Bookish Asia's Interview with Publisher Earnshaw Books

Bookish Asia has just posted an interview with my publisher, Earnshaw Books.

Here's the link to the interview.

"The Green Phoenix" in Third Place

Happy New Year! 恭喜發財, 祝各位狗年事事亨通, 喜氣洋洋, 身體健康, 青春常駐!

The Asian Books Blog has just announced that “The Green Phoenix” came in THIRD in the poll to find Book of the Lunar Year of the Rooster, out of 12 shortlisted Asia-themed titles. A big thank-you to voters!

Link to the Asian Books Blog Page

“The Green Phoenix” has so far garnered EIGHT five-star and SIX four-star reviews on Goodreads, with an average rating of 4.38.

Link to the Goodreads Book Page

Yay!

The Los Angeles Review of Books China Channel's Review of The Green Phoenix

What can be more rewarding than to read a historian’s well-written and commending review of your new historical novel, and on an influential scholarly platform such as the Los Angeles Review of Books China Channel? It just makes my years of hard work seem all worth it.

Link to the full review

Here are some quotes from the review:-

“Where the novel really shines is in the level of historical detail. Poon gives sumptuous descriptions of dress and hairstyles. Lavish dinners and quick snacks are laid before the reader in such a way as to inspire hunger pangs. The early years of Bumbutai’s life, both at home in the Mongolian Steppe and in Hung Taiji’s palace in what is today Shenyang, particularly come to life with a vivid array of colors, textures, and sensations.”

“The style of the work owes a debt to the famous wuxia novels of Louis Cha (aka Jin Yong). Some passages are lush to the point of being florid, but Alice Poon’s novel is, at heart a, romance of two kingdoms. She breathes fresh life into characters who do not often find their way into English-language fiction, and does an excellent job of bringing to the page the story of a woman who was the foundation upon which an empire that lasted over 268 years was built.”

“One of the joys of studying this period in history is that every name sounds like it was taken from Game of Thrones.”

Thank you so much, Jeremiah!

Historical Novel Society's Review of The Green Phoenix

A fantastic review by Viviane Crystal, Historical Novel Society:~

Link to the full review

Many thanks to HNS and Viviane!

"The loveliness of this novel, however, lies in the characters’ appreciation for beauty in nature, paintings, calligraphy, historical tales and legends, nature and spontaneously shared poetry that never fails to engage the reader. The history is well-researched and accurate, including the advice the Empress and her son receive from the German Jesuit and astrologer, Johann Adam Schall von Bell. The wisdom of Confucian and Chinese teachings ultimately leads the Empress to enable her country to evolve into modernity. The Green Phoenix is delightful historical fiction and a wonderful tribute to a noteworthy Chinese empress!"

Bookish Asia's Review of "The Green Phoenix"

I can’t imagine a better way to start the day than reading a heart-warming review of my book first thing in the morning. And the review is one from the renowned book review site Bookish Asia!

Link to the Full Review

Author Alice Poon obviously loves her characters and Chinese history. She treats the historical story with great but not slavish respect, striking a reasonable balance between accuracy and narrative punch.

The Green Phoenix is a moving account of a great woman’s life, one which will appeal to fans of epic family sagas and Chinese dynastic history. There are the familiar pleasures of forbidden desire, royal splendor, court intrigue, and epic battles amid turbulent times, but here with the fresh focus on a less-familiar protagonist.

Alice Poon says an early source of inspiration was Pearl S. Buck’s Imperial Woman about Cixi, the Qing’s last Empress. I think the Empress Xiaozhuang story is every bit as compelling.

 

Thank you, thank you, Bookish Asia!

Bustle's List of 11 Historical Novels to Look Forward to This Fall

I was googling something yesterday and accidentally stumbled on Bustle.com, a popular online American women’s magazine with 45 million unique monthly visitors. They had just issued a List of “11 Historical Novels by Women to Look Forward to This Fall”.

Guess what I found? The Green Phoenix: A Novel of the Woman Who Re-made Asia, Empress Xiaozhuang is on that List! Yay!

A tantalizing story of one of history's most fascinating women, The Green Phoenix will show readers a world like they've never seen before. - Sadie Trombetta, BUSTLE

Link to the Bustle Webpage