Three Souls by Janie ChangMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
Genre: historical fiction, fantasy
This book recounts the life of Song Leiyin. We meet her watching her own funeral and where she first encounters her three souls (in Taoism it is believed that a person has three souls: yin, yang, and hun) as we take a journey to the day she finished high school and the choices she made that changed her life forever. We see the consequences of her choices, how they affected everyone around her and how she must make amends before moving onto the afterlife. We also uncover the mystery of how she died. Now that Leiyin is essentially a ghost she begins to see her life and the people around her in a different way. She understands why her father made certain choices and wishes to see him again. As a ghost, she is given a second chance to help the people she cared about. This book is set in 1935 China with flashbacks to the late 1920's. You get a sense of the social and political changes that were occurring that the time.
This is an intriguing tale that keeps you wanting more till the last page. It's lyrically written. I liked that the story stresses the importance of education and family. It shows us how one choice can dramatically change every part of your life. The novel ended up being darker than I initially thought and some parts felt uncomfortable for me to read. The beautifully crafted narrative is what prompted me to finish the book.
What books have you been reading?
Sincerely, JoJo. ♥
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