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BookBrowse - Mark James
Govier weaves the saga of Oei's life into Japanese customs - such as the parade of courtesans, or the shaved eyebrows that signify a married woman - in a fashion that develops an intimacy between the reader, Oei, and this complex culture. It's a potent combination that results in a mystically engaging story, and though Oei may not think her life is full of incident, her legacy certainly is.
Kirkus Reviews
Although her story is hamstrung by an episodic and gangly narrative structure, Oei's quandary will resonate with female artists today.
Booklist
Starred Review. From the hothouse ferment of art studios, bordellos, and Kabuki theater to the tonic countryside, Govier's spectacularly detailed, eventful, and emotionally stormy novel is populated by vivid characters and charged with searing insights into Japanese history and the diabolically difficult lives of women and artists.
Publishers Weekly
Starred Review. Lavishly researched and brilliant... Govier astonishes throughout in her ability to write epic themes intimately, particularly in the lyrical, absorbing, and intense final hundred pages.
Globe and Mail (Toronto)
Govier's expansive historical novel turns the spotlight on Oei, the 'ghost brush' attributed to some of her father's famous prints, and a character that drives a compulsively readable novel.