Published by Sourcebook's Landmark Genres: Fiction, Historical Fiction
Format: ARC, eBook
A gripping and moving tale of family, motherhood, love, resiliency, identity, and class. The Girls of Good Fortune had a great opening scene with a woman waking up, wearing clothes that are not hers, and not knowing her surroundings. From there readers learn the story of Celia, a half Chinese young woman who falls in love with her employer’s son in Portland in the late 188o’s.
Celia’s life is not easy. She is living during a time of anti-Chinese sentiment. Kristina McMorris weaves the Hells Canyon massacre into the story as well as how many found themselves “shanghaied” to be shipped off for forced labor. Celia, who can pass as white, endures many hardships during the novel. Being a young woman, she is naive and often exhibits poor decisions making and judgement calls. She also is brave, determined, resourceful, and loving.
In the beginning of the book, I went from being gripped by the captivating opening scene to wondering if this was the book for me. That changed drastically in the second half of the book where I was hooked, hoping for the best, fearing the worst, and rooting for Celia the entire way. She goes through a lot in this book from falling in love and being kidnapped to name a few, I wondered just how much more can one person take?
I appreciated the amount of research that went into the writing of this book. I also enjoyed how the book picked up and slowly wrapped me around its finger. I felt for several of the characters and the injustice that they faced.
Wonderfully written, well thought out, moving, and captivating.
Thank you to Sourcebooks Landmark and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.
