Finished ✔️ The Golden Gate by Amy Chua.
4.5 ⭐️’s
Publish Day: September 19th, 2023
Kindle Unlimited: No
It’s Amy Chua’s debut novel and was pretty good
Sweeping, evocative, and compelling historical thriller that paints a vibrant portrait of a California buffeted by the turbulent crosswinds of a world at war and a society about to undergo massive change.
It held my attention the whole way through.
Brilliantly written and told.
Yes, I’d recommend it.
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Writing: 4/5 Plot: 4.5/5 Characters: 5/5

An extremely convoluted ( in a delightful way) murder mystery set against an intricately detailed history of the San Francisco Bay Area in the 1930s and 40s. Walker Wilkinson — a rich industrialist and possible presidential candidate — is shot in his room at the Claremont Hotel in Berkeley. Mixed race Detective Al Sullivan lands the case which offers him suspects and witnesses that range from the very rich to the poor and dispossessed — from political figures to steel workers to Chinese / Black / Mexican / Japanese workers. Chua — an historian, this is her first novel — weaves in famous figures such as Madame Chiang Kai Shek, Julia Morgan, Dr. Margaret Chung, and August Vollmer with perfect integrity and context. Background history is delivered in a more or less integrated way ranging from laws and policies to the history of crime labs, the threat of Communism, the opening of the Golden Gate Bridge, the Kaiser shipyards (before it was just a medical plan!), and even the geology of the state. I was aware of some of the historical references — e.g. the Chinese Exclusion Act — but not some of the others such as the Mexican Expulsion of 1931 and the Mann Act (aka the White Slaves act) which was often used against those in interracial marriages. Chua’s non-fiction books focus on “the disparate impact of capitalism on different ethnic and immigrant groups” and that theme is front and center of this well-written and engaging historical mystery.

Some random quotes:
“In California, we have county coroners, and they’re elected, which is not exactly a recipe for competence.“

“That depends on your view of relevance. Yours, Mr. Doogan, appears to be quite cramped.”

“You can’t trust newspapers, but there’s one subject they’re good at — hate. First they whip it up, then they report on it.“

“There’s a suspicion line in every society, Miriam, and you’re either above it or below it. The people above that line, they never even think about it. They walk the streets like they own them. They take for granted that the law is there to protect them because it is.”

Emily Dickinson, but quoted in the book and I love it: “To live is so startling it leaves little time for anything else.”

The Golden Gate by Amy Chua is a magnificent debut novel.
One of the most compelling historical thrillers I’ve read lately.
Set in Berkeley, California, in 1944 Amy Chua weaves a nice story intricately together, along with a timeline to create a spellbinding tale.
A riveting story, gracefully written and eagerly consumed.
With strong leading characters who totally stole the show. I was hooked onto every word.
TGG was a page-turning debut bringing to life a historical masterpiece.
The vivid descriptions and storytelling painted a vibrant portrait of a California buffeted by the turbulent crosswinds of a world at war.
If you love history, you will love this book!
This book weaved a stunning of history into a thrilling story.

"I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own."

Thank You NetGalley and Minotaur Books for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

Twists, turns, noir, eerie, all in this novel. A great story surrounding the murder of a politician in his hotel. The setting is San Francisco; both sides of San Francisco. The wealthy who live atop Nob Hill and the poor who do their bidding. The story takes place during the shameful era of Japanese internment. The author includes a great deal about the history and politics of WWII America, especially California.

Although I found the book fascinating, I feel it was just “too much” and a bit overwhelming. There are too many subplots. I think they should have been eliminated, especially the subplot surrounding Madame Chiang Kai Shek.
Additionally , there were too many characters. Despite liking the book, I did find it confusing.

I loved the character of Al Sullivan, the intrepid detective in charge of the case. Honestly, I hope I get to meet him and his niece Miriam in future books. He is the perfect vehicle for mysteries during this period in the fascinating mosaic of San Francisco.

Thank you Netgalley for this novel.

oooh so much to unpack. first, what stood out to me about this novel is that it's not just a mystery novel—the little nuggets of historical info really make it feel like you're in 1940s berkeley, and the details (which readers who are less of a history nerd than i am may find a little digressive and annoying, but which i appreciated immensely) were illuminating. i also really appreciated the nuanced commentary about the bainbridge sisters—they were rich, and they were flawed, but they were human, too. i also didn't really guess at the ending until the end, which is kinda rare for me, having read all of agatha christie's books and many modern mysteries to boot. overall, an exciting debut, and i can't wait to read more!!

thanks to st. martin's press and netgalley for the arc in exchange for an honest review!

This book has so many layers that I am going to provide the synopsis given by the publisher as it is hard to "describe concisely in one sentence" as many book review outlets want

Synopsis:
************
Amy Chua's debut novel, The Golden Gate, is a sweeping, evocative, and compelling historical thriller that paints a vibrant portrait of a California buffeted by the turbulent crosswinds of a world at war and a society about to undergo massive change.

In Berkeley, California, in 1944, Homicide Detective Al Sullivan has just left the swanky Claremont Hotel after a drink in the bar when a presidential candidate is assassinated in one of the rooms upstairs. A rich industrialist with enemies among the anarchist factions on the far left, Walter Wilkinson could have been targeted by any number of groups. But strangely, Sullivan’s investigation brings up the spectre of another tragedy at the Claremont, ten years earlier: the death of seven-year-old Iris Stafford, a member of the Bainbridge family, one of the wealthiest in all of San Francisco. Some say she haunts the Claremont still.

The many threads of the case keep leading Sullivan back to the three remaining Bainbridge heiresses, now adults: Iris’s sister, Isabella, and her cousins Cassie and Nicole. Determined not to let anything distract him from the truth—not the powerful influence of Bainbridges’ grandmother, the political aspirations of Berkeley’s district attorney, or the interest of China's First Lady Madame Chiang Kai-Shek in his findings—Sullivan follows his investigation to its devastating conclusion.

Chua’s page-turning debut brings to life a historical era rife with turbulent social forces and groundbreaking forensic advances, when race and class defined the very essence of power, sex, and justice, and introduces a fascinating character in Detective Sullivan, a mixed-race former Army officer who is still reckoning with his own history.

This book has a lot of layers: It is a millefeuille of a book.(Yes, I love my baking show analogies). It is not just a mystery, it is a look into racism, political change, how being an heiress is not all it is cracked up to be and how California has changed over the decades: not necessarily for the better.

I will highly recommend it to my readers of mysteries, historical fiction, social change and lovers of rich women getting what they deserve. as it's just a darn great read!

How can this be a debut fiction book?? Well, this incredible author is also a lawyer … and A TIGER MOTHER … so said recently one of the most profound things I have heard in a while.

DO YOU KNOW WHAT A FOREIGN ACCENT IS? IT'S A SIGN OF BRAVERY.

#shortbutsweetreviews