Title: Gateway
Author: Sharon Shinn
Synopsis: “Adopted from China and raised in St. Louis, Daiyu is used to feeling a little out of place, a little restless. But what kind of adventure is there in the Midwest? One day, while she’s at a city fair near the Gateway Arch, Daiyu spots a gorgeous black jade ring, and when the elderly vendor tells her that “black jade” translates to “Daiyu”, she impulsively buys the ring and wears it as a token of her heritage.
“It is
much more.
“Daiyu
walks through the Arch on her way home.
She never gets there. Instead,
she passes into another world, another version of St. Louis – where almost
everyone is Chinese.
“Now she
has more adventure than she could ever have imagined. Taken to a safe house, she is trained as a
spy in order to help topple the existing government. Daiyu spends hours learning refined manners and niceties and flirtations
to pass among the elite – and steals moments to be with handsome Kalen, the
only person in the alternate world whom she truly trusts, or truly loves.
“There is
only one problem. Once her task is done,
she must return to her own St. Louis, and leave Kalen behind… forever.”
Review: I should start
out by saying that I love Sharon Shinn’s novels. Her Samaria Novels and The Twelve Houses
Novels are my favorites. When I picked
up Gateway I somehow failed to miss the fact that it’s a young adult
novel. Not that there’s anything wrong
with young adult novels. I read plenty
of them. It’s just not what I was expecting
when I picked up Gateway.
That said,
even though it’s not what I was expecting, this is an amazing story. I love Daiyu, and her quirky family reminded
me of my own family. The descriptions of
the worlds and the people were fascinated and rich with a new culture. Kalen and Daiyu stole my heart with their
young love and innocence. As a bonus
surprise Gateway didn’t end the way that I thought it was going to. Usually I can have the ending of a novel
figured out about halfway through reading it, and with Gateway I thought that I
had. Nope, surprise! This was a delightful, quick read that I
highly recommend.
Publisher: Viking
ISBN: 978-0670011780
If you like this book you may want to read:
Archangel by Sharon Shinn (ISBN: 978-0441004324)
Abarat by Clive Barker
(ISBN: 978-0062094100)
Never heard of this book before but it seems so cool!!! Thanks a lot for the review :)
ReplyDeleteAdded at my TBR ^^
Sounds like a very nice romance. Love the cover, too.
ReplyDeleteI have never heard of Sharon Shinn before but this book sounds amazing, and the gorgeous cover doesn't hurt ;)
ReplyDeleteI've read a few of Sharon Shinn's short works and found them to be enjoyable, this on caught my eye a while ago, it really does sound like a good book. Your review is one of the first I've seen about it (in the blogger verse). Thanks for the review, think it's definitely one I need to get my hands on.
ReplyDelete