Deep as the Sky, Red as the Sea

When Shek Yeung sees a Portuguese sailor slay her husband, a feared pirate, she knows she must act swiftly or die. Instead of mourning, Shek Yeung launches a new plan: immediately marrying her husband’s second-in-command, and agreeing to bear him a son and heir, in order to retain power over her half of the fleet.

But as Shek Yeung vies for control over the army she knows she was born to lead, larger threats loom. The Chinese Emperor has charged a brutal, crafty nobleman with ridding the South China Seas of pirates, and the Europeans—tired of losing ships, men, and money to Shek Yeung’s alliance—have new plans for the area. Even worse, Shek Yeung’s cutthroat retributions create problems all their own. As Shek Yeung navigates new motherhood and the crises of leadership, she must decide how long she is willing to fight, and at what price, or risk losing her fleet, her new family, and even her life.

A book of salt and grit, blood and sweat, Deep as the Sky, Red as the Sea is an unmissable portrait of a woman who leads with the courage and ruthlessness of our darkest and most beloved heroes.

This discussion guide was shared and sponsored in partnership with Bloomsbury.

Book club questions for Deep as the Sky, Red as the Sea by Rita Chang-Eppig

Use these discussion questions to guide your next book club meeting.

“Now that Cheng Yat was dead, Shek Yeung finally had a turn at dictating the course of things. She might have been born thirty-one years ago, but her story was only now hers” (9). How does Shek Yeung challenge the various expectations created for her by others to claim her own story?

“To Shek Yeung, though, only one god really mattered” (19). Discuss Shek Yeung’s particular reverence for Ma-Zou throughout the novel. In what ways do the many stories told about Ma-Zou parallel Shek Yeung’s own story?

It is later revealed that Ma-Zou goes by two names: Maternal Ancestor and Empress of Heaven. “If one needed urgent aid, then one had to call upon the former. . . Pay attention to the next time a child gets hurt and cries, ‘Mama!’ See how fast the mother comes” (254). With this in mind, how is motherhood treated in the world of the novel? In a book exploring many complex power relations, what kind of power do mothers hold—or not hold?

Consider the complex relations between Shek Yeung, Cheng Yat, and Cheung Po. How do Shek Yeung and Cheung Po’s relationships with Cheng Yat inform and affect their relationship to each other?

“How did any girl learn to become a woman? By observing the women around them” (31). Consider the novel’s cast of strong women characters: Shek Yeung, Yan-Yan, and Wo-Yuet. What do they learn from each other?

“I’m married to the sea,” declares Shek Yeung at one point (54). Describe her relationship to the sea as compared to the other relationships in her life. What does it represent to her?

“To defy power, one must possess power” (56). How do you think this declaration applies to the events of the novel?

“You listen to the signs you want and disregard the ones you don’t,” Shek Yeung imagines Wo-Yuet chiding her (73). What role do signs play in the novel?

“Maybe there was an essential violence in women, too, this thing that pricked at them from the inside like a needle a seamstress had forgotten to remove from a beautiful embroidered robe” (99). In what ways do the women of the novel demonstrate this “essential violence”? What role does women’s violence play in the novel?

“Human will is futile next to Heaven’s will. The ones who don’t understand this will incur Heaven’s wrath, and that’s when you will truly know the meaning of grief,” the fortune teller says to Shek Yeung (162). What is the role of grief in the novel? How does it affect the central characters?

Consider the story of the girl who loved the sea and the dragon king that Shek Yeung tells her daughter, Siu Yuet. How do you see it relating to themes of the novel?

Discuss Shek Yeung’s decision to bestow her daughter to Yan-Yan’s care in a forced retirement of the fleet at the end of the novel. Do you think this decision was a true kindness on Shek Yeung’s part?

“How will you reckon with everything you’ve done?” (281). How do you see Shek Yeung change over the course of the events of the novel? Who is she at the end as opposed to who she is at the start?

Deep as the Sky, Red as the Sea Book Club Questions PDF

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Named a Most Anticipated Novel by: Washington Post * Goodreads * LitHub * NetGalley's We Are Bookish * Debutiful * Our Culture * The Chicago Review of Books * The Rumpus * Tor.com

“A hold-onto-your-seat ode to an unforgettable woman.” —Real Simple

“A pirate queen whose husband is murdered? An entire empire at stake? This is the ambitious, suspenseful and kaleidoscopic adventure we all need this summer! In Chang-Eppig’s capable hands, this is epic storytelling.” —Ms. Magazine, May 2023 Reads for the Rest of Us

“Rita Chang-Eppig's sharp, gritty first novel, Deep as the Sky, Red as the Sea, takes readers on a high-seas adventure . . . This fascinating portrait of a woman determined to survive no matter the challenge will captivate readers' imaginations . . . Book clubs and solo readers alike should find much food for thought in this blend of high-stakes action and a complex character sketch of a fierce and wily leader.” —Shelf Awareness

“A rollicking 19th-century adventure on the South China Sea . . . The prose is lyrical and the plot is clever and serpentine, exploring questions of power, violence, gender, and fate. This is not to be missed.” —Publishers Weekly, starred review

“A refreshingly vivid adventure tale, perfect for long days by the ocean’s edge.” —Elle.com, 39 Best New Books to Read in Summer 2023

“It is the year of lady pirates and outlaws, friends! You’ll get no complaints from me, and with Rita Chang-Eppig’s debut, it’s definitely *Lizzo Voice* Bad Bitch O’Clock . . . It’s refreshing to see not only a mixed-gender crew but also a woman with a complicated relationship to motherhood, her intended place in the world, and her ambitions. Deep as the Sky, Red as the Sea is a non-stop adventure with danger at every turn, and Shek Yeung is forced to make decisions to ensure her survival. But she remains ruthless throughout, and her adventures will make you want to take up the sword and learn to sail.” —Tor.com

"A pirate queen's adventures in the South China Seas, based on the life of an actual early 19th-century icon—I'm sold a hundred times over on this debut." –Julia Fine, author of The Upstairs House in Chicago Review of Books' 17 Most Anticipated Books of 2023

“Suspenseful . . . Y’all had me at the words ‘pirate queen.’” —R.O. Kwon, Electric Literature’s 62 Books By Women of Color to Read in 2023

“This heart-pounding high-seas adventure is also the moving story of a girl with no options who finds a way to survive, and the costs and consequences of that survival. Shek Yeung — a pirate queen, a mother, a ruthless killer and a loyal friend — is an unforgettable heroine whose journey will keep readers hooked from beginning to end.” —Anna North, New York Times bestselling author of Outlawed

“Deep as the Sky, Red as the Sea is a riveting and moving story of a real woman and legend. The woman at the center of this struggles with what sensitive and adventurous women have struggled with always: the choice between love and leadership; a life focused on family and friends or a life that looks outward to politics and society. This is richly researched historical fiction with lush mythology and all the excitement and intrigue of action and suspense.” —Tiphanie Yanique, author of Land of Love and Drowning and Monster in the Middle

“At last, one of the greatest pirates finally gets her due, and what a fabulous accomplishment it is. I loved this book. With prose as rich and elegant as it is fierce, Deep as the Sky, Red as the Sea, paints a complex portrait of one of history’s most powerful women, Shek Yeung, while considering the roles that gender, motherhood, and fate play for us all. This is a gorgeous vivid adventure that delves into what a person will do to survive, and if there can be redemption for a woman who has the gall to live at any cost. Rita Chang-Eppig has made something truly special.” –Erika Swyler, bestselling author of The Book of Speculation and Light from Other Stars

“Deep as the Sky, Red as the Sea is a riveting, heart-pounding exploration of ambition, grit, and what it takes to survive in a world on the brink—all seen through the eyes of the fiery, magnetic Shek Yeung. Rita Chang-Eppig has delivered a singular heroine and a truly unforgettable tale.” —Kirstin Chen, New York Times bestselling author of Counterfeit

“Epic yet intimate, Deep as the Sky, Red as the Sea brings to life the pirate queen Shek Yeung. Rita Chang-Eppig charts the journey of a brilliant and brave heroine who fights for the survival of her fleet—and her family’s—against a fascinating historical backdrop. A stunning debut.” —Vanessa Hua, bestselling author of Forbidden City

"Deep as the Sky, Red as the Sea is an adventure story so absorbing that I kept neglecting my real life so I could keep reading. I'd have followed this novel's courageous, complicated pirate heroine anywhere. A dazzling feat of storytelling." –Clare Beams, author of The Illness Lesson

“Deep as the Sky, Red as the Sea is a stunning novel filled with adventure, intrigue, and stirring contemplations of what it means to endure in a world of scarcity and violence. Chang-Eppig combines the scope and lyricism of Gabriel García Márquez with the propulsive storytelling of Susanna Clarke. This is an epic novel with the intimacy of a portrait, a literary adventure not to be missed.” —Seth Fried, author of The Municipalists

"Deep as the Sky, Red as the Sea is a gripping, powerful portrait of a woman on the high seas who is as ferocious as she is human, determined to survive. Brimming with adventure and intrigue, passion and prophecy, fierce battles and moving moments of grace, this novel captures us on a pirate ship and does not let go until long after we've turned the radiant final page." —Carolina De Robertis, award-winning author of Cantoras

“Rita Chang Eppig is such a daring, thrilling writer. Deep as the Sky, Red as the Sea sets a whole new bar for words like swashbuckling and adventure, recasting their assumptions while giving us all the big moments: Seafaring battles, swords and family intrigue, tales of love and revenge. It's all here. And in Shek Yeung, Chang-Eppig has given us a heroine for the ages. This is the start of a big career.” —John Freeman, author of How to Read a Novelist