Song of Silver, Flame like Night by Amélie Wen Zhao is a Chinese Mythology fantasy novel about ancient kingdoms, lost magic, and love. The novel explores main characters, Lan and Zen through their escape from the people who colonized their land.
Lan works as a song-girl in Haak’gong, a city filled with her colonizers. Years ago, Elantian invaders killed her mother and destroyed her home. All her mother left her was a strange mark on her arm that only she can see
Zen, a practitioner, comes across Lan in the tea shop where she works. Practitioners once roamed the Last Kingdom, but now are only fairy tales, magic that is believed to have been lost. Practitioners are now forced to hide from Elantian colonizers.
When Zen and Lan first cross paths, Zen recognizes the mark on her hand. Unable to understand the strange ancient symbol, they embark on a journey together.
Song of Silver, Flame Like Night is beautifully written, does a great job in immersing readers into the world, and is a wonderful introduction to Chinese mythology.
By Teen Reviewer, Eliana