- Hardcover: 496 pages
- Publisher: HarperCollins (1 Mar 2004)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0007163738
- ISBN-13: 978-0007163731
- Product Dimensions: 22.6 x 15.2 x 3.6 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 1,160,169 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Review
'The Secrets of Jin-Shei is a completely original - and a completely magical piece of literature' Joanne Harris
Woven into the fabric of a medieval-like China, this is the story of ten girls, each destined to give up everything for Jin-Shei, the sisterhood. Set against a backdrop of the Imperial Court the girls are brought together by the hand of fate. The secret language of the Jin-Shei is passed on from mother to daughter, a tie more binding than death itself! Born out of necessity and transcending all social barriers this saga of a novel takes us on a journey from the cloistered women of the court, stifled by protocol, to the court of The Beggar King. An exciting journey of honour, betrayal, intrigue, love, alchemy, evil, corruption, sacrifice and the quest for immortality, this is a tapestry of human frailty and the gift of life. The journey is a long one but well worth the telling. Enjoyable and sad. (Kirkus UK)
Woven into the fabric of a medieval-like China, this is the story of ten girls, each destined to give up everything for Jin-Shei, the sisterhood. Set against a backdrop of the Imperial Court the girls are brought together by the hand of fate. The secret language of the Jin-Shei is passed on from mother to daughter, a tie more binding than death itself! Born out of necessity and transcending all social barriers this saga of a novel takes us on a journey from the cloistered women of the court, stifled by protocol, to the court of The Beggar King. An exciting journey of honour, betrayal, intrigue, love, alchemy, evil, corruption, sacrifice and the quest for immortality, this is a tapestry of human frailty and the gift of life. The journey is a long one but well worth the telling. Enjoyable and sad. (Kirkus UK)
Product Description
A sweeping epic set in medieval China; it is the story of a group of women, the Jin-Shei sisterhood, who form a uniquely powerful circle that transcends class and social custom. They are bound together by a declaration of loyalty that transcends all other vows, even those with the gods, by their own secret language, passed from mother to daughter, by the knowledge that some of them will have to pay the ultimate sacrifice to enable others to fulfil their destiny. The sisterhood we meet run from the Emperor's sister to the street-beggar, from the trainee warrior in the Emperor's Guard to the apprentice healer, from the artist to the traveller-girl, herself an illegitimate daughter of an emperor and seen as a threat to the throne. And as one of them becomes Dragon Empress, her determination to hold power against the sages of the temple, against the marauding forces from other kingdoms, drags the sisterhood into a dangerous world of court intrigue, plot and counterplot, and brings them into conflict with each other from which only the one who remains true to all the vows she made at the very beginning to the dying Princess Empress can rescue them.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
25 of 25 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Exotic and magical - complete escapism,
By
This review is from: The Secrets of Jin-Shei (Paperback)
This was such a fantastic read for me. From the very first page, I was hooked; Alexander's prose is poetical and evocative of a magical place and time. The story follows a group of young girls, all different in age, as they grow up into adulthood. These girls are all from different social classes and positions in their society; medieval China. However, they are also linked - through jin-shei. Jin-shei is a secret society of women, bound to each other not by blood but by loyalty that makes them sisters of the heart. This special bond may mean that they merely share their secrets in life, their passions, and their upsets, just as any close friends do. However, their loyalty may be tested in harder ways and a favour asked in the name of jin-shei cannot be ignored. As the girls pass into adulthood and they begin to find their place in the world, this bond begins to be tested as one of their number becomes the Dragon Empress. In her new place of power she lusts after complete control of her state. But the loyalties of her jin-shei sisters is really put to the test when she beigns to lust after the impossible; immortality. Suddenly, their seemingly idyllic world is a place of intrigue, treason, gossip and many dangers. Will the jin-shei group survive? This book is fantastic for those people who enjoy complete new worlds where they can escape into for a while. There are essences of religion and philosophy, magic (dark and good), love and hate, and tragedy. It is a complex book as it follows quite a few characters. However, all the characters seemed very real to me, each one had personalities which had good and weaker sides. I really enjoyed this book, it is magical. . .
12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Awww! I wish I could read it all over again!,
This review is from: The Secrets of Jin-Shei (Paperback)
I absolutley loved The Secrets Of Jin-Shei! It was so sweet, and I found myself really attatched to the characters. It's all about a special 'society' that only women in this certain part of medeival China have, called Jin-Shei. They have their own secret language that is passed down from mother to daughter, and must never be shown to men. Also, they have unique bonds to each other, that are more powerful than the Gods. This AMAZING book is about a circle of girls as they grow into women, tied together by the sacred bond of Jin-Shei. But there are secrets that should never be told, secrets that if brought to light could mean the end of the Jin-Shei circle. I would recommend this book who loves to read about oriental stuff. Some parts were so sad they had me in tears! Whenever I felt that the story was getting the teeeeensiest bit dull, (and I mean teeeeensiest!) I was reeled back in, just by a single paragraph! I have no critcisms whatsoever about this book, it's deffinatley one of my favourites. Read it now!!
11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
BEAUTIFUL & MAGICAL..,
By reena khan (The Kingdom Of Narnia) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Secrets of Jin-Shei (Paperback)
This is a bit of a complicated read to start with as the plot is based on a number of main Characters. They all come in & fold together perfectly.. sending you into a wold of loyalty, obsession, love, magic, political unrest & the unbreakable bond of sisterhood.. the Jin Shei.. This is a wonderful read, i coulndt put it down & I mourned when it finished..
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