The Night Tiger

Actual rating: 4.5★Rounded up because I really liked the romance. Don't judge me. Some people really like this sort of thing, and I am one of those people.Similarly to [b:The Ghost Bride 16248223 The Ghost Bride Yangsze Choo https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1356671808s/16248223.jpg 22277074], this book is full of everything familiar to me as a Chinese who grew up in South East Asia. The plot moves rather slowly, as the book has two main perspectives that eventually connect and get things going. This time, however, the story revolves heavily around a string of murder mystery. Personally, I am quite fond of the genre so I enjoyed it thoroughly. There are some loose ends and things that I wish would've been expanded upon, such as the appearance of the weretiger. The book does leave enough clues for you to piece things together, but a clear conclusion or explanation would've made it much nicer.Also, the romance makes up for it so in the end it's still a really enjoyable read. I really like years of repressed yearning and desperation okay, so I find the whole thing with Shin super cute. Especially the hotel scene. :')There's a lot of flashbacks and dream sequences, which may make it confusing for those who aren't familiar with Asian beliefs and superstition, but for me the trip to the “train station” was quite fun since I quickly realized what the “river” was supposed to be. I don't understand why some people said the issue with the five virtues disappeared along the way, because it remains as a stable theme all the way until the end. Then again, maybe it was too subtle for those who aren't familiar with the culture.The ending is wonderful too. It left me wanting for more, but I love how the story closed with both main characters linked together, as they had been throughout the whole book. Definitely a refreshing read for me, who has been failing to muster any interest in recent YA books. We need more books like this.