Book Review #31: The Girl with Ghost Eyes by M.H. Boroson

Hello Dear Reader!

This week, I have a traditionally published book for you, and it’s called The Girl with Ghost Eyes by M.H. Boroson. This book is a very unique blend of historical fiction, magic, action and adventure, and Chinese folklore, all pulled together and narrated by main character Xian Li-lin, a young woman and daughter of a renowned Daoshi exorcist.

But before I get into her story, here is the summary (from Goodreads):

It’s the end of the nineteenth century in San Francisco’s Chinatown, and ghost hunters from the Maoshan traditions of Daoism keep malevolent spiritual forces at bay. Li-lin, the daughter of a renowned Daoshi exorcist, is a young widow burdened with yin eyes—the unique ability to see the spirit world. Her spiritual visions and the death of her husband bring shame to Li-lin and her father—and shame is not something this immigrant family can afford.

When a sorcerer cripples her father, terrible plans are set in motion, and only Li-lin can stop them. To aid her are her martial arts and a peachwood sword, her burning paper talismans, and a wisecracking spirit in the form of a human eyeball tucked away in her pocket. Navigating the dangerous alleys and backrooms of a male-dominated Chinatown, Li-lin must confront evil spirits, gangsters, and soulstealers before the sorcerer’s ritual summons an ancient evil that could burn Chinatown to the ground.

With a rich and inventive historical setting, nonstop martial arts action, authentic Chinese magic, and bizarre monsters from Asian folklore, The Girl with Ghost Eyes is also the poignant story of a young immigrant searching to find her place beside the long shadow of a demanding father and the stigma of widowhood. In a Chinatown caught between tradition and modernity, one woman may be the key to holding everything together. 

That’s the end of the synopsis! Time for the review!

Main character and narrator of the story is Xian Li-lin, a woman in her early twenties who has lived her entire life with yin eyes, which grant her the ability to see into the spirit world. Having these eyes is considered a curse, and despite her father doing his best to cure her of them when she was a child, she still has them, and it’s a really big part of her character. Outside of this unique characteristic, Li-lin is a strong-willed courageous woman with a lot of wit and intelligence. What she lacks in physical strength, she makes up for with strategy, which plays a big part in many of her victories in the book. Even though she is a strong female character, she does have a lot of moments of self-doubt and feeling inferior scattered throughout the book, and this is mainly because of her culture, which I will get into later.

The main supporting cast of characters in The Girl with Ghost Eyes is a very diverse one, featuring characters from traditional Chinese and Modern American walks of life, a one-armed enemy, a friend turned enemy, a tiger spirit following the path of a righteous man, an arrogant father, a lot of spirit creatures that can be found in Chinese folklore, and a human eyeball with tiny arms and legs named Mr. Yanqiu, who happens to be my absolute favorite minor character and probably my favorite character in the entire book. He’s just so supportive, empathic, and protective of Li-lin throughout the book, and I just find his character super cute.

It was so refreshing, seeing a cast of characters coming from such different walks of life, carrying different values. It was one of the strongpoints of the book for me personally, seeing Li-lin encounter people who didn’t share her traditional Chinese Daoist values and her different reactions to all of them.

My absolute favorite part of the book is the Chinese folklore integrated throughout the entirety of the book, and this includes the setting. The Girl with Ghost Eyes takes place in San Francisco’s Chinatown at the end of the 19th century, and all around, Li-lin can see the spirits and monsters that walk the streets through her yin eyes. These spirits range from three-eyed seagulls to lost souls of human beings to the most grotesque monsters you can find in Chinese folklore. What’s really unique about San Francisco’s Chinatown is that it’s comprised of civilians that come from all different walks of life including Chinese immigrants, monks, gangsters, and, of course, Americans. It’s a great look at a setting that’s a mix of the traditional and the modern, something I wasn’t expecting. I could really relate to Li-lin’s struggle of keeping with her traditional Chinese roots while navigating the more modern and differing values of America because that’s what I’m going through right now.

Even though I loved all the folklore, characters, setting, and story of this book, there was one main thing that really poked at me while reading it, and that was the pretty fast pacing of the story. For me personally, the beginning was really rushed and didn’t provide much context before throwing me into the main narrative. Any backstory that remedied any confusion came later in the book, which was great, but I would’ve preferred more of a slower introduction. There were also other periods of the book that I wished were more slowly paced. Other than this, I really enjoyed reading the book, and I’m seriously considering reading its sequel, especially after reading an ending I wasn’t expecting.

So, The Girl with Ghost Eyes rating:

8/10 and definitely recommend, especially if you like books that infuse Asian folklore into its story. The Girl with Ghost Eyes was a brilliant combination of historical fiction, magic, and action, and I really hope you give it a shot!

Thanks for reading!