Flames of Soyombo

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Autumn Murphy is an Asian-American homeschooled teenager entering her first public high school. Adopted as a baby, she lives in Vacaville with her parents. She works at the Dragon Express with her friend Mya, practices kung fu, and has a best friend/boyfriend relationship with childhood friend Dean. However, she soon finds she’s far from normal, and following several tragic murders, is to become the next Natigai, or earth mother. Autumn comes to find herself at the center of a disastrous organ-trading ring, supplying lungs and kidneys to rich families back in Asia.

The novel takes place in vignette-like chapters, each only ten or so pages long, either giving background on the characters or following the plot. The plot itself is simple, following a fairly straightforward third-person narrative. The central conflict doesn’t really begin until about eighty or so pages in, and after that point switches between Autumn’s teenage life and her shaman one. The characters themselves were not extremely complex. Autumn follows the traditional stereotype of a nerdy but funny teenage girl and Dean is a tough, but kind-hearted friend with a major crush on Autumn. The plot itself took dramatic turns, but wasn’t unexpected, and was unrealistic or exaggerated in places, specifically in regards to the immediate closeness of the characters and the love story.

One of the most compelling parts of the novel is the story of the community in which Autumn is in – the Asian-American community of her high school, in Vacaville, and how deep the support between them runs. This is a wonderful change from the YA norm, where only about 2% of characters in Young Adult fiction are Asian or Pacific Americans. I’d recommend the book to seventh or eighth graders.


Reviewed By:

Author SS Jordan
Star Count 3/5
Format eBook
Page Count 183 pages
Publisher Portofino Press
Publish Date 23-Jun-2013
ISBN
Amazon Buy this Book
Issue December 2014
Category Young Adult
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