Publication Date: 28th May 2024
Genre: Short Stories
3 Stars
One Liner: Interesting but a mixed collection
Ninetails is a collection of short stories
re-imagined and based on the fox spirit in Chinese mythology. It is a feminist
anthology dealing with misogyny, immigration, racism, and different types of
abuse against women, especially Asian women (by fellow Asians and Westerners).
Apart from the individual short stories, there’s an
overarching story set on Angel Island where the Chinese people land in the US.
The immigration office decides the fate of these people after the men and women
are separated and made to stay in different buildings. The conditions are
pathetic and deplorable.
As always, I made notes for each story (presented
below with only grammatical edits):
- The
Haunting Of Angel Island
Arrival:
Tye arrives at the island for her new job as an interpreter at the immigration
office. We get her past and a glimpse of the mythical fox. The beginning of the
overarching story. I’m curious!
Love Doll:
What happens when a love doll (a human-sized s*x toy) starts to have feelings?
In the first-person POV of the doll, the story takes us through her life and
that of its new owners. Falls flat when it should have hit the high note.
Beasts of the Chase:
What happens when a woman decides to turn back into a fox (vixen)? How does her
ethnicity affect her life? Okay!
- The
Haunting Of Angel Island
More events at the immigration office. Different
women, several stories, and different fates.
Turtle Head Epidemic:
Meng Li was an eighteen-year-old student when the turtle head epidemic swept
Singapore. Was it because of a dead pig, a woman, or a fox spirit? This should
have been better.
The Fig Queen:
What happens when a woman with a troubled life becomes tiny and someone else
takes her place? A story of metamorphosis in many ways. Kafkaesque almost!
- The
Haunting Of Angel Island
The overarching story continues as more women arrive
and await the decision of the immigration officers.
A Huxians Guide to Seduction
Revenge Immortality: The longest story in the book with a
first and second-person narration. Well-written and better than the previous
ones.
The Girl with Flies Coming Out of Her
Eyes: Started great but I soon lost interest! The title
says it all. Won’t reveal anything else.
- The
Haunting Of Angel Island
More women, ghosts, spirits, and opposite faiths;
believe your God or the White God?
Lotus Stench:
The story of a fox spirit and a ghost (woman, obv.), and that ties them
together. An interesting read.
The Crush:
Another lengthy story about love… or as the title says crush. How do crushed
manifest? What to do with them? Feels more mellow than the other stories.
- The
Haunting Of Angel Island
Tye is the focus again as the connecting storyline
comes to an end.
Departure:
What kind of departure can this be? After all, there are many ways to depart!
Surreal… (which is the aim of the collection).
Thanks to a review by Sarah, I went into the book
with fewer expectations. This helped since most stories didn’t have much impact
and felt they couldn’t reach their potential. A couple of stories were
above-average but most were the kind I forgot a day after reading (the notes
saved me).
Fortunately, the overarching piece is a lot better.
And, I now know some random information about figs, wasps, bees, foxes, etc.
To summarize, Ninetails has its moments with poetic
prose and surreal situations. However, the stories have a varied impact, which
dilutes the overall enjoyment.
Thank you, NetGalley and Penguin Books, for a copy
of the book.
#NetGalley #Ninetails
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