What do you think?
Rate this book
The Witch's Market
From the author of Secret of a Thousand Beauties and Peach Blossom Pavilion comes a beautifully written novel of self-discovery and intrigue.
Chinese-American assistant professor Eileen Chen specializes in folk religion at her San Francisco college. Though her grandmother made her living as a shamaness, Eileen publicly dismisses witchcraft as mere superstition. Yet privately, the subject intrigues her.
When a research project takes her to the Canary Islands—long rumored to be home to real witches—Eileen is struck by the lush beauty of Tenerife and its blend of Spanish and Moroccan culture. A stranger invites her to a local market where women sell amulets, charms, and love spells. Gradually Eileen immerses herself in her exotic surroundings, finding romance with a handsome young furniture maker. But as she learns more about the lives of these self-proclaimed witches, Eileen must choose how much trust to place in this new and seductive world, where love, greed, and vengeance can be as powerful, or as destructive, as any magic.
Chinese-American assistant professor Eileen Chen specializes in folk religion at her San Francisco college. Though her grandmother made her living as a shamaness, Eileen publicly dismisses witchcraft as mere superstition. Yet privately, the subject intrigues her.
When a research project takes her to the Canary Islands—long rumored to be home to real witches—Eileen is struck by the lush beauty of Tenerife and its blend of Spanish and Moroccan culture. A stranger invites her to a local market where women sell amulets, charms, and love spells. Gradually Eileen immerses herself in her exotic surroundings, finding romance with a handsome young furniture maker. But as she learns more about the lives of these self-proclaimed witches, Eileen must choose how much trust to place in this new and seductive world, where love, greed, and vengeance can be as powerful, or as destructive, as any magic.
304 pages, Paperback
First published November 24, 2015
51 people are currently reading
1017 people want to read
About the author
Mingmei Yip
15 books158 followersMingmei Yip was born in China, received her Ph.D. from the University of Paris, Sorbonne, and held faculty appointments at the Chinese University and Baptist University in Hong Kong. She's published five books in Chinese, written several columns for seven major Hong Kong newspapers, and has appeared on over forty TV and radio programs in Hong Kong, Taiwan, Mainland China, and the U.S. She immigrated to the United States in 1992, where she now lives in New York City.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 67 reviews
October 13, 2015
When I first saw this book, I fell in love with the cover, the title, and the short summary. I almost cried when I read “The Witch’s Market” not because it was exceptional and really moving, but because all of my expectations went crashing down around me. In fact, I was so disappointed with this book that I stopped forcing myself to read it at around page 100 something. I just couldn’t. Honestly, the story could’ve been better. It had potential, but the dialogues are so dull it was like watching an ill-prepared play with nervous stage actors; it made me cringe. I also felt like the author didn’t do much research for the book especially on the subject of witchcraft and witches especially since I studied a bit of Wicca and found most of her description a little offensive (and that’s from someone who doesn’t even practice witchcraft). However I did enjoy the glimpses of Chinese culture, folk stories, and stories about Eileen’s grandmother, but that’s just about it.
I just really wished the author improved on the plot and kept re-writing the book until it was, at the very least, good enough because like I said, it did have potential, but it just fell short. What I read wasn’t good enough. The book seemed jejune, to be honest. Also, I don’t get the title. If the place is called the Witches’ Market, then why was the title the Witch’s Market? I would really appreciate clarification on this.
I just really wished the author improved on the plot and kept re-writing the book until it was, at the very least, good enough because like I said, it did have potential, but it just fell short. What I read wasn’t good enough. The book seemed jejune, to be honest. Also, I don’t get the title. If the place is called the Witches’ Market, then why was the title the Witch’s Market? I would really appreciate clarification on this.
May 20, 2017
I loved the synopsis of this book. A religion professor finding out that she is a shamaness in the Chinese tradition and then meeting up with witches from another tradition? Yes, please.
It starts out delightfully creepy. She is starting to have visions of the spirit world. She meets a coven of witches who bring her into a ritual and abandon her naked the next day and she doesn't remember what happened. A horse takes her for a ride to meet a mysterious sculptor.
But then it turns into a murder mystery. Yeah, didn't see that coming.
I lost a lot of interest at this point. The weirdness was gone. She still talks to ghosts but they just want her solve the mystery. Also, suddenly every man is falling in love with her and wants to marry her the moment they meet her. This isn't even based on romance or attraction or anything. They just suggest getting married.
I wish there had been a better sense of place. She went to a culture that is unfamiliar to her but she is conveniently fluent in Spanish so she has no communication difficulties. She doesn't really explore the islands. She holes up in a castle and in an abandoned village that could have been set anywhere. I never read anything that I felt could only have happened in this setting.
Her exploration of her Chinese spiritual heritage was much better but I wish there had been more exploration of the witches she came to find.This review was originally posted on Based On A True Story
October 12, 2015
The Witch's Market has a four star rating because of the interesting folklore. There were times though, when I felt I was at arms length from the character, and there is a coldness that I couldn't cross. With that aside, the story itself reminded me of a cross between Amy Tan and Alice Hoffman (both authors I love). The magic, witchery, religious, superstitious happenings in this novel are fascinating. I have a deep love for superstitions, why people believe them, how they came about, what they are and this novel is full of them; being Chinese beliefs makes it that more engaging. Example. "Laolao had taught me that seeing a living person with ghosts means that he or she is about to die."
Eileen Chen is a professor specializing in folk religion, having taken an intellectual interest in her family 'gift' rather than fully believing in it. Her grandmother was a shamaness, while on the outside she scoffs at it almost as being a form of charlatanism, she cannot deny that her grandmother has been right before. Eileen even finds a curious pleasure in playing up her shamaness background for entertaining friends and peers. Living with her feet in the solid scholarly world she has her hungry eyes on the mysterious. When an opportunity arises for Chen to research real life witches living on the Canary Islands for a book she means to write, she leaves behind a promising future with a wealthy lover for dangerous adventure. The people that come into her life during her journey have secrets they have buried, of their own and others. On the way to her destination, she begins seeing a strange girl and wonders at her sadness. The mysterious stranger won't be her first mystery. Before long, Eileen's presence will disturb spirits living and dead, and nothing will stay buried. Encountering love, death, and restless spirits- Eileen is about to learn that not everything in the world can be understood through study.
Eileen Chen is a professor specializing in folk religion, having taken an intellectual interest in her family 'gift' rather than fully believing in it. Her grandmother was a shamaness, while on the outside she scoffs at it almost as being a form of charlatanism, she cannot deny that her grandmother has been right before. Eileen even finds a curious pleasure in playing up her shamaness background for entertaining friends and peers. Living with her feet in the solid scholarly world she has her hungry eyes on the mysterious. When an opportunity arises for Chen to research real life witches living on the Canary Islands for a book she means to write, she leaves behind a promising future with a wealthy lover for dangerous adventure. The people that come into her life during her journey have secrets they have buried, of their own and others. On the way to her destination, she begins seeing a strange girl and wonders at her sadness. The mysterious stranger won't be her first mystery. Before long, Eileen's presence will disturb spirits living and dead, and nothing will stay buried. Encountering love, death, and restless spirits- Eileen is about to learn that not everything in the world can be understood through study.
November 5, 2015
This book is not your typical murder mystery but for some reason I just could not put this book down once I started reading. Chinese-American Eileen Chen would like to make tenure at the college where she is an assistant professor. In order to do that they tell her if she writes a book on witches it will help her achieve this goal. She decides to take a year off and go in search of material to write her book. She leaves her rich boyfriend and family to travel alone to the Canary Islands where she meets one interesting character after another and all are willing to make her an immediate part of their life. There are the brothers she meets on the ferry to the Islands, the rich widower who lives in a Heartbreak Castle and takes her in when she is found on his land passed out, the grandson and grandfather in the deserted village she travels to and the dying cabaret singer from the widower's past. The witches she meets are not always true witches but she learns that she can trust her instincts and her grandmother was right she would always be taken care of if she treated the spirits with respect. From one interesting situation to another she soon discovers her true self. Mingmei Yip is a great story teller. Great read. I would like to thank the publisher and Net Galley for the chance to read this ARC.
October 31, 2015
Mingmei Yip’s inventive page-turner captivated me from page one. Using her unique storytelling voice she mixes Chinese myths, legends and beliefs with an evocative present day literary tale that includes a cryptic mystery. This she delivers through her prose like narrative that’s spot on for depicting her exotic locales and her imaginative, off the wall characters including her enigmatic, fanciful and realistic heroine, Eileen. Her innovative blending of cultures, the lessons in Chinese witchcraft and the dreamlike, Alice down the rabbit hole feel makes this adult fairytale the perfect choice for any fan of Magical-Realism.
On her 33rd birthday Eileen Chen decided to become a witch. She hailed from a long line of witches as her mother, grandmother and great-grandmother practiced the art. She knew the basics of witchcraft taught to her by those women but instead of practicing Eileen decided to become a scholar of Shamanism, got her Ph.D. and took an assistant professorship at San Francisco State University. Her boss had been urging her to publish a book on Shamanism and western witches, which just might get her a tenured position. So deciding to combine both goals the choice of where to go to find out all about witchcraft conveniently came to her in a dream, which led her to the mystical and mysterious Canary Islands.
With the blessings of her boss and her younger sister, plus a begrudged blessing from her sometimes boyfriend Eileen took off for an epic, hopefully life changing adventure.
What happens when she gets there is the stuff of fairytales.
On her 33rd birthday Eileen Chen decided to become a witch. She hailed from a long line of witches as her mother, grandmother and great-grandmother practiced the art. She knew the basics of witchcraft taught to her by those women but instead of practicing Eileen decided to become a scholar of Shamanism, got her Ph.D. and took an assistant professorship at San Francisco State University. Her boss had been urging her to publish a book on Shamanism and western witches, which just might get her a tenured position. So deciding to combine both goals the choice of where to go to find out all about witchcraft conveniently came to her in a dream, which led her to the mystical and mysterious Canary Islands.
With the blessings of her boss and her younger sister, plus a begrudged blessing from her sometimes boyfriend Eileen took off for an epic, hopefully life changing adventure.
What happens when she gets there is the stuff of fairytales.
November 25, 2015
I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Eileen, trained as a shaman, is drawn to the Canary Islands to investigate Chinese witchcraft and its Western counterparts. Sounds like it has potential, right? Sadly, I was disappointed, partly by the uninspired writing, but also by obvious errors that indicate bad (or no) research.
Eileen, trained as a shaman, is drawn to the Canary Islands to investigate Chinese witchcraft and its Western counterparts. Sounds like it has potential, right? Sadly, I was disappointed, partly by the uninspired writing, but also by obvious errors that indicate bad (or no) research.
January 23, 2018
i really never got to understand where the character learned anything about being a witch. I did not feel any depth to her character I was going to giver it to my mom to read if she got bored but I wont waster her time with this book . I was very disappointed
January 9, 2016
Simply dreadful and horribly disappointing!
May 19, 2017
Decent plot but retched characters.
October 19, 2020
The title of the book is Witch’s Market, but the location in the book is Witches’ Market.
Yeah.
Eileen Chen is a thirty-three year old tenure-track professor of folklore who decides to take a sabbatical for a year to research modern occult practices in Tenerife. Before she leaves her rich (ex) boyfriend, she has sex she doesn’t really want (but doesn’t feel comfortable saying no) and while she is appreciative of his large apartment and splashy way with money, she also sneers that it’s so shallow and not what she values or wants. He is clearly a bad bet, controlling, telling her boss that that she “can’t” leave for a research abroad year while she is standing right next to him.. She doesn’t even really like him, but she contemplates a future where they’ll get married and live happily ever after - because materialistic guys who don’t value enthusiastic consent make such excellent husbands and fathers, and Asian women are never fetishized. As she gets on the plane, her flirty younger sister says that she’s crazy for leaving her rich boyfriend. Did I mention that he is rich? He’s rich.
In addition to the stilted and repetitious dialog, the plot line is ridiculous. All of these random dudes fall in love with her and want to marry her in the course of a year. (Older guy she’s known less than a year leaves her life-changing money in his will. Because that totally happens.) There is very little done in the way of plot development. As an example, the concierge insists that she MUST go to the island the next day. She goes. It’s a festival. She looks around, sees some women, has a conversation, goes back to her hotel. Rather than develop some mystery, she gets a phone call from someone who confesses. “I took the money and here is why.”
Yeah. The whole novel reads like a first draft. How did this get published?
Yeah.
Eileen Chen is a thirty-three year old tenure-track professor of folklore who decides to take a sabbatical for a year to research modern occult practices in Tenerife. Before she leaves her rich (ex) boyfriend, she has sex she doesn’t really want (but doesn’t feel comfortable saying no) and while she is appreciative of his large apartment and splashy way with money, she also sneers that it’s so shallow and not what she values or wants. He is clearly a bad bet, controlling, telling her boss that that she “can’t” leave for a research abroad year while she is standing right next to him.. She doesn’t even really like him, but she contemplates a future where they’ll get married and live happily ever after - because materialistic guys who don’t value enthusiastic consent make such excellent husbands and fathers, and Asian women are never fetishized. As she gets on the plane, her flirty younger sister says that she’s crazy for leaving her rich boyfriend. Did I mention that he is rich? He’s rich.
In addition to the stilted and repetitious dialog, the plot line is ridiculous. All of these random dudes fall in love with her and want to marry her in the course of a year. (Older guy she’s known less than a year leaves her life-changing money in his will. Because that totally happens.) There is very little done in the way of plot development. As an example, the concierge insists that she MUST go to the island the next day. She goes. It’s a festival. She looks around, sees some women, has a conversation, goes back to her hotel. Rather than develop some mystery, she gets a phone call from someone who confesses. “I took the money and here is why.”
Yeah. The whole novel reads like a first draft. How did this get published?
February 24, 2018
Muy buenos
January 22, 2019
Not my style of prose. Liked her other books but this one just didn’t work for me. Did not finish
August 1, 2021
I drank deeply, the words and storyline of this wonderful novel… This has made its way onto my favorite reads this year….
February 28, 2024
The premise is interesting, I really wanted to like the book, but this is some of the worst dialogue I've ever read. And I read children's books.
October 7, 2016
At first, I was very excited about this book. But as it moved on, I found myself less and less entranced. Now those of you who know my likes and interests, know that I am both a sucker for and harsh critic of magic. I love premonition, predestination, dreams and ghosts presences, in stories that are woven together well, and powers that suit the protagonists' character profile. But used too weirdly, oddly, or gratuitously, or nonsensically - well, I become highly critical. Honestly in this story, nothing hung together well. I couldn't really understand the role or goings-on of the witches, and I kept wondering how and why the main character was involved. I didn't find myself moved, and kept hoping the story would pull together meaningfully. Few of the characters were likable, and not much of the character motivations made sense. And the mystical part of it? Didn't particularly add or fit.
The basic plot, is that an Asian professor, who comes from a long line of Chinese witches, decides on her 33rd birthday to become a witch/embrace her (unknown) powers. Under the guise of publishing and tenure, she travels to the Canary Islands, on the wisp of a dream, to find her destiny. She ends up in a disorienting dream space, with odd unlikeable characters, sort of drawn into solving a murder, and discovering things. It kind of just got odder and odder, and if she found her destiny, it wasn't clear to me what that was. That said, I have always wanted to visit the Canary Islands, so it was interesting to hear about the myths involved with that setting.
However, I did truly appreciate the opportunity to pick up a "witchy" book for this October Fall Flurry Challenge and it kind of put me in the mood. For that I am grateful. The one mystical question I am left with, is where did this book actually come from, and how did it land in my lap in the first place? For the longest time, I thought it was the sequel to Paula Brackston's the Witch's Daughter. I own it. I think I may have picked it up with 6 other books with a gift certificate from the New England Mobile Bookstore, for mere pennies. Otherwise, I have no idea where this thing came from. I sort of think that in some cases, how books fall into your lap can be mystical, so perhaps if I had liked this one more, I might have been more taken with its journey to me. Been wondering however, what is the name of the sequel I mentioned earlier? Perhaps I should check that out.
Speaking of Checking Out, I have wonderful problem. Not only has Today Will Be Different showed up ready and waiting at the Library, but so has Hot Milk. So since the Witches Market took only a day or so to finish, and A Gentleman in Moscow hasn't yet made its way to me, and its too early to read the Children Act for my two book groups in November, I picked up from my home library corner, the Storm Sister, second in the Seven Sisters Series. I will read that, and then sort out the rest of my exciting month later.
Last night I attended a book group on Lila, which was wonderful. I love when you get to deeply discuss a moving and beautiful book, with really interesting people. I am grateful that we get to do that here, and daily. Its truly wonderful to share stories and lives with you all.
The basic plot, is that an Asian professor, who comes from a long line of Chinese witches, decides on her 33rd birthday to become a witch/embrace her (unknown) powers. Under the guise of publishing and tenure, she travels to the Canary Islands, on the wisp of a dream, to find her destiny. She ends up in a disorienting dream space, with odd unlikeable characters, sort of drawn into solving a murder, and discovering things. It kind of just got odder and odder, and if she found her destiny, it wasn't clear to me what that was. That said, I have always wanted to visit the Canary Islands, so it was interesting to hear about the myths involved with that setting.
However, I did truly appreciate the opportunity to pick up a "witchy" book for this October Fall Flurry Challenge and it kind of put me in the mood. For that I am grateful. The one mystical question I am left with, is where did this book actually come from, and how did it land in my lap in the first place? For the longest time, I thought it was the sequel to Paula Brackston's the Witch's Daughter. I own it. I think I may have picked it up with 6 other books with a gift certificate from the New England Mobile Bookstore, for mere pennies. Otherwise, I have no idea where this thing came from. I sort of think that in some cases, how books fall into your lap can be mystical, so perhaps if I had liked this one more, I might have been more taken with its journey to me. Been wondering however, what is the name of the sequel I mentioned earlier? Perhaps I should check that out.
Speaking of Checking Out, I have wonderful problem. Not only has Today Will Be Different showed up ready and waiting at the Library, but so has Hot Milk. So since the Witches Market took only a day or so to finish, and A Gentleman in Moscow hasn't yet made its way to me, and its too early to read the Children Act for my two book groups in November, I picked up from my home library corner, the Storm Sister, second in the Seven Sisters Series. I will read that, and then sort out the rest of my exciting month later.
Last night I attended a book group on Lila, which was wonderful. I love when you get to deeply discuss a moving and beautiful book, with really interesting people. I am grateful that we get to do that here, and daily. Its truly wonderful to share stories and lives with you all.
April 22, 2020
I really wanted to like this book, but I had so many issues with it that by the end I just wanted it to be done and over. I could not connect to the main character because she reminded me of every dumb girl in a 80s horror flick, making inane decisions that go against all logic. Then there was the fact that apparently everyone - and I mean everyone - who meets her wants her to either live with them or to get married was just nonsense.
I tried telling myself that the storytelling technique could be attributed to a more Eastern tradition, but I don't know that for sure. It just helped me to keep reading when I really just wanted to DNF this one. Stubborness kept me reading, not the characters and not the plot.
I tried telling myself that the storytelling technique could be attributed to a more Eastern tradition, but I don't know that for sure. It just helped me to keep reading when I really just wanted to DNF this one. Stubborness kept me reading, not the characters and not the plot.
December 2, 2016
Straddling the divide between two cultures, Eileen Chen’s specialty is Folk Religions. Eileen is most certainly a Chinese American woman, dismissing the beliefs of her grandmother, a shamaness as superstitious nonsense. But her dissection of the foundations of each belief she encounters, and her rather observational approach to the life around her left her a character that stayed at arm’s length throughout the story.
That remove, however, did not diminish my overall interest in the stories and tales, the superstitions and their origins, and the beauty with which Yip detailed the scenery, and her ability to present a belief in many ways. Eileen’s need to find the ‘cause’, the ‘bone-deep’ belief held by those she studies, and those things that just seemingly have no real explanation.
With Eileen’s research trip to the Canary Islands for a research project, she leaves behind the familiar, and begins to engage in that new world, her own beliefs are questioned as she starts to see that not everything has an answer.
I would have liked to see more of Eileen’s growth and some of the self-doubt that must have assaulted her with all of the newness she is discovering, and her own new-found determination to become a witch herself. The remove that we feel from Eileen does have a sense of “Alice down the rabbit hole’ to it – perhaps the author hoped to bring that untethered to reality sense to her in the journey- something to decide for yourself. Overall, this was an intriguing, if slow-paced story that kept me interested in trying to discover just where Eileen would go next.
I received an eArc copy of the title from the publisher via NetGalley for purpose of honest review. I was not compensated for this review: all conclusions are my own responsibility.
Review first appeared at I am, Indeed
That remove, however, did not diminish my overall interest in the stories and tales, the superstitions and their origins, and the beauty with which Yip detailed the scenery, and her ability to present a belief in many ways. Eileen’s need to find the ‘cause’, the ‘bone-deep’ belief held by those she studies, and those things that just seemingly have no real explanation.
With Eileen’s research trip to the Canary Islands for a research project, she leaves behind the familiar, and begins to engage in that new world, her own beliefs are questioned as she starts to see that not everything has an answer.
I would have liked to see more of Eileen’s growth and some of the self-doubt that must have assaulted her with all of the newness she is discovering, and her own new-found determination to become a witch herself. The remove that we feel from Eileen does have a sense of “Alice down the rabbit hole’ to it – perhaps the author hoped to bring that untethered to reality sense to her in the journey- something to decide for yourself. Overall, this was an intriguing, if slow-paced story that kept me interested in trying to discover just where Eileen would go next.
I received an eArc copy of the title from the publisher via NetGalley for purpose of honest review. I was not compensated for this review: all conclusions are my own responsibility.
Review first appeared at I am, Indeed
November 26, 2016
This is a strange little book that's hard to describe. It's about a woman doing anthropology fieldwork about witches on the Canary Islands, and she has a history of witchcraft in her own family. Sounds fascinating, right? And all of those elements, the Chinese folklore and witch myths, is great. SO many tidbits and pieces of history.
But the writing style just doesn't match up with the content, which is a problem I've rarely encountered. It's written like chick-lit or a fluffy romance. Very simplistic, with a focus on mundane details and (of course) the looks of everyone around our heroine. It's not bad writing, it's just really solidly mediocre. The premise is literary fiction, the writing is not. It's so strange!
I think most people wouldn't really enjoy this book. If you want chick-lit, the premise is way too esoteric (and the book actually turns into a murder mystery with ghosts, no joke). If you want literary fiction, it's unbearably fluffy. But I have a degree in anthropology and a lifelong obsession with mythology, so I really enjoyed all of the information presented here, both real and made-up. I don't think I would ever recommend this to anyone, but I did enjoy reading it.
But the writing style just doesn't match up with the content, which is a problem I've rarely encountered. It's written like chick-lit or a fluffy romance. Very simplistic, with a focus on mundane details and (of course) the looks of everyone around our heroine. It's not bad writing, it's just really solidly mediocre. The premise is literary fiction, the writing is not. It's so strange!
I think most people wouldn't really enjoy this book. If you want chick-lit, the premise is way too esoteric (and the book actually turns into a murder mystery with ghosts, no joke). If you want literary fiction, it's unbearably fluffy. But I have a degree in anthropology and a lifelong obsession with mythology, so I really enjoyed all of the information presented here, both real and made-up. I don't think I would ever recommend this to anyone, but I did enjoy reading it.
September 12, 2019
Not what I expected from the author
Yip is a favorite author but this book ,although twitchy, witchy and haunted, lacked the magic of her other books. Told in the first person, Eileen had everyone in love with her; leading a sexy life; chasing her to do her harm; moving herself from hotel, to castle, to house and back again; seeing the dead; solving crimes; getting rich but never writing the book we heard so much about in the story. I enjoyed the parts about her grandma and Chinese sorcery. I taught descendants of Canary Islanders and read this book expressly to learn little known details of the setting. No expansion on the Canary Islands at all, so the book could have been set anywhere with it's unnamed remote villages. I don't think Ms. Yip had ever been to the Canary Islands.
Yip is a favorite author but this book ,although twitchy, witchy and haunted, lacked the magic of her other books. Told in the first person, Eileen had everyone in love with her; leading a sexy life; chasing her to do her harm; moving herself from hotel, to castle, to house and back again; seeing the dead; solving crimes; getting rich but never writing the book we heard so much about in the story. I enjoyed the parts about her grandma and Chinese sorcery. I taught descendants of Canary Islanders and read this book expressly to learn little known details of the setting. No expansion on the Canary Islands at all, so the book could have been set anywhere with it's unnamed remote villages. I don't think Ms. Yip had ever been to the Canary Islands.
November 23, 2015
I thought THE WITCH'S MARKET was an original, spellbinding tale about myths, the power of good storytelling, wondrous magic and mystery all mixed together to create a fascinating story that is hard to put down! 4 stars!
June 16, 2019
Eileen may have all the men she meets eating out of her hands but stupid main character personality doesn't work on me.
July 31, 2021
...Bagi peramal, semua yang dijual membawa keberuntungan dan melindungi dari yang jahat. Jika ada sesuatu yang bisa menyatukan semua budaya yang berbeda, maka takhayul semacam inilah yang bisa. Peramal dan duta budaya. (Hal.209)
.
.
.
Sinopsis:
Novel bergenre fantasi yang bercerita tentang Eileen Chen, seorang asisten profesor ilmu pencanayangan. Untuk menjadi dosen tetap, Eileen Chen diharuskan menulis buku berkaitan dengan ilmu pencanayangan. Rupanya, perjalanan Eileen menuju Spanyol dlm rangka mengumpulkan riset terkait bukunya membawa sang asisten ini pada banyak hal tidak terduga,terlebih setelah mata ketiganya terbuka.
.
.
.
✨ Ide yang dihadirkan dalam novel terjemahan ini seru dan membuat saya berpikir jika Eileen adalah tokoh yang unik karena seperti menolak takdirnya sebagai keturunan cenayang, padahal jika memungkinkan, tidak sedikit orang yang justru ingin dilahirkan dgn kemampuan cenayang.
✨ Meskipun saya berpikir jika cenayang dengan penyihir itu berbeda, tetapi penulis menggunakan kedua istilah tersebut, sehingga membuat saya menyimpulkan jika kedua istilah ini memiliki arti yang sama.
✨ Sebuah desa terpencil yang menjadi salah satu lokasi penting dalam pencarian Ailee tentang penyihir, menurut saya keren! Saya membayangkan seolah desa itu seperti benar benar ada, juga kengerian serta fakta mencengangkan dalam petualangan tokoh utama begitu erat kaitannya dengan desa tersebut seolah nyata terjadi.
✨ Saya bertanya-tanya, apakah beberapa mantra ala tiongkok yang dideskripsikan didalam novel adalah formula yang dipercayai bahkan digunakan oleh masyarakat disana sejak zaman dahulu? Karena deskripsi dari beberapa proses pembuatan ramuan membuat bulu kuduk saya berdiri.
✨Pesan penting tentang penyihir, pada novel ini, saya dapatkan lewat narasi salah satu tokoh penyihir dalam novel. Kata yang diucapkannya dapat menjadi masukkan terutama bagi siapapun yang berpikir untuk menggantungkan nasib,mengharap peruntungan dan banyak hal baik dalam hidupnya dengan bantuan kekuatan sihir.
✨ Saya rasa, membaca novel ini membantu kita memandang kepercayaan terhadap penggunaan sihir atau kekuatan magis dengan lebih bijaksana.
.
.
.
Sinopsis:
Novel bergenre fantasi yang bercerita tentang Eileen Chen, seorang asisten profesor ilmu pencanayangan. Untuk menjadi dosen tetap, Eileen Chen diharuskan menulis buku berkaitan dengan ilmu pencanayangan. Rupanya, perjalanan Eileen menuju Spanyol dlm rangka mengumpulkan riset terkait bukunya membawa sang asisten ini pada banyak hal tidak terduga,terlebih setelah mata ketiganya terbuka.
.
.
.
✨ Ide yang dihadirkan dalam novel terjemahan ini seru dan membuat saya berpikir jika Eileen adalah tokoh yang unik karena seperti menolak takdirnya sebagai keturunan cenayang, padahal jika memungkinkan, tidak sedikit orang yang justru ingin dilahirkan dgn kemampuan cenayang.
✨ Meskipun saya berpikir jika cenayang dengan penyihir itu berbeda, tetapi penulis menggunakan kedua istilah tersebut, sehingga membuat saya menyimpulkan jika kedua istilah ini memiliki arti yang sama.
✨ Sebuah desa terpencil yang menjadi salah satu lokasi penting dalam pencarian Ailee tentang penyihir, menurut saya keren! Saya membayangkan seolah desa itu seperti benar benar ada, juga kengerian serta fakta mencengangkan dalam petualangan tokoh utama begitu erat kaitannya dengan desa tersebut seolah nyata terjadi.
✨ Saya bertanya-tanya, apakah beberapa mantra ala tiongkok yang dideskripsikan didalam novel adalah formula yang dipercayai bahkan digunakan oleh masyarakat disana sejak zaman dahulu? Karena deskripsi dari beberapa proses pembuatan ramuan membuat bulu kuduk saya berdiri.
✨Pesan penting tentang penyihir, pada novel ini, saya dapatkan lewat narasi salah satu tokoh penyihir dalam novel. Kata yang diucapkannya dapat menjadi masukkan terutama bagi siapapun yang berpikir untuk menggantungkan nasib,mengharap peruntungan dan banyak hal baik dalam hidupnya dengan bantuan kekuatan sihir.
✨ Saya rasa, membaca novel ini membantu kita memandang kepercayaan terhadap penggunaan sihir atau kekuatan magis dengan lebih bijaksana.
October 28, 2021
I loved the name of this book and I loved the first few lines of it. This anthropology professor who is trained as a Chinese shamaness is writing a book. It is suggested to her that she do a comparison between eastern and western witches. Okay, I can go for that. She lives in San Francisco. San Francisco. And decides to go to the Canary Islands to find western witches. Huh? Seriously? The CoG was founded in California. Okay, maybe I am too American-centric.
I would have liked insight into how she picked the Canary Islands, rather than say Mexico which was much closer, or the hundreds of covens in the US.
I think one of the things that annoyed me is how all the witches she runs into in the Canary Islands are all evil. I don't personally know anything about witchcraft in that part of the world, so I can't really comment on that specifically.
Most of the book is about her love life and not really about the research that she was doing for her book and she didn't seem to do any writing, not even when she was waiting around somewhere for someone else to show up.
I would have liked insight into how she picked the Canary Islands, rather than say Mexico which was much closer, or the hundreds of covens in the US.
I think one of the things that annoyed me is how all the witches she runs into in the Canary Islands are all evil. I don't personally know anything about witchcraft in that part of the world, so I can't really comment on that specifically.
Most of the book is about her love life and not really about the research that she was doing for her book and she didn't seem to do any writing, not even when she was waiting around somewhere for someone else to show up.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 9, 2018
this book starts off fast in the beginning and gets bogged down in the middle. I liked reading about the Chinese mythology and beliefs. I don't fell that I got to really know the main character's personality but enjoy the characters of Luis, grandpa, and LaoLao. The ending solves the mysteries in the book and leaves some relationships involving the main character open ended. I give it 3 and a half stars
September 24, 2018
Self discovery. Powerful, poignant, thought provoking. How would I have responded to Sabrina? How would I have felt with Luis and grandpa? I liked that this book made me ask these questions though I could not point to any specific examples in the text, that compelled me to do so. That in itself made the book all the more interesting to me.
January 24, 2017
Buku ke 13 di tahun 2017
Covernya bagus.
Walau pun tentang penyihir, tapi porsi sihirnya sedikit sekali lebih banyak misterinya.
POV orang pertama, dan pace lambat.
Oh, banyak adegan khusus dewasa jadi tidak layak dibaca remaja dan anak-anak.
Covernya bagus.
Walau pun tentang penyihir, tapi porsi sihirnya sedikit sekali lebih banyak misterinya.
POV orang pertama, dan pace lambat.
Oh, banyak adegan khusus dewasa jadi tidak layak dibaca remaja dan anak-anak.
June 14, 2017
I am so disappointed in this book! I fell in love with Mingmei Yip in a Secret of Thousand Beauties and bought The Witch's Market. But alas! It was so boring that it took so long to complete it!
Nevertheless I pray that my next Mjngmei Yip book is better!!
Nevertheless I pray that my next Mjngmei Yip book is better!!
October 19, 2022
I couldn't even finish this one - and I rarely stop reading a book midway through! The dialogue and internal monolog was very cheesy, and the scenarios she kept finding herself in were completely unrealistic, making it hard to read. I kept giving it one more chance, but finally had to give up!
July 30, 2017
Modern, and lovely! I really enjoyed reading this book on an odd topic.
October 20, 2017
Very neat. Not what I was expecting at all but in a good way. Gonna look up more of Mingmei Yip's novels to read.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 67 reviews