Thank you to Orbit for providing me with a review copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!
“My name is not Kim, it’s Kiamling. It means Sword Spirit. I was forged to cut down the undead. Demons and monsters aren’t just in your storybooks, they walk among us.”
The Au family serve the people of Hong Kong: blessing shrines, honouring the dead and dealing with dangerous monster incursions. The expectations on eldest daughter Kiamling are high, which is not something her strict grandmother will let her forget.
When the British disrupt the Hungry Ghosts festival and her grandmother is seized by a strange new monster, Kiamling must step up and lead the search. She is aided by unexpected allies: Archie, an earnest civil servant, Hoi gor, childhood sweetheart turned merchant-pirate and Jingling, her younger sister keeping secrets of her own. Kiamling must figure out who is behind the incursion and more importantly, how to defeat them.
With British fables mingling with local Chinese monsters, can Kiamling prove herself, when the old rules no longer seem to apply?
My Review
Harbour of Hungry Ghosts is a really fun, action packed historical fantasy set in Opium War-era Hong Kong, following a family of demon hunters dealing with a sudden surge of unfamiliar monsters. One small note before diving in: the marketing leans pretty heavily on the Opium War setting, but the actual conflict only shows up at the edges of the story. So if you’re going in expecting that to be a central focus, adjust your expectations a little.
The real heart of the book is the tension between Chinese and British folklore, and I actually found that thread to be one of the most enjoyable parts of the whole story. The idea that the British didn’t just bring colonialism to Hong Kong but also their own monsters is such an interesting concept, and I loved watching Kiamling navigate that collision of two very different supernatural worlds.
The characters are a highlight. Kiamling and her younger sister, Jinling, both carry this really relatable tension around living up to impossible family expectations while trying to figure out who they actually want to be, and their dynamic feels layered and real. The action scenes are an absolute standout: fun, exciting, and cinematic in a way that feels like watching a movie. I did not see that ending coming at all (I totally expected it to go a different way!), and I’m excited to follow these characters to London in the next book.
My main critique is pacing. The middle section of the book loses some cohesion because a lot of the chapters feel like monster-of-the-week TV episodes, which makes sense given that the author was clearly influenced by Buffy the Vampire Slayer. But it does make the overall story arc feel a little scattered for a stretch. Still, I enjoyed this enough to be super excited to read the follow-up book!
THE GOOD:
- The collision between Chinese and British folklore is a really interesting concept
- Kiamling and her sister’s dynamic is layered, real, and emotionally engaging
- The action scenes are cinematic and exciting
- The ending was a total WOW-did-not-see-that-coming ending!
THE NOT-AS-GOOD:
- The middle section kind of loses steam when it comes to the overall plot
- The Opium War setting is less present than the marketing suggests
THE NEUTRAL:
- Very clearly influenced by Buffy teh Vampire Slayer, which will work for or against the book, depending on your taste
OVERALL RATING: āāā
Harbour of Hungry Ghosts is a cinematic, action-packed historical fantasy with a unique premise, characters you’ll actually care about, and fight scenes that feel straight out of TV, even if the middle wanders a little.
PERFECT FOR:
- Fans of demon hunting stories who want it set in historical Hong Kong
- Readers who love digging into Chinese folklore and mythology
- Anyone who wants their colonialism critique wrapped in a monster hunting adventure
- Readers who love a scrappy family of supernatural hunters
- History buffs who want a little fantasy and demon fighting with their period fiction
