the story is told from three different points of view, all in san francisco: li nuan, a chinese immigrant sold to a local mob boss and prostituted at sixteen years old; nathan, a designer at a tech company in 2006, and maida, a psychic who can sense the stories of objects by touching them. I loved how each character was so unique and how, together, they really told the story of the city from three different perspectives. the interlocking narratives were very well done and helped to drive home the point that the past is never truly gone and informs our lives every day. 

on a fundamental level, this book was well-written. the descriptions were so vivid, I really felt like I was at burning man, or turn of the century sf, or the far future. it made the absolute horrors of the brothel, and li nuan's ability to survive through them, hit harder. all of the characters were compelling and I found myself really wanting to keep reading to see the conclusion of all of their stories. 

there was a little bit too much info dumping about the future world and I think that ending wrapped up too nicely, but other than that. the story flowed well. I love how unique the story is-- from the focus on different types of psychic powers to the trippy view on all time as occurring in the same moment. I'm so glad that people are still writing books like this and that they're still getting published. angry robot is one of my favorite indie presses out there. thank you to them and netgalley for the ARC! 

read for r/fantasy bingo 2025: lgbt protagonist