Published: Nov 6, 2018 by Little Brown and Company
Format: Hardcover, 385 pages, English

“I don't want an easy life. I want a meaningful one.”

​★★★★ (3.8 / 5 stars) I want to start off by saying this is an important novel. The levels of emotion and passion written into the pages of this story are so potent and so high, I could practically taste it while I read. Not only does this novel tackle sensitive issues with a raw openness worthy of all our respect, but also it presents what I think we need more of: development of strong female friendships, and a variety of them! In fact, there are really only three men named and cared about throughout the book, and they’re relatively one-dimensional. While I would’ve liked to see a deeper dive into their characters (especially Kenzo), I don’t feel like I needed it.

!! WARNING !! There are spoilers ahead!

summary.

The premise was intriguing right off the bat, and I was so on-edge, I stayed up well into the early morning hours to make sure I finished this book the same day I started. Our main character, Lei, is taken suddenly from her family by soldiers from her kingdom's capital. As in most fantasy stories these days, the king is cruel, and she dreads what awaits her when she reaches the palace. Turns out, she has been taken to serve the king as one of eight (nine, depending on where you are in the story) Paper Girls, aka concubines. Over the course of the story, Lei must decide to either accept her fate as a Paper Girl and submit to the king's sexual abuse OR resist to the utmost and help her rebellious lover assassinate him in time.

quick thoughts.

• Lei's training with Wren seemed to go far too smoothly. I couldn’t help wonder how she was truly ready to kill the king and why no one ever caught them sneaking outside or to each other’s rooms..!! I mean, kissing makes noise, and they made it seem like even more than that happened so......???

• I have a lot of world-building/missing-link questions left unanswered, but I’m willing to ignore them to enjoy the rest...e.g., that random prophesy, menstrual cycles, don’t tell me none of those girls skipped their contraceptive tonic on purpose..., and who the heck is this bird dude saving the day? why does he get a personality? (but I digress)

• The most brutal moments were well-captured and devastating, just like they were meant to be. And I loved the romance. It was so sweet and genuine; I’m glad we got to know these girls so well with that relationship.

• Various elements of the culture and Lei's background were really beautiful and original. The blending of animal (aka demon) and human features in the society was new to me. Sometimes, it was hard to imagine, but Ngan still did a great job.

• On the other hand, the opening description of the ceremony for a newborn was wonderful, and I loved that her parents named her "Lei" so they would always smile with her name. :) In turn, it made me smile every time Wren said her name because her smiles were few and far between, but she'd always have to smile when speaking Lei's name. #myemotions​

“If this is to be my fate, I'm going to walk boldly into it on my own two feet.”

My other favorite moments and scenes are: Wren bring Lei a midnight snack (her sneakiness the first clue to her assassin-warrior abilities), bathtime! (during which I could. not. help. but think of Lorcan Salvaterre murmurring, "A dangerous time, bath time..." and Lei's epic sassiness with General Yu and the fox at the end of the book!