The Lotus Palace by Jeannie Lin
Series : The Pingkang Li Mysteries #1
Genre : Historical Romance. Mystery
Publisher : Harlequin
It is a time of celebration in the Pingkang Li, where imperial
scholars and bureaucrats mingle with beautiful courtesans. At the
center is the Lotus Palace, home of the most exquisite courtesans in
China...
Maidservant Yue-ying is not one of those beauties. Street-smart and
practical, she's content to live in the shadow of her infamous
mistress—until she meets the aristocratic playboy Bai Huang.
Bai Huang lives in a privileged world Yue-ying can barely imagine, yet
alone share, but as they are thrown together in an attempt to solve a
deadly mystery, they both start to dream of a different life. Yet Bai
Huang's position means that all she could ever be to him is his
concubine—will she sacrifice her pride to follow her heart?
I
started reading the Pingkang Li Mysteries books by Jeannie Lin
last month and I'm in love?!?❣️ Can't believe I hadn't read any
of her books for so long. It's a rare day when you find
historical romance books that are not set in England and it's
rarer when they're set in China! I've been obsessed
with reading translated chinese light novels and watching
c-dramas in the last year, so it was a wind surprise that I came
across this one!
I loved how descriptive and vivid the writing was along with
the splendid character development! I could totally imagine
the Pingkang Li district as I read it - and wished I could
experience it too. I visited Xi'an(formerly known as Chang'an)
more than 6 years ago, but I never thought about these
quarters where different classes of the society come together
in various ways historically!
Book one - The Lotus Palace features Yue Ying, the maidservant
of the famous courtesan - Mingyu and Bai Huang, a playboy and
nobleman who's failed the imperial exam three times. These two
are brought together by a murder that shocks the Northern
hamlet. And as these two join forces in an unprecedented manner
to find the culprit, they begin to see each other in a new
light, beyond the facade that they've put up for society. Yue
Ying, who wants to blend into the shadows but still stands out
because of the birthmark on her face and Bai Huang, who might be
masquerading as a good-for-nothing with an agenda.
The class difference is huge in this one! They're worlds
apart-in the sense that even a talented courtesan in Imperial
China could only be a concubine to a nobleman, not a wife. So,
Yue Ying - a former prostitute and a maidservant could never
marry Bai Huang in the truest sense. And as considerate as Bai
Huang is, it takes a while for him to understand the true
reality of women who are treated as commodity to be bought and
sold, even if they're admired and praised in countless poems.
But, I loved how real these characters were! Bai Huang is very
loyal and charming but also a bit naive at times in certain
aspects - a privilege that his upbringing gives him. I really
enjoyed seeing these sides of the characters. Even Yue Ying who
is very cynical and hard-hearted at first, just wants a sense of
belonging - which is evident in her wish to be with Mingyu and
the chance that she's willing to take with Huang even if she
might have her heart broken.
She loves hard but she's also pragmatic at the same time. She
knows that as a concubine she would never be happy and even her
children might not be able to be with her. So, she's not willing
to be a concubine even if she might love Bai Huang. As the old
Chinese saying goes -
'It's better to be a poor man's wife than a rich man's
concubine'. And I might keep talking about this topic forever but
concubine born(shu) children were treated differently
from the legitimate ones even if they were adopted and brought
up by the main wife. So, you can understand how much
consideration she gives the matter.
The romance was done very well and I could feel the longing and
the joy when these two get together! What made me love this was
how Bai Huang was able to show his truest self only to Yue Ying.
He showed his vulnerable side and I loved when he talked about
the lowest points in his life and the decisions that he's not
proud of. Similarly Yue Ying also puts down her walls only when
she's with him. And omg it's so adorable when he calls her
Little Moon(Xiao Yue in Chinese I believe?)❣️ They do get
their HEA though, don't worry!😉 But it's a journey full of
realizations!
The amount of research the author has put into this one is evident from the description and the characters! The courtesans are in a unique position - admired and befriended by many but not respected. They are multi-talented and have lots of knowledge, and they might never bed those who seek their companionship, but they are just a step higher than the prostitutes in brothels. And that's the sad part - Having the skills and the knowledge of nobles, but not the status that comes along with it. Which puts them in a spot where they can be mistreated or revered depending on their luck. Mingyu and Huilan are prime examples!
Mingyu and Yue Ying have a tenuous relationship and I loved the secret that we find out later(which I wasn't expecting!). There is a murder mystery that runs parallel to the relationship development, but I'd say the focus is more on the romance though(and I ain't complaining 😆😍)! I had fun watching these two search for clues and digging out info while being attracted to each other. We also get to meet his family, especially his sister Wei Wei - who's such a delight tbh! And the last chapter with him realizing that the power in the family lies with his mom was amazing 🤣
And you can skip this part if you don't want to see me
analyzing the HEA😝
And I'd say even the ending is believable because technically Bai
Huang is the son of an official and after passing the imperial
examination, he would also take up an official post but he'd have
to work his way up. His family doesn't have a hereditary title
that is passed on and he's not a social climber(of course not), so
he doesn't really need to marry a noble lady who'd bring him
connections. The Bai family would just be one of the many official
families in the middle to lower ranges of the officialdom so they
don't really have the need to marry high. So it doesn't really
matter reputation-wise when he has the confidence to work hard and
not depend on his wife's family(which was how it was back in those
days as arranged marriages were mainly to consolidate power and
connections). So, I was really happy when his mother accepts Yue
Ying and they agree to the marriage!
Anyway, I think I've done enough dissection of this book and the
characters, so if you're still reading this please go ahead and
give these books a try! They're definitely underrated gems that
need to be more popular! And I'll get back to you when I'm done
reading the rest of Jeannie Lin's books! (◕ᴗ◕✿)
You can also find this review on my bookstagram here
Jeannie Lin started writing in 2005 while she was teaching
high school. After a long journey through rejections and
contests and revisions, her manuscript, Butterfly Swords, won
the 2009 Golden Heart® award for historical romance. Her first
two books have received starred reviews in Publishers Weekly
and Library Journal and her second novel, The Dragon and the
Pearl, was listed as one of Library Journal’s Best Romances of
2011. Check the Books section for information on individual
titles and release dates.
Her stories are inspired by her love of adventure, history,
and fantasy in both western and Asian traditions. From an
early age she was fascinated by legends of King Arthur and the
fantasy of Lord of the Rings as well as the Chinese wuxia
(martial arts) fiction. As a result, she writes heroic
characters in epic situations while interweaving a strong
romance to make larger than life characters human. For more on
wuxia and the historical background to her books, see the
extras section.
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