy, Mystery

Historical Fiction 

Not yet published

A Beast Slinks Towards Beijing by Alice Evelyn Yang, Jan. 27, 2026; William Morrow, NetGalley

Genre: literary, fantasy, historical fiction

A dark, magical realist debut family saga that moves through the Japanese occupation of Manchuria, the Cultural Revolution, and the present day to explore the effects of intergenerational trauma, the legacy of colonialism, and the inescapability of fate.

 I am interested in the history of China from the 1930s and onward.

Not yet published 

Eureka by Victoria Chang, publication Jan. 27, 2026; Macmillan Children's Publishing; NetGalley

Genre: children's historical fiction

Description: Eureka is a gorgeous and emotionally resonant novel-in-verse by multiple-award-winning poet Victoria Chang that sensitively and lyrically renders the tragic events surrounding the 1885 expulsion of Chinese Americans from Eureka, California.

I wanted to know more about this event in 1885 California.

Soft Burial by Fang Fang, March 18, 2025; Columbia University Press, NetGalley

Genre: historical fiction, mystery, amnesia

Soft Burial begins with a mysterious, nameless protagonist. Decades earlier she was pulled out of a river in a state of near-death; upon regaining consciousness, she discovered that her entire memory had been erased. The narrative follows her journey through recovery. Intergenerational trauma from the Land Reform Campaign in China, late 40s to early 50s.  

Amnesia cases, fictional or real, have been fascinating for me.

State of Emergency by Jeremy Tiang, published June 3, 2025; World Editions, NetGalley

Genre; literary, historical fiction

Jeremy Tiang's debut novel dives into the tumultuous days of leftist movements and political detentions in Singapore and Malaysia. It follows an extended family from the 1940s to the present day. 

The history of the Chinese in Southeast Asia is  equally intriguing. 

A Telegram from Le Touquet by John Bude, May 20, 2025; Poisoned Pen Press, NetGalley 

Genre: historical mystery, first published in 1956

Nigel Derry finds himself on a vacation cut short by murder as a cold shadow of suspicion eclipses the sunny beauty of the Côte d'Azur. Enter Inspector Blampignon of the Sûreté Nationale, the formidable French detective who embarks on a thrilling race to discover the truth. 

My dream vacation spot is the Cote d'Azur.

I enjoy historical fiction and also love a good mystery. 

What are you reading, watching, or listening to this week? 

Memes:  The Sunday Post, It's Monday: What Are You Reading, Sunday Salon, and Stacking the Shelves, Mailbox Monday, Book Blogger Hop