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A review by thewordsdevourer
Deep as the Sky, Red as the Sea by Rita Chang-Eppig
adventurous
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
2.0
*Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC
I had expectations for this book, unfortunately Deep as the Sky, Red as the Sea is a disappointment. One would expect a novel about a legendary Chinese pirate queen to be quite explosive or at least have some thrilling action - as touted by its blurb - but that is in fact hard to find here, and it has been a while since I have felt so distanced from a story and its characters.
I love the novel's concept and premise, but in Chang-Eppig's hands, the story flounders dully and never really finds its footing: the writing truly more of a 'telling not showing' and scenes are rarely given proper room to breathe, the book so focused on Shek Yeung's character study it renders everything that makes her a pirate - the action and emotional impact most readers expect going in - almost inconsequential. And while the themes of power and being female in a patriarchal society are valid and very much relevant, they are hammered in so constantly while offering nothing new, and there is annoyingly little character development.
My biggest peeve about the book, however, is how distant the story and characters feel to the reader. For a book so focused on a main character, it is alarming how indifferent I feel to Shek Yeung despite knowing her backstory and both internal and external struggles. I declined to indicate here on The Storygraph whether I find the characters loveable, as after some deliberation, I realized it was neither yes nor no because I am wholly indifferent to them. Reading this book was not an immersive experience, so removed I felt from the action, development and characters, and as I am someone who highly values emotional impact in my reading, this greatly hinders my enjoyment of the novel.
To sum up, this book has a great premise that is unfortunately hampered by its execution, making it unable to fully reach its full potential.
I had expectations for this book, unfortunately Deep as the Sky, Red as the Sea is a disappointment. One would expect a novel about a legendary Chinese pirate queen to be quite explosive or at least have some thrilling action - as touted by its blurb - but that is in fact hard to find here, and it has been a while since I have felt so distanced from a story and its characters.
I love the novel's concept and premise, but in Chang-Eppig's hands, the story flounders dully and never really finds its footing: the writing truly more of a 'telling not showing' and scenes are rarely given proper room to breathe, the book so focused on Shek Yeung's character study it renders everything that makes her a pirate - the action and emotional impact most readers expect going in - almost inconsequential. And while the themes of power and being female in a patriarchal society are valid and very much relevant, they are hammered in so constantly while offering nothing new, and there is annoyingly little character development.
My biggest peeve about the book, however, is how distant the story and characters feel to the reader. For a book so focused on a main character, it is alarming how indifferent I feel to Shek Yeung despite knowing her backstory and both internal and external struggles. I declined to indicate here on The Storygraph whether I find the characters loveable, as after some deliberation, I realized it was neither yes nor no because I am wholly indifferent to them. Reading this book was not an immersive experience, so removed I felt from the action, development and characters, and as I am someone who highly values emotional impact in my reading, this greatly hinders my enjoyment of the novel.
To sum up, this book has a great premise that is unfortunately hampered by its execution, making it unable to fully reach its full potential.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexism, Violence, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Child death, Death, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual content, Torture, Kidnapping, and Death of parent