A moving, historically detailed story steeped in Vietnamese culture. I loved the bonds of sisterhood and the cultural nuances. I learned a lot listening to this book and enjoyed it a lot. Much thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ALC in exchange for my honest review!

Format: audiobook
Author: Phong Nguyen ~ Title: Bronze Drum ~ Narrator: Quyen Ngo
Content: 4 stars ~ Narration: 5 stars

Based on a true events, Bronze Drum is an inspiring story of two sisters (Trung Trac and Trung Nhi) that gathered an army of 80,000 Vietnam women to overthrow the Han Chinese and liberate their people. We follow the two sisters from their youth. Trung Trac and Trung Nhi were pretty different. One was a perfect daughter, obedient, and the other was rebellious. Throughout this story, we also take a peek into Vietnam culture. Interestingly, that women could choose and stay unmarried.

I strongly recommend this novel to readers of historical tales of brave women and warriors.

The audiobook was a good choice, and the narration was perfect. This way, I could hear the pronunciation of all those names. I loved all the different sounds of drums that the narrator imitated. I was a bit lost a few times, and I think it was because of time lapses and partially because the names confused me. A combination of book and audiobook would be even better.

This is such a refreshing historical fiction novel! It’s completely different, probably because it’s from a completely different culture than I generally come across.

If anything, this book has definitely confirmed I need to seek out different cultures in books because it’s not as easy to draw comparisons when the book is in a different setting with different cultures. It was amazing to hear this story.

I received an audio copy from NetGalley and I have no complaints there. The narrator was fantastic and put enough energy into the story to keep it interesting. It’s not your typical war story and I really enjoyed it.

My only real complaint is that the epilogue left much to be desired. I feel it could have been done differently or added extra to it so it felt complete.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I really enjoyed learning more about ancient Vietnamese culture and history, but this story felt a bit disjointed to me, The chapters didn't flow well into each other, though that may just be the nature of the stories in existence about Trung Trac and Trung Nhi. Mythology is often choppy like this, so it makes sense that such an ancient tale may be similar. Either way, I found the story to be interesting and inspiring, but the broken flow did make it difficult for me at times. It may be easier to read this one in physical form, rather than as an audiobook! The narrator's voice and tone were very pleasant; I found some of the words difficult to comprehend but my ear isn't overly familiar with Eastern languages so I believe this to just be a personal issue.

Thank you to Phong Nguyen, Hachette Audio, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this ARC!

“Ours is not a war for bloodthirsty men to tear each other apart. Ours is a war to restore justice. No woman would fight for the sake of the fight, and every one of us is in it for the cause.”

Bronze Drum is the story of two warrior sisters, Trung Trac and Trung Nhi, who raised an army of women to overthrow the Han Chinese and rule as kings in 40 CE. These daughters of a Vietnamese Lord fill their days training and studying, trying to stay true to their Vietnamese traditions.

You guys. THIS COVER. I may have actually squealed when I was gifted both an eARC and an ALC if this book. All opinions herein are my own.

Hell YES to strong women knowing their worth and never taking no for an answer. Wow. These women are amazing and strong and multiple times while reading I had to remind myself that this is based on real women. Giving birth on a battlefield?! I mean #Respect. I loved learning about the bronze drums, as they held quite a level of importance throughout the story. I did a deep dive google search after I finished the book!

I would highly recommend the audio for this one! I am so glad that I was able to have the names and places pronounced properly. Given that it’s a Vietnamese story I felt that the narrator Quyen Ngo was perfect! I could listen to her talk forever.

“But if you expect wisdom to come with age, without the rigor of study, then you will find yourself one day merely old and boastful. If you seek true knowledge, then you must first accept your own unknowing.” ☝🏻

Thank you to Netgalley, Hachette Audio, Grand Central Publishing, and the author!

This isn’t my usual read since it is historical fiction with no fantasy aspects, but I am glad I went out of my comfort zone because I enjoyed this audiobook and thought about it when I didn’t have it on.

The book is told from third person narrative and mostly follows the two daughters of a Vietnamese Lord. Trung Trac and Trung Nhi are very different from one another but when they are not arguing with each other they really work well together through each of their strengths and weaknesses. Their lives are not always easy when they are younger as they are told what they can and cannot do. Through that, they find themselves on a path of war to free them from the constraints that the Han Chinese bind them with.

This was a heartbreaking read and one that I felt invested in. I couldn’t help but feel for the sisters as they lose freedom and even people as their story progresses. The other women in this book are just as powerful as well even if they don’t get as much page time. They were strengthened together and took down those who were thought to be stronger. Many of the Han Chinese didn’t believe in these women’s strength and found out firsthand what they could do, even while pregnant for one!

I had never heard of these sisters before but through this book I am keen on looking up more about them because I do find them to be quite fascinating.

The audiobook was well done and I enjoyed the narrator. I feel that if I had read this book it may have been on the dryer side, especially at the beginning of the book when everything is being laid out. If you are like me in this way then definitely go for the audiobook.

Overall, this was an enjoyable and powerful read. I’m glad I gave it a chance.