An interest premise, life in some of the seamier areas of Shanghai over a couple of decades in the early 20th century, but it’s not well executed. It’s like a melodramatic romance novel set to this period, and unfortunately Hong Ying’s writing is mediocre at best, and immature otherwise. She doesn’t go into any depth or provide any real insights into the period either, so set your expectations to ‘fluff’ if you decide to pick this one up.

After we learn early on that the young woman sold into servitude has “mysteriously large breasts,” (lol) she’s soon the happy lover of one of the most powerful men in the underworld of Shanghai, which aside from being implausible, also takes attention away from possibly describing what such a life might really have been like. The story that has her rising to fortune on the stage while going through a few men was somewhat interesting, and Ying pulls off a nice plot twist in a murder, but it goes on far too long. The bits with her child growing up to be an actor and the author inserting herself as a fictional researcher get to be tedious in a book that wears out its welcome.

As for the sex bits, they suffer because of her writing, and aren’t very erotic. Maybe if you’re into being watched you find something of interest, as it’s a recurring theme (e.g. sex in front of someone watching, sex while looking in a mirror). Otherwise be prepared for passages like this: “Her chest protruded like a statue and the breasts he had fantasized about for so many years were firm, the nipples standing up cockily, like warriors.” (what?) And: “His hair was messy and his eyes were burning with passion; even his Adam’s apple was pulsating.” (I was giggling).

The best quote was this one:
“If I love several men, I am still young. If I only love one man, I am already old; if I don’t love anyone, I do not exist.” ( )

I chose this book after I read an article comparing the author, Hong Ying to Amy Tan. I have to agree. This lengthy book was just as enjoyable as the books by Amy Tan or Lisa See. The translator, Liu Hong, is equally important in conveying the feeling of a book originally written in Chinese. Sold by her aunt to a Shanghai madam, Cassia manages to rise in fame and fortune, ending her life as a well-regarded actress. The reader will feel the freedom experienced in early 20th century Shanghai, with its Bund and active foreign residents. I won’t call this a Cinderella story, but it is a feel-good story for the most. ( )

Cassia Xiao is an impoverished girl whose aunt is determined to get her to Shanghai. Cassia has no objection to this and begs Madame Emerald, the owner of a fancy brothel, to take her on as a servant girl. Madame Emerald buys Cassia and does indeed set her up as a servant girl, but Cassia’s life is not grand until one of Madame Emerald’s lovers, Master Chang, takes a look at Cassia and sees something more. He doesn’t mind her unbound feet and takes her as his lover, insisted that she be set up like the other prostitutes, spending every day and night with her. They fall in love and Cassia is initiated into the secret Hong brotherhood. At one of these meetings, Master Chang is killed and Cassia falls from favor. It is only her determination that brings her back up from the streets to become one of Shanghai’s most revered figures.

Let me start off by saying that this book felt like it was taking me forever to read, although it only took me about a week in reality. The story is not bad at all when you look at it in summary. Cassia’s life would make for great fiction. On the whole, it reminded me of Memoirs of a Geisha; a tale of a slightly scandalous woman that is framed as if realistic but is actually fiction. The early 20th century Chinese setting was very interesting as well, particularly with the mafia-like “brotherhoods” and the difference between the country and the city. These are things I rarely come across in fiction.

The execution, however, for me left a lot to be desired. The prose is completely awkward. The dialogue is about as far from realistic as you can imagine. Worse, it was far more erotic than I’d bargained for and I’m sure some of the scenes should be up there as the worst written sex in fiction. I think the novel would have been far, far better off with just suggestion rather than going into the details.

I’m not sure if any of this is the fault of the translation or the original story and I know that I have been appalled by writing which other people don’t seem to mind in the past. So it might be just me. In all honesty, though, I really can’t recommend this book, except perhaps to look at the lovely cover. The model is the author herself.

http://chikune.com/blog/?p=368 ( )