⭐⭐⭐⭐
Kristina McMorris has a gift for blending history and heart, and her latest novel, The Girls of Good Fortune, digs deep.
Set in 1888 Portland, the story opens in the city’s infamous Shanghai Tunnels, where Celia, a young woman of mixed heritage, awakens in a drugged haze, disguised and imprisoned. She’s about to be shipped off as forced labor—shanghaied into a nightmare that pulls no punches.
Celia’s struggle to piece together how she ended up there takes readers on a twisting journey through corruption, injustice, and survival. As a half-Chinese woman passing as white in a time of deep anti-Chinese sentiment, her very existence is a balancing act. The book explores identity, belonging, and the often-hidden cost of silence.
I appreciated the historical depth—especially the backdrop of the goldminers’ massacre and the seedy politics of the day. It was educational without feeling like a history lecture, and McMorris includes recipes and an excellent author’s note to round it out. Still, I had a hard time following the timeline at times, and emotionally, it didn’t hit as hard as some of her earlier novels.
Even so, this is a powerful, well-researched read with guts, grit, and relevance. Four stars from me.
** Thanks to NetGalley, Sourcebooks Landmark, and Recorded Books for complimentary review copies of the eBook and audiobook. The opinions are my own.