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Anonymous
Posted October 21, 2009
Really sad to see Sharon Shinn use Chinese culture in this way. Yes, lets have more stories where all the villains are Chinese and it's set in an America taken over by the Chinese. Xenophobia anyone? What is Chinese these days; a term for generic bogey-men?
On top of that, the heroine's Chinese-ness is only redeemed by her upbringing in a white family, her willingness to kill the Chinese minister, and her fawning after the white man. Thanks Sharon Shinn, I'm sure young adults don't have enough racial bigotry in their lives, you have to help reinforce it in their fiction as well. Could you maybe create a plot that's not focused through a racial lens?
But even more upsetting is how this is nothing more than a poor watered down version of Eileen Chang's Lust, Caution. Not only are you racially insulting, but you have to steal from a Chinese writer's creative work to do it too. Way to rub salt in the wound.
2 out of 3 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.tieyah
Posted April 17, 2010
Typical Sharon - Love it as I do all her work... from her very young adult novellas and novels to her series fantasy.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.I was looking forward to reading this since the first time I read the summary. The idea of traveling through gates to another world was very intriguing, but after reading Gateway, I feel sort of disappointed. To me, I think the story had good potential but halfway through it went flat. Don't get me wrong, there were some good things about this novel too.
I really enjoyed Shinn's writing style - the way she put her words together made the story flow nicely. The majority of the characters were well-developed and fun to read about. My favorite character was Kalen; he was a very outgoing, laid-back kind of person. I really enjoyed Daiyu's character too, and I loved how she did what she thought was right and not what other people said was. Not that this has much to do with the book, but I really like the cover.
The main thing I didn't like about this book, was the fact that the story just fell flat, for me. Like I mentioned before, Shinn had a story with potential. I would have liked to see a little more action - there was some action but only in the last quarter of the book. Most of the book was a little too slow paced for me, and I kept hoping that something exciting was going to happen, but it didn't. Another thing was I thought Chenglei's mysteriousness was great, but once Daiyu started to figure things out, I would have liked to see more interaction between the two. It was like the conflict started and then turn the page and it was over.
Overall, I did enjoy this book, despite some flaws. I do hope there will be a sequel because I felt that the book ended too soon, with some unanswered questions.
Anonymous
Posted December 10, 2009
Gateway
By: Sharon Shinn
(Published by Viking copyright date 2009)
Daiyu has always been a little different being adopted from China. But when she buys a black jade ring from a jewelry stand at a local fair her whole world turns upside down, that is when she walks through the Gateway Arch with the ring on. She is thrown in to a whole new world where everyone is Chinese. She doesn't know why or where she is she's here until a native tells here where she is and gives her mission that could save the world from mass destruction. But once her mission is finished she will have to return home but will she be able to return home from what she has known for so long? Find out in this thrilling novel Gateway that 9 through 12 would enjoy.
Anonymous
Posted December 7, 2009
I Also Recommend:
I enjoyed the story. It's a relaxing read. good balance of mystery, romance and excitement.
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Posted July 30, 2010
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Posted December 31, 2010
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Posted June 23, 2010
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Posted January 26, 2010
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Posted October 8, 2010
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Overview
As a Chinese adoptee in St. Louis, teenage Daiyu often feels out of place. When an elderly Asian jewelry seller at a street fair shows her a black jade ring—and tells her that “black jade” translates to “Daiyu”—she buys it as a talisman of her heritage. But it’s more than that; it’s magic. It takes Daiyu through a gateway into a version of St. Louis much like 19th century China. Almost immediately she is recruited as a spy, which means hours of training in manners and niceties and sleight of hand. It also means stealing time to be with handsome Kalen, who is in on the plan. There’s only one problem. Once her task is done, she must go back to St. Louis and leave him behind forever. . . .