From Powells.com
Hot new releases and under-the-radar gems for adults and kids.
Staff Pick
I cannot get enough of Nghi Vo's mesmerizing world-building and characterization. Her very sentences dazzle. In Siren Queen, Vo steeps pre-Code Hollywood in dangerous and deadly magic while her protagonist strives, trades, and outsmarts her way along the perilous and unforgiving road to stardom. Chilling, seductive, and wonderful. Recommended By Sarah R., Powells.com
Synopses & Reviews
From award-winning author Nghi Vo comes a dazzling new novel where immortality is just a casting call away
It was magic. In every world, it was a kind of magic.
No maids, no funny talking, no fainting flowers. Luli Wei is beautiful, talented, and desperate to be a star. Coming of age in pre-Code Hollywood, she knows how dangerous the movie business is and how limited the roles are for a Chinese American girl from Hungarian Hill — but she doesn't care. She'd rather play a monster than a maid.
But in Luli's world, the worst monsters in Hollywood are not the ones on screen. The studios want to own everything from her face to her name to the women she loves, and they run on a system of bargains made in blood and ancient magic, powered by the endless sacrifice of unlucky starlets like her. For those who do survive to earn their fame, success comes with a steep price. Luli is willing to do whatever it takes — even if that means becoming the monster herself.
Siren Queen offers up an enthralling exploration of an outsider achieving stardom on her own terms, in a fantastical Hollywood where the monsters are real and the magic of the silver screen illuminates every page.
Review
"Vo's spellbinding latest solidifies her position as a force to be reckoned with in speculative fiction….Her dazzling voice, evocative scene setting, and ambitious protagonist make this a knockout." Publishers Weekly (Starred Review)
Review
"Searing and seductive, Siren Queen is the kind of book that leaves you wrecked on its shores. When I look up at the stars, I'll think of Luli." Alix E. Harrow, New York Times-bestselling author of The Once and Future Witches
Review
"Nghi Vo has become one of my favorite writers, and Siren Queen is lush and brilliant, a mesmerizing journey into a pre-code Hollywood that is all sharp edges, with the darkest magic and highest stakes." Martha Wells, author of Network Effect
Review
"The book of my dreams — vivid, sensual, frightening, and inexpressibly gorgeous, often in the same sentence....Nghi Vo is a magician — no — maybe a god." Kelly Robson, author of Gods, Monsters & the Lucky Peach
About the Author
Nghi Vo is the author of the novels Siren Queen and The Chosen and the Beautiful, as well as the acclaimed novellas When the Tiger Came Down the Mountain and The Empress of Salt and Fortune, a Locus and Ignyte Award finalist and the winner of the Crawford Award and the Hugo Award. Born in Illinois, she now lives on the shores of Lake Michigan. She believes in the ritual of lipstick, the power of stories, and the right to change your mind.
Powell's Staff on PowellsBooks.Blog
Summer has finally found its way to Portland. The bright, blue days are perfect for grabbing a blanket, filling your picnic basket with goodies, and going to the park with a good book. Whether you prefer your summer reads juicy or puzzling or star-crossed or gory, we've got you covered...
Read More»