1930's Shanghai there is a prestigious club called the Paramount. Inside there are cabaret dancers who only dream to become the lead dancer. Jingwan is one of them and soon sees that maybe she can make this dream come true by teaming up with a Mongolian Shaman, Zachai. But there is a catch….she must bring down the Leader of a rival gang, the Blue dawn and her grandmother their doctor. As she learns the tricks of the trade from her grandmother she soon discovers that her fellow dancers are being mangled and used from body parts for the rich. And her grandmother has a hand in these horrific crimes. Will she help the one who had hypnotized her or stay true to her family?
Overall rating 3/5
For readers who enjoy vivid and colorful writing. I struggled to understand what was happening due to being distracted by the side stories and barely touchable fantasy. I wish this book was more realistic, maybe body parts vs faces/lips/eyes with the women seemingly non phased. Or if the author embraced more of the fantasy and made the world laden with creatures and mystical elements. I do appreciate the premise of the book and would recommend it for readers who love folklore and sci-fi/fantasy books. (Sorry if I spelled names wrong, being a audio book I did not have a reference for correct spelling)
*Thank you to Rosalie M. Lin, Macmillan Audio, and Netgalley for the audio copy. I am freely leaving my honest review.