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Shanghai Immortal: A richly told romantic fantasy novel set in Jazz Age Shanghai

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It’s a fast-paced book that will keep you hooked from the beginning. An easy and fun reading where the author presents a fantasy setting with great worldbuilding but that is close enough to the real world to make it relatable and natural. So, hell, the mortal world… and we also get to know the celestial lands! Home to the likes of Chang-e and dragon lords. This is just a little part of the large amount of world-building Chao has put into Shanghai Immortal, and everything fits together just so perfectly. I won’t delve into this element, but I absolutely loved how roosters were used in the overall world. Gorgeous book in all aspects, from the characters to the plot and worldbuilding and the writing. Shanghai Immortal is one of my all-time favorites. 5 stars are not enough!!!!!!!

It’s also a wonderful blending of Chinese mythology and Jazz Age Shanghai. It’s such a rich and beautiful blend of subjects but in a way that never feels confusing. Shanghai Immortal follows Lady Jing as she seeks to expose a plot to steal a dragon pearl from the king of Hell. Her escapades take her through both Hell and mortal Shanghai in search of information to prove the hulijing courtiers are behind the plot. I'm really fond of this story, it speaks about finding out where you belong and learning to love and be loved. The elements of chinese-mythology as well as the idea of both Mortal and Immortal Shanghai cohexisting are very entertaining, so if you're a fan of Chinese Mythology, you don't want to miss out on Shanghai Immortal!With the help of a gentle mortal tasked with setting up the Central Bank of Hell, Jing embarks on a wild chase for intel, first through Hell and then mortal Shanghai. But when her hijinks put the mortal in danger, she must decide which is more important: avenging her loss of face, or letting go of her half-empty approach to life for a chance to experience tenderness – and maybe even love Mr. Lee is a very interesting male protagonist. I like firm people who don't change their values yet don't remain stagnant, either. I kind of feel like he's still some of a mystery because he himself adapts to his environment and according to the circumstances--and what trouble Little Jing is in. We love to see committed and dedicated love interests! So when Jing overhears the courtiers plotting to steal a priceless dragon pearl from the King, she seizes her chance to expose them, once and for all.

One thing about Lady Jing is that she didn’t believe that people are her friends or are her support. Her protective layer hardened at every curse, accusation, and abuse that the hulijing court had thrown her direction. This is why she didn’t believe that Big Wang was truly looking out for her or that Lady Gi is her friend or that her mother loved her. I’m glad that it changed and she no longer felt as alone in the world as she thought. The romance: I have to preface this by saying that I'm generally not a romance person, but the biggest issue I had with it was mostly that it felt like a third of the book was mostly only romance, and the rest was the actual plot. It felt oddly separate to the plot to me, almost as though it put a kind of halt to it. This might just be me personally, but it didn't feel as connected as it could have been. This richly told adult fantasy debut teems with Chinese deities and demons cavorting in jazz age Shanghai. Shanghai Immortal is the must-read debut of 2023, both intensely fun and heart wrenching. A wild ride through a Shanghai you've never seen before Shanghai Immortal is the must-read debut of 2023, both intensely fun and heart wrenching. A wild ride through a Shanghai you've never seen before." - Tasha SuriAnd of course, let’s not forget that I wanted to know if the plot against Big Wang would be stopped and the villains punished! The way Chao describes these mythological characters is really amazing. I absolutely loved the concept behind the story.

The worldbuilding is amazing, both mortal and immortal Shanghai feel very vivid. No one ever thinks of hell as being better than earth, but I think the writer has made a very beautiful hell.Pawned by her mother to the King of Hell as a child, Lady Jing is half-vampire, half-hulijing fox-spirit and all sasshole. As the King's ward, she has spent the past ninety years running errands, dodging the taunts of the spiteful hulijing courtiers, and trying to control her explosive temper - with varying levels of success. I’m in love with Shanghai Immortal and I’ve only recently just found out about the book. I hope people don’t sleep on this. Why did I fall for Shanghai Immortal? There is simply this charm to the writing, characters, and setting. Also, I loved all the Chinese mythology and lore embedded into the plot and locations, but they had twists to them. Set in 1930s China, Shanghai Immortal is a stunningly rich novel with a snarky, irreverent main character struggling to reconcile her mixed heritage - it’s not easy being half vampire and half hulijing fox spirit - whilst solving a mystery concerning the King’s Dragon Pearl and accidentally falling in love… The shabby brown changpao is an odd choice for a deity, but an immediate tell that he's one of the dragon kings. They are easy enough to tell apart in their true dragon forms because of their colour: I want to preface this review by saying that I know for a fact that this book will not be for everyone. If you have delicate sensibilities and are easily offended by words like "piss-fart" and "ta-tas," as a matter of fact, you might hate this book. I, however, have the mouth of a sailor and am not offended by profanities. In fact, I found them hilarious. You see, Lady Jing, our FMC, is an absolute sasshole, and I love her for this. I love that Chao didn't shy away from developing Lady Jing's sassiness because she felt colorful and full of life.

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