Status
Available
Call number
Collection
Publication
Tor.com (2020), 160 pages
Description
A bandit walks into a coffeehouse, and it all goes downhill from there. Guet Imm, a young votary of the Order of the Pure Moon, joins up with an eclectic group of thieves (whether they like it or not) in order to protect a sacred object, and finds herself in a far more complicated situation than she could have ever imagined.
User reviews
LibraryThing member jakecasella
A lovely story. I wasn't sure what I was expecting, but after an initial set-up that seemed to promise a martial-arts & magic-fueled adventure, I was pleasantly surprised by how this turned instead to something character-driven, pondering identity and choice against a background of confused
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political and religious realities. Show Less
LibraryThing member rivkat
Novella about a nun who, after the destruction of her order in the ongoing war, joins a group of bandits who are smuggling a treasure. Fantasy elements come from most characters’ belief in the nun’s magical powers granted by her deity (if they exist). It’s reasonably cute though slight.
LibraryThing member Khimaera
It’s not easy being a waitress. Ofttimes you’re not appreciated for all the hard work. Make sure you get all the orders right, especially for your most finicky of customers, try to ignore the occasional ogling and pinching of your bottom when you walk away. It’s even more challenging when
Enter a kind-hearted bandit, lose your job, and where are you going to go? The small group of bandits of course. Just invite yourself along on their journey to deliver some items and you’ll figure out some way to help them. It’s definitely not your cooking skills, you’re not going to sleep with them unless they won’t mind you cleansing yourself in the blood of their castration to pay homage to your deity, but at least they smell a bit better after cleaning their clothes.
This Malaysian-infused tale, tranquil at times in its presentation, is filled with beauty, Queer characters, and light-hearted wit. There’s a silent war taking place in the background with unpredictable people, mistrust on all sides, and innocents caught in the middle. The Protectorate seeks to establish its hold over the country and the Reformist bandits are rather getting in the way. Caught up in the fray, the tokong (monastic temples) have been burned and sacked. The Protectorate believes they are aiding the bandits and the bandits think they are being sold out to the Protectorate.
Our stumbling bandits just want their pay to take care of their families and maybe have a little fun on the side. The bandits’ misadventures take them through leech-filled jungles to the home of a wealthy powerbroker to fulfill an honorable quest in an untrustworthy world. One of the bandits, Tet Sang, and the waitress, Guet Imm, are at the heart of this wuxia-inspired tale. As their carefully guarded secrets come to light, they are drawn together and set along a path neither could have imagined.
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you’ve just started your job at a coffeehouse and the customer thinks you’re a witch. Enter a kind-hearted bandit, lose your job, and where are you going to go? The small group of bandits of course. Just invite yourself along on their journey to deliver some items and you’ll figure out some way to help them. It’s definitely not your cooking skills, you’re not going to sleep with them unless they won’t mind you cleansing yourself in the blood of their castration to pay homage to your deity, but at least they smell a bit better after cleaning their clothes.
This Malaysian-infused tale, tranquil at times in its presentation, is filled with beauty, Queer characters, and light-hearted wit. There’s a silent war taking place in the background with unpredictable people, mistrust on all sides, and innocents caught in the middle. The Protectorate seeks to establish its hold over the country and the Reformist bandits are rather getting in the way. Caught up in the fray, the tokong (monastic temples) have been burned and sacked. The Protectorate believes they are aiding the bandits and the bandits think they are being sold out to the Protectorate.
Our stumbling bandits just want their pay to take care of their families and maybe have a little fun on the side. The bandits’ misadventures take them through leech-filled jungles to the home of a wealthy powerbroker to fulfill an honorable quest in an untrustworthy world. One of the bandits, Tet Sang, and the waitress, Guet Imm, are at the heart of this wuxia-inspired tale. As their carefully guarded secrets come to light, they are drawn together and set along a path neither could have imagined.
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LibraryThing member dbsovereign
This is a charming tale of derring-do set in a fantasy China in the midst of civil war. It's the bandits mixing with the religious types and the religious types hold all the cards. It's not clear whether their powers depend on magic or training. Mixed in is a bit of transsexual romance which
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gradually surfaces - as these things have a wont to do. After a few broken necks, the principles live happily ever after. I would have preferred to have a book with more heft to it in terms of plot (more setup) and have characters with a bit more background. But overall lovely and jewel-like. Show Less
LibraryThing member Shrike58
While I was certainly entertained by this novella, it starts out with such a bang, that the rest of this story, involving a nun and a gang of bandits, set against the background of imperial suppression, pales in comparison. Basically it's a portrait miniature of the nun (anchoress to be precise)
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and the main POV character. That there might be more stories forthcoming in this milieu is something I would look forward to. Show Less
LibraryThing member LisCarey
A bandit walks into a coffeehouse and is quietly drinking his tea when a dispute breaks out between a waitress and a customer. Soon it becomes a major fight, in which the bandit, Lau Fung Cheung, and another bandit, Tet Sang, play a major role.
Guet Imm, a young votary of the Order of the Pure Moon
Guet Imm then joins the bandit gang, whether they want her or not.
She has no idea what she's getting into, but then, neither do the bandits. Or, as they prefer to call themselves, contractors.
The contractors are transporting a very special load of goods to a very particular buyer. Lau Fung Cheung, head of the gang, has perhaps not kept all his promises to his men. Tet Sang, second in command, and maker of many of the important decisions, has secrets he'd prefer the rest of the contractors don't know. Guet Imm really is a young and somewhat naïve votary of her order, but she's something more than just that.
Also, this is just a really interesting world to wander around in.
There are things I would love to comment on that would be major spoilers.
Highly recommended.
I bought this book.
Guet Imm, a young votary of the Order of the Pure Moon
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Reflected in Water, is working as a waitress in the coffeehouse after her tokong was attacked and everyone else killed. She's alive because she was an anchorite, protected by her walls until she realized it had been too long between food deliveries. She emerged to find the devastation. She's not really a very good waitress, and she's a worse assistant cook, so she's fired without hesitation for the fight.Guet Imm then joins the bandit gang, whether they want her or not.
She has no idea what she's getting into, but then, neither do the bandits. Or, as they prefer to call themselves, contractors.
The contractors are transporting a very special load of goods to a very particular buyer. Lau Fung Cheung, head of the gang, has perhaps not kept all his promises to his men. Tet Sang, second in command, and maker of many of the important decisions, has secrets he'd prefer the rest of the contractors don't know. Guet Imm really is a young and somewhat naïve votary of her order, but she's something more than just that.
Also, this is just a really interesting world to wander around in.
There are things I would love to comment on that would be major spoilers.
Highly recommended.
I bought this book.
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LibraryThing member Herenya
Tet Sang is part of a group of bandits who run into trouble after a nun from the Order of the Pure Moon insists on joining them and uncovers the truth of their mission.
This was intriguing. Definitely intriguing. Occasionally amusing. A well-constructed story. I wouldn’t mind reading more about
This was intriguing. Definitely intriguing. Occasionally amusing. A well-constructed story. I wouldn’t mind reading more about
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these characters. Show Less
LibraryThing member fred_mouse
Does a great job of a fantasy setting with an assumption that the reader knows what s going on, even though I have no idea whether any of the political groups are meant to represent any specific historical factions/countries/etc. Very much a colonisation narrative at that level though. Works really
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well. Show Less
LibraryThing member miken32
If you’re not familiar with some aspects of Chinese culture you may feel a bit like you’ve been dropped in the deep end, but it is a fantasy so we’re used to that. Enjoyable story and interesting characters, I would absolutely read a novel set in this world. In fact, the ending of this
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novella seems like a perfect setup for a novel… Show Less
LibraryThing member greeniezona
This is one of the rare books where I picked it up at the library, semi-randomly, read it, loved it, and shortly thereafter had to go out and buy my own copy of it to keep on my shelves.
It's a queer little wuxia tale of a sweaty group of found-family bandits, with Malay cultural influences and a
It's a queer little wuxia tale of a sweaty group of found-family bandits, with Malay cultural influences and a
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lovely dry humor. I absolutely loved the world and Cho's writing style. I would love to read like five more of these. Show Less
LibraryThing member macha
3 and a half stars. novella. i was geared up for this one to be really good, and the Malayesque world had great potential, but really not much happened, i was sort of disappointed. i'll keep my eye on the author, though; maybe the next story in this setting will be the charm.
LibraryThing member quondame
A sparkling tale of a group of bandits and the nun who joins them after they caused her to loose her waitress job.
LibraryThing member Daumari
This read quite easily and unfortunately I feel like I may have breezed through it a little too quickly- there were some moments where I had to backtrack a few pages because suddenly an event had happened and I'd somehow missed how we got there (downsides of starting it before bed I suppose).
I
I
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really appreciate not having explanatory commas for common words that firmly place it in a Malaysian context (except for an Occidental dress lol). Definitely felt like a short arc within a season of something, a quick jaunt into an intriguing world without laying too thick into worldbuilding because we don't have time in a novella! Show Less
Awards
Lambda Literary Award (Finalist — 2021)
British Fantasy Award (Nominee — Novella — 2021)
Language
Original language
English
Original publication date
2020-06-23
Physical description
8 inches
ISBN
1250269253 / 9781250269256
Local notes
A bandit walks into a coffeehouse, and it all goes downhill from there. Guet Imm, a young votary of the Order of the Pure Moon, joins up with an eclectic group of thieves (whether they like it or not) in order to protect a sacred object, and finds herself in a far more complicated situation than she could have ever imagined.
A found family wuxia fantasy that combines the vibrancy of old school martial arts movies with characters drawn from the margins of history.
A found family wuxia fantasy that combines the vibrancy of old school martial arts movies with characters drawn from the margins of history.