The setting is Tonkin (northern Vietnam) at the turn of the 20th century. A boy, Tai, witnesses the beheading of his father, a notorious bandit, and sets out to recover his head and then to find the man who betrayed his father to the authorities. On this quest, Tai's entire world will shift. FLESH takes the reader into dark and delightful places in the human condition, places where allies are not always your friends, true love hurts, and your worst enemy may bring you the most comfort. In that emotionally harrowing world, Tai must learn to deal with new responsibilities in his life while at the same time acknowledging his bond, and his resemblance, to a man he barely knew--his father. Through this story of revenge is woven another story, one of love, but love purchased with the blood of murders Tai commits. A coming-of-age story, but also a love story, the sensuality of the author's writing style belies the sometimes brutal world he depicts.
Recommended: Intricate world-building, definitely recommend checking out.
About Flesh
Available as: Hardcover $24.96 from Amazon.com (lower prices available of $3.42-Used and NEW-$7.94), Hardcover $24.96 from Barnes & Noble (lower prices starting at $3.94 for NEW and Used)
Recommended Ages: 18 and Up
Hardcover: 368 pgs.
Published: June 15th 2012 by Black Heron
For This Review: *Print Copy Provided through Novel Publicity Book Tours*
If you like this review - Like It on Goodreads.com
Flesh
held a huge interest as a book blogger to actually review since it delves into
deep topics in which mean the both horrible and equally beautiful aspects of
the human condition.
Flesh
is supposed to be a novel about Tai, a young boy, who during 20th
century Vietnam sees his father’s beheading by his own uncle who happens to be
an executioner. Soon after this, he decides to look for his father’s skull that
the authorities have taken away in a show of disrespect. You see in those times
Vietnamese sons and daughters were to respect their parents by becoming
responsible for them by securing them well-placed resting grounds. In Flesh, we
see this well enough. Tai’s strong search for having a way to attain
respectable graves for his family leads him to powerful men in Mr. Chim and
later much more importantly to Mr. Cao Lai. Tai learns more out of life through
Mr. Cao Lai and while living with Mr. Cao Lai also soon encounters his first
venture in to the entanglements of love.
In Flesh,
Khan Ha writes at his own pace that much is obvious from a delicate realism
seen in the novel. He wants you to take your time reading where you will be
rewarded into a look into 20th century Vietnam. A Vietnam that wasn't always fantastic but its people lived for what they lived. For a book
such as Flesh, you should enjoy its cultural aspect to a higher degree than its
actual plot even more so since occasionally things aren't always clear but left
up to the reader.
In all
seriousness it is an involving book with intuitive characters that will most
definitely hold one’s interest.
Overall: Amazing read!
Genre: Historical Fiction
Novel Publicity Blog Tour Notes
Wanna win a $50 gift card or an autographed copy of Flesh?- Leave a comment on my blog. One random commenter during this tour will win a $50 gift card. For the full list of participating blogs, visit the official Flesh tour page.
- Enter the Rafflecopter contest! I've posted the contest form below, or you can enter on the tour page linked above.
Flesh Blog Tour Schedule
Monday | 22-Oct | The Cover (and Everything in Between) |
Tuesday | 23-Oct | My Life of Books & Beauty |
Wednesday | 24-Oct | Books for YAs! |
Thursday | 25-Oct | Intoxicated by Books |
Friday | 26-Oct | Celestial Reviews |
Saturday | 27-Oct | Talisman Book Publishing |
Sunday | 28-Oct | Whisper of Reads |
Monday | 29-Oct | Barefoot Med Student |
Tuesday | 30-Oct | Black Heart Magazine |
Wednesday | 31-Oct | My Syreniti |
Thursday | 1-Nov | The Muse Unleashed |
Friday | 2-Nov | The Trust Blog |
Saturday | 3-Nov | The Reading Pile |
Sunday | 4-Nov | Books for Me |
Monday | 5-Nov | The Unicorn's Review |
Tuesday | 6-Nov | A Daydreamer's Thoughts |
Wednesday | 7-Nov | Cabin Goddess |
Thursday | 8-Nov | Genius Book Reviews |
Saturday | 10-Nov | M. Fenn's Blog |
Sunday | 11-Nov | B00K R3VI3WS |
Monday | 12-Nov | Tread Softly |
Tuesday | 13-Nov | The Reviewing Shelf |
Celtic Lady's Ramblings | ||
Wednesday | 14-Nov | Book and Movie Dimension |
Thursday | 15-Nov | Reflections from a Cloudy Mirror |
Friday | 16-Nov | A Day in Doha |
Saturday | 17-Nov | Novel Publicity Twitterview |
About the author
Get Flesh on Amazon or Barnes & Noble.
