This was unfortunately a DNF for me at 20%. I was not drawn to any of the characters and the writing style wasn't my favorite. I need more telling and less showing, especially when it comes to foreshadowing. I snagged this egalley based on the amazing cover and the blurb, but unfortunately the story didn't give me any of the tension or mystery I was hoping for.

I thought this was very good and I will have to add this to the shop shelves. Thank you for the chance for us to review.

There is an element of magic and spells to this book, but while interesting, that is not exactly it's focus. It's more the combination of elements - immigrant heritage and trying to succeed in working class, friendship dynamics, and the pain and beauty of growing up. I thought the author weaved all these together in an excellent way, making for a unique and interesting book well worth reading.

Four new roommates (all, coincidentally, with the same middle name) dabble in witchcraft, which fulfills their wildest dreams… and also their worst nightmares. The characters were fantastic, the story had me on the edge of my seat, and the conclusion is ever so good. I’m looking forward to reading more of Van Hoang’s work!

The book was promising at the start and with the write up but I DNF'd at the 25% mark. I'm sorry, I think the pacing was off and the characters failed to hold my interest. I think it had potential but personally the elements didn't come together in a way that pulled me into the story. Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for providing me with this ARC.

4 stars

Solid read I have to say, mix of contemporary, fantasy with drop of horror. Nicely written, with interesting characters.
Asian-American girls in 1950s Los Angeles mixed with their dreams and sort of nasty magic - great combo. Fast, enjoyable read.

Thank you netgalley for an advanced ARC of this audiobook

Unfortunately this story didn't work for me. I could not connect to the characters and that kind of pulled me out of the story being told

I really enjoyed reading this novel — I enjoyed the historical fiction aspect of it a lot, I thought that, coupled with the reason for the deals and the magic system worked out really well. I liked seeing the romance slowly bloom between Cordi and the main love interest. I especially enjoyed seeing the darker elements/the price the magic takes and what it ultimately cost her in the end. It was a hard book to put down and I had a lot of fun reading this novel.

I had two issues that, combined, dropped my rating down a star. There was some point where Cordi and Tess started to get annoyed at one of the other girls in the house, Silly, and I thought it was going to go somewhere but the plot line either flew over my head or never went anywhere. The larger reason for my rating is it lacks the “dark” aspect with the “dark fantasy” descriptor. Yes, there were things that felt dark, but I don’t think it was enough. Cordi as a character was an example of that. With it being a dark fantasy, I anticipated Cordi to go through a change by the end of it, considering the contents of the novel would make her undergo a change. By the end of the novel, Cordi pretty much felt the same and she hadn’t changed much at all, which made the contents of the story fall flat.

Overall it was good and fun, but definitely missing something.

I enjoyed the story and the magical writing style of this book a lot, so I’m hoping to read more books from the author.

Four young women—strangers to each other, except for the commonality of a shared middle name—become roommates in a small apartment in Los Angeles in the 1950s in The Monstrous Misses Mai. All of them want something. Cordi just wants a job and the ability to live on her own after her parents disowned her. She’s a hard worker and a talented seamstress and fashion designer, but no one would ever give a Vietnamese American girl the chance to become a professional designer. Her roommates’ stories are similar: Tessa wants to be chosen as a model for the department store where she works as a clerk; Audrey wants to succeed at her art; Silly wants to secure an internship that she knows will pave her future path. But for all of them, success seems just out of reach, until Callum—a gregarious, mysterious man who helped all of them find the apartment to rent it together—makes them an offer. What if they could just do a little magic, and get everything they wanted?


At first, the Mais think it’s a party trick, and nothing to worry about. But when the magic works, it’s hard to not want to use it to keep making things come easily. Except…there are consequences, like Cordi’s nails turning black and her fingertips bleeding, or Tessa’s hair falling out, or Silly’s eyesight getting worse. Only Audrey, who refuses to participate, seems to escape. As the stakes rise, Cordi has to figure out what she’s willing to sacrifice for her chance—and whether, if magic got her there, that chance is really hers on her merits. Can she trust a future she didn’t earn?

This novel is steeped in its era, and the slang and clothing (the clothing!) really immerse readers in the 1950s. Hoang does a fantastic job giving us unique young women, all striving for something better, but each of them with a different approach. Cordi is imminently easy to empathize with—she’s talented, and she has tried for years to be a good daughter and sister, only to be told that when she has ideas of her own, she’s not good enough. On her own, she’s also smart enough to realize that things earned by magic aren’t truly earned—but the realization comes too late to stop the cascade of bad luck that follows selfishly-used powers. The magic and its costs are both well-drawn and horrific, and late reveals about the magical societies that work beneath the surface of glamorous Los Angeles bring everything snapping into place. This is Hoang’s first adult novel (she’s also the author of the excellent “Girl Giant” middle-grade series), and readers will absolutely hope she has more on the way. Pick this one up if you like your magic with a side of drama—and if you like your skirts to have pockets.

You know me, I'm drawn to stories about witchcraft and magic like a moth to a flame, so when I read the blurb on The Monstrous Misses Mai while trying to choose my free pre-release book of the month, I was instantly sold. It was certainly unlike any other "witchy" story I've read, but still firmly within my wheelhouse.

Set in 1970s Chinatown, The Monstrous Misses Mai is about a young Vietnamese woman who, disowned by her family, lucks upon an affordable apartment to rent with three other young Asian women (who all happen to have the middle name Mai). Each of the girls has dreams of making it big in the city--one as a designer, another as a model, etc. In pursuit of their aspirations, the young "Misses Mai" find themselves lured in to a dark, dangerous underworld of magic with great rewards and monstrous consequences...

I thought this book was pretty solid. The pace was good and I loved the feeling of growing darkness and impending danger as each page turned.

reminds me of a lot of other fiction and while i liked the premise the delivery was a bit lacking in style and depth, still not a bad read.

This was an incredibly unique and mesmerizing read. Not at all what I was expecting, and yet completely bingeable. There is so much going on in this book. Family dynamics and how that affects you throughout your entire life. Being able to trust, not wanting to be alone, and to feel wanted. To have great success and to be able to put food on the table. All these worries combine to make for a perfect target. All you need is a handsome man, a little bit of magic, and the hope that all will turn out amazing in the end.

Los Angeles in 1959, is an interesting place to be. There is chatter about a war going on in Vietnam and everyone believes that if you are of Asian descent, you are Chinese. This is not so for Cordi, whose family is from Vietnam. She was born in the USA, a citizen, which does not matter to most, you are different, you stick out, you do not blend in enough to work certain jobs. Cordi is desperate, her parents kicked her out, which means she also lost her job at their alteration store. Cordi has been combing the streets for a new job and an apartment. Coming up empty handed, she trudges to the final apartment showing. She discovers a man willing to help and the nicest girl she has ever met. The building owner quickly allows the four girls to live there. Quickly making for a completely different environment than what she is used to. When the man says he has a way for all their dreams to come true, for just a small sacrifice. All bets are off and they are willing to try anything for just a chance...

I loved the characters. Each unique, a backstory to tell, and their personality varying so greatly that they pull you in. Wanting to know more and to see what they can succeed in. There is a twist which almost lost me. Yet I could not put the book down and I am so glad that I didn't. I wanted to see how far they were willing to go, what or who they were willing to sacrifice, for their own gain. Thank you to Van Hoang, 47North, and Over the River Publications for my copy of this intense magical read.

It took me a while to get into this book but once I did I was definitely fully hooked. It was just the right amount of small and contained story that I enjoy. Showing the struggles of the Main character as a child of Vietnamese immigrants into LA without fully focusing on it (because that is not what the book is about)
Cordi's struggles with wanting to be liked and trusting her abilities were also way too real...

Set in 1950's Los Angeles, this novel finds four young women, each with the middle name Mai and of Asian descent, living together in a small apartment. Each dreams of something, hopes for something, strongly desires something. How far will they go to get it? And what are they willing to sacrifice along the way? Meet The Monstrous Misses Mai, Van Hoang's novel of magic and choices. Also, what a stunning, utterly gorgeous cover! Thanks to 47North and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Cordi is in a situation! She has been disowned by her parents for disobeying and now she needs to find a place to live. At an apartment viewing, a kind stranger called Callum helps her to snag a loft space. In fact, Callum has somehow helped all her roommates to their rooms as well. To add to the odd coincidence, they all share the middle name Mai. And so, they become the Misses Mais: Cordi, Tessa, Silly, and Audrey. Calum has more "help" to offer, however, in the form of Lura, a dangerous magic which will make all your dreams come true, as long as you're willing to sacrifice something. Good things do start happening. Cordi's dreams of turning her seamstress experience into designing seem to come true. But how much is her hard work and talent and how much is the magic? Does it matter? And what when the cost keeps rising? I found Cordi a really intriguing main character. Van Hoang is clearly trying to say something about the experience of first-gen Americans, of how their parents' immigration background affects their lives, and how these battling cultural expectations create a tightrope walk. This background made me feel for Cordi and also helped me understand why she might be willing to accept a little help, in the form of magic.

Something I liked about The Monstrous Misses Mai was how Van Hoang employed this magic system in a historical fiction context. Lura, the magic of the novel, is something everyone whispers about, something the young women are warned about, and while it is terrifying and powerful, it also works as a solid metaphor for privilege. In a way I prefer Lura as a metaphor, rather than thinking of it as an actual magic system, but that is because of my love for deeply complex magic systems in Fantasy. Lura as a system feels too simple to me, in the sense that Hoang doesn't fully work it out. However, Lura as a metaphor for class and privilege, works brilliantly! In order to belong, you just need to sacrifice something you love, every time. It's not that hard really, just sell your soul, and everything you want will be yours. Don't look to closely at how people use others for their gains, just accept that everything has a cost. In that way, Lura, and the concept of magic, works excellently in The Monstrous Misses Mai. A minor complaint I would attach to that is that I wasn't sure which balance the novel was trying to strike with the themes it was addressing. On the one hand, the novel absolutely addresses race, class, and privilege. On the other hand, the tone of the novel is not overly harsh or horrifying. Rather, there was something a little dreamlike to it for me. Because of that, I was surprised to see this listed as Horror on Goodreads, since I would solidly put it in Fantasy, with a bit of violence. I consider this a minor criticism, because I enjoyed reading The Monstrous Misses Mai a lot, even if I wasn't sure how hard it wanted to go.

This was my first book by Van Hoang and I saw that she has mostly written Middle Grade Fantasy up until now. I can see how she is transitioning from that to a more Adult Fantasy here in The Monstrous Misses Mai. As I said, the tone was quite dreamlike to me, in a good way, but this also made it a gentler read that you can easily sink in to. There is death and danger in this book, but I found myself mostly drawn in by the intriguing internal conflict Cordi experiences, her growth as a young woman, Hoang's commentary, and the beautiful descriptions of the LA high life. I would love to see how Van Hoang continues to develop her adult writing style, because there is definitely a lot of interesting things here. So I'll definitely keep an eye open for future books by her!

The Monstrous Misses Mai is a delightfully twisted read, full of magic and darkness, and yet also beauty, friendship, and self-discovery. Van Hoang weaves in the experiences of first-generation Americans and comments on the impact of class, race, and gender in a 1950s LA.

Thanks to NetGalley, 47North, and Amazon Publishing for this copy of "The Monstrous Misses Mai."

In 1959 Los Angeles, four young women with big dreams of success share an apartment and coincidentally they all have "Mai" as their middle name.

A charming business partner of their landlord promises to make their dreams come true...for a price.

OK, so I got irritated with them the same way that I always got mad at Pinocchio when he's on Pleasure Island.

But I really want to see Cordelia Mai Yin's fashion designs!

Horror is not a common genre that I read, so the experience of reading The Monstrous Misses Mais was exciting and unfamiliar. The premise follows four Asian girls, all with the middle name Mai, as they navigate 1950’s Los Angeles Chinatown. They are manipulated into practicing dark magic, called Lura, that requires sacrifices to fulfill each girl’s desires. Slowly, as the girls start to experience success, the dark magic starts to demand more from them.

I enjoyed my reading experience. The pacing and writing style kept me engaged. The only problem I had with the content was the ending. I felt that for a horror book, the ending was too neatly wrapped up. In terms of genre, I felt that the book was trying to be too many different things. It was a horror but also a fantasy. It was historical fiction yet also a coming-of-age story. I believe books can be many different things, but it should have a core genre or topic that it wants to discuss. I was also disappointed in how the book was advertised as a book dealing with Asian American identity in the ’50s, but I wish there were more discussions about it. It was brushed upon slightly, but was mostly solved as the girls practiced their magic.

As someone who doesn’t read a lot of horror, I enjoyed this book as a stepping stone into the genre. I enjoyed the characters and premise, I believe it can be expanded upon for a more deeper analysis of race and historical context.

Los Angeles on the cusp of the 1960s is a city buzzing with opportunities. But not everyone has equal access to what the city can offer.

As a second generation Vietnamese immigrant and aspiring fashion designer, Cordelia is all too aware of this. She finds kindred souls in 3 young women she encounters, because they are all facing various barriers.

When an unexpected opportunity magically materialises, the quartet - who share the middle name Mai in common - are inclined to accept what is offered. But what is in it for Callum? And what price will they pay for the agreements they enter into?

While the plot is not memorably strong, the book deals with some important things including racism, exclusion, identity and so on. And it provides insights into the time and place of its setting. Overall, this is an entertaining read for those who enjoy magical realism with a dash of horror.

Thanks to the author/publisher for providing me with an ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book tells the story of Cordelia Mai Yin, an aspiring fashion designer who's struggling with finding a job as she gets disowned by her family after a fight, but at least she manages to find an apartment, with roommates who all happen to have the same middle name. They all got the apartment after being helped by a guy named Callum, who seems helpful for no particular reason. And not only that, but Callum is helping them even more by teaching them some magic in order to overcome their financial woes, little did they know that when it comes to magic, everything has a price.

So this is a historical urban fantasy taking place in 1950s Los Angeles, mostly around the Chinatown area of the city. This is one of those books that starta pretty weak but becomes quite good by the end. The writing style (both for the narration and dialogues) does feel a bit juvenile, but not so much that i had to stop reading, and I got used to it later on, even if this also means that the characters feel juvenile too. But at least they're all really distinct from each other and the main character does have a lot of developments. The plot of the book is nothing special. At the beginning, it's quite underwhelming, with everything being so predictable, but that changed near the end, and things became a lot more interesting. The actual ending itself is also quite a bold and somewhat unexpected one, even if it's hindered by the fact that the magic system became so complicated that the resolution of the story became a bit convoluted. Still, it's definitely an improvement over the start of the book. Overall, a decent read that still kinda worked even if it might not be exactly for me.

I struggled with the first third of this book. The beginning had a slow start and Cordi was a weak character that felt like she had little agency in her own life and was just going along with what the stronger characters wanted. The story started to pick up once the lura was involved and I enjoyed the last quarter and felt that Cordi started to make her own decisions. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.