5/1/14 EDIT: Sooo I stopped checking comments for months, and I come back to either rage or agreement with regard to my review. All I have to say is THERE BE SPOILERS AHEAD. Also, if you're on the fence about whether or not to continue reading this book, don't read this review unless you're set on quitting.

Okay? Okay. Onwards to the actual review!

*************

I just couldn't finish it. And I tried. Really, really tried. Even after studying Chinese history extensively in college, I'm usually not very picky about the books that I read. I don't really care about the accuracy or the sequence of events, as long as it's a good story.

But maybe it's the cheesy title. Or maybe it's just too girly. Or maybe, just maybe, the fact that this foolish girl starved herself to death because of lovesickness was the last kick in the butt my usually sleepy (yet very existent) inner feminist could endure before waking and wanting to punch someone. I have enough idiots in my life to deal with. Please don't make me deal with more in my head. Granted, the book does somewhat cleverly depict the Chinese afterlife, but the rest was so blah and a little insulting to my intelligence and femininity. If I rolled my eyes any harder while reading this book, I would have fallen out of my chair.

I may return to skim through the pages again to finish but probably not anytime soon. gawdawful historical i-give-up ...more108 s JamesAuthor 20 books3,944

3 out of 5 stars to Lisa See's Peony in Love, a historical fiction book released in 2007 by Random House set in 17th century China.



Why This Book
I found it sitting on a bookshelf in my condo's laundry room. I read the jacket description, which sounded a beautiful tale of love, emotions and a little bit of history. I brought it home with me that afternoon, knowing it would come in handy. And when I finished up a few ARCs, I needed a different kind of book; I saw this on my own shelf, which reminded me it was time to try something a few years old. I picked it up and began reading last week. It took longer than usual, but I'll explain why later.

Overview of Story
The Peony Pavilion is a play that the character of Peony has read many times. When her father, of some wealth in 17th century China, puts on a showing of the famous play on his estate, 15-year old Peony is excited. But it's when she sees a boy for the first time, she cannot control her thoughts. Unfortunately, she's already paired off in an arranged marriage with a boy from another family, as well as the fact that as a girl, she's not even allowed to be seen with any males other than those in her own family.



The book follows the story line of the play, which seems to be spilling over into Peony's life. When she begins unknowingly starving herself, Peony dies and enters the afterworld on her own. She's unprepared to deal with the consequences and is remorseful that she never found love. She soon sees the boy she fell in love with in a dream, learning he was the man her father had arranged in the marriage. She longs for him but cannot have him, as she is dead and he is very much alive.

Soon, her family members begin dying and join her in the afterworld. The boy moves on and gets married. Peony inserts herself to their life from the great beyond, leading to unfortunate circumstances for all involved. As she meanders her journey, Peony learns what is needed for her to move beyond the "waiting place" and into her new existence as no longer alive.



Approach & Style
1. The book is centered around a play within the book which mirrors the main character's life. At times, it's a little difficult to tell which is real life and which is the play.

2. The language is very ethereal, flowery and imaginative. This is less about plot and more about the beauty of Chinese beliefs about what women are allowed to do, what happens in death, and how to live one's life.

Strengths
1. The love story is a strong one. You see and feel the poetry in the words and the relationships.

2. It's very descriptive of life in a warrior state in 17th century China. I learned a lot of history that I wasn't privy to beforehand.



3. You see everything thru Peony's eyes, which helps create a very strong world and point of view.

Open Questions & Concerns
I am shocked at what Chinese women were put thru... between the sacrifices women made for men, the binding of feet and the cultural expectations and limitations. It was very upsetting. I understand these were customs for hundreds of years, with deep-rooted beliefs... some are just awful from today's standards. Even awful back then.



Author & Other Similar Books
This is the first book about Chinese customs and history that I've read. I'm not sure what I could compare it to.... perhaps Memoirs of a Geisha, although it's a different country and belief system.

Final Thoughts
This was a very tough read. I started it ten days ago and read 20 pages. I tried a few times, but couldn't get into it. I forced myself to read 150 pages last night and then the remaining 100 today. It got better, but it wasn't a positive read for me; however, I recognize the beauty in the story, characters, imagery and setting. It's one of those books where I didn't it a lot, but I know it's a good book.

I wish I had more knowledge of Chinese history and customs. Unfortunately, much of what happens in the book and how it's described went over my head. I didn't agree with how people felt or were treated. I didn't know why there was so much of a belief in ghosts with a vengeance. I couldn't get into religious and spiritual connections that were unfamiliar. And when I was getting close, I felt angry over how awfully these women were treated.

That said, I believe I would have d this a lot more if I had a stronger background in the topics. The writing is good. The story is pretty. It's just a weak connection for me because I was unfamiliar with the core practices, history and belief systems. But for the right reader, it will probably be a good 3 to 4 rated book. For me, it was about a 2.5, and I rounded up to a 3 to be fair.

About Me
For those new to me or my ... here's the scoop: I read A LOT. I write A LOT. And now I blog A LOT. First the book review goes on Goodreads, and then I send it on over to my WordPress blog at https://thisismytruthnow.com, where you'll also find TV & Film , the revealing and introspective 365 Daily Challenge and lots of blogging about places I've visited all over the world. And you can find all my social media profiles to get the details on the who/what/when/where and my pictures. Leave a comment and let me know what you think. Vote in the poll and ratings. Thanks for stopping by. Note: All written content is my original creation and copyrighted to me, but the graphics and images were linked from other sites and belong to them. Many thanks to their original creators.

[polldaddy poll=9729544]

[polldaddy poll=9719251]1-fiction104 s Aj the Ravenous Reader1,072 1,148


“"When people are alive they love, when they die, they keep loving. If love ends when a person dies, that is not real love"

I have a confession to make. I bought this book not by choice but by mere economic benefit. The paperback (the brand new one still wrapped in cellophane) was on sale and I bought it for a very fairly cheap price. Guess how much. One U.S. dollar, can you believe that!!??

I was elated to discover that this is a historical novel as I made a recent promise to myself to increase my historical fiction reads. I dove right into the book and read every page as fast as I possibly could despite the challenge of going through realistic historical events set in 17th century China that kept threatening to put me to sleep. Luckily, I upped my dose of caffeine, so I was able to finish the book in less than two days. Yay!

This is mainly a love story or rather a story of love-sickness and in the point of view of a practical, modern woman, it would be the most foolish thing to starve yourself because of love and yes I am one of those women. Had it ended in that tragic death, I would say it would be just an overused lovesick tragic tale.

But it didnÂ’t end there! The latter half of the story which I found very hauntingly fantastic presents the MCÂ’s journey in the afterlife as her love for her one and only man transcends even death.

But far better than the story itself, I felt a greater pull toward the imaginative, vivid, and evocative writing of the author and the way she perfectly depicted ancient Chinese cultures and rituals on courtship, marriage and death and I found myself captivated.

Even though, I wasnÂ’t a huge fan of the story, I highly commend Lisa See for the brilliant artist that she is by writing this priceless artifact of a novel.
definitely-not-young-adult historical-fiction physically-owned-books56 s Elyse Walters4,010 11.2k

I'm sure I wrote a review for this book too, at one point.... I have no idea where it's hanging out!

I d this --- and I still remember it but I'm generally not a huge fan of books dealing with the afterlife.... but this was done really well. It's not a STRONG 5 star read - but it's close IMO .... you certainly learn about another aspect of this culture.

4.5 rating - round up to 5 stars Debbie W.813 671

Lisa See took a significant period during Chinese history about women writers at the end of the Ming dynasty to "capture the spirit of their story" in this eloquent fictional account. Not a romance, but a love story with a twist. Part 1 was okay, but it lagged a little for me; however, Part 2 really picked up when Peony continues to tell her story, but as a "hungry ghost". I found See's extensive research into Chinese life, culture, traditions and customs extremely fascinating, especially in regards to funerary rites and afterlife beliefs. I felt sympathetic towards several characters, especially the protagonist, Peony and her plight. Once again, I learned a lot about China and its captivating history through this author's writing! A must-read for Lisa See fans!2020-reads historical-fiction literature-asian ...more48 s Eleyna6 2

This book is amazing!!! It is beautifully written (lovely descriptions and intricate details), well researched, and unbelievably touching. There were moments where I feel I can't read anymore because I am so overwhelmed with emotion, but I can never put the book down for any real length of time. I have become completely engrossed. The summary of the book is a little misleading. It describes the book as a love story. I do not find it to be one. Peony in Love is a romantic and tragic story. Love plays a big part, but not necessarily in the way I expected it to. More important in this book are the facts. 1)The traditions and beliefs practiced in the book were actually the beliefs and practices of the time, and some are really bizarre to me! 2)A woman's place in the society of that age. It's fascinating to see the differences from then to now, and also to realize that while there are differences, there are also many similarities today in women's oppression and sensoring as there were then. 3)The women in the story were real women, as was Wu Ren. Their comments on the play The Peony Pavilion are real and were compiled into a book: Wu WushanÂ’s Three WivesÂ’ Collaborative ary of The Peony Pavilion. I don't want to give too much away. Please read it for yourself. One way or another you will be touched. It is a truly amazing read! 41 s Becky16 2



Set in 17th-century China, See’s fifth novel is a coming-of-age story, a ghost story, a family saga and a work of musical and social history. As Peony, the 15-year-old daughter of the wealthy Chen family, approaches an arranged marriage, she commits an unthinkable breach of etiquette when she accidentally comes upon a man who has entered the family garden. Unusually for a girl of her time, Peony has been educated and revels in studying The Peony Pavilion, a real opera published in 1598, as the repercussions of the meeting unfold. The novel’s plot mirrors that of the opera, and eternal themes abound: an intelligent girl chafing against the restrictions of expected behavior; fiction’s educative powers; the rocky path of love between lovers and in families. It figures into the plot that generations of young Chinese women, known as the lovesick maidens, became obsessed with The Peony Pavilion, and, in a Werther- passion, many starved themselves to death. See (Snow Flower and the Secret Fan, etc.) offers meticulous depiction of women’s roles in Qing and Ming dynasty China (including horrifying foot-binding scenes) and vivid descriptions of daily Qing life, festivals and rituals. Peony’s vibrant voice, perfectly pitched between the novel’s historical and passionate depths, carries her story beautifully—in life and afterlife.)
I must say that I loved the first Lisa See novel that I read (Snow Flower and the Secret Fan) and had high hopes for this one, and was severely disappointed. It just rambled on and on (SPOILER) even after the main character dies. Uggh. After the beautiful writing of “Snow Flower”, it was hard to read this– it was simply missing too much - in terms of explanations, background details, character development, and tying together really choppy scenes, that it felt amateurish, trite and unmoving.
34 s Sarah ~819 866


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??? ??? ???? ??? Peony in Love ??? ??? ?????? ??? ???? ?? ??? ???? ??? ???? ?? ????? .favorites33 s Ruba AlTurki271 151

???? ????????? ???????
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??????? ??? ????? ???? ?????? ?????? ??? ???????? ??? ??? ??????? ?????? ?? ????? ???? ??????? ?? ????? :-)27 s Emily Coffee and ary567 209

Lyrical and heartbreaking, it was an epic on the many different types of love that make the human experience worthwhile. I also loved the afterlife aspect, it added so much hope and depth to the storyÂ’s message. A valuable read for anyone who loves deeply. romance23 s Stacy Wood Woods109

This book sucked....it was trying too hard to be existential and had wierd poetry and the story went nowhere, but pretended that it would.22 s Sharon17

Occasionally, rarely, I read a book after which I need to take a few days to come up for air, so to speak. A book that moves me so deeply and which leaves me thinking ...and thinking. Peony in Love is just such a book. A true work of art. Amazing, beginning to end. As I told a friend, I CARED so much about what was happening with the characters, I was literally losing sleep. I wish I could add an extra star to my rating - this is a six-star novel. Kudos to Lisa See for knocking another one out of the park (and then some). 5star historical-fiction21 s Julie Ekkers257 25

I just didn't this book (though I did Snow Flower and the Secret Fan). To be fair, I didn't expect to Peony, but one of the said it "belonged in my beach bag,' which sounded what I was after at the time. I just couldn't get into it. I think because there's SO much exposition of this Chinese opera in the background, and too little (for me anyway) about the main characters. it's also one of these books where everything is set in motion by a COMPLETELY AVOIDABLE misunderstanding and I have absolutely no patience for those scenarios.fiction20 s Grace Tjan187 541

'My eyes were shaped bamboo leaves; my brows were gentle brushstrokes limned by a calligrapher'.

The notion that 17th century Chinese characters would speak this for the benefit of 21st century English-speaking readers is preposterous to say the least. It is obvious that the author has conducted extensive research on the history and culture of late Ming/ early Qing dynasty Hangzhou, and the fruits of that research abound in this historical-supernatural novel. However, the anthropological details, more often than not, tend to choke the life out of the characters and sometimes even the narrative itself.

The historical fact behind the story itself is interesting, namely that the cultural renaissance that took place in late Ming dynasty Hangzhou gave aristocratic Chinese women unprecedented access to education, and even enabled them to actively participate in the literary scene. Three of these women, all the wives of Wu Ren, wrote The Three Wives ary on the Peony Pavillion, apparently the 'first book of its kind to have been published anywhere in the world to have been written by women', according to the author. However, instead of telling us the story of how these women managed to write such a work, the author chose to wallow in questionable exoticism and new-agey philosophizing. The emphasis on exoticism, some of which seem to be contrived for the benefit of Western audiences, reduces the complexity and richness of Chinese culture into a set of cruel customs and absurd superstitions.

SPOILERS

Peony is an insipid 16-year old girl who wilfully starves herself to death after she was betrothed to a stranger, who later turns out to be her paramour, Wu Ren. For some undecipherable reason (morbidity?, stupidity?), she never bothers to inquire about the identity of her fiancee until it is too late. Due to some sort of a shenanigan involving her ancestral tablet, she is condemned to spend her time wandering the afterlife as a hungry ghost. This exploration of the Chinese afterlife is interesting for a while, but it quickly degenerates into a mushy ghost story when Peony decides to stalk her former fiancee. With her ghostly powers, she interferes in his life, including choosing and grooming a three-year old girl for his future wife. The ick factor multiplies when we learn that she also participates (in her ghostly way) in the couple's bedroom activities. Finally, after further trials and tribulations, she is released from her status as a hungry ghost to join her revered ancestors in heaven.

Two stars for the story and writing, an extra star for the research.



2009 china long-ago-and-never-was17 s Tessa NadirAuthor 3 books319

Romanul este alcatuit din 3 parti: "In gradina", "Ratacind cu vantul" si "Sub prun". La inceput avem inserata prefata din opera lui Tang Xianzu (1598) "Pavilionul bujorilor" din care am retinut un foarte frumos citat:
"Iar dragostea care apare in vis nu este neaparat ireala, pentru ca in aceasta lume exista indragostiti de vis."
O cunoastem apoi pe Floare-de-Bujor, o fata draguta de 16 ani ce asteapta cu nerabdare festivitatile care vor avea loc de ziua ei. Familia sa este bogata si duce o viata rafinata, imbelsugata si fericita. Tatal ei pregateste o reprezentatie dupa "Pavilionul Bujorilor" drept cadou de ziua ei. Acesta va fi un spectacol la care vor participa multi invitati de seama.
Fetele nemaritate sunt crescute dupa reguli stricte astfel ca nu au voie sa fie vazute in public pana la casatorie. Drept urmare, Floare-de-Bujor va trebui sa vada spectacolul ascunsa fiind in spatele unui paravan. Acolo, printre invitati zareste un tanar barbat care ii fura inima la prima vedere. Problema este ca ea este deja promisa si logodita, fiind un aranjament facut intre familii fara sa se tina cont de dorinta ei. Barbatul o convinge sa se intalneasca cu el in secret si dupa 3 intalniri magice ea este nevoita sa uite de el si sa se pregateasca de nunta.
Fata sufera cumplit, nu mananca si vrea sa moara din dragoste, la fel ca eroina din "Pavilionul bujorilor", frumoasa Liniang. Cumplit, chiar cu 5 zile inainte de casatorie, cand deja starea ei de sanatate e grava, din cauza inanitiei, afla ca strainul de care se indragostise este cel care-i va fi sot si atunci... moare! Acest fapt mi s-a parut atat de stupid si dezamagitor incat am refuzat sa citesc mai departe. Mi s-a parut o tragedie gratuita insuportabila si desi in urmatoarele 2 parti Floare-de-Bujor vegheaza de sus asupra vietii alesului sau, mie nu mi-a placut aceasta abordare spirituala. Daca se intampla la finalul povestii, sau daca cei doi mureau impreuna pentru o cauza ca in "Romeo si Julieta", as fi inteles. Asadar eu m-am oprit cu cititul dupa prima parte, aproximativ 125 de pagini.
Coperta este foarte frumoasa, feminina, gratioasa, ca ale celorlate carti din aceasta serie.
In incheiere atasez cateva citate pe care le-am cules din prima parte a cartii:
"Tine-ti mereu gura, ma sfatuia ea. Iar daca trebuie sa vorbesti, asteapta pana apare momentul potrivit. Sa nu jignesti pe nimeni."
"M-a invatat ca viata imita arta. Mi-a spus ca prin citit puteam intra in lumi diferite de a mea. Iar cand ridic pensula sa scriu pot sa-mi exersez intelectul si imaginatia."
"O fiica prea educata este o fiica moarta, a tunat mama. Talentul nu este un dar pe care ar trebui sa i-l dorim Florii-de-Bujor. Unde crezi ca vor duce toate aceste lecturi? La fericirea nuptiala sau la dezamagire, vestejire si moarte?"
"Nu sangerarea lunara ma facea femeie; nici logodna, nici noile abilitati invatate. Dragostea era cea care ma transforma in femeie."
"Poezia a venit pe pamant sa te insenineze, nu sa-ti corupa mintea, gandurile si emotiile. Trebuie sa fii prezentabila, sa vorbesti bland, insa sa nu spui nimic, sa te speli bine si des si sa ai o minte in armonie. Doar asa iti vei purta virtutea pe chip."china16 s Gabriel? || book.duo254 289

3/5
Nem?gstu per daug ?sipatoginti rinkdamasi skaitomas knygas. Tod?l kartais nei iš šio, nei iš to, išsikeliu sau kokius nors knyginius išš?kius. Išbandyti nauj? žanr?, autori?, kuris, atrodo, ne visai „mano“, gr?žti prie klasikos ar atrasti kitokias temas. Jei šiaip gyvenime esu gana tipin? introvert?, tai knygos padeda išlipti iš tos komforto zonos, kurioje dažnai esu patenkintai ?sitaisiusi. Taip nutiko ir su „Nepaprasta Peon?s meile“.

Ryt? šali? kult?ra man niekada neatrod? nei tam tikra siekiamyb?, nei kažkas itin artimo. Tiek grožio, tiek daugumos vertybi? suvokimas, tiek filosofija tuose kraštuose man atrodo gana svetimi, ta?iau pažinti dar neatrastus žem?s plotelius kažin ar kam pakenk?. Ir visgi ?sitikinau, kad buvau teisi. Netgi ir nemenkai cinikei kaip man k?rinys k?l? pakankamai nemažai pyk?io ir slogumo. D?l to, kaip Kinijoje stipriai ir giliai ?sišaknijusios tokios siaubingos tradicijos, žalojan?ios ne tik moter? moral?, bet vis? pirma j? k?nus. D?l to, kad viskas, k? tuo metu dar? moterys, tai buvo gražios l?l?s. D?l to, kad patriarchija tuose kraštuose, rodos, ?gijo visiškai nesuvokiam? gali?. D?l to, kad moteris be vyro – bene tas pats kas mirusi. O ir su vyru ji dažnai tiesiog niekas – jokio laisvo pasirinkimo, joki? nuopeln?, rimt? pom?gi?, aiški užduotis gimdyti ir auginti palikuonis. O ir šie pageidautinai turi b?ti s?n?s, kitaip kokia juk prasm?. Ir taip, sakysit – juk žinojai, kad tokie dalykai vyko, ir jie vyko visur. Bet žvilgsnis iš ar?iau privert? kuriam laikui stabtel?ti ir susim?styti. Skaityti ištisus puslapius apie tai, kaip moterys ir mergait?s rišo savo p?das ir priverstinai keit? kaul? išsid?stym? tam, kad atrodyt? gležnesn?s ir patrauklesn?s vyrams, kaip bet kokie kiti j? talentai yra užgniaužiami, o jiems prasiveržus nuopelnus susirenka, taip, atsp?jot, vyrai, buvo kankinama patirtis. O ir pykau ne ant veik?j?. Jie juk negal?jo ?sivaizduoti kitokio gyvenimo, kai aplinkui mat? tik tai. Nežinau ant ko pykau. Pasaulio? Sav?s, kad leidausi ? tok? mazochistišk? nuotyk??

Sunku buvo tapatintis ir su vaizduojamomis moterimis, ir su j? išgyvenimais. Gal d?l to, kad negal?jau pritarti tam, kam pritar? jos, net ir suvokdama vis? istorin? kontekst? ir aplinkybes. Kai kur istorija pasirod? kiek per daug melodramatiška, per daug naivi ir saldi, art?janti prie YA žanro ir kiek užt?sta. Ta?iau m?gstantiems jausmingus ir jautrius pasakojimus bei norintiems daugiau sužinoti apie ryt? kult?ras, šis k?rinys – tikras lobynas. ?ia rasite nemažai istorinio konteksto, XVII a. kasdienyb?s detali?, itin pla?iai nagrin?jam? kin? filosofij? bei atversite skryni? ? j? dvasi? pasaul?. Visa tai ne man, ?sitikinau. Per daug noro papurtyti kiekvien? veik?j? už pe?i? ir bandyti j? ?tikinti, kad jis gali geriau. Kad gyvenimas gali b?ti geresnis. Net jei suvokiu, kaip absurdiškai tai skamba, o juk ir kalbame apie laikotarp? šimtus met? atgal. Ta?iau išš?kio nesigailiu.
16 s Caroline1,201 166

Peony is a 15-year-old girl in Manchu China who falls in love with the opera The Peony Pavilion, a love story in which the ghost of a girl is brought back to life by the man she loves. Peony's father hosts a production of the opera (which Peony assumes is for her, rather than to impress the powerful men that her father has visiting), and Peony meets a young man three nights in a row. She falls in love with him, but at the end of the third night they know they both must go on to their arranged marriages and will most ly never see each other again. Peony becomes obsessed with the opera, and stops eating almost completely in her want to write a complete commentary on it.

Anything more will spoil significant parts of the plot, but I'll say that it heavily involves ghosts and the Chinese afterworld. It's really a fascinating read, both to get an idea of the "lovesick girls" (who actually did exist--girls who wasted away, pining for love after reading The Peony Pavilion) and to get a better understanding of old Chinese ghosts and death rituals. It's a little fantastical at times, but it definitely not so much that it overtakes the core of the novel: a woman's craving to be heard.

Definitely nothing her previous novel, Snow Flower and the Secret Fan, but I think that's what made it so great. It gives a good understanding of other aspects of Chinese culture, in a time where women were trying to have their creative voices heard rather than continuing their quiet existence in their family's inner chambers. Very beautiful story!historical-fiction15 s Bushra149 229

???????? ??? ????? ??? ??? ??? ?? ????? ???? ???? ?? ??? ????? ????? ??????? ???????.. ?? ???? ???????? ??????? ?? ??? ?? ??? ???????? ?????????? ??? ?? ??? ???? ??? ??? ???????? ??????? ??? ?????? ???????.. ?????? ????????? ?????? ?????? ??? ?? ???? ???? ????? ?????? ???? ????? ?? ????? ????????? ??????? ???? ?? ???? ????? ?????? ??????? ?? ??? ?????.. ????? ???????? ???? ??? ???? ????? ??? ????? ?? ??? ??? ??? ??? ?? ???? ??????? ?? ????? ???????? ?? ????? ????? ??????? ???? ?????? ??????? ???? ?????? ?????? ???????? ??? ???? ?? ????.. ????? ???? ?? ?? ??? ?? ???? ???????? ???????? ?????? ?? ???? ?????? ??????..
??????? ???? ??????-????-?????-?????? ...more13 s Connie Rea488 98

The first time I had contact with this book, was by listening to it on my way to work. As soon as it was done, I ran out and bought the book. I just *needed* to view the words that I had heard on the audiobook. As soon as I finished reading the last page, I turned to page 1 and started over again. This is the first and only time that I have ever done that. This is one of my all time favorite books, and I keep a copy beside my bed, so it is never far from my mind...0-2020-read 2014-reads 2018-read ...more12 s Lyn Elliott742 206

A friend recommended I read this book, possibly because she knows I am interested in Chinese history. I did skip right through it so that I could talk to her about it. Syrupy romances and ghost stories are way out of my reading range. But the depictions of the lives and values of wealthy Chinese families, especially this female view, are fascinating if horrifying. Almost every day I am consciously aware of how fortunate I am to be a woman in a society Australia, where women are still not equal to men but where we are free to make choices about our own lives and where mutilation, beatings and enslavement are outside the law, not accepted ways of treating women.china historical-fiction12 s Jeanette3,535 689

Everyone seems to put her first book, Snow Flower, with 5 stars and this much lower. Not I, they are just SO different. And this book is Lisa See's most underrated (as of 2013), IMHO. It is a mystical characterization. And also completely of that culture and time- so much so that many moderns just don't "get" it. Lisa See can convey with words a physical and psychological state that is also untypical and pathological to the nth degree. This is proof.12 s Joy D2,259 258

In this historical fiction set in China during the Qing dynasty, Peony secretly studies opera and poetry. She desires intellectual and emotional fulfillment, though these aspirations put her at odds with her family’s (and society’s) expectations. Peony meets a young man associated with the opera and tries to interact with him in secret, though she knows this is forbidden. It was a patriarchal society based on the Confucian beliefs of the “four virtues” and “three obediences,” and Peony struggles to gain even a tiny bit of autonomy.

It is a love story with a mystical component. The characters are intricately developed. SeeÂ’s writing style combines eloquence with emotional depth. I very much enjoyed the first half of this book, but the second half introduces a supernatural element, which did not work at all for me. I think the reaction to this book will hinge on the readerÂ’s receptivity to venturing into the spiritual world. On a positive note, it inspires reflection on the timeless topics of love, identity, and self-fulfillment.
asia china coming-of-age ...more11 s Belka82

I love all books written by Lisa See. She made me love "old time" China.favourites11 s YoSafBridg197 18

As i was making my way through the first section of Peony in Love, i was beginning to think i should have paid more heed to the valentine heart on its spine (my library system's way of signifying that it was of the romance genre) because Peony was mooning a lovesick girl who knew not enough of the world and it was all just a little overmuch for me.

But then she died, and it got so much better. I had rather eagerly anticipated this novel, because i had loved Lisa See's last, Snow Flower and the Secret Fan.

Set shortly after the fall of the Ming Dynasty in seventeenth century China and based on real historic characters and works of literature, Peony in Love is an involving tale of an often unknown period of women writers.

Soon to celebrate her sixteenth birthday (on the the rather auspicious Double Seven~the seventh day of the seventh month~for which her father has commissioned a very special performance of the opera The Peony Pavilion, her very favorite~and scandalously enough women will be allowed to watch, though from behind a screen.) Peony is also about to embark on young womanhood, is betrothed to a man she has not met (as Chinese tradition of the day dictated) and will soon be marrying out. On the first night of the three-night opera she leaves to take some air and meets a young poet who reminds her of the hero of the opera. It is, but of course, love at first sight. Peony is destined to pine away for her young poet and die of love-sickness before she can be married as have so many young girls before her~victims just the heroine the idolize in the The Peony Pavilion.

It is only after death that Peony can begin to see the world and her family for what they really are, even though these perceptions go through a couple of changes even then. She continues her growth process even after death. After death she learns of the relationships her family members had with each other, as well as changing her views about the relationships she had with them. She develops a relationship with the grandmother she has always worshiped and respected as an ancestor and learns to see her as a real woman. Peony grows into a woman who makes mistakes and longs to be heard (a problem of many women as they moved from the slightly more liberal Ming dynasty to the more repressive Manchus, even more so for Peony facing the challenges of being a ghost), she also grows to truly love her husband in death and learns to recognize the difference between that and what she felt as a young girl. Though many of the elements of this tale i could see coming i still enjoyed the process of reading about them (and isn't that what it's all about anyway~and there really aren't any new tales to tell~isn't that part of the point?)

See does a beautiful job of depicting the turmoil of the teenage heart, as well as the problems faced with growing older and facing our mistakes, though she did it in a novel way. She also illuminated a Chinese belief system that i knew nothing about. I deeply enjoyed this novel and gained an even greater appreciation for See's artistry. It made me want to learn more about The Three Wives ary, the original inspiration for this novel, which was the "first book of its kind to been published anywhere in the world to have been written by women" (the three consecutive wives of Wu Ren) as well as bringing back memories of the wonderful but haunting Woman Warrior: Memoirs of a Girlhood Among Ghosts by the incomparable Maxine Hong Kingston.
10 s Denise759 102


Lisa See's writing is beautiful, and I understand this book is supposed to be about the women of China who wanted their voices to be heard. But what I found really fascinating about it was the descriptions of Chinese rituals and superstitions, and learning what the Chinese thought about death. The descriptions were so vivid to me that I felt I could really see the pavilions, the plum tree, the Viewing Terrace.
There were so many sentences that made me reflect about life in general. "My heart is empty and my life has no value anymore. Each moment is a thousand tears." " No one can exist without joy, anger, grief, fear, love, hate and desire. The Seven Emotions are what makes us human." This is a well written historical fiction novel.
10 s Nojood Alsudairi766 480

????? ????? ??? ???? ??? ??????? ????? ???? ?? ??????? ???????? ???????. ?? ?? ??? ????? ??? ?????? ??? ????? ????? ?? ???? ??? ?? ????????? ?????????. ?????? ???? ???? ??? ??????? ???? ??? ????? ?? ???? ??? ????? ????? ???? ????? ??? ??? ????? ?????? ?????? ?????? ?????? ????? ???????! ??????? ???? ???? ????? -?? ???????- ??? ??? ???? ????? ??? ?? ??? ??????? ??? ????? ???? ????? ???? ???? ?? ?????? ???? ????? ?????? ???? ?? ???? ??? ????????. ?????? ?? ????? ?? ??????? ????? ??????? ?? ??????? ?? ?????? ??????.
???? ???? ??? ??????? ?? ??????? ???? ?????? ??? ???? ???? ?????? ?? ????? ?????? ??? ??? ??????2011-readings arabic-books fiction ...more10 s Marissa340

I really enjoyed reading Snow Flower and the Secret Fan. Peony in Love has a few of the same elements but is, nicely, a different novel. Peony is the only child of a wealthy couple who experienced some hard times during the Manchu raids. Peony, encouraged by her father, loves to read. She reads extensively but her favorite work is the Peony Pavilion--an opera. Her father stages the opera at her home and the women are allowed to watch through a screen. Peony meets a boy, falls in love, and begins to follow some of the same experiences as the main character in the opera. Convinced that she'll be marrying someone other than the boy she met, she succumbs to "lovesickness" and slowly starves herself to death. Mix-ups happen and Peony's spirit isn't able to move on since her tablet hasn't been dotted yet. A good portion of the novel is her experiences as her ghost waits to be able to move on in the afterlife.

I enjoyed the novel. I don't know a lot of the Chinese beliefs and other traditions, just bits here and there. It was fascinating learning a bit of what the Chinese afterlife would have been . On dying, Peony's spirit splits into three pieces, one of which is to go into her tablet to stay with her family. As her tablet hasn't been dotted, Peony becomes a 'Hungry ghost." Fascinating.

Another cultural thing I found of interest was the lovesick maidens. While they are mentioned in the story, the comments at the end of the novel by Lisa See brought their stories more to mind. See mentions that in Chinese history, there were a number of girls who, in the opera and Peony, become lovesick and starve themselves. The idea is introduced through the opera with the idea that the women would gain freedom and control over their lives in the afterlife and choose thier own husbands. This idea of power over oneself is so appealing that many women practiced physical control over their bodies by becoming anorexic to the point of death, possibly hoping for the chance for a choice in love in the afterlife.

9 s Andrea Gagne269 5

I think if Lisa See had leaned into making the main character, Peony, a villain who delusionally believed herself a tragic hero, then I would have d this.

Instead, I had to watch a 'lovesick maiden' wander around obsessing about her love for a guy she spotted through a screen when she was 16 and then spent 20 minutes with. For 100 pages she wanders around her family's estate and we see how she's 'not other girls' (other girls are good at embroidery, and other girls painting, but Peony has *smarts* - except, despite being told that she's scholarly, we are shown that a picture of a naive and melodramatic teenager). He somehow falls in love with her too, even though she says 5 sentences to him. But alas, a marriage has been arranged for her already - to a man she has never seen before. Of course, despite being so lovesick that she can't go on living without being with this man and accidentally starving herself to death; and despite knowing that the person she is supposed to marry is in their family home at that time, she never thought to ask this stranger for his name. Could he coincidentally be the person she was destined to marry? No way to know!

After that incredibly dull first third, the book gets a better pacing but is SUPER questionable when it comes to ghost consent. Also weird sexual dynamics with her cousin. And maybe grooming a young girl? We learn more about her grandmother and mother and they are both pretty cool. Their influence on her makes Peony get slightly more bearable at the end.

I have to say that I did learn a lot about the customs and beliefs from that period of Chinese history. This might have worked great as a nonfiction book with the main character cut out! But for a novel, the writing was overly detailed to the point of feeling tedious at times, with numerous chapter-long info dumps.

2.5 stars rounded down.9 s Debby *BabyDee*1,293 68

Audiobook Review.

I've never read or listened to anything by Lisa See, so this was my first for one of my club's challenge. The story is set in Manchu, China and it is of a girl named Peony who is now of marriagable age. She is 15-years old and is fascinated and in love with the opera, The Peony Pavilion. This opera happens to be hosted by her father and is about a ghost of a girl who is brought back to life by the man she loves. Peony believes it is for her rather than the elite group of men visiting her father.

During the opera, Peony meets a young man and falls in love with him, but eventually they have to come to the realization that they must move on and to the marriages that have been arranged for them and never see each other ever again. Unfortunately, Peony becomes obsessed with the opera and practically starves herself in her need to write her thoughts on the opera. She eventually dies and enters the afterworld and suffers the consequences of never finding true love herself. In her dreams, she learns that the man she had fell in love with was the same person her father had arranged for her to marry. Thus starts her longing to be with him but she can't because she is dead and he is alive.

This story gets more into the afterlife not only for her but for family members as they join her when they depart the living. It also tells of Peony's interrupting the life of the man she loved as he has married and moved on. I am not a big fan of afterlife/ghosts type novels, but I found this novel a fascinating listen. Not sure if I will read more from this author but thought is was a very well written and nice listen.

3-Starsauthors-s-t9 s M.M. Strawberry Library & Reviews4,250 348

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