The Night Tiger

A Novel

By: Yangsze Choo

Narrated by: Yangsze Choo

Length: 14 hrs and 8 mins

Publisher's Summary

A Reese's Book Club x Hello Sunshine on Audible Pick

"You won’t be able to put this down! I’m excited to announce that our April pick is The Night Tiger by Yangsze Choo. Set in a tiny Malaysian town in the 1930s, the story is about a mystifying tiger who haunts the villages, followed by a series of mysterious deaths. The two main characters will captivate you as their paths are destined to cross. I can’t wait to hear what you think!" (Reese Witherspoon) 

"Choo narrates this richly complex novel herself, her gorgeous writing delivered in a voice that is deep and precise and lovely, both British and not quite. Her tone and words transport us...." (San Francisco Chronicle) 

This program is read by the author. 

A sweeping historical audiobook about a dance hall girl and an orphan boy whose fates entangle over an old Chinese superstition about men who turn into tigers.

Quick-witted, ambitious Ji Lin is stuck as an apprentice dressmaker, moonlighting as a dance hall girl to help pay off her mother’s Mahjong debts. But when one of her dance partners accidentally leaves behind a gruesome souvenir, Ji Lin may finally get the adventure she has been longing for. 

Eleven-year-old houseboy Ren is also on a mission, racing to fulfill his former master’s dying wish: that Ren find the man’s finger, lost years ago in an accident, and bury it with his body. Ren has 49 days to do so, or his master’s soul will wander the earth forever. 

As the days tick relentlessly by, a series of unexplained deaths wracks the district, along with whispers of men who turn into tigers. Ji Lin and Ren’s increasingly dangerous paths crisscross through lush plantations, hospital storage rooms, and ghostly dreamscapes. 

Yangsze Choo's The Night Tiger pulls us into a world of servants and masters, age-old superstition and modern idealism, sibling rivalry and forbidden love. But anchoring this dazzling, propulsive audiobook is the intimate coming of age of a child and a young woman, each searching for their place in a society that would rather they stay invisible. 

Amazon.com Best Books of the Year - 2019

©2019 Yangsze Choo (P)2019 Macmillan Audio

Critic Reviews

"A work of incredible beauty.... Astoundingly captivating and striking in its portrayal of love, betrayal, and death, The Night Tiger is a transcendent story of courage and connection." (Booklist, starred review)

“Choo has written a sumptuous garden maze of a novel that immerses readers in a complex, vanished world.” (Kirkus, starred review)

The first half is awesome

The book seemed like two separate stories. The first half was captivating and intriguing but somewhere in the middle the author gets lost in a common love story. I was disappointed that some of the interesting characters were completely discarded leaving unanswered questions about the title. Overall, The storyline had great potential. I hope that the author’s next book stays on track.

very satisfying

If this were just a romance novel, or a mystery, or a supernatural adventure in an exotic realm, this book might be a bit tame. But it's all of those and it's a treat. Reading her own work, with all the languages and deep identification with the culture, Yangsze Choo delivers pitch perfect characters with beautiful voicing. Thumbs up!

Interesting and original

I would classify this book as "magical realism," a genre I generally don't like. But "The Night Tiger" was very compelling in many ways. I'd recommend reading it, rather than listening to it, because there are a lot of characters with non-western names. It is easy to confuse them, especially in a story as complicated as this one.

I gave the narrator only three stars only because she had a tendency to pause in the middle of phrases. That did a disservice to the writing. She did a good job with giving the characters different voices.

Kind of scattered

The story never really came together for me but the performance was pleasant and the cultural reference was interesting.
There was a lot of details but in the end it seemed loosely tied up.

gripping to the last page!

A novel with everything. Exotic setting skillfully intertwined with dark folk legends, endearing characters mired in realistically complicated situations, and mystery piled on mystery, twists and turns and even romance. well done!

Intriguing and suspenseful

This book held my attention from the first page to the last. It's fascinating and intriguing incorporating Chinese superstitions in the story of the local Malayan protagonists and the white people among them. There's a thread of romance running through the story, but it does not detract from the overall tale. The author narrates and does a really great job voicing all the characters and of course does a superb job with her intonation and inflection. My only complaint would be that whoever recorded this did not leave enough time/space between the last word of a chapter and the start of the next so that it was difficult to pause or stop at the right moment when needed.

Wonderful.

Fanciful and mysterious with endearing characters. How often do you find yourself smiling at the end of a novel? you will with this one.

Duo moly Delightful

Well written and she narrates her work perfectly.

I must admit without spoiling anything, I do love a good and tightly written ending.

Well played Ms. Choo

So good until the end!

I loved this book with the slow build up and immersive writing, but it seemed rushed at the end and they didn’t tie up all the loose ends with a resolution, they just go on to something else. That isn’t necessarily bad, but it feels unsatisfying after such a good build up.

Not all authors should read audiobooks

The narration took a little time to get used to. She speaks very fast and there is no pause between chapters. I got lost a couple times and had to go back.