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The Fire Horse Girl Kay Honeyman 9780545403108 Books

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The Fire Horse Girl Kay Honeyman 9780545403108 Books

A promising historical fiction, coming-of-age, romance story, but it didn't live up to my expectations. I like how the struggle of Chinese immigrants seeking new life in America in the 1920s were presented in this story, but the pacing and the development of Jade Moon's story just wore me off. Jade Moon was perceived as a bad luck in her village, and when the opportunity of going to America came to her, she envisioned life of freedom and new beginnings. But it didn't turn out the way she hoped it would be, as she was forced by luck fo pretend to be a guy to survive the tough streets of Chinatown in San Francisco. I found the pacing of the story slow at the start, then picked up in the middle, until it got blurry in the end. The premise promised romance in the story, but there was too little of it. I found it forced and unconvincing, probably because the male characters in this story (except for Neil) appeared worthless, stupid, manipulative and weak. Jade Moon's stubborness can be annoying, but I admire her strength and determination to build a new life away from her old one.


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The Fire Horse Girl Kay Honeyman 9780545403108 Books Reviews

Well written YA
It had me hooked and was a really great read!
Really fun novel with a lot of historical detail. This is supposed to be for young adults but it’s enjoyable for anyone.
Jade Moon grabs you from the start. Brash, imperious, she speaks to every girl (and person) who's felt that they had to hide who they are to fit in, and failed. Her journeys twists and turns were unexpected and entertaining. A well-crafted tale of a unique slice of Chinese and American history.
This was a book club selection for Jan. 2017. We had someone in our group who knew the author and was able to secure a luncheon meeting with our club and Kay. It was delightful to be able to visit with Kay and ask her questions about the writing of the book.
The book is suppose to be geared to teen fiction, but everyone in our group really enjoyed the book. Jade Moon's character and Sterling Promise's character are rich and well developed. The historical fiction is well researched. I plan to read Interference also by the author Kay Honeyman.
Loved, loved, LOVED the main character, Jade Moon. She was born under the Chinese zodiac as a Fire Horse, which only comes around every 60 years. The sign is considered bad luck if you're female. Fire Horse girls are too bold, too loud, too strong, which makes for undesirable daughters and wives in the Chinese culture. So Jade contends with the constant reminder from her family and fellow villagers that she brings bad luck and destruction wherever she goes. It also means her father is unable to find her a decent match for her. After all, who would want to marry a Fire Horse girl? Jade's story takes us to America, where she hopes to start anew. But landing on Angel Island in the San Fransisco Bay, she soon learns that getting out from under the Fire Horse shadow and pursuing her dreams of freedom in America isn't easy as she had thought.

The Fire Horse Girl isn't just about Jade and her battle to overcome the Fire Horse taboo. This well-written, historical YA novel also shines a light on Chinese immigration in the 1920s and the difficult challenges and prejudices they faced coming to America. In her debut novel, Honeyman also tackles the hardships that Chinese women, in particular, faced as immigrants during that era, often being promised arranged marriages but, instead, finding themselves in brothels or sold as slaves. (Sadly, we see these types of things still happening to some immigrants -- mostly women -- today.) I'm glad I had the opportunity to learn about Angel Island and to meet Jade Moon. It's great to see strong female characters in YA literature.
The Fire Horse Girl, the debut YA Historical novel by Kay Honeyman took me by surprise. I do not gravitate towards books that are steeped in history, rich in culture and tradition and charts the course of human evolution. Instead, I live for vampires. But lately, I've been reading some amazing books having nothing at all to do with my beloved genre and am finding that I am missing out on beautifully written stories that are engaging and fascinating all at once.

The Fire Horse Girl is such a book. I am huge fan of Amy Tan and my exposure to Chinese culture came through the many stories she's penned. Kay Honeyman's writing is of the same nature.

Set in 1923, the story begins in a small village in China where we meet the Fire Horse Girl, Jade Moon. I like to call Jade Moon determined, but most call her obstinate, difficult, unruly and simply, bad luck. Why? Because this unfortunate girl was born under the wrong Zodiac Sign. The Zodiac in Eastern traditions dictates much of a person's destiny and in this case, Jade Moon's destiny is to be married off to the fourth son of a villager, a brick maker.

Enter Sterling Promise. An apt name for a man who makes sterling promises but whose betrayal sears Jade Moon to the core and changes the entire course of her life.

Determined by any means to reach America, Sterling Promise comes to Jade's village with a story and papers to travel to America. Why? Because it is a land of riches and can help Jade Moon's family overcome their shoddy luck. Jade Moon's father strikes a deal with Sterling Promise and much to Jade Moon's elation, she too will have the chance to live the American dream.

But that dream is thwarted when Jade Moon, her father and Sterling Promise are detained at Angel Island, the Ellis island of the west. Much of Jade Moon's character evolution happens in this camp. She realizes her dream, like many around her is just that, fantasy. Over time, Jade Moon becomes the camp's prophetic story teller, with stories of hope to fuel the draining energy around her.

Jade Moon soon learns Sterling Promise has bribed a camp guard and will be released to make his fortunes in San Francisco. The shock of his betrayal shifts the story into high gear. Jade Moon changes the course of her destiny much in the same way Sterling Promise tried to change his, through whatever means necessary and finally, she makes it to America, the land of enormous opportunity.

Soon Jade Moon is taken in by the head of a tong (Chinese Mafia.) The story flows quickly from this point as Jade Moon learns the true nature of being an immigrant in America, which isn't the pretty picture Sterling Promise painted for her. Instead, her immigrant dream is marred with gang wars, prostitution, gambling and child labor. Dressed as a man, Jade Moon's exposure to a life less extraordinary further fuels her determination to find a way out and live the life she was meant to live.

Despite my initial inclination, I enjoyed The Fire Horse Girl. The story contrasts traditional Chinese culture against a modern world where that tradition is no longer befitting, only any means of survival is. The story also explores relationship flaws. The moment when Jade Moon says goodbye to her father is beautifully flawed as Jade Moon leaves behind a past that held her back and moves forward to a destiny that despite it's harrowing nature, is worth every moment stringing together of her short life into something meaningful and on her own terms.

Kay Honeyman weaves together a story brilliantly. She exposes the reader to the landscape of Chinese culture during a time when some of the world was embracing the industrial revolution while China held on tightly to its past. As for the cultural intricacies and belief systems, I can fully relate. I too am a product of immigrants from a culture that has many similarities with the Chinese and cringed each time, Nushi or Aunty Wu or one of the women at the camp reminded Jade Moon of her unfortunate birth under the Fire Horse sign.

The most telling moment in the story is when Mr. Hon, who takes Jade Moon in, states a "Fire Horse is bold." And that is how I like to think of Jade Moon. To me, she was born under the right sign.

Kay Honeyman's writing style is fluid, sometimes lyrical -- especially durning those moments when Jade Moon would tell stories during her time at camp. Her storytelling is ripe with wisdom and refreshing at a time when it seems wisdom is nearly lost. She manages to move from one space in time to the next with ease, fully encompassing the place it holds in the story and enriching us with a new experience that is propels Jade Moon's story forward.

Jade Moon's story ends where it begins, bantering with a man who is the perfect match for The Fire Horse Girl, the ending to a book that empowered a girl to use her misfortune and find her destiny in a world only a Fire Horse Girl can contend with.

My rating - a five-star must read.
A promising historical fiction, coming-of-age, romance story, but it didn't live up to my expectations. I like how the struggle of Chinese immigrants seeking new life in America in the 1920s were presented in this story, but the pacing and the development of Jade Moon's story just wore me off. Jade Moon was perceived as a bad luck in her village, and when the opportunity of going to America came to her, she envisioned life of freedom and new beginnings. But it didn't turn out the way she hoped it would be, as she was forced by luck fo pretend to be a guy to survive the tough streets of Chinatown in San Francisco. I found the pacing of the story slow at the start, then picked up in the middle, until it got blurry in the end. The premise promised romance in the story, but there was too little of it. I found it forced and unconvincing, probably because the male characters in this story (except for Neil) appeared worthless, stupid, manipulative and weak. Jade Moon's stubborness can be annoying, but I admire her strength and determination to build a new life away from her old one.