Friday 4 January 2013

URBAN FANTASY: Small Shen - Kylie Chan, Queenie Chan

Release Date: 01/12/12

SYNOPSIS:

Small Shen is the amazing story of Gold - a stone spirit and a chronic troublemaker in the court of the great Gods of Chinese mythology. A mix of Kylie Chan's brilliant storytelling and Queenie Chan's beautiful illustrations, Small Shen is a fantastic treat for fans of White Tiger. Readers will be thrilled to discover the events leading up to John Chen and Emma Donahoe's story in this wonderful prequel. Shown through Queenie Chan's stunning illustrations and comics, the story follows the stone spirit Gold's entertaining adventures throughout history. His escapades include seducing a dragon princess, attempting to steal one of the Tiger's wives, making bets with demons, and working for the Blue Dragon of the East. Eventually, as a result of his crimes against Heaven and his constant philandering, Gold is ordered to join the household of Xuan Wu, the Dark Lord of the Northern Heavens. Xuan Wu is also known as John Chen, a Hong Kong businessman. The story then follows Gold and Jade - the dragon princess - in contemporary Hong Kong. The two small shen must help guard John Chen's beloved human wife and baby daughter from demon attack. John Chen is vulnerable to attack while living on Earth, but his family are in the most danger of all...Small Shen is a unique piece of work for fans of Kylie Chan to treasure, but also a fantastic introduction to this gripping series.


REVIEW:

I’ve really enjoyed the wonderful inventive series of Kylie Chan that blends Urban Fantasy with Chinese myth in modern times yet this time, instead of focusing on current events, the reader is given a prequel as seen through the eyes of the stone spirit, Gold.

As with the series its wonderfully rich in culture, gives the reader a story with some magical twists and whilst it fills in some of the gaps hinted at in the earlier books, really manages to keep one hell of a punch to keep the reader glued. All round a cracking tale and one I was more than pleased I got to spend the time with. Great stuff and I really can’t wait to see what Kylie delivers next.



No comments: