August 2013 Indie Next List

“If Lisa See and Elizabeth Bear collaborated on a book, the result would probably be something like Yangszee Choo's 'The Ghost Bride'. Set on the Malay Peninsula in the late 19th Century, this debut novel tells the story of Li Lan whose father promises her in marriage to the recently-dead son of a wealthy local family as a means of discharging his considerable debt. When the dead son begins visiting Li Lan in her dreams, she becomes increasing desperate to escape him. When an accidental overdose of a sleeping draught separates her sol from her body, she must navigate the world of the dead with the aid of two allies--Fan and Er Lang--neither of whom are whate they appear. Full of danger, romance, and eerie beauty, 'The Ghost Bride' is a fantastical novel about a young girl's quest to find her own destiny and choose love over duty.”
— Billie Bloebaum, Powell's Books At PDX, Portland, OR