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kingsteph's review against another edition
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Murder
Moderate: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Miscarriage, Sexual content, and Sexual harassment
fkshg8465's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
informative
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Rounding up to a three, but this book was actually very hard for me to rate. The story held my attention, and I liked it better than The Ghost Bride, but I was so deeply uncomfortable with the relationship between Ji Lin and Shin.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Incest, Sexual content, Slavery, Toxic relationship, Colonisation, and Injury/Injury detail
thequiltyreader's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
A lovely story and murder mystery all wrapped up around a Folklore tale.
I found the characters loveable and was was really routing for some of them throughout the book.
I quite enjoyed jumping back and forward between the main characters perspectives. I did find the timeline a little hard to follow though so gave up on that part and just enjoyed the story.
I felt there were a couple of things never quite fully explained but I think this worked well with the fact this book had a strong link to a Folklore story that in itself has a lot of mystery wrapped around it.
I found the characters loveable and was was really routing for some of them throughout the book.
I quite enjoyed jumping back and forward between the main characters perspectives. I did find the timeline a little hard to follow though so gave up on that part and just enjoyed the story.
I felt there were a couple of things never quite fully explained but I think this worked well with the fact this book had a strong link to a Folklore story that in itself has a lot of mystery wrapped around it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Infertility, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Sexual content, Slavery, Suicide, Blood, Medical content, Medical trauma, Murder, Pregnancy, and Injury/Injury detail
ameliabee33's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
The mystery of this book is definitely intriguing. As readers we are led around by your two mcs, so we glimpses of two sides of the same story. People are going missing and dying and Ji Lin and Ren are in the middle of it, whether they like it or not. There is a touch of magical realism in the mystery, men that turn into tigers at night, numbers & virtues lending weight to decisions made, and the dead that can talk to our mcs as well. The descriptions of the train stations of the dead were intricate and some of my favorite parts of the book, learning about the stations between the living and dead.
This story could have done without the romance though, specifically the love story between Ji Lin and her stepbrother, Shin. I can't get around the incestuous undertones of their relationship. They were made stepsiblings from a young age, his father abuses Ji Lin's mother, he got the college education Ji Lin desperately wanted, Shin treats Ji Lin as his property. It is frequently mentioned that Ji Lin is the smarter sibling and that she has progressive views on a woman's place in the world. Yet Shin just repeatedly doesn't seem to respect it. Also I did not want to root for this relationship!!! The book kept oushing for them to Yes they aren't biologically related to one another, but they are still siblings!!! I really draw the line at incest, it isn't a taboo I want to read about at all. So tw, if you also don't like that trope
Like I said before really enjoyed the mystery with magical elements, and i would have liked to have heard more from a character named Lydia. I think she would have added to the story as an unreliable narrator, which could have added to the big reveal at the very end. I did enjoy the povs we did get though.
Overall, stars are for plot sans romance.
This story could have done without the romance though, specifically the love story between Ji Lin and her stepbrother, Shin. I can't get around the incestuous undertones of their relationship. They were made stepsiblings from a young age, his father abuses Ji Lin's mother, he got the college education Ji Lin desperately wanted, Shin treats Ji Lin as his property. It is frequently mentioned that Ji Lin is the smarter sibling and that she has progressive views on a woman's place in the world. Yet Shin just repeatedly doesn't seem to respect it. Also I did not want to root for this relationship!!! The book kept oushing for them to Yes they aren't biologically related to one another, but they are still siblings!!! I really draw the line at incest, it isn't a taboo I want to read about at all. So tw, if you also don't like that trope
Like I said before really enjoyed the mystery with magical elements, and i would have liked to have heard more from a character named Lydia. I think she would have added to the story as an unreliable narrator, which could have added to the big reveal at the very end. I did enjoy the povs we did get though.
Overall, stars are for plot sans romance.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Violence
Moderate: Incest
Minor: Sexual content
silver_valkyrie_reads's review against another edition
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Rating this four stars for now, but may come back and tweak that after I figure out what I think of some of the themes and situations in the book. It was definitely an engaging read regardless, though not, in my opinion, quite as entrancing as The Ghost Bride.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Murder
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Miscarriage, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Infidelity, Sexual content, Suicide, and Death of parent
sweekune's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
4.25/5
Audiobook narrated by the author.
Told from several points of view, The Night Tiger is a mysterious tale that draws you in. A dressmaker's apprentice, an orphaned house boy and a British doctor are drawn into the same mystery from different angles, surrounded by weretigers, amputated fingers and Chinese & Malay folklore and superstition.
- The different point of view were very distinct. some are told in first person, others in third and they all had their own separate voice and personality. I enjoyed Ren's parts (the house boy) the most but all were well done. informative but leaving enough unseen and unsaid to keep the intrigue.
- The whole book was very atmospheric and the feel of the different places and environments came across well. There were some dream sections where this was particularly notable.
- The author's narration was excellent and brought the story to life. As above, it was easy to tell which character's point of view was the present one due to the tone.
A strange but fascinating mystery story. Perfect for those who enjoy magical realism, Asian folklore and a good winding mystery.
Audiobook narrated by the author.
Told from several points of view, The Night Tiger is a mysterious tale that draws you in. A dressmaker's apprentice, an orphaned house boy and a British doctor are drawn into the same mystery from different angles, surrounded by weretigers, amputated fingers and Chinese & Malay folklore and superstition.
- The different point of view were very distinct. some are told in first person, others in third and they all had their own separate voice and personality. I enjoyed Ren's parts (the house boy) the most but all were well done. informative but leaving enough unseen and unsaid to keep the intrigue.
- The whole book was very atmospheric and the feel of the different places and environments came across well. There were some dream sections where this was particularly notable.
- The author's narration was excellent and brought the story to life. As above, it was easy to tell which character's point of view was the present one due to the tone.
A strange but fascinating mystery story. Perfect for those who enjoy magical realism, Asian folklore and a good winding mystery.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse, Death, Gun violence, Incest, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Murder, Toxic friendship, and Colonisation
kikicochrane's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
The Night Tiger was a pleasant and quick read for me, I enjoyed the overall story telling and setting of the novel. It felt like I was watching each character in their part and the pacing was nice.
Spoiler content below, includes end of book mentions.
While I agree with the other reviewers about being taken aback by the sibling romanticism and sexualization, by the end of the novel I came to understand that out of the main five characters, each had a pair. Ji Lin & Shin being step siblings but born on the same day, Ren & Yi being twins, Dr. William Acton & Lydia bearing the same Confucius virtue name. There were multiple warnings in the book that described that they each had something negative to watch out for within one another. Shin's possessiveness and indecency are the opposite of the integrity he is supposed to have given his assigned virtue. Ji Lin represents good behavior, her having romantic and jealous thoughts about her step-brother are opposite characteristics to that virtue. Knowing that they all had a flaw that could impact one another made me connect the dots to why Choo added this romance in detail. While I don't agree with pursuing a step sibling romantically, I understand why these characters developed those feelings with one another.
Spoiler content below, includes end of book mentions.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Medical trauma, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Incest, Sexual content, and Death of parent
elliejhnsn's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Writing was excellent. The story unfolded in a really captivating way. It is a bit twisted, mysterious, and dark, with magical realism, reflective of the land of Malay and the sociopolitical environments at the time. But, I think it was a bit too dark for me. It did leave me with a lot of questions still, but I think it did so intentionally, as it was a mystical story. Finally, and most importantly, the love story was NOT IT FOR ME DAWG. It felt so wrong. I definitely felt the way Ji Lin's mother did.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Incest, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Grief, Cannibalism, Medical trauma, Murder, Cultural appropriation, Alcohol, Colonisation, and Classism
maiaw27's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexism
Minor: Domestic abuse, Sexism, Sexual content, Murder, and Colonisation
hannapittock's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Domestic abuse and Sexual content