An enchanting and unforgettable historical mystery from the acclaimed author of The Night Tiger
Some people think foxes go around collecting qi, or life force, but nothing could be further than the truth. We are living creatures, just like you, only usually better looking . . .
Manchuria, 1908: A young woman is found frozen in the snow.
Her death is clouded by rumours of foxes, believed to lure people into peril by transforming into beautiful women and men. Bao, a detective with a reputation for sniffing out the truth, is hired to uncover the dead woman’s identity. Since childhood, Bao has been intrigued by the fox gods, yet they’ve remained tantalizingly out of reach. Until, perhaps, now.
Meanwhile, the family of a famous Chinese medicine shop can cure all ailments – except the curse that afflicts them. All their eldest sons die before their twenty-fourth birthdays. Now the only grandson of the family is twenty-three.
When a mysterious woman enters their household, their luck seems to change. But is their new servant a simple young woman from the north, or a fox spirit bent on her own revenge?
New York Times bestselling author Yangsze Choo brilliantly explores a world of mortals and spirits, humans and beasts, and their dazzling intersection. The Fox Wife is a stunning novel about dead bodies found in the snow, a mother seeking revenge, and old folk tales that may very well be true.
PRAISE FOR YANGSZE CHOO
‘You won’t be able to put this one down’ Reese Witherspoon
‘Captivating from the very beginning’ 5* Reader Review
‘An exuberant medley of magic, romance and weirdness’ The Times
‘Simply beautiful’ 5* Reader Review
‘[A] highly imaginative and a spellbinding read’ Woman’s Weekly
(P)2024 Macmillan Audio
Some people think foxes go around collecting qi, or life force, but nothing could be further than the truth. We are living creatures, just like you, only usually better looking . . .
Manchuria, 1908: A young woman is found frozen in the snow.
Her death is clouded by rumours of foxes, believed to lure people into peril by transforming into beautiful women and men. Bao, a detective with a reputation for sniffing out the truth, is hired to uncover the dead woman’s identity. Since childhood, Bao has been intrigued by the fox gods, yet they’ve remained tantalizingly out of reach. Until, perhaps, now.
Meanwhile, the family of a famous Chinese medicine shop can cure all ailments – except the curse that afflicts them. All their eldest sons die before their twenty-fourth birthdays. Now the only grandson of the family is twenty-three.
When a mysterious woman enters their household, their luck seems to change. But is their new servant a simple young woman from the north, or a fox spirit bent on her own revenge?
New York Times bestselling author Yangsze Choo brilliantly explores a world of mortals and spirits, humans and beasts, and their dazzling intersection. The Fox Wife is a stunning novel about dead bodies found in the snow, a mother seeking revenge, and old folk tales that may very well be true.
PRAISE FOR YANGSZE CHOO
‘You won’t be able to put this one down’ Reese Witherspoon
‘Captivating from the very beginning’ 5* Reader Review
‘An exuberant medley of magic, romance and weirdness’ The Times
‘Simply beautiful’ 5* Reader Review
‘[A] highly imaginative and a spellbinding read’ Woman’s Weekly
(P)2024 Macmillan Audio
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Reviews
The Fox Wife is a rich tangle of myth, mystery, and history, delivered with Choo's inimitable grace and precision. It's not a book so much as a beguilement; it enchanted me entirely
Like the foxes who populate its pages, The Fox Wife is vivid, enigmatic, and enchanting. Choo's fresh new fable conjures a world where danger and intrigue are forever entwined with sublime and sensory delights
Magical, wonderous, transporting and illuminating, The Fox Wife reminds me that reading can be pure joy . . . I was captivated from the very first word of this novel until its very last. Yangsze Choo is a writer of immense talent
A stunning story filled with wonder, mystery and folklore. I was utterly captivated by Yangsze Choo's exquisite prose and fascinating characters from the first page till the last. A remarkable tale, one that will stay with me
Choo's writing is lush and the slow revelations of complicated relationships and reunions hum with tension. This is a treat
Snow's difficulties as both a fox and a young woman in a man's world are clearly drawn, as is the pathos of Bao's situation as a gentle soul who's always been in search of something or someone. An intriguing vulpine mystery worth the suspension of disbelief
Enchanting
A beguiling tale of a bygone era
Rich and beguiling
Witty and suspenseful
The reader is taken on a journey from the underbelly of a Chinese town to the mountains of Japan. Among the more memorable characters along the way is a male fox spirit called Shiro. He is seductive, deadly and, like the book itself, quite irresistible to mere humans
Stunning . . . Choo's exquisite prose is perfectly matched to an enthralling story that is filled with magic, beauty, cruelty, and the slow unwinding of a double-layered mystery, but also comes star-dusted with an unexpected exuberance and flashes of dark humour
With deftness of pen and a keen eye for evocative detail, Choo crafts an intoxicating tale
Poetic and evocative
Like all the best supernatural stories, The Fox Wife reveals something profound about humanity: the ease with which we get drawn into chasing what we think we want, rather than what will actually nourish us. And the cruelty with which the powerful treat those under their power
Utterly captivating . . . . So lively and sharp-edged
A delicate and suspenseful detective tale, it's perfect to savor on a wintry weekend
[An] enchanting tale of murder, revenge, and the power of a mother's love
Choo weaves yet another enthralling tale and, this time, it's a glimpse of the immortal lives of foxes. Her prose is lush as ever and Snow is a captivating lens of emotions and magic
The voices are compelling; the secrets are rich . . . Layers of meaning accrue, bringing together the past and the present, mythology and personal ambition, actions and reactions, control and fate, into a fascinating tale of foxes, foes and friends
Part love story, part adventure, and part mystery, The Fox Wife is an enjoyable excursion into the beliefs and life in the China of 120 years ago
Masterfully plotted and superbly surprising, The Fox Wife will entice you into a world of magic and heartbreak, a beautiful tapestry woven from love and revenge and forgiveness. But beware: once you start, you may not be able to put it down!