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| Author | Nghi Vo |
|---|---|
| Publisher | Tordotcom |
Publication date | 2022 |
Siren Queen (2022) is a historical fantasy novel by Nghi Vo set in a magical 1930s Los Angeles. [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6]
| | |
| Author | Nghi Vo |
|---|---|
| Publisher | Tordotcom |
Publication date | 2022 |
Siren Queen (2022) is a historical fantasy novel by Nghi Vo set in a magical 1930s Los Angeles. [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6]
A young Chinese-American girl, known by the nickname Sissy, is living above her parents' laundry in a magical Los Angeles. Captivated by the magic of movie-making, she grows obsessed with becoming a movie star. Achieving stardom, in this Hollywood, involves a literal apotheosis that grants immortality. After a series of bit parts for the director Jacko Dewalt, she blackmails him for an introduction to the studio executive Oberlin Wolfe. To avoid revealing her real name (and thus making herself magically vulnerable), she adopts her sister's name, Luli Wei.
Luli joins Wolfe's studio system, on the condition that her roles will include "no maids, no funny talking, no fainting flowers." These conditions initially limit her career. She befriends her roommate in the studio dorms, a kidnapped Skogsrå named Greta. She also begins a romance with the more-established actress Emmaline Sauvignon. Greta falls in love with Wolfe's protégé Brandt Hiller, the intended sacrifice for a ritual known as the Wild Hunt through which Wolfe feeds a dangerous ancient power. Eventually, Luli lands a major role as a siren. She relishes portraying a monster, and befriends her famous co-star Harry Long. Harry reveals to her his secret relationship with a man, Teo. Luli's siren movie is a hit, as is its sequel. Greta (now pregnant) and Luli rescue Brandt during the Wild Hunt, and he and Greta escape to Sweden. Emmaline rejects Luli, angry that she drew Wolfe's negative attention.
Two years later, Luli is successful but lonely. Teo breaks up with Harry, who marries a young actress on the studio's orders. While filming the third siren movie, the set catches fire and Harry disappears; he is declared dead. Luli connects with the butch Tara Lubowski at a lesbian bar. Jacko is brought on to direct a hasty re-envisioning of the siren film without Harry in the lead. As Jacko's revenge on Luli, the film now ends with the siren begging pathetically for her life, then being kissed and killed by the film's new heroine, played by Emmaline. Luli is initially angry that Tara (under a male pseudonym) has written this degrading ending, but after she and Tara get to know each other better, they begin a romance. Filming the climactic death scene of her siren, Luli achieves magical stardom. On the strength of this performance, she negotiates a new contract with Wolfe: no degrading roles, and no studio interference in her personal life, but plenty of monsters.
The epilogue is narrated from Luli's perspective as a celestial star in the present day, reflecting on the legacy of her long career.
Vo initially wrote a draft of Siren Queen for a contest run by Angry Robot, which sought novels from writers who didn't yet have agents. [7] It was the first novel she wrote, although her second novel The Chosen and the Beautiful (2021) would be published before it. [8] Despite losing the contest, Vo began sending the draft to agents, and eventually gained representation from Diana Fox. [9] At the time, it was her longest piece of writing, and she has described it as challenging to shift out of the writing mindset which shaped her earlier short stories. [7]
The novel is framed like a memoir, narrated by a future Luli who is aware of the differences between truth and memory. [2] Scenes from movies are also described like Luli's memories, weaving them in to the narrative. [4] The fantasy elements are introduced without explicit explanation, only gradually building into a distinctive world. [5] [6] A key narrative effect is a feeling of unreality, [4] or the sense that metaphors are actually real. [1] By never quite providing enough information to fully understand the dark magic that Luli navigates, the book keeps readers in suspense; there is always a lingering possibility of another cost to be paid. [10]
Lilu navigates Hollywood as "a multiple outsider in a rigged system," [5] facing racism (especially Chinese exclusionism), sexism, and queerphobia. [2] [4] A central question of the book is how Luli will accomplish her ambitions, especially whether she will sacrifice her authenticity by accepting racial stereotypes in her roles and keeping her queer relationships secret. [4] [6] Her embrace of her monstrous siren character accompanies an embrace of a non-assimilationist strategy: she claims power by setting her own terms and forcing others to accede to them, sometimes ruthlessly. [2] [6]
In 2023, Siren Queen was a finalist for the World Fantasy Award, [11] the Locus Award, [12] and the Ignyte Award. [13]
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