The Phoenix Crown
By: Kate Quinn & Janie Chang
Published Year: 2024
Publisher: William Morrow Paperback
Pages: 384
Summary (Provided by Goodreads): From bestselling authors Janie Chang and Kate Quinn, a thrilling and unforgettable narrative about the intertwined lives of two wronged women, spanning from the chaos of the San Francisco earthquake to the glittering palaces of Versailles.
San Francisco, 1906. In a city bustling with newly minted millionaires and scheming upstarts, two very different women hope to change their fortunes: Gemma, a golden-haired, silver-voiced soprano whose career desperately needs rekindling, and Suling, a petite and resolute Chinatown embroideress who is determined to escape an arranged marriage. Their paths cross when they are drawn into the orbit of Henry Thornton, a charming railroad magnate whose extraordinary collection of Chinese antiques includes the fabled Phoenix Crown, a legendary relic of Beijing’s fallen Summer Palace.
His patronage offers Gemma and Suling the chance of a lifetime, but their lives are thrown into turmoil when a devastating earthquake rips San Francisco apart and Thornton disappears, leaving behind a mystery reaching further than anyone could have imagined . . . until the Phoenix Crown reappears five years later at a sumptuous Paris costume ball, drawing Gemma and Suling together in one last desperate quest for justice.
First Impressions
I love Kate Quinn. She is one of my absolute favorite historical fiction authors. I was excited to see that she had a new book coming out and intrigued that it was coauthored. The cover is pretty and I added it to my list without even reading the summary.
What I thought
This story is told in alternating perspectives of opera singer Gemma, and Chinese embroiderer Suling. Gemma moves to San Francisco after some bad luck in New York, since her closest friend lives there. She gets hired by the San Francisco Opera House and hopes to finally kick off her career. Suling is an orphaned daughter of Chinese immigrants who is living in Chinatown with her Uncle, working at the Dry Cleaner, and trying to avoid him marrying her off. Their stories intertwine thanks to millionaire Henry Thornton. When a massive earthquake hits, their lives are also thrown off balance. They are left to come together years later to see if they can put their past to rest.
I wanted to like Suling’s story so much more than I actually did. I much preferred Gemma’s story and actually, there was a third character who played a large part who I wished had a point of view. I would’ve much rather gotten to know her than Suling and even Gemma at times. I think because I enjoyed one perspective more than the other it made it a slower read for me.
I also found parts of it to be predictable which, I know historical fiction isn’t meant to be mysterious, but there was mystery within this story and it felt slow and drawn out to me. I read another book a few years ago that followed some mystery revolving around the disaster of a San Francisco earthquake, and I just kept thinking about that book and how that one captivated me a little more.
I think the whole Henry story just bothered me. I didn’t like Gemma getting sucked into his orbit and I disliked Suling being sucked in as well. They both were smart girls and it felt like they would’ve done better. The second part of the book, post earthquake, was what I was really looking forward to and it just felt like a let down. I didn’t love how the story concluded and was just left feeling underwhelmed.
This book just fell flat to me. I found it boring and it wasn’t the type of historical fiction that I enjoy. I think Quinn has written much stronger novels. Unfortunately, I think the two writing styles were just too different and felt very much like two authors wanting to write together and it didn’t flow for me. I will read more of Quinn in the future, but this just wasn’t my favorite.