Nocturnal Book Reviews

Simply put, The Ghost Bride is fantastic. I went into this book fully expecting historical fiction with a murder mystery twist. What I got is a delightful paranormal story the likes of Spirited Away.

The book starts slow describing an impoverished Chinese family in Malaya. Li Lan's mother died when when she was little, and she basically grew up with her grieving dad who smokes so much opium that he managed to lose family fortune and any prospects for his daughter to make a prosperous marriage.

So when Li Lan's dad suggests to her a ghost marriage to a rich Lim family, she is absolutely horrified, because it's the worst thing she can do to herself. But then Lim Tian Ching, the dead son of the family starts haunting her dreams, and in a bid to stop him, she goes to a medium and starts drinking sleeping drought to ward off a hungry and petulant ghost who slowly drinks her life force.

Little does she know that an overdose of the medicine she took would put her into coma and leave her spirit wondering the dangerous waters of the underworld...

When Li Lan herself becomes a ghost, this book hits you like a ton of bricks. It turns into a gripping and intense story where the main heroine, a resourceful and brave girl, teams up with a mysterious deity, Er Lang, to uncover the corruption of Hell officials who help Lim Tian Ching with his position of power and haunting of an unwilling bride.

Be ready for the ox-demons, Plains of Dead, fascinating funeral and ancestor prayers of Chinese mythology, a host of wonderful and complicated characters, and a race against time, where Li Lan has to complete her tasks before the link between her body and spirit severs.

Li Lan and Er Lang's entanglement is completely unexpected and comes as a wonderful surprise when she still thinks that she is in love with another young man. He is cocky and secretive, and absolutely delightful, and has a lot of different facets. You warm up to him slowly, but once you do, like Li Lan herself, you can't look away.



Strong heroine, captivating story and wonderful glimpses of Chinese traditions and customs towards the dead. I really enjoyed The Ghost Bride and very much recommend it.