The Empress of Salt and Fortune

By Nghi Vo

Winner of the 2020 Crawford Award!
Winner of the 2021 Hugo Award!
A Hugo Award-Winning Series!

A 2021 Locus Award Finalist
A 2021 Ignyte Award Finalist
A Goodreads Choice Award Finalist
A Book Riot Best Debut Fantasy of All Time

"Dangerous, subtle, unexpected and familiar, angry and ferocious and hopeful... The Empress of Salt and Fortune is a remarkable accomplishment of storytelling."—NPR

"Nghi Vo is one of the most original writers we have today."—Taylor Jenkins Reid on Siren Queen

A Book Riot Must Read Book of 2023 | A 2020 ALA Booklist Top Ten SF/F Debut | A Book Riot Must-Read Fantasy of 2020 | A Paste Most Anticipated Novel of 2020 | A Library Journal Debut of the Month | A Buzzfeed Must-Read Fantasy Novel of Spring 2020 | A Washington Post Best SFF of the Year So Far Pick

Named Book Riot's Best Book Cover of 2020

Named a Best of 2020 Pick for NPR | Library Journal | NYPL | Chicago Public Library | The Austen Chronicle | Autostraddle

With the heart of an Atwood tale and the visuals of a classic Asian period drama, Nghi Vo's The Empress of Salt and Fortune is a tightly and lushly written narrative about empire, storytelling, and the anger of women.

A young royal from the far north, is sent south for a political marriage in an empire reminiscent of imperial China. Her brothers are dead, her armies and their war mammoths long defeated and caged behind their borders. Alone and sometimes reviled, she must choose her allies carefully.

Rabbit, a handmaiden, sold by her parents to the palace for the lack of five baskets of dye, befriends the emperor's lonely new wife and gets more than she bargained for.

At once feminist high fantasy and an indictment of monarchy, this evocative debut follows the rise of the empress In-yo, who has few resources and fewer friends. She's a northern daughter in a mage-made summer exile, but she will bend history to her will and bring down her enemies, piece by piece.

The Hugo Award-winning Singing Hills Cycle

The Empress of Salt and Fortune
When the Tiger Came Down the Mountain
Into the Riverlands
Mammoths at the Gates
The Brides of High Hill

The novellas of The Singing Hills Cycle are linked by the cleric Chih, but may be read in any order, with each story serving as an entry point.

Praise for The Empress of Salt and Fortune

“An elegant gut-punch, a puzzle box that unwinds itself in its own way and in its own time. I cannot recommend it highly enough. Gorgeous. Cruel. Perfect. I didn't know I needed to read this until I did.”—Seanan McGuire

"A tale of rebellion and fealty that feels both classic and fresh, The Empress of Salt and Fortune is elegantly told, strongly felt, and brimming with rich detail. An epic in miniature, beautifully realised."—Zen Cho

"Nghi Vo's gracefully told debut . . . resides in the intimate margins of its (beautifully imagined) world's history, portraying how the marginalized may yet shape those narratives and harness the power of stories."—Indrapramit Das

At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Macmillan Publishers
• Release date: Mar 24, 2020
• ISBN: 9781250750297

Nghi Vo

Nghi Vo is the author of the novels Siren Queen and The Chosen and the Beautiful, as well as the acclaimed novellas of the Singing Hills Cycle, which began with The Empress of Salt and Fortune. The series entries have been finalists for the Nebula Award, the Locus Award, and the Lambda Literary Award, and have won the Crawford Award, the Ignyte Award, and the Hugo Award. Born in Illinois, she now lives on the shores of Lake Michigan. She believes in the ritual of lipstick, the power of stories, and the right to change your mind.

Book preview

Chapter One

Something wants to eat you, called Almost Brilliant from her perch in a nearby tree, and I shall not be sorry if it does.

Chiming bells. Chih rolled to their feet, glancing around the perimeter and squinting at the jangling string of bells that surrounded the small campsite. For a moment, they were back at the abbey in Singing Hills, late for another round of prayers, chores, and lessons, but Singing Hills did not smell of ghosts and damp pine boughs. Singing Hills did not make the hairs on Chih’s arms rise up in alarm or their heart lurch with panic.

The bells were still again.

Whatever it is, it’s passed. It’s safe to come down.

The hoopoe chirped something that managed to convey both suspicion and exasperation in a two-tone call, but she came down to settle on Chih’s head, shifting uneasily.

The protections must still be up. We are very close to Lake Scarlet now.

We wouldn’t even have gotten this far if they were. Chih considered for a moment, and then they stepped into their sandals and ducked under the belled string.

Almost Brilliant fluttered up in alarm before coming down to land on Chih’s shoulder this time.

Cleric Chih, get back to your campsite! You are going to get killed, and then I will have to tell the Divine how terribly irresponsible you were.

Be sure to make a good account of it, Chih said absently. Hush now; I think I can see what made that racket.

The hoopoe made a disgruntled rustling noise, but she dug her claws more firmly into Chih’s shoulder. Despite their bravado, the neixin’s feathery weight on their shoulder was a comfort, and Chih reached up to stroke her crest gently before walking between the pines.

They knew that there was no road there. They had crossed the white pine copse earlier that day, and though they could see the remnants of a road underneath the overgrown bracken and fallen boughs, it wouldn’t have let a dogcart through. Chih suspected that the road had once connected Lake Scarlet to the royal highway, in the days before the lake had been taken off every map and effectively disappeared by a highly dedicated and skilled imperial sorcerer.

There was no road there during the day, but obviously at night, things were different. The road ran as broad as a barge through the trees, and ranged on either side were faded ghosts, the former guardians of Lake Scarlet. Even a few months ago, Chih knew, the ghosts would have fallen on any living thing that crossed their path, tearing them to pieces and then crying because they were still so hungry.

Now, though, they had eyes for nothing but the palanquin coming down the ghost road from the east, the direction of Lake Scarlet. It was borne by six veiled men. Their feet did not quite touch the ground. In the moonlight, it was all silvered, but Chih could tell that by all rights, it should be swathed in imperial red and gold, the mammoth and lion of the empire embroidered in lavish detail on the curtains.

There was only one woman in the world who had the right to show the mammoth and the lion, and she was to be crowned in her first Dragon Court in the capital.

Well, thought Chih, curling their hand around Almost Brilliant for comfort, only one living woman.

Chih bowed as low as the ghosts around them as the palanquin went by, wishing with all their might that the late empress would open the drapes and show her face. Would it be the wrinkled woman swathed in thick silks Chih had once glimpsed as a child on Houksen, or would it be a far younger woman, the Empress of Salt and Fortune as she had first come to Anh, before the end of the eternal summer and before the mammoth had trampled the lion?

When Chih straightened, ghosts and road and empress were gone, leaving nothing behind but Chih’s own pounding heart.

Did you see that? they asked Almost Brilliant, who had finally stopped shivering.

Yes, said the hoopoe, her normally shrill tone subdued. That was worth being terrified that you were going to die in a truly terrible fashion.

Chih laughed, smoothing a finger over Almost Brilliant’s crest, and starting the short walk back to their campsite.

Come on. We can get a few more hours of sleep before we need to pack up and start walking again.

It took another two days’ walk through the birch barrens before they came to the narrow beach of Lake Scarlet at dusk. The lake itself was almost perfectly circular, formed from the death of a falling star, and farther down the beach Chih saw the low green-tiled roof of the former empress’s compound. To their surprise, there was a lantern lit on the porch built over the water.

Don’t tell me it’s looters already?

As they watched, however, an old woman came walking out of the house with a smart step, and when she reached the railing, she stared out over the water and at the indigo sky above, where the stars were stepping forward. Chih was just wondering what to do when the old woman caught sight of them.

Come over! You can see the lake better from here!

Almost Brilliant kept her own counsel, so Chih picked their way along the rocky shore of the beach, coming up the shallow steps to the porch just as the last salmon light was leaving the sky. The old woman gestured for them to come closer.

Come, you’re just in time.

She indicated that Chih was meant to help themself from the small dish of sesame crackers on the railing, but she herself looked distracted, gazing over the black water and holding one cracker in her hand. After a few moments, she turned down the lantern wick until it emitted only a sullen

Reviews for The Empress of Salt and Fortune

[Michy Grems · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Interesting story, I enjoyed the descriptions. Was a little lost and felt like I needed more context though

[Naina · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Seriously, this deserves 5 stars for its masterful story-telling, beautiful, unforced prose and deftly imagined characters. If I had any complaint, it would be that the tone is subdued and lyrical throughout, like a classic Chinese landscape (I'm thinking of Wang Ximeng's A Thousand Li of Rivers and Mountains). But then, I presume that's the effect Nghi Vo wants to achieve. She makes it seem effortless.

[connie_hampton · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A heroine's journey. Wonderful! Complex and intriguing. So well written.

[akblanchard_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

In this beautifully written novella set in a stylized version of ancient China, a peasant girl called Rabbit casts her lot with an exiled empress. The best character is a talking bird named Almost Brilliant. Well worth reading.

[gwendydd · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is one of those books that is deceptively simple. It is short, with simple yet lovely writing. It is set in a fantasy version of China. A young clerk visits the home of an old woman who was once a handmaid to an empress. The clerk's job is to catalog the items in the home. As they look at each item, the handmaid describes it and a memory it triggers, eventually telling the whole story of the empress and how she orchestrated a coup. The book ends up being a reflection on memory, love, and power. There's a lot packed into these short pages!

[shrike58 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

While I knew that Nghi Vo was an author that I probably should be reading, I was not able to get around to this novella before the close of voting for last year's Hugo's. I was therefor a little surprised when this work beat out "Ring Shout." Having finally gotten around to reading it I can now see that I really shouldn't have been surprised at all, as Vo writes with both gravity and elegance, and with a bit of sly humor on the side. The TBR pile just got higher.

[glennis.leblanc · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This novella is set in an alternate Asian country. A royal woman from the North is married to the Emperor in the South. After the birth of a son, she is sent away from court to keep her from plotting against the Emperor. Her life story is told over a series of nights to a young traveling monk by the Empress’ only handmaiden. Rabbit is an unlikely royal handmaiden, but she is loyal to her Lady as she tells the story of what happened to her in the court and after she was sent away. A great story and I enjoyed how the story unfolded brought about by simple objects found in the house.

Digital review copy provided by the publisher through NetGalley

[jalenv_2 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

In The Empress of Salt and Fortune, the first book in the Singing Hills Cycle, we are introduced to the main character, Cleric Chih. Chih is a scholar and historian from the Singing Hills Abbey. Chih, and her companion, a neixin (apparently a talking hoopoe bird) named Almost Brilliant, have journeyed to Lake Scarlet.

[nbmars · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Chih, a traveling cleric, stops at Lake Scarlet on her way to the capital to see the eclipse and coronation of the new Empress. Chih (who uses the pronoun they) is surprised to find that someone is occupying the former empress’s compound, called Thriving Fortune. The old woman Chih meets is called “Rabbit,” and it turns out she was the personal attendant of Empress In-yo, The Empress of Salt and Fortune. The Empress will have been dead a year when the eclipse occurs.While Chih and their bird named Almost Brilliant (with the skill to retain all it hears in its with an indelible memory) sojourn at the compound, they are unable to resist looking for new stories to take back to the Singing Hills Abbey. It is the mission of clerics to remember and mark down. Thus Rabbit tells them stories about her own life, and that of the life of In-yo.In-yo was exiled to Lake Scarlet after giving birth to a crown prince. She and Rabbit lived at Thriving Fortune for the next several years. During that time, the Court sent a “revolving cadre of beautiful spies from the city.” They also hosted a number of fortune-tellers; the Court understood In-yo was obsessed with fortune-telling of all kinds. One of the fortune-tellers who came, Sukai, won Rabbit’s heart.What happens next is memorable and both heart-breaking and inspiring. It presumably also sets the stage for the next parts of this story, told in two subsequent novellas, When the Tiger Came Down the Mountain, and Into the Riverlands.This novella, the first in the “Singing Hills Cycle,” won a number of prestigious fantasy awards, but I wasn’t so convinced of its award-worthy nature after reading it. Nevertheless, I liked it enough to want to read the next two installments right away.

[Joanna Disch · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Eine schön geschriebene und berührende Geschichte, die uns in eine fremde Kultur entführt.

[greeniezona · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I bought this largely because I fell in love with the cover, and once again, judging a book by its cover did not steer me wrong. Plus, stories set in fantasy worlds inspired by Imperial China are a sweet spot for me at the moment.I loved this all the way through. From Cleric Chih and Almost Brilliant (a talking hoopoe), to the story unfolded to them about the Empress and her handmaiden/friend/companion Rabbit. The story is critical of patriarchy, monarchy, imperialism, and is filled with women and non-binary characters defying the roles they were assigned to play.Also, war mammoths.Delightfully, I was able to jump immediately to the sequel.

[reading_fox · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Really rather enjoyed this. Short but sweet. It took a little while to get into but then suddenly started to make sense and the deeper meanings worked their way through. The concept is particularly wonderful of a retreat of clerics who go about the land recording in faithful accuracy whatever they encounter.Chih is newly about her travels and makes her way to one of the homes-in-exile of the now Empress, hoping to learn a little of the empress' past before watching the coronation. The Empress had been but one of the former Emperor's wives, but an insurrection from her people had seated her on the throne. Chih meets an old lady in the thought to be abandoned house and she tells them stories of her past as a servant. It has a feel of Rebecca Chambers' work, especially Psalm for the Well built. Delightful uplifting fantasy even when dealing with death and betrayal. I look forward to the rest of the series especially if they're novels.

[renbedell · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A fantasy, novella about a friendship between two women who knew much about the empire and the empress. The novella is written very well and the prose is beautiful. The storyline is written though short stories, which is not a method that I usually enjoy. The writing is so well done though that it was very enjoyable.

[jennybeast · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Great storytelling packed into a short format. Really wonderful narrator and power dynamics. Really good world building. I love the gradual uncovering of a secret history. I love the historical Asian setting with fantasy overlay (and forgive me if I think there's a fantasy overlay and this is an actual slice of history -- it's so well done I feel that either could be true). Big fan of the wandering monk, the documentation, the extraordinary lives of objects and how they tie to story.

[anniemod · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Fantasy worlds used to be based on Medieval Europe for a long time - with a few notable exceptions. Then things changed awhile back and these days we see worlds based on pretty much any mythology and empire combinations - and the Asian ones seem to be as common as the European-based ones. Nghi Vo builds hers using Imperial China as a template - but mixes additional regional elements and invented mythology to create something completely different. Chih, a cleric and a historian from the Singing Hills Monastery, is traveling around the country with Almost Brilliant, a talking neixin/hoopoe bird with perfect recall, and collects stories. The order Chih belongs to is the memory of the world - and the neixins are the ones which allow the generational memory to survive. Chih and Almost Brilliant arrive in a supposedly abandoned palace, the home of the now dead ex-empress called In-Yo with the task of cataloging what is still thee. Except that they meet an old woman, Rabbit, and as it turns out the handmaiden of the old empress - and the task of cataloging things turns into cataloging stories. The Empress lived in the palace in the middle of nowhere after being exiled after providing the required heir - she was a princess of the North, married to the Emperor of the South and she was not exactly ready to just submit. The tales of the old woman and the descriptions of the objects that Chih is cataloging get connected via the details in the stories and what emerges is the portrait of a woman who is ready to fight for herself in a world where women are expected to submit and keep quiet. Rabbit, the handmaiden that seems to be the only one still remembering In-Yo, is also not what you expect from a handmaiden - in more than one way.By the time the novella ends, you wish it was not that short - the language and the style work. But then it is also designed to be a tale in a much longer sequence - just like Rabbit tells her stories slowly, day by day, this story is supposed to be just one story that Chih and Almost Brilliant hear and remember. Because real history always works that way.The novella won the Hugo in 2021 although I suspect it got a boost from the next one in the series which came out before the nomination window opened - it stands on its own but adding the second one adds more to the background thus making this one even stronger.

[tornadox-962417 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A story told through objects and memories. With wandering clerics, queer characters, and empires. I would love to re-visit this world in another story.

[crystalcarroll · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Really innovative fantasy setting and concept with the story told in the context of objects at a recently unlocked site of significance within the setting. Simultaneously fierce and yet gentle.

[lavaturtle · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

An interesting story structure that gradually reveals the central mystery, while giving us an intriguing character in the framing device.

[reader1009-863136 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

fantasy (magical creatures) fiction novella, some LGBTQAI interest
I had a little trouble diving into this story at first (keeping track of characters is not my strength, but fortunately there weren't that many) but I kept going and was able to follow it fine after the first chapter. Interesting little tale.

[thedivineoomba · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is one of those books that will stick with you. Its well written, and on the outside, it seems like a small story, but as you progress, you realize this is a completely different tale than what you are expecting. With just a few characters,the author manages to explain a whole culture and its history. What makes it more remarkable is that this novella only has ~120 pages. There are no wasted words, no unnecessary exposition. An remarkable piece of writing.

[liscarey · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

In an Asian empire that is not China, but perhaps based on it, Cleric Chih and their intelligent, talking bird, Almost Brilliant, are sent on a mission from the Singing Hills abbey to document the history of a former empress's place of exile.In-yo came to Anh to marry its emperor, as a young woman from the far north, from a different culture, with a rich dowry, but no friends or allies. She learned the customs and ways of her new country, and gave birth to a son to be the heir.Then she is banished to a rural estate called Thriving Fortune, a house that overlooks Scarlet Lake.Chih arrives on their assignment after the place has been closed off for half a century, and finds there an old woman, the empress's former handmaid, Rabbit.The story alternates between Chih and Almost Brilliant as Chih works their way through documents, artifacts, and lesser stories from Rabbit, and Rabbit telling larger stories about her time with the Empress, both at court and in exile. It's fascinating, surprising, and absorbing. It's a story smart use of soft power, female strength and courage, and revenge. It takes some surprising turns, and the characters are complex and interesting.Well worth your time.I bought this book.

[fred_mouse · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Ostensibly, this is a story of war, of conquest, and the mistreatment of (noble) women. But it is given perspective through time and the personal experience, as the two characters of the story interact -- the archivist who was not alive at the time of the events, and the servant who was both central and peripheral to the events. As such all of the death/bloodshed is off screen, and only a handful of those who have gone before even appear in the story. Overall, this is a very clever use of storytelling methods. I loved the way that each chapter started with three catalogue items that then inform and shape the section of story that follows. And that it was being told to a cleric whose order specialises in archiving minutiae, and who has a familiar with an eidetic memory. That the tiny details are important -- and how they were in the bigger story that is being told as well.Also, some spoilery thoughts, in no particular order:[One intriguing detail I haven't seen elsewhere was that the Empress was allowed one child, and when he was born she was both exiled and surgically sterilised. And I was not entirely sure whether Rabbit had been left at the hidden lake for 60 years, after seeing off the Empress. Chih checks whether Rabbit is spirit at one point, but despite their finding of a material body, I'm not entirely sure about that.

[khimaera · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

In a short time, the new Empress of Wheat and Flood is to hold her first Dragon Court. Cleric Chih with her hoopoe companion, a neixin named Almost Brilliant, must be in attendance. Chih comes from the abbey at Singing Hills where she has been taught the arts of patience and memory to be an observer and recorder of history. Chih and Almost Brilliant pause on their journey at Lake Scarlet where the magical imperial locks have recently been declassified, and she fears if she does not stop to record what she can that it will be overrun by looters before she can return. This wilderness compound of the Empress of Salt and Fortune, In-yo, is also known as Thriving Fortune— both a joke and a promise.Chih expects to find the place abandoned and is instead met by Rabbit, an elderly peasant woman who served as In-yo’s handmaiden for many years. The book unfolds through an intimate archaeology. Each chapter begins with an inventory entry of items discovered among the rooms. However, not all things are as they appear and Rabbit tests and teaches Chih on their powers of observation through a series of stories about some of the objects they uncover. Here are private stories of a quiet, calculating woman of the snowy north who is of little use to the Emperor once she had given him a male heir. Here are touching tales of kingfishers and a downright terrible mushroom hunter. Here are missing pieces to a history Chih has come to record, but what unravels is a tale of love, betrayal, and revenge that may have changed the course of the empire forever.This slim volume asks us to examine how we imbue people and things with value. From what perspective are we making those observations and judgments? What may be one person’s trash to be thrown away may be precious beyond measure to another. Everyone and everything have a story to tell if we are only willing to be patient and observe with reverence. There are echoes of Ken Liu who is a master of taking what appear to be small and simple things and weaving astonishing, heartfelt tales from them. Nghi Vo creates a close intimacy with everyday objects and weaves masterful stories from them filled with patience and grace, revenge and consequence by giving voice to the voiceless. To do all this in a mere 120 pages is no small feat and if you are not familiar with her yet, this is a wonderful place to begin.

[bibliovermis · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I really enjoyed this short novella, in which a scholar encounters an enigmatic woman in a mysterious location. Really, a setup for success! A great mix of new fantasy with real folklore, too.

[krau0098 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Series Info/Source: I borrowed this book from the library. This is the first book in the Singing Hill Cycle.Story (5/5): This is the story of a young Cleric who journeys to the empress' former home to find her history. When they arrive there the Cleric meets Rabbit, a handmaiden of the Empress. As the Cleric finds different items around the house, Rabbit tells them stories about the history of the items which reveal the truth of the empress’s life and history.Characters (5/5): I loved the characters in here and especially enjoyed watching how the Empress lived her life and took excellent advantage of the awful situations she was put into. There are a number of very well done characters in her. The Cleric identifies as a they/them so that designation throughout this review is not a typo.Setting (5/5): I loved how the simple setting of the Empress’s former house turned into a whole world of politics and danger all through the objects that are left there. It was incredibly cleverly done. There is more unique world-building in this one slim novella than I see in a lot of fantasy novels of much longer length. Writing Style (5/5): The creative and unique way this story was put together was amazing. By simply having Rabbit tell the Cleric the stories of different objects we are immersed in the world of the Empress and Rabbit. The way everything is revealed is incredible, the settings and characters really come alive for the reader. This was just so well done. My Summary (5/5): Overall this was an absolutely amazing book. I love how we are introduced to this world and how the story is formatted. The whole story is beautifully written and cleverly done. I loved the concept, the characters, the world, and the story and would highly recommend it. This book stands alone beautifully but I can’t wait to read the next book in the series.

[terran_9 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I have never read a novella that conveys such a complex story in so few words. In the course of cataloging the contents of a home in which a Chinese empress was exiled, Chia learns Empress In-yo's rise and fall. The story is told by a serving girl who shares her own secret in the course of revealing details of In-yo's revenge. This is told in such a unique way and in such lyrical language that it will remain with me for a long time.

[puddintame-358807 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I think this is an amazing book -- the kind that makes me think I've been too generous in rating other books. The writing is phenomenal. The author builds her world with great detail and feeling, present characters that I felt I came to know, and unwinds a complex plot in so few pages. I wanted to put it down halfway through and go to sleep, but I I turned the light back on and finished the book. This one of those books where you don't want to learn too much about the plot -- watching it develop is so enthralling! I'm going to order my own copy (this was from the library), and preorder the next book, and the magazine that has one of Vo's short stories.Interestingly, I think the cover is enhanced by in it's electronic version. It adds a certain sense of depth that is less obvious on the printed cover.One of the other reviewers raised the issue of how ubiquitous LGBTIA characters suddenly seem to be. I don't know how old that reviewer is, but there are character fads whenever some issue becomes prominent:. I can remember when incest became a very prominent plot, or battered wives were de rigeur, or suddenly there were a lot of gay characters (I think some of those were older books reissued with a wider distribution). Sometimes an author publishes a book with an unusual plot or character that is a sensation, and inspires a lot of other authors. This probably goes back to before I can remember and will continue into the future. The question is, does this character feel forced or trendy or like a badge of political correctness? I don't think Chih does. Apparently being genderless, or however the character is to be described, goes hand-in-hand with belonging to a scholarly order, and we don't know which proceeds the other. I don't actually care, Chih is Chih, an interesting and likeable character. One thing I like about the Betsy Devonshire mystery series by Monica Ferris is that although her gay character Godwin Dulac was created during the gay character trend, he always felt completely natural to me; he is adorable and a delight to meet again in every book as his character develops. Trends permit or inspire authors to add types of characters that rarely appeared before. In the end, the trend passes, and we are left with a greater variety of characters than we had before, and more understanding of the variety of humanity.

[quondame · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A small gem of an other world fantasy in which the history of a discarded Empress from the north and how she deals with internal exile is revealed.

[brangwinn · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I often feel that novellas leave me wanting more, but Vo has been able to create a story that comes full circle as Rabbit tells her story of servitude to an Empress to a cleric and their bird. The ending chapter packs as we learn why the new empress is so important to Rabbit and the power and strength women possess. As I read this, I visualized the cover of the children’s fantasy, Where The Mountain Meets the Moon by Grace Lin. It was in that book the power of Chinese fantasy. The lush richness of that cover art so well illustrates the great storytelling power of The Empress of Salt and Fortune.

[ladycato · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I received an advanced copy of this book via NetGalley.Lyrical, haunting, heartbreaking. This novella exemplifies the extraordinary work that Tor is sharing with the world right now. Truly, this is a read that makes you feel all the feels.A cleric travels the land to preserve tales for generations to come. Along an isolated, incredible lakefront, they intend to chronicle a place important in the life of the Empress of Salt and Fortune: a woman who produced an heir but did not quietly accept her new life, banished to the hinterlands. The cleric encounters Rabbit, an old woman who was once a handmaiden to the Empress. Day by day, the cleric finds objects of historical relevance and listens to the tales of Rabbit. Listens, and eventually, learns.Truly, this elegant read expresses the importance of storytelling, and how the voices of the people sneered at as the most insignificant are often the ones we are the wisest to heed. There are touches of magic in this setting, but worldbuilding and action are not the emphases here. This book is about people--women in particular. It is angry, it is rebellious, and ultimately, triumphant, even amid deep sorrow.I am adding this novella to my shortlist for awards consideration this coming year.