What do you think?
Rate this book
A Temple of Forgotten Spirits: The Complete Adventures of Jack Hong
A young guy named Jack Hong hitchhikes throughout America following the keilin, a mystical unicorn out of Chinese mythology. The keilin leads him to ten adventures with ghosts and other supernatural figures. These experiences reveal to him not only parts of American history he never knew, but also his own identity and the role he will choose for his life.
~~~~~ Description ~~~~~
The moonlight was still strong, and Lo Man Gong still sat up on the overhead window, where few people and no old men could ever get.
“Feel better, Chinaman?” he asked mildly.
The night before, my resistance had been low, and his presence had somehow seemed tolerable, if not rational. Now I was more clear-headed ... yet he was still here. I didn’t like him as much.
I let my eyes drop closed again. Once I was cured of malaria, I’d be free of him. I had eaten twice today; now, if I slept well, I’d be in sound shape pretty soon.
“You know the keilin, Chinaman Jack?”
That was the Chinese unicorn, a mystical animal whose rare appearances were highly auspicious. In the Cantonese I normally heard, it was pronounced “keilun.” It wasn’t like European ones, though. This unicorn had the body of a deer, the hooves of a horse, the tail of an ox, and a fleshy horn. I knew that much.
“The unicorn?” I opened my eyes and looked at him. As before, the moonlight glowed through his shape.
“Ah, you know the keilin. He smiled and nodded thoughtfully. “The keilin means good things happen. It’s very powerful.”
I watched him silently.
After a while, he looked into my eyes again. “Nobody remember me, Jack. Some people remember, some of my frien’. A few of them. Most, nobody remember at all. No children, no relative. You, Jack. You like me. Unless you change.”
Yes, I knew that. I had already come to understand that. And I knew that he had come for me, here in the middle of the country, away from his home as longtime Californ’. But I didn’t know why.
~~~~~ Description ~~~~~
The moonlight was still strong, and Lo Man Gong still sat up on the overhead window, where few people and no old men could ever get.
“Feel better, Chinaman?” he asked mildly.
The night before, my resistance had been low, and his presence had somehow seemed tolerable, if not rational. Now I was more clear-headed ... yet he was still here. I didn’t like him as much.
I let my eyes drop closed again. Once I was cured of malaria, I’d be free of him. I had eaten twice today; now, if I slept well, I’d be in sound shape pretty soon.
“You know the keilin, Chinaman Jack?”
That was the Chinese unicorn, a mystical animal whose rare appearances were highly auspicious. In the Cantonese I normally heard, it was pronounced “keilun.” It wasn’t like European ones, though. This unicorn had the body of a deer, the hooves of a horse, the tail of an ox, and a fleshy horn. I knew that much.
“The unicorn?” I opened my eyes and looked at him. As before, the moonlight glowed through his shape.
“Ah, you know the keilin. He smiled and nodded thoughtfully. “The keilin means good things happen. It’s very powerful.”
I watched him silently.
After a while, he looked into my eyes again. “Nobody remember me, Jack. Some people remember, some of my frien’. A few of them. Most, nobody remember at all. No children, no relative. You, Jack. You like me. Unless you change.”
Yes, I knew that. I had already come to understand that. And I knew that he had come for me, here in the middle of the country, away from his home as longtime Californ’. But I didn’t know why.
- GenresAudiobook
314 pages, Kindle Edition
First published November 1, 2001
2 people are currently reading
14 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
February 3, 2019
I received an audible code via Audiobook Boom for an honest review. What follows is my opinion and mine alone. There was no compensation for this review.
A Temple of Forgotten Spirits is a full-length novel that is comprised of multiple short stories. It tells the story of a Chinese-American man and his journey across the United States on his search for a mythical unicorn. He is introduced to the history of the Chinese in America little by little.
I am a third generation Filippino-American (25% Filippino, if we get nitty-gritty). Unfortunately, I don't know anything about that part of my family and what I do know is just the history that my grandmother remembers. I don't know the culture and I'm still undecided about learning it. After all, is the history that rich in American culture?
So, I asked for this book because I already felt some kind of connection with the main character. He doesn't know his family background or the culture. He doesn't understand the intertwining history of being Chinese and Chinese-American. Just like I don't know anything about that part of my family.
Now... I honestly didn't start liking the book. The main character, though having a similar cultural ignorance as me, didn't feel like there was any emotion behind him. I didn't like him as a person. I did like the other characters we meet in each story. They had substance, there was a struggle with them. Jack was... a witness.
And in retrospect, I think that was Wu's intention. He wanted Jack to be a blank slate. If Jack wasn't, he would fight what is new to him just like we fight what is new for us. By making him into a blank slate, Wu not only made the reader into the character but was making a point that Jack was on a journey to a rebirth of sorts.
With each passing story, Jack grows a personality. We may not know the Jack of the past but we are learning about the Jack of the present and future. It is the past of Chinese America that is important, not the vehicle we are using to view it.
It was because of this that I needed to sit back and think. I couldn't write a review right away because I would have made it into a 2 (because of Jack's lack of personality) or a 3 (because the stories we learn). Now, I think a 4 is more appropriate.
The narrator does a decent job, though I did have trouble listening to him from time to time. The literary prose is good, it pulled me in and the minor characters meant something to me. But it is the emotional realization I have gained that seems to make a bigger impact for me. I'm growing more and more interested in learning about my own hidden culture after listening to this audiobook.
I recommend this for someone who doesn't know as much as they think about Chinese American history and for the people who don't know the history that is in their own blood and soul.
Final Rating: 4/5
A Temple of Forgotten Spirits is a full-length novel that is comprised of multiple short stories. It tells the story of a Chinese-American man and his journey across the United States on his search for a mythical unicorn. He is introduced to the history of the Chinese in America little by little.
I am a third generation Filippino-American (25% Filippino, if we get nitty-gritty). Unfortunately, I don't know anything about that part of my family and what I do know is just the history that my grandmother remembers. I don't know the culture and I'm still undecided about learning it. After all, is the history that rich in American culture?
So, I asked for this book because I already felt some kind of connection with the main character. He doesn't know his family background or the culture. He doesn't understand the intertwining history of being Chinese and Chinese-American. Just like I don't know anything about that part of my family.
Now... I honestly didn't start liking the book. The main character, though having a similar cultural ignorance as me, didn't feel like there was any emotion behind him. I didn't like him as a person. I did like the other characters we meet in each story. They had substance, there was a struggle with them. Jack was... a witness.
And in retrospect, I think that was Wu's intention. He wanted Jack to be a blank slate. If Jack wasn't, he would fight what is new to him just like we fight what is new for us. By making him into a blank slate, Wu not only made the reader into the character but was making a point that Jack was on a journey to a rebirth of sorts.
With each passing story, Jack grows a personality. We may not know the Jack of the past but we are learning about the Jack of the present and future. It is the past of Chinese America that is important, not the vehicle we are using to view it.
It was because of this that I needed to sit back and think. I couldn't write a review right away because I would have made it into a 2 (because of Jack's lack of personality) or a 3 (because the stories we learn). Now, I think a 4 is more appropriate.
The narrator does a decent job, though I did have trouble listening to him from time to time. The literary prose is good, it pulled me in and the minor characters meant something to me. But it is the emotional realization I have gained that seems to make a bigger impact for me. I'm growing more and more interested in learning about my own hidden culture after listening to this audiobook.
I recommend this for someone who doesn't know as much as they think about Chinese American history and for the people who don't know the history that is in their own blood and soul.
Final Rating: 4/5
September 24, 2018
This book contains the following interconnected short stories: Wild Garlic, On a Phantom Tide, The Shade of Lo Man Gong, Pagan Night, Desert Night Ride, Caravan of Death, Tong Yun Guy, Shaunessy Fong, Tinsel Chink, In the Temple of Forgotten Spirits. They capture the adventures of Jack Hong as he hitchhikes across the USA chasing after the elusive keilin (Chinese unicorn). The collection as a whole works pretty well. I think a few edits would have tightened the story up a bit so that it read smoothly as a novel. Each tale reads like a really long chapter for the most part but sometimes one story will reference actions or people we just left in the previous story. We haven’t had time to forget, so it comes off a little repetitive here and there.
And that is my only criticism of the book.
Jack Hong is an interesting character on an engaging journey. He gets a little jail time for losing a fight and that’s when Lo Man Gong appears, practically pushing him out a window into a jail break. From there, Jack follows the misty form of the keilin, not knowing what the spirit wants with him. But he has plenty of opportunities to help others along the way.
Shaunessy Fong brought in the mystery solving aspect to the novel, as well as ghosts. Jack had his first nasty shock being tossed into jail, then another shock with the escape artist spirit Gong, yet one more with keilin, and finally, now, here are some ghosts. I was waiting for Jack to faint! But he rallied and decided that perhaps he was witnessing this horrible moment of the past via the ghosts reenactment because he was meant to help them.
Desert Night Ride is set in the desert Southwest, starting in Albuquerque and ending near Salt Lake City. Throughout this entire novel, Jack is sometimes searching for his ancestral past, sometimes ignoring it, and sometimes making peace with it. This tale did a great job of showcasing this particular aspect to the greater story. Plus, it’s the desert which is a setting I always enjoy in stories.
Wild Garlic struck a different captured my mind for other reasons. Set in the Ozarks, the population is primarily White with this one Chinese wife. On his way through, Jack is first invited to have dinner with them and then later to help them calm an angry spirit. It’s only late in the story that there’s something magical about some of the characters in this tale. While the Ozarks have kept them a bit isolated from their native culture, it’s also that isolation that’s allowed them to fly under the radar.
Caravan of Death has a little time travel element to it. Here, Jack learns a bit about the Chinese work gangs for one of the big railroad companies in the 1800s. Jack also helps a woman see how her ancestry isn’t lost in her own offspring as that ancestry helped to make this country travelable.
In the Temple of Forgotten Spirits wraps up the novel quite nicely. It brings everything home while also giving Jack a new purpose, a quest to set out upon. The author took the time to add plenty of notes about his experiences that relate to a specific tale or what his historical research turned up. I really enjoyed these as well as I enjoy learning little bits from my entertainment. All told, 4/5 stars.
The Narration: Anthony Lee did OK with this narration. He starts off a little rough, sometimes putting emphasis on one word over others in a sentence, making it sound awkward. But he smooths out about 1/3 of the way into the book. His attempt at hick accents sounded off but his pronunciation of various Asian words sounded great to my untutored ears. He had distinct voices for all the characters and his female voices were believable. 4/5 stars.
I received this audiobook as part of my participation in a blog tour with Audiobookworm Promotions. The tour is being sponsored by Anthony Lee. The gifting of this audiobook did not affect my opinion of it.
And that is my only criticism of the book.
Jack Hong is an interesting character on an engaging journey. He gets a little jail time for losing a fight and that’s when Lo Man Gong appears, practically pushing him out a window into a jail break. From there, Jack follows the misty form of the keilin, not knowing what the spirit wants with him. But he has plenty of opportunities to help others along the way.
Shaunessy Fong brought in the mystery solving aspect to the novel, as well as ghosts. Jack had his first nasty shock being tossed into jail, then another shock with the escape artist spirit Gong, yet one more with keilin, and finally, now, here are some ghosts. I was waiting for Jack to faint! But he rallied and decided that perhaps he was witnessing this horrible moment of the past via the ghosts reenactment because he was meant to help them.
Desert Night Ride is set in the desert Southwest, starting in Albuquerque and ending near Salt Lake City. Throughout this entire novel, Jack is sometimes searching for his ancestral past, sometimes ignoring it, and sometimes making peace with it. This tale did a great job of showcasing this particular aspect to the greater story. Plus, it’s the desert which is a setting I always enjoy in stories.
Wild Garlic struck a different captured my mind for other reasons. Set in the Ozarks, the population is primarily White with this one Chinese wife. On his way through, Jack is first invited to have dinner with them and then later to help them calm an angry spirit. It’s only late in the story that there’s something magical about some of the characters in this tale. While the Ozarks have kept them a bit isolated from their native culture, it’s also that isolation that’s allowed them to fly under the radar.
Caravan of Death has a little time travel element to it. Here, Jack learns a bit about the Chinese work gangs for one of the big railroad companies in the 1800s. Jack also helps a woman see how her ancestry isn’t lost in her own offspring as that ancestry helped to make this country travelable.
In the Temple of Forgotten Spirits wraps up the novel quite nicely. It brings everything home while also giving Jack a new purpose, a quest to set out upon. The author took the time to add plenty of notes about his experiences that relate to a specific tale or what his historical research turned up. I really enjoyed these as well as I enjoy learning little bits from my entertainment. All told, 4/5 stars.
The Narration: Anthony Lee did OK with this narration. He starts off a little rough, sometimes putting emphasis on one word over others in a sentence, making it sound awkward. But he smooths out about 1/3 of the way into the book. His attempt at hick accents sounded off but his pronunciation of various Asian words sounded great to my untutored ears. He had distinct voices for all the characters and his female voices were believable. 4/5 stars.
I received this audiobook as part of my participation in a blog tour with Audiobookworm Promotions. The tour is being sponsored by Anthony Lee. The gifting of this audiobook did not affect my opinion of it.
July 12, 2018
I was given a free review copy of the audiobook, at my request, and am leaving this review voluntarily. All opinions expressed are my own. NOTE: After listening to the audiobook, I also purchased the Kindle version.
A Temple of Forgotten Spirits was originally published as a series of short stories between 1985 and 1993, but was always envisioned as a novel. This collection includes the entire story of Jack Hong, an aimless Chinese-American with little connection to his cultural heritage. In the first story, he has an encounter with a ghost (immediately establishing the supernatural thread throughout the stories) and then sees the keilin, a Chinese unicorn. According to legend, the keilin only appears at significant moments, so of course Jack is intrigued. He decides to follow the keilin, and in each subsequent story it leads him across the country to a supernatural encounter, a task to accomplish, and a greater understanding of Chinese-American history and/or his own identity.
Each of the stories could be read independently, but this is definitely a case where the whole is greater than the sum of the parts. Some stories are stronger than others, but there weren’t any I disliked, and I really enjoyed Jack’s character development during his quest-a quest which, intriguingly, feels both distinctly American and essentially Chinese.
I also really enjoyed the author’s notes, which appeared at the beginning of the book, after each story, and at the end. They increased my understanding of each story, and prompted me to research some of the historical events that inspired Jack’s experiences.
Anthony Lee gives a solid, straightforward reading of the stories. However, I would have preferred a stronger interpretation of the material, with a little more focus on tone, inflection, and narrator’s tools. The performance was perfectly fine, but I think there was room to do more with this book.
On the whole, I am very glad that I had the chance to experience this title, and I will be returning to these stories in the future.
October 31, 2020
This is an excellent collection of stories about a Chinese-American man who travels the US helping others of Chinese ancestry. That's a really simplistic description and maybe not absolutely accurate, or complete. There are a variety of supernatural elements: ghosts, fox spirits, a ghost fishing junk, a kielin (kielun/qilin/kirin).
While these are good contemporary fantasy stories in and of themselves, there is an underlying thread that really makes this collection stand out. Each story deals with an aspect of life experienced by Chinese immigrants (and their descendents) to the US, particularly from the 19th century to the mid-20th century. Prior to reading these stories, I had learned in high school a *very* small amount about immigrants from China. The difficulties, problems, and bigotry they experienced had not even been hinted at. These stories are worth reading just to get the beginning of a sense of this.
I'd read many of these stories back when they were first published in the late 80's and early 90's. I was very happy to find all the stories gathered into a complete collection.
While these are good contemporary fantasy stories in and of themselves, there is an underlying thread that really makes this collection stand out. Each story deals with an aspect of life experienced by Chinese immigrants (and their descendents) to the US, particularly from the 19th century to the mid-20th century. Prior to reading these stories, I had learned in high school a *very* small amount about immigrants from China. The difficulties, problems, and bigotry they experienced had not even been hinted at. These stories are worth reading just to get the beginning of a sense of this.
I'd read many of these stories back when they were first published in the late 80's and early 90's. I was very happy to find all the stories gathered into a complete collection.
October 13, 2018
This This is a collection of short stories that when put together as they are in this audiobook, make up an entire novel.
This was my first experience reading any of William F. Wu’s work and I found it both interesting and informative.
Prior to listening to this audiobook, I had never heard of the word “keilin.” What the heck is a keilin? Well, it is the Asian version of a unicorn, but it is miles away from what most people envision a unicorn to look like. Instead of looking like a horse with a single horn on its head, the keilin had the body of a deer, the hooves of a horse, the tail of an ox, and a fleshy horn.
Narrator Anthony Lee has done a good job of keeping the pacing just right and is able to provide just the right accent for this collection.
I rate both the audiobook and the narration as 4 out of 5 Stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐
**I received this audiobook as part of my participation in a blog tour with Audiobookworm Promotions. The tour is being sponsored by Anthony Lee. The gifting of this audiobook did not affect my opinion of it.*
This was my first experience reading any of William F. Wu’s work and I found it both interesting and informative.
Prior to listening to this audiobook, I had never heard of the word “keilin.” What the heck is a keilin? Well, it is the Asian version of a unicorn, but it is miles away from what most people envision a unicorn to look like. Instead of looking like a horse with a single horn on its head, the keilin had the body of a deer, the hooves of a horse, the tail of an ox, and a fleshy horn.
Narrator Anthony Lee has done a good job of keeping the pacing just right and is able to provide just the right accent for this collection.
I rate both the audiobook and the narration as 4 out of 5 Stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐
**I received this audiobook as part of my participation in a blog tour with Audiobookworm Promotions. The tour is being sponsored by Anthony Lee. The gifting of this audiobook did not affect my opinion of it.*
August 18, 2018
This is a beautiful collection of stories from William Wu that I really enjoyed. It was different from titles I usually listen to, and appreciate the beauty in the stories. The author's comments about each story was also very helpful and insightful. Follow the adventures of a Chinese-American as he travels and meets all sorts of interesting things. Very neat book, really enjoyed the writing and narration :)
I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.
I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.
July 7, 2019
•audiobook•
Anthony Lee was an ideal narrator for this book. If you aren’t used to listening/conversing to someone with an accent, it may take a while. But give it a few start overs and the journey is worth it!
Each chapter is similar to a section of Jack Hong’s quest to the keilin. I really liked how the myth and folklore is explained and how it takes him a step closer.
I listened to this several times. I had never heard of the keilin and this book was very captivating and intriguing.
I really wish I could find more similar series like this!
Anthony Lee was an ideal narrator for this book. If you aren’t used to listening/conversing to someone with an accent, it may take a while. But give it a few start overs and the journey is worth it!
Each chapter is similar to a section of Jack Hong’s quest to the keilin. I really liked how the myth and folklore is explained and how it takes him a step closer.
I listened to this several times. I had never heard of the keilin and this book was very captivating and intriguing.
I really wish I could find more similar series like this!
September 24, 2018
A Temple of Forgotten Spirits by William F. Wu This book contains the following interconnected short stories: Wild Garlic, On a Phantom Tide, The Shade of Lo Man Gong, Pagan Night, Desert Night Ride, Caravan of Death, Tong Yun Guy, Shaunessy Fong, Tinsel Chink, In the Temple of Forgotten Spirits. They capture the adventures of Jack Hong as he hitchhikes across the USA chasing after the elusive keilin (Chinese unicorn). The collection as a whole works pretty well. I think a few edits would have tightened the story up a bit so that it read smoothly as a novel. Each tale reads like a really long chapter for the most part but sometimes one story will reference actions or people we just left in the previous story. We haven’t had time to forget, so it comes off a little repetitive here and there.
And that is my only criticism of the book.
Jack Hong is an interesting character on an engaging journey. He gets a little jail time for losing a fight and that’s when Lo Man Gong appears, practically pushing him out a window into a jail break. From there, Jack follows the misty form of the keilin, not knowing what the spirit wants with him. But he has plenty of opportunities to help others along the way.
Shaunessy Fong brought in the mystery solving aspect to the novel, as well as ghosts. Jack had his first nasty shock being tossed into jail, then another shock with the escape artist spirit Gong, yet one more with keilin, and finally, now, here are some ghosts. I was waiting for Jack to faint! But he rallied and decided that perhaps he was witnessing this horrible moment of the past via the ghosts reenactment because he was meant to help them.
Desert Night Ride is set in the desert Southwest, starting in Albuquerque and ending near Salt Lake City. Throughout this entire novel, Jack is sometimes searching for his ancestral past, sometimes ignoring it, and sometimes making peace with it. This tale did a great job of showcasing this particular aspect to the greater story. Plus, it’s the desert which is a setting I always enjoy in stories.
Wild Garlic struck a different captured my mind for other reasons. Set in the Ozarks, the population is primarily White with this one Chinese wife. On his way through, Jack is first invited to have dinner with them and then later to help them calm an angry spirit. It’s only late in the story that there’s something magical about some of the characters in this tale. While the Ozarks have kept them a bit isolated from their native culture, it’s also that isolation that’s allowed them to fly under the radar.
Caravan of Death has a little time travel element to it. Here, Jack learns a bit about the Chinese work gangs for one of the big railroad companies in the 1800s. Jack also helps a woman see how her ancestry isn’t lost in her own offspring as that ancestry helped to make this country travelable.
In the Temple of Forgotten Spirits wraps up the novel quite nicely. It brings everything home while also giving Jack a new purpose, a quest to set out upon. The author took the time to add plenty of notes about his experiences that relate to a specific tale or what his historical research turned up. I really enjoyed these as well as I enjoy learning little bits from my entertainment. All told, 4/5 stars.
The Narration: Anthony Lee did OK with this narration. He starts off a little rough, sometimes putting emphasis on one word over others in a sentence, making it sound awkward. But he smooths out about 1/3 of the way into the book. His attempt at hick accents sounded off but his pronunciation of various Asian words sounded great to my untutored ears. He had distinct voices for all the characters and his female voices were believable. 4/5 stars.
I received this audiobook as part of my participation in a blog tour with Audiobookworm Promotions. The tour is being sponsored by Anthony Lee. The gifting of this audiobook did not affect my opinion of it.
And that is my only criticism of the book.
Jack Hong is an interesting character on an engaging journey. He gets a little jail time for losing a fight and that’s when Lo Man Gong appears, practically pushing him out a window into a jail break. From there, Jack follows the misty form of the keilin, not knowing what the spirit wants with him. But he has plenty of opportunities to help others along the way.
Shaunessy Fong brought in the mystery solving aspect to the novel, as well as ghosts. Jack had his first nasty shock being tossed into jail, then another shock with the escape artist spirit Gong, yet one more with keilin, and finally, now, here are some ghosts. I was waiting for Jack to faint! But he rallied and decided that perhaps he was witnessing this horrible moment of the past via the ghosts reenactment because he was meant to help them.
Desert Night Ride is set in the desert Southwest, starting in Albuquerque and ending near Salt Lake City. Throughout this entire novel, Jack is sometimes searching for his ancestral past, sometimes ignoring it, and sometimes making peace with it. This tale did a great job of showcasing this particular aspect to the greater story. Plus, it’s the desert which is a setting I always enjoy in stories.
Wild Garlic struck a different captured my mind for other reasons. Set in the Ozarks, the population is primarily White with this one Chinese wife. On his way through, Jack is first invited to have dinner with them and then later to help them calm an angry spirit. It’s only late in the story that there’s something magical about some of the characters in this tale. While the Ozarks have kept them a bit isolated from their native culture, it’s also that isolation that’s allowed them to fly under the radar.
Caravan of Death has a little time travel element to it. Here, Jack learns a bit about the Chinese work gangs for one of the big railroad companies in the 1800s. Jack also helps a woman see how her ancestry isn’t lost in her own offspring as that ancestry helped to make this country travelable.
In the Temple of Forgotten Spirits wraps up the novel quite nicely. It brings everything home while also giving Jack a new purpose, a quest to set out upon. The author took the time to add plenty of notes about his experiences that relate to a specific tale or what his historical research turned up. I really enjoyed these as well as I enjoy learning little bits from my entertainment. All told, 4/5 stars.
The Narration: Anthony Lee did OK with this narration. He starts off a little rough, sometimes putting emphasis on one word over others in a sentence, making it sound awkward. But he smooths out about 1/3 of the way into the book. His attempt at hick accents sounded off but his pronunciation of various Asian words sounded great to my untutored ears. He had distinct voices for all the characters and his female voices were believable. 4/5 stars.
I received this audiobook as part of my participation in a blog tour with Audiobookworm Promotions. The tour is being sponsored by Anthony Lee. The gifting of this audiobook did not affect my opinion of it.
September 5, 2018
This is the first book I’ve read/listened to by this author. I enjoyed the author’s notes after each short story. They added a level of interest, and insight into his intent behind the story. They improved my take on the stories, since I felt the stories were average. The conclusion to the book tied all the stories together nicely. The main character lacked depth, and I never came to feel for the guy. I don’t think it would have taken much to flesh out his personality a bit more. The Chinese folklore (that the stories were based on) was interesting.
This is the first book I’ve listened to by this narrator (Anthony Lee). His narration tone was pleasant, and his character voices were good. However, his overall narration was average. He put inflections on words (eg. end of each sentence) that people would not do when in conversation or relating a tale. This made listening to the book less comfortable to listen to because it disrupts the flow.
There are no explicit sex scenes, excessive violence or swearing.
I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and voluntarily left this unbiased review.
Please feel free to comment on whether you found my review helpful.
Story 3/5
Narration 3/5
This is the first book I’ve listened to by this narrator (Anthony Lee). His narration tone was pleasant, and his character voices were good. However, his overall narration was average. He put inflections on words (eg. end of each sentence) that people would not do when in conversation or relating a tale. This made listening to the book less comfortable to listen to because it disrupts the flow.
There are no explicit sex scenes, excessive violence or swearing.
I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and voluntarily left this unbiased review.
Please feel free to comment on whether you found my review helpful.
Story 3/5
Narration 3/5
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews