Black Water Sister

"The article about the temple had quoted a Barry Lim, Jess remembered. Lim was Mom’s surname, but it was so common in Malaysia that the name hadn’t pinged her when she’d read the article. She’d never heard Mom refer to Ah Ku as anything but Ah Soon, short for Beng Soon, but people often adopted English names in addition to their Chinese names." Und ich dachte, bei Tolstoi hat man es schwer mit den Namen.

Es war eine formlose Geschichte, die von hartem Lektorat und Kürzung um die Hälfte profitiert hätte. In der Mitte war ich versucht, aufzuhören, aber die in der schwafeligen Geschichte verpackten Informationen über Familienleben, Religion und Sprache in Malaysia waren so interessant, und nicht auf die Abgeschriebener-Reiseführer-Art. (Jedenfalls werden keine bekannten Sehenswürdigkeiten unauffällig in den Text eingeflochten.) Es ist viel Dialog drin, und dieser Dialog findet in einer Art Hokkien-Englisch statt, von der ich nicht weiß, ob sie üblich ist oder eine Erfindung der Autorin, voll mit mir unbekannten Wörtern und schönen Wendungen. (Update nach Weiterbildung: Die Leute sprechen Manglish.)

A good contemporary fantasy story set in Malaysia involving local spirits. It also serves as an introduction to the world of spirits in the region. As a former Malaysian now in Singapore, the non-fantasy aspects of Malaysian society and culture featured in the book ring true, while the fantasy aspects do have solid roots in how spirits are worshipped by local people. But on to the actual review. :-)

The book centres around Jessamyn Teoh, who is reluctantly moving back to Malaysia from the US with her parents. But from the start, strange things happens when a voice in her head begins to speak to her. This turns out to be her maternal grandmother, who has a bone to pick with a wealthy Malaysian who is developing land on which a shrine that is the home to the spirit of Black Water Sister is sitting.

Jessamyn reluctantly agrees to help her grandmother, if only to be rid of her. But as the story develops, clues are dropped, by both her grandmother and the relatives she meets in Penang, Malaysia (the main setting of the story) that begin to show that she may be involved in more than just a battle over a shrine. It would centre over the murky past of her grandmother and also the chilling spirit that is the Black Water Sister, whose influence may cause Jessamyn to lose her own self, if she is not careful over who is in charge of events: sometimes violent events.

The book features a lot of local slang, and I find it surprising that the book has found an audience in the West, judging from the praise it has received. But I suppose this lies in the skill of the author, being able to produce a book that captures the atmosphere of actually living in Malaysia while still being appreciated by others.

I look forward to reading her other works, especially those set in the local culture.

I enjoyed Zen Cho's books about the Sorcerer Royal. They were fun and they were funny. The sudden eruption of Malay witches into the staid ranks of English wizardry was an excellent and fruitful joke. But it seems that these were warming-upexercises, a joyful romp before she got down to serious business.

The protagonist of this novel has accompanied her parents back to Malaysia after spending her childhood and adolescence in the USA. This wrench - her father has returned because he failed to make it in the states, and is now dependent on family charity for employment and living quarters - accentuates her liminality. She has to face up to being neither child nor adult, neither American nor Malaysian, and, as she gloomily puts it at one point, neither straight nor gay (she has an ongoing relationship with another woman, but is unable to tell her parents, or indeed, anyone else). And most pressingly, as someone who seems not be religiously or spiritually inclined, she finds herself to be possessed, first by her grandmother's ghost, and then by the spirit of a powerful goddess. It's through her struggle with the two supernatural beings that she finally comes to recognise her own inner strengths, and determine her own pathway.

This is obstensibly weightier stuff than the earlier books - although racism and cultural confusions were already central themes. I missed the lightness of touch, the playfulness of the earlier works. There are moments of comedy in this book, but it is, for the most part, serious stuff. It is well written - Cho is a writer - and reads easily.

TW: homophobia, misogyny, mentioned abusive husband, strangulation, rape, gang violence
4.2

Jess has been afloat since graduating college- she's in a long distance relationship that's also completely secret, since she'd rather never have to deal with coming out to her parents, and she's the only person she knows without a job. So moving with her parents, back to Malaysia, a place she doesn't even remember, is a strange step but not one she has any reason to fight against. Except that apparently stepping foot in Malaysia has made the voice of her grandmother's ghost stronger. She wants to believe it's stress, but as strange things continue happening it's harder to pretend. Jess has found herself in the middle of family secrets and old gods, with nothing to help her but her belligerent dead grandmother and a degree she can't use.

This book was a lot of fun! There's a great sense of humor woven throughout the story, and a lot of unexpected moments for godliness to bleed through that made the whole experience so unique.

Jess herself is a great character. She's a very no nonsense, unshakable millennial type, and she's the perfect voice to navigate this old, tangled world of entitlement and assumptions. She's definitely flawed, and comes up short in many regards- which makes it even easier to root for her, and get invested in just what she's going to do to deal with this new responsibility and new roles.

I love the addition of the gangs, and the way the workers interact with the gods contrasted with the new world, upper class people's view of the gods. You really feel like you're getting a full idea of the world at work, and it makes the vibe something tangible.

I also love the way the dreams are presented. Jess' dive into memories and conversations inside her own head, through visions, are a atmospheric break from the real world and somehow both silkier and more brutal than anything else we see. They're such nice moments, and it makes the spiritual and physical both feel so much more defined and impactful.
Cho's writing as a whole is fantastic, actually. In the real world there are great descriptions, and in both you can get wrapped up in the way the dialogue is written. There's a great rhythm to the writing that makes it enjoyable to read.

The family dynamic is nice as well. You get to see Jess with her parents, and learn how she navigates being with these people she loves but also can't be herself around, and it feels so, so real. And then there's the extended family brimming throughout the house and the different personalities they bring.

I only wish the plot itself felt a little tighter/more focused. It isn't fast paced, and it tends to linger throughout in different places, which made it a little harder to pay attention. It felt hard to find the main focus, especially as things cycled through and repeated.

But as a whole I really enjoyed this book, and I'd happily pick up another one by Cho.

Returning to Malaysia as an adult, Jess just wants to get a job and help out her parents. But shortly after they move in with her auntie and uncle, Jess starts hearing voices. Well one voice in particular, that of Ah Ma, her dearly departed grandmother. Ah Ma is out for revenge, and she’s not beyond using her granddaughter’s body to get it.

I loved Black Water Sister. It’s partly a story about not knowing what to do with yourself after graduating, and one of family obligations and what to do when haunted by an angry relative. It’s also a mystery of sorts, as Jess tries to piece together what is really going on. Trigger warnings for attempted rape and abduction.

All Jess knew about Ah Ma was that her parents weren’t on speaking terms with her, so she doesn’t know a huge amount about the person who has taken up residence in her head. Even more worrying, it seems Ah Ma is capable on controlling her body when she’s asleep and she’s gained the ability to speak several languages fluently. At least her Malaysian family will be impressed.

However Jess just wants to find a job and the haunting really isn’t helping things. She agrees to help Ah Ma, leading to a world of spirits, mediums, gang violence and dodgy business dealings. The story unfolds at just the right pace with a fantastic cast of characters.

When leaving America, Jess also left her girlfriend behind. She kind of had plans to be with her after graduation, but she wanted to be a good daughter, after everything her father had sacrificed for her, she went with them to help them get settled in Penang. But her parents don’t know she’s a lesbian, and she’s reluctant to tell Sharanya about all the supernatural stuff. Who would believe her? She can feel the distance between them growing.

The Black Water Sister of the title is a spirit, but I don’t really want to tell you too much about her, you should just read the book to find out for yourself.