Yangsze

Choo

Bestselling Novelist

Fantasy and Literary Fiction Writer

Travels from: San Francisco, CA

“Choo’s writing is lush and the slow revelation of complication relationships and reunions hum with tension. This is a treat.” ― Publishers Weekly

Yangsze Choo is the New York Times bestselling author of THE GHOST BRIDE (now a Netflix Original series) and THE NIGHT TIGER, a Reese Witherspoon Book Club Pick, Amazon’s Spotlight Pick, a Book of the Month Club selection, and one of Bookbub and USA Today’s best books of the year. It was also a Big Jubilee Read selection for Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee.

Her new novel, THE FOX WIFE, is a Time Magazine Best Book of February 2024, a Book of the Month Club, a Fresh Fiction pick for Oprah Daily, as well as a semifinalist for Jimmy Fallon’s Book Club on The Tonight Show. She lives in California with her family and loves to eat and read (often at the same time). THE FOX WIFE and all previous novels would not have been possible without large quantities of dark chocolate.

Yangsze's Featured Titles

The Ghost Bride/the Chinese marriage of the dead

Book talk about the Chinese marriage of the dead, including folk beliefs about burned offerings, paper money, and the connection between families and ancestor worship. The notion of the dead having marriages and the Chiense afterlife, as well as

Also includes a slide show about with photographs of overseas Chinese communities and the preparations for the Festival of Hungry Ghosts

The Night Tiger/Mirror worlds, dancehall girls, and were-tigers in 1930s colonial Malaya

Book talk about 1930s colonial Malaya and the large rambling houses left by the British, as well as the relationships between servants and masters (a Downton Abbey of the tropics).

Parallel or mirror worlds within dreams, the significance of twins, Malay and Chinese superstitions concerning fengshui, lucky numbers, and were-tigers. Dancehall girls and their popularity. Child servants, as well as my own family history as tin miners and plantation workers from the setting of the novel in the Kinta Valley.

The Fox Wife/Childhood first love,

Book talk about the shape-shifting foxes of Chinese, Japanese, and Korean literature, the cult of the fox in northern China/Manchuria, and its

Includes a slideshow of the beautiful garden villas of the literati in China, some of which were 1000 years old, with plants and courtyards designed to create worlds within worlds.

Modern roses and their Chinese heritage/Ancient Chinese flowers and their cultural significance

I’m currently writing a novel about plants and roses. Interestingly, most people don’t realize that the repeat flowering modern roses are all descended from crosses from China. Previously, European roses were only once-flowering, but China had repeat flowering roses that continue to bloom through the summer, from 1000 years of rose breeding. The 4 mainstays of modern European roses, such as “Old Blush”, were all collected from China in the 1700s, and crossed with once-flowering European roses to create our modern repeat-flowering roses.

Ancient Chinese roses, hybridized since the Han and Tang dynasties, had very poetic names such as “Sleeping Beauty”, and “Pearl in the Dragon’s Mouth”. They were separated into 2 types, known as qiang wei (climbers) and yue ji (flowering every month).

A discussion on Chinese gardens as well as the cultural meanings of specific plants and flowers.
Includes a slideshow on ancient Chinese roses as well as the historic gardens of Suzhou and Hangzhou

Culinary Adventures in Historical Fiction

As an avid cook and reader myself, I’ve particularly enjoyed researching historical food for my novels. For each book, I’ve cooked and eaten my way through historical and regional cuisines to reflect the dishes that appear in the plot.

Cuisines include 1930s colonial British food, Malay and peranakan dishes from the 1800s, and northern Chinese/Japanese food.

“Yangsze really is an eloquent and engaging person. I enjoyed how personable she is with everyone she speaks with. She discussed some many great aspects about her book and was able to answer some of the questions from the community.” ― Henderson Libraries, 2025

“Although we rarely invite authors to return, we want to make an exception with you and would be honored if you would speak from the stage at our Festival next year. Your latest work, The Fox Wife, has bedazzled our Author Selection Committee, and we want to share it with the 550 people who will attend next spring. I also want you to know that having listened to your narration of the book and heard you speak in the past, we really value your ability to engage our audience.” ― The Pasadena Festival of Women, 2024

“I wanted to thank Yangsze again so, so much for her delightful conversation and insight tonight. I’m so grateful to have gotten to meet her and learn more about her story. She is a remarkable human being and carries joy and peace upon her shoulders! I hope she feels as special as she is! I hope our futures connect again one day.” ― Book club organizer, May 2024

“OH MY GOSH! Thank you so very much!!! At the highest we had somewhere over 200 people in attendance! You are such a rock star. People are stopping by my office raving about how this has been their FAVORITE of all time of our API heritage month events. I fully enjoyed chatting with you again.” ― AAPI Heritage Month Law Firm Host, May 2024

“Hi! I just wanted to reach out again to express our EXTREME gratitude for taking the time and effort to join our meeting!! It was honestly such an honor. We could not stop talking about how thrilling the experience was.” ― Book Club Organizer, April 2024

“What a fantastic program! I so [enjoyed] meeting you! You were such a delight to interview. I especially loved the way you described the writing process. The imagery of you riding a bike, at night, with ideas scurrying from the bushes, is marvelous. I have been receiving emails all day, letting me know how much everyone would like you to come back! I hope that is something you will consider.” ― Librarian, Milpitas Public Library, 2019

Yangsze’s Press Link

Honors, Awards & Recognition

The Ghost Bride:
NYTimes bestseller
Netflix Original Series
Oprah.com’s Book of the Week
Indie Next List pick
Barnes & Noble Fall ‘13 Discover Great New Writers selection
Goodreads Choice Award Finalist for Best Fantasy
Glamour Magazine 2013 Beach Read
Good Housekeeping Magazine Book Pick
The Bookseller Editor’s Pick
Library Journal Barbara’s Pick

The Night Tiger:
Instant NYTimes bestseller,
Reese Witherspoon Book Club Pick
Book of the Month Club Pick,
A Most Anticipated Book (Glamour, Real Simple, Parade, Bustle, BookPage, Goodreads, PopSugar, BookRiot, Refinery29, Tor.com, HelloGiggles)
USA Today: Best Books of the Year So Far
Refinery29: A Best Book of the Year (So Far)
Parade: A Best Book of the Year
National Geographic: 13 New Books for Spring Break Trips

The Fox Wife:
Book of the Month Club,
Semifinalist for Jimmy Fallon’s bookclub on The Tonight Show,
A Best Book of February by Time
A Most Anticipated Book of 2024 by LitHub and BookPage
A Fresh Fiction Pick by Oprah Daily
A February 2024 IndieNext Pick
A February 2024 LibraryReads pick

Media clips

NPR | Yangsze Choo on her new novel ‘The Fox Wife’

The New York Times | New Historical Fiction That Immerses You in Far-Flung Places

The Washington Post | 5 utterly addictive and new science fiction and fantasy novels

The Washington Post | 3 new audiobooks whisk listeners around the globe

Media Kit

By clicking the link below you will be directed to a Google Docs Folder
where you can download author photos and cover images.