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raven_nivhaar's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
3.0
LINGHUN
The prose is beautiful, but this was a very melancholic read. Sad, and downright heartbreaking in places and infuriating in others. The strange illogical nature of HOME is never answered, but at the same time, it doesn't need to be because the very existence of it is answer enough.
Some characters deserved a sound slap, but mostly everyone just needs a hug and maybe therapy. Grief is the main focus of this story, as is expected, but it snuck up on me in some places I hadn't expected.
And the authors note at the end of the story (prior to the short story following, at least in the version I read) is DEFINITELY worth the read.
YONGSHI
Wow... I wish this was a longer story. The lore here is really interesting.
TEETER TOTTER
I feel like a broken record at this point, but this was really interesting.
The prose is beautiful, but this was a very melancholic read. Sad, and downright heartbreaking in places and infuriating in others. The strange illogical nature of HOME is never answered, but at the same time, it doesn't need to be because the very existence of it is answer enough.
Some characters deserved a sound slap, but mostly everyone just needs a hug and maybe therapy. Grief is the main focus of this story, as is expected, but it snuck up on me in some places I hadn't expected.
And the authors note at the end of the story (prior to the short story following, at least in the version I read) is DEFINITELY worth the read.
YONGSHI
Wow... I wish this was a longer story. The lore here is really interesting.
TEETER TOTTER
I feel like a broken record at this point, but this was really interesting.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse, Death, and Grief
ericarobyn's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
4.0
Linghun by Ai Jiang is a haunting tale filled with sorrow where the living tries to reconnect with the dead, no matter the cost.
On the copyright page, there were a few content warnings including: Abuse, Child Abuse, Child Death, Death, Graphic Imagery, Racism, Trauma, and Violence.
A tale told in three main perspectives, we meet Wenqi, Mrs., and Liam who are living in a small neighborhood called HOME, which stands for Homecoming Of Missing Entities. In this neighborhood, people inside the homes can summon the dead.
Most people will do anything they can to get one of the houses to see their loved ones again no matter the cost… but not every living person wants to be there, and not every dead person wishes to return to ‘haunt’ the space.
On this journey, we follow –
Wenqi – A young woman who has lost a brother. Her family moves into HOME to try to see him again, but she is tired of everything revolving around someone who is no longer there. She just wants to leave the neighborhood.
Mrs. – A neighbor across the street from Wenqi’s family who is still holding on to hope that her husband’s ghost will arrive after so many years. But even so, she is still processing her life with him.
Liam – One of the lingerers who lives out on the lawns of the homes with his parents. He is immediately drawn to Wenqi when she says she wants to leave and soon lets her know that he would like to leave as well.
This author did an amazing job organizing the overall storyline. I couldn’t put it down as I needed to see what would happen for each of the characters next!
It was so interesting to be dropping into this neighborhood right along with Wenqi. Readers get to learn more about the place as she does, seeing just how rotten it is at its core.
I really enjoyed this read, even with the darkness. And boy was there darkness! The scene at the auction was something of nightmares that you can absolutely see happening in the real world. While most of the other darkness hung heavy around families and their dynamics, and desperation to hold onto things that need to be released.
My Favorite Passages from Linghun
Candle holders sit in the middle of tables, some lit, some extinguished, with the wax dried and collected on the copper platter resting below. I run my finger along the books in the history section and skim through each title, though I’m not quite sure if this is the place to look. A chandelier dangles between each bookcase, offering dim light that flickers occasionally, and there is matted carpet with Victorian designs that seem to fade with each step.
On the shelves sit books with old, broken spines, worn covers, and marked-up pages that have been dog-eared, creased, or ripped out all together. The new books have glossy covers, tight binding, and clean, crisp pages, but none are more contemporary than the old beaten-up versions.
This town worships the dead, but it has no respect for the living.
My Final Thoughts On Linghun
This tale reads in a similar fashion as playing the Saran Wrap ball game around the holidays, but a wicked version as some of the treats we uncover along the way are sweet or interesting, while others are chilling or upsetting. Then once we hit the center, we’re left with questions.
Buckle in before picking this one up! It’s a fun yet dark ride of reflecting on what grief can do to people!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, Death, and Racism
horrorandscience's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This town worships the dead, but it has no respect for the living.
Linghun was a wonderfully unique story and I can’t wait to shout about it to everyone I know.
There are three points of view in this story: Wenqi, a teenager moving into one of the most exclusive houses in the world; Liam, whose family has been waiting for an opening for years; and an older woman simply known as Mrs, who’s been waiting and waiting for years…
They do have one thing in common, however. They are all wanting to connect with a dead relative. The neighborhood of HOME is special because it connects families with their deceased loved ones. People are so desperate to contact their lost family members, that they leave their regular homes behind to live on the lawns of HOME houses.
I love ghost stories, and even more so ghost stories from Asian mythologies. There’s so many more layers to Asian stories than Western stories, and Ai Jiang gave us that and more with Linghun.
There’s so, so much to this story that makes it one of my new favorites. There’s love, there’s grief, there’s betrayal, there’s humor. I recommend Linghun to practically anyone who loves a story with layers.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse and Racism
Moderate: Child abuse and Child death
Minor: Violence
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