'Girls of Paper and Fire' by Natasha Ngan is a dark fantasy novel set in the world of Ikhara, where a caste system divides society into three groups: Paper, Steel, and Moon. The story follows Lei, a member of the oppressed Paper caste, who is taken to become a concubine to the Demon King. As Lei navigates her dangerous new reality, she forms deep relationships with other Paper girls and faces forbidden love, intense violence, and the struggle for freedom. The book explores themes of oppression, female empowerment, and the complexities of relationships in a vividly imagined world filled with intricate world-building and a compelling plot.
Genres:
Tropes/Plot Devices:
Topics:
Notes:
Sensitive Topics/Content Warnings
The book includes high content warnings due to themes of sexual assault, violence, emotional trauma, and animal death.
Has Romance?
The book prominently features a romantic relationship between the main character and another girl, emphasizing their emotional connection and development.
From The Publisher:
Uncover a riveting story of palace intrigue set in a sumptuous Asian-inspired fantasy world in the breakout YA novel that Publisher's Weekly calls "elegant and adrenaline-soaked."
In this richly developed fantasy, Lei is a member of the Paper caste, the lowest and most persecuted class of people in Ikhara. She lives in a remote village with her father, where the decade-old trauma of watching her mother snatched by royal guards for an unknown fate still haunts her. Now, the guards are back and this time it's Lei they're after - the girl with the golden eyes whose rumored beauty has piqued the king's interest.
Over weeks of training in the opulent but oppressive palace, Lei and eight other girls learns the skills and charm that befit a king's consort. There, she does the unthinkable: she falls in love. Her forbidden romance becomes enmeshed with an explosive plot that threatens her world's entire way of life. Lei, still the wide-eyed country girl at heart, must decide how far she's willing to go for justice and revenge.
Ratings (30)
Incredible (5) | |
Loved It (8) | |
Liked It (11) | |
It Was OK (1) | |
Did Not Like (4) | |
Hated It (1) |
Reader Stats (90):
Read It (33) | |
Want To Read (44) | |
Not Interested (13) |
1 comment(s)
2.5*
What can you read after
Girls of Paper and Fire?
About the Author:
Natasha Ngan is part young-adult author, part yoga teacher, and part habitual nap-taker. She grew up in both Malaysia and the UK, speaking Chinese with her mother mainly as a way to talk about people without them understanding. She studied Geography at the University of Cambridge and later worked as a fashion blogger, social media consultant and freelance writer.
Natasha recently moved to Paris, where she likes to imagine she drifts stylishly from brasserie to brasserie, notepad in one hand and wineglass in the other, but in reality she mostly spends her time lost on the metro and offending locals with her French.
When you click the Amazon link and make a purchase, we may receive a small commision, at no cost to you.
