The Night Tiger: A Novel

INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
The Reese Witherspoon x Hello Sunshine Book Club Pick
“A sumptuous garden maze of a novel that immerses readers in a complex, vanished world.”
—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
An utterly transporting novel set in 1930s colonial Malaysia, perfect for fans of Isabel Allende and Min Jin Lee.
Quick-witted, ambitious Ji Lin is stuck as an apprentice dressmaker, moonlighting as a dancehall girl to help pay off her mother’s Mahjong debts. But when one of her dance partners accidentally leaves behind a gruesome souvenir, Ji Lin may finally get the adventure she has been longing for.
Eleven-year-old houseboy Ren is also on a mission, racing to fulfill his former master’s dying wish: that Ren find the man’s finger, lost years ago in an accident, and bury it with his body. Ren has 49 days to do so, or his master’s soul will wander the earth forever.
As the days tick relentlessly by, a series of unexplained deaths racks the district, along with whispers of men who turn into tigers. Ji Lin and Ren’s increasingly dangerous paths crisscross through lush plantations, hospital storage rooms, and ghostly dreamscapes.
Yangsze Choo's The Night Tiger pulls us into a world of servants and masters, age-old superstition and modern idealism, sibling rivalry and forbidden love. But anchoring this dazzling, propulsive novel is the intimate coming-of-age of a child and a young woman, each searching for their place in a society that would rather they stay invisible.
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Community Reviews
I enjoyed The Night Tiger. It had many elements that kept me intrigued. The best way I can describe this book is it’s “good ole fashioned storytelling” and an enjoyable read. My rating is a 7.5.
Not my kind of book. A story about a man who died and was missing a finger. He had to be buried with his finger so his soul would be complete. In another part of the book, a woman falls in love with her stepbrother. I can't believe I finished the book.
The storyline follows the Chinese folklore that a body must be together in order to pass to the afterlife and not wander the earth cursed. I loved the plot of trying to bring together the missing body part to avoid the spirit becoming a tiger as we follow the person entrusted with this adventure and the person who ended up with the mystery piece. Although the storyline was confusing at times and it grew more into the story of a woman trying to find her way in the world of love, family, and finance stability. I would recommend this book for those looking for adventure, drama, and mystery.
I loved aspects of this book. Love Choo’s writing voice, the folklore, and several of the characters. However, the step-siblings to lovers plot really turned me off… I also felt like there were some loose ends that didn’t get tied up. It kind of felt like things… just ended?
We mostly liked it!
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