The Last Rose of Shanghai by Weina Dai Randel

The Last Rose of Shanghai by Weina Dai Randel

Published: December 1st 2021 by Lake Union Publishing
Source: NetGalley
Format: eBook
Rating: 5 out of 5

Summary:

In Japanese-occupied Shanghai, two people from different cultures are drawn together by fate and the freedom of music...

1940. Aiyi Shao is a young heiress and the owner of a formerly popular and glamorous Shanghai nightclub. Ernest Reismann is a penniless Jewish refugee driven out of Germany, an outsider searching for shelter in a city wary of strangers. He loses nearly all hope until he crosses paths with Aiyi. When she hires Ernest to play piano at her club, her defiance of custom causes a sensation. His instant fame makes Aiyi's club once again the hottest spot in Shanghai. Soon they realize they share more than a passion for jazz—but their differences seem insurmountable, and Aiyi is engaged to another man.

As the war escalates, Aiyi and Ernest find themselves torn apart, and their choices between love and survival grow more desperate. In the face of overwhelming odds, a chain of events is set in motion that will change both their lives forever.

From the electrifying jazz clubs to the impoverished streets of a city under siege, The Last Rose of Shanghai is a timeless, sweeping story of love and redemption.

Review:

Pacing 5/5

Characters 5/5

Writing 5/5

Romance 5/5

I'm sixty years old, an entrepreneur, a philanthropist, and a troubled woman

That's the first line. I cannot express how beautiful this book is without telling you the first line. Look me in the eye and tell me you are not intrigued just by that first sentence.

There is a kind of love that strikes like a thunderbolt; it blinds you, yet opens your eyes to see the world anew. Within its light, a pathway is illuminated.

The Last Rose of Shanghai tells a beautiful story of love at first sight between Aiyi and Ernest. Despite the complex social context between the two, Aiyi being Chinese and Ernest being Jewish, they find love through music - definitely recommend this book to music lovers who wish to be able to describe their love for music into words. Aiyi is the definition of a GIRLBOSS. She is an heiress fighting her Chinese traditional family norms by owning a nightclub that plays jazz for people to dance to all night. Ernest is a refugee escaping Nazi Germany struggling to find a job that support him and his little sister. This overly well-researched story reveals a forbidden romance in a time of war and poverty.

It's hard for me to describe the impact this book made on me without copy and pasting the entire book into this review and asking you to read it. When I first saw that the author also wrote Moon in the Palace (another favorite) I had to drop everything to read it immediately. This book is a big representation of how small acts of love can have a big impact. I am still swooning from the intimacy of Ernest learning how to pronounce Aiyi's name correctly while playing the piano for her to the spicy scenes where they make love.

It was unconscionable, and potentially serious consequences awaited me. But who would say it was wrong to indulge in a song from your heart during the winter days of your life?

Of course all love stories come with a tragedy. It is set up from the beginning that not all happiness lasts. Shanghai is crumbling from war and being overtaken. How can one find happiness in its rubble? Reading the two's love story and waiting for the 'drop' was an exhilarating drive. I couldn't put down the book and had to know what happened next. Will they be happy? Seems impossible. But their love is so passionate that it makes you want to squeeze the book, cry, and wish for happiness to come. And let me tell you I did cry at the end from all different kinds of tragedy that Weina Dai Randel taught me. I cannot stress enough how important this book is and the impact it will make in your life, especially if you are of Asian descent and don't get to read many stories of your people. I definitely recommend this book and hope to buy it for my cousin for Christmas :)

Warm regards,

Diana Banana