This took wayyy too long to finish but that's mostly my fault. The pacing was slow in the first half but it picked up later on, to the point where it felt too fast to wrap things up nicely. The unanswered, kind of ambiguous ending is fun, but considering how much expository dialogue there was in the middle of the book, I was miffed to say the least.

I appreciate Li Lan though, as she felt like an engaging character who is also a woman of her time! Previous history-fantasy books I've read tend to make the main character have the mentality of a 21st woman, and like, you can do Strong Female Characters with Progressive Views in other ways- Li Lan is a good example. She's straight up exactly what a good young woman of her time is supposed to be and changes in a way that breaks some of the restrictions facing her, but not all.

The plot also took quite a few turns I was not expecting- this is not in fact a simple story about murder and choosing between two boys (well, sort of.) I can't say I was entirely pleased with how the mystery resolved, since it ended up being the least focussed on and interesting aspect of the story. The highlight is really the writing (unique and evocative), the mythology (interesting and new to me), and the atmosphere (eery and romantic).

Though the execution is a little iffy, this was a unique tale and I'd love to read more like it.