Descriere
Each year, eight beautiful girls are chosen as Paper Girls to serve the king. It's the highest honour they could hope for...and the most demeaning.
This year, there's a ninth.
And instead of paper, she's made of fire.
'A timely reminder that, in the right hands, the fantasy genre has things to say about injustice and abuse of power in the real world' GUARDIAN
Lei is a member of the Paper caste, the lowest and most persecuted class of people in Ikhara. Ten years ago, her mother was snatched by the royal guards, and her fate remains unknown. Now, the guards are back and this time it's Lei they're after - the girl with the golden eyes, whose rumoured beauty has piqued the king's interest.
Over weeks of training in the opulent but oppressive palace, Lei and eight other girls learn the skills and charm that befit a king's consort. There, Lei does the unthinkable - she falls in love. Her forbidden romance becomes enmeshed with an explosive plot that threatens her world's entire way of life. Lei, still the wide-eyed country girl at heart, must decide how far she's willing to go for justice and revenge.
An elegant and heart-rending ode to human endurance, and to love. Lei is an unforgettable protagonist - her story will have you reading all night, then calling for the next one (Samantha Shannon, NYT bestselling author of The Bone Season)
A compelling narrative of personal rebellion, and a timely reminder that, in the right hands, the fantasy genre has things to say about injustice and abuse of power in the real world (Guardian)
Queer girls falling in love while kicking ass and resisting oppression in a rich, magical, and Asian-inspired world. What more could you ask for? (R. F. Kuang, author of The Poppy War)
An explosively tense and immensely deft novel . . . Ngan has written a very accomplished work, and I'm really looking forward to the sequel. (Tor.com)
Ngan's story is rich, is beautiful, is devastating and magical, and one of the best novels that I've picked up so far in 2018 (Hypable)
Thrust into the beauty and horror of the Hidden Palace, will this Paper Girl survive? Ideal for those seeking diverse LGBTQ fantasy stories (Kirkus Reviews)
Beautiful and heart-breaking and meaningful . . . Ngan's writing is stunning (Young Adult Reads)
This book spoke to me on a very personal level, with its messages of surviving and thriving after trauma. One of the *the* best YA books I've read for years. The world building was impeccable and lavish. The love story felt earned and true. It was escapist but also handled real world issues brilliantly. (Kiran Millwood Hargrave, author of The Girl of Ink and Stars)
Ngan's plot is tense and tight, her action sequences are elegant and adrenaline-soaked, and her story's stakes increase exponentially through the pulse-pounding conclusion. She champions self-empowerment while condemning classism, homophobia, and the commodification of women. What most distinguishes this book, though, is how incisively and intoxicatingly Ngan writes about love (Publisher's Weekly)
A vital and energetic novel . . . that mounts with increasing tension towards an explosive conclusion . . . . I enjoyed it tremendously (Locus Magazine)
