Tiger Lily of Bangkok

Tiger Lily of Bangkok - Review

Lilian Roberts's review on Goodreads
Jun 21, 2014

 5 of 5 stars

I was given TIGER LILY OF BANGKOK free and in return I was to give it an honest review. I give the story a five star as I really got caught into an amazing plot filled with abuse, pain, confusion, anger and retaliation.

I was pleasantly surprise to find that there was not a single dull moment from the beginning of the story to the very end. Lily’s story is heartbreaking and it difficult not to feel sympathy and warmth towards a child that had been abused, at such a young age by someone her parents trusted and she called him “uncle” as an honorary title.

This horrible man shuttered Lilly’s young dreams and made it difficult for her to find her way out of misery and try to live a normal life. She left the small village in Isaan near the Mekong River and moved to Bangkok where she attended the university as a medical student.

Owen Jones did a wonderful job in providing a very compelling and interesting story. Lily is a very likable character and I liked how the author created a dual personality so the reader can understand her anger and need to take revenge as well as the girl who want to live a normal peaceful life.

Tiger Lily of Bangkok was a great read for me and I would recommend the book to anyone who loves complicated, exciting, and intriguing stories with a good outcome.

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Lilian Roberts is the published author of the series entitled 'Immortal Rapture', which is available on Amazon. Read more about Lilian Roberts here: Megan Publishing Services

Tiger Lily of Bangkok by Owen Jones is available in paperback or ebook formats from Amazon using links on this site.

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4.0 out of 5 stars: Interesting, well planned out, January 23, 2014

By The Bookie Monster (Cape Coral, FL, US) - See all my reviews

This review is from:
Tiger Lily of Bangkok
(Kindle Edition)

Tiger Lily of Bangkok is a story of tragedy, loss, and also confusion about how the bad things that happened to Lily - that caused her to be ignored and feared by people her own age in her home village - also benefited her in many ways. If she had not had to deal with her "uncle" then she didn't believe she would have had the chance to live in the city and go to university.

She comes to understand that the monetary compensation she received from her shame would not be enough to live on comfortably while paying for school, and so she takes on boyfriends who give her money and gifts, and this is not an unusual practice. It is a sad life; she doesn't have anyone to really care for, and doesn't let anyone get close to her. She never allows anyone to know the truth about her past or even see where she lives. She lies to the boyfriends, makes up different names and personas for them, and tells them she spends weekends back with her mother helping out in her shop in order to spend weekends alone.

Her unhappiness grows, and it is almost like she separates into two different people. One is violent and lashing out at people in order to take some vengeance, to feel some justice for what she went through as a child. The other is sad, lonely, and struggling to find a way to have a normal life and find someone to have a real boyfriend/girlfriend relationship with. The book makes you wonder if she had managed to kill her uncle when she was a child, or if someone else had, would it have been enough to soothe her burning need for someone to be held accountable for his crime? Would she still have developed into the person she became, or would she have been able to let it go and live a life as other teenagers did?

Lily's story kept me interested and wondering if she was going to get away with the unbelievable things she did or if it would come crashing down around her. I wasn't sure if I wanted her to get caught or not. It also begs the question - do child abusers deserve what they get? Who should be able to dole out the punishment?

I was glad that the book ended with a ray of hope.

I was given this book in exchange for an honest review. I give it 4 stars. The story was interesting, well planned out, and I enjoyed it.

Reviewed by Marie Drake, member of the The Bookie Monster team.