A novella of the Singing Hills Cycle!

The story beckons, nay entices you to follow Cleric Chih’s journey to Doi Cao. A chance meeting on the road has Chih accompanying the merchant family Pham to the walled estate of Doi Cao for their daughter Pham Nhung’s wedding to Lord Gho.
Chih (they) innocently investigate Nhung’s new home and uncover some places left to rot. “They” become concerned for Nhung. Even more so when Chih discovers that Nhung is not the first bride here. What happened to the previous wives of Lord Gho?
They meet the Lord Gho’s son Zhuhai. Nhung declares him beautiful. Zhuhai is a troubled young lord who appears ill, possibly cursed Chih decides.
“The first time they had met him, he had been full of scorn, and the second time, he had been furious. This time, he moved with a faltering step, his arms hanging woodenly down by his sides and his head jerked up towards the sky as if there was a string running from his chin to the rooftops.”
Something is wrong. Chih is concerned for Nhung, yet can’t determine what troubles them. When they find out, they’re already in danger. Survival will be hanging by a thread, or a teapot.
A fabulously told, gothic type fantasy! What is reality? What is false?
The story flowed beautifully. I loved it!

A TOR ARC via NetGalley.
Many thanks to the author and publisher.
Please note: Quotes taken from an advanced reading copy maybe subject to change ( )

Darker than I expected. But this is a fantastic book. I love Cleric Chih and Almost Brilliant and their love of stories. ( )

it's a common fairy tale everywhere: the monstrous bridegroom, and all those disappeared brides. it's also #5 in the sequence of the fabulous asian fantasy Singing Hills Cycle, a series of novellas that all depict the same world. they're stories which are also chockful of smaller amazing stories spinning off at every point in the narrative, every one of them a treasure. ( )

Series Info/Source: This is the 5th book in the Singing Hills Cycle. I borrowed this on ebook from the library.

Thoughts: I always really enjoy the books in this series. They really dive into good classic fantasy storytelling.

Chih finds herself on the road accompanying a young bride to an aging estate where the bride is supposed to marry the older ruler there. They are greeted with fancy displays and parties. However, there is something more sinister lurking under the surface of this aging estate.

I always enjoy following Chih as they collect stories. This was a particularly interesting one because the story starts to twist and turn on its head the further in you get.

This is beautifully written and fun to read. I am always amazed at how much world-building, character-building, and just pure story are put into these novellas. This remains one of my favorite series. I think that is because it is a story about stories that is highly entertaining, creative, and easy to read.

This does say that it can be read as a stand alone, which is true. However, I think you will get a lot more out of the story if you have read the previous novellas.

My Summary (5/5): Overall I really enjoyed this installment of the Singing Hills Cycle. This was a highly entertaining addition to the series, I loved some of the twists and turns in the story. I am eager to read the next book in the series and eager to see what Nghi Vo comes up with next! ( )

I loved books one through four of Nghi Vo's Singing Hills Cycle of novellas, so I had the fifth book, The Brides of High Hill, on pre-order. Did it live up to my high expectations?

Cleric Chih is traveling with the Pham family in one of their 15 ox carts. Master Pham is a merchant. He and his wife are bringing their lovely daughter, Nhung, to Doi Cao. The reputedly beautiful estate is a relic of the defunct Ku Dynasty, and Nhung is going there to marry its current master, Lord Guo. Madam Pham doesn't think much of Cleric Chih, but Nhung likes them.

Doi Cao is surrounded by a high, thick wall of gray stone. This is hardly surprising considering that Doi Cao is in western Ji. The empire considers Ji one of its provinces. Ji considers itself to be independent. The empire has mammoths. That wall is strong enough to resist mammoths. Lord Guo is a warrior of the empire who has managed to acquire Doi Cao. What a relief that those walls are there, right? There are even slithering beast figures on the roof to repel misfortune.

The first problem with Lord Guo, is that, while powerfully built, he's much closer in age to Master Pham than his daughter. The second is that his handsome young son, Guo Zhihao, tells Cleric Chi to tell Nhung to ask his father how many wives he's had. Zhihao adds that they are not in Shu. Then he walks away, looking as if he's going to vomit.

It's also strange that the Pham's retainers don't want Cleric Chih to help them carry goods from the carts. All they are allowed to carry is a ordinary teapot. The retainers will be staying outside the wall. Nhung wants Cleric Chih to check out the guest house, Eighth Peony. The reasons Cleric Chih is told sound good. I also would have liked to have heard the story Nhung's Ba (dad) told her about house sprites.

Nhung is terrified when she has Cleric Chih accompany her to the first night banquet. Cleric Chih is seated in the cleric alcove on Lord Guo's right, hidden behind a screen. She can observe the couple-to-be and not be observed by the guests. Then Guo Zhihao shows up saying Nhung mustn't. Nhung treats him gently, but the young man is taken away by two men. Later, Cleric Chih learns some gossip about Zhihao from a kitchen apprentice named Five.

Chih and Nhung are exploring the estate at night when they come up on Guo Zhihao sleepwalking. It was interesting that Cleric Chih said that sleepwalkers used to be said to be fox-led and why and Nhung gave a more plausible explanation. After they settle Zhihao in a safe place, the two give two different reasons for a pearl thrush's singing. The cleric gives a poetic one, and the bride-to-be a practical one.

While Nhung and her parents are enjoying an entertainment Lord Guo has had created for them, Chih has a very unsettling encounter with Zhihao in the Jonquil Pavilian, where he is kept under guard.

The second night banquet of the negotiations for the marriage is briefly marred by Madam Pham trying to make a drunken show of herself. Afterward, Chih and Nhung meet Zhihao. They are shown something that suggests Lord Guo's son's warnings have a firm basis in fact. Nhung is most upset, but Chih assures her that they and Almost Brilliant have gotten out of worse situations. The earlier books prove that's true.

Matters turn worse and Cleric Chih is very, very worried. What happened to Nhung?

Nhung does turn up at the final banquet. I was as worried as Chih while I read about it. Is Cleric Chih correct about the only safe place for hiding? Is there anything that can be done to get out of Doi Cao alive?

All of the books in this series have been excellent, but this one is my favorite by far. I would love to see it in two-dimensional animation. ( )