Lucas Blogs About The Empress of Salt and Fortune

Mammoths and rabbits and hoopoes! Oh My!

 

So, what's this book's deal?

Well, the deal with The Empress of Salt and Fortune is that it's a fantasy novella by Nghi Vo. It's set in Anh, an empire that is not unlike imperial China.

Well, that covers a pretty lengthy history. Could you be more speicific?

Well, I'm not familiar enough with Chinese history to say if it's an exact parallel with any particular period. So let's just talk a little about the story.

You're the blogger.

That I am. So, we start with Cleric Chih and their talking neixin (also known as a hoopoe), Almost Brilliant, on the way to the first Dragon Court of the Empress of Wheat and Flood. However, on the way is Thriving Fortune, the home in exile of In-yo, the Empress of Salt and Fortune (the new Empress's predecessor), in the days before she orchestrated the coup that put her on the throne of Anh. And like any good cleric of the Singing Hills monastery, Chih can't pass up the opportunity to document this recently unlocked piece of history. At Thriving Fortune, they meet Sun — a former handmaiden to In-yo — who has always been called Rabbit because of her big front teeth. In any case, as the days pass and Rabbit begins telling Chih stories about In-yo's years in exile, it becomes clear that there's more to the story than you might expect. But then again, what else might a cleric with a talking bird expect?

What indeed? So then it's a tale about someone investigating political intrigue that took place decades earlier?

That it is. It's sort of got parallel narratives going on. Each chapter begins with Chih cataloguing items or helping Rabbit with chores, then listening to a part of Rabbit's story about In-yo's life as one of the old emperor's disfavored foreign-born wives in exile. As the story progresses, it becomes clear that it isn't just the story of how In-yo exploited the fact that she was underestimated to seize power, but that Rabbit played a greater role than Chih might have expected. Since it's so short, I'll try to avoid TEH SPOILARZ but the ending isn't so much a surprise to the reader as a confirmation of the growing understanding between the characters.

So it's less about the politic intrigue and more about how the events of the story effect the lives of the characters?

Yeah. I mean, it's also about the political intrigue, but the question of who's going to occupy the throne isn't a big mystery. The story starts with In-yo's heir on the throne. It's really more about marginalized people trying to survive in a system that doesn't value them. As a foreigner, In-yo is called ugly and stupid and hidden away when the emperor no longer has any use for her. She's also mocked at court due to her fascination with fortunetelling. But the fact that no one expects anything of her is exactly what allows her to coordinate an invasion from exile (specifically by sending messages to her generals through traveling fortunetellers).

Okay, I think I've got a pretty good idea. So how's the writing?

Pretty good. Vo writes the story in third person. Her style here is direct and simple, like a folktale. This is also true of the sections where Rabbit is narrating the events of her life at Thriving Fortune which obviously are in the first person. There isn't a massive difference between the narrator's voice and Rabbit's, but because of the fact that the story is framed as Rabbit telling a story, it's easy to differentiate the past from the present. She also handles characters well, whether it's the friendly teasing between Chih and Almost Brilliant or the hints that Rabbit gives that maybe the story she's telling is better left buried.

May I interject to say that "Almost Brilliant" is a delightful character name?

You may and it is. Almost Brilliant is also a fun character with a bit of a sharp tongue and an easily bruised ego. Chih makes for a fascinating protagonist. Vo always refers to Chih with they/them pronouns. An early interaction where Rabbit mistakes them for a girl but comes to realize they're a cleric, does make me curious if in Anh all clerics are referred to by gender-neutral pronouns or if the society recognizes nonbinary identities outside of religious orders. They also possess an inquisitive and ingratiating nature that at first might seem a little naïve, but it becomes clear that they're using this impression in order to entice Rabbit into telling her story. 

Sounds pretty straightforward.

Yes, but as is often the case in simple stories, what isn't said can be as impactful as what is. But I said I didn't want to give away the ending. In any case, this is a pretty good book. It's got fun characters, a story with plenty of intrigue, and a talking hoopoe. What more do you want?

The Empress of Salt and Fortune by Nghi Vo, Tor.com trade paperback edition, March 2020, 120 pages, pairs well with stories and secrets

Links:

Here's the author's website, if you're into that kinda thing. Speaking of, not only has she written a sort-of sequel novella, which I'll blog about at some future date, she's also published a debut novel which reimagines The Great Gatsby from Jordan Baker's perspective (fun fact, Jordan Baker is my favorite character in The Great Gatsby because she's the only person to call out Nick on his bullshit) and reimagines Jordan as a queer Asian woman. So if that sounds like your something you'd be interested in, that also exists, it's called The Chosen and the Beautiful.