Paper Mage

This is the review I wrote for Paper Mage in Strange Horizons in August 2003In Paper Mage, Leah R. Cutter takes us on a journey to a faraway place and time, a refreshing change from the traditional faux European medieval fantasies that glut bookstore shelves. Set in the Tang Dynasty of the Middle Kingdom (about the time of Charlemagne in Europe), the novel tells us of the adventures of Xiao Yen, a young woman training to become a paper mage, a sorceror with the power to endow folded creations wi [...]

Paper Mage, by Leah Cutter, is about a young girl in ancient China who practices origami magic and is hired out to protect a caravan. But her real aim is to do great deeds and earn a peach of immortality for the aunt who paid for her training. The story follows two timelines, alternating chapters between the caravan journey, where one of her fellow travellers is a goddess who charges her with a dangerous quest, and her childhood training, torn between her aunt's plans and her mother's plans to h [...]

Leah Cutter, Paper Mage (Roc, 2003)The whole time I was reading this book, which I did on and off (far more off than on) for almost four months, I kept feeling vaguely guilty that I didn't like it a great deal more than I actually did. I think this is because I can't quite put a finger on why it is I found the book to drag so terribly. It's not the pacing, the characters, the plot, or anything else I can pick out; there's just something.The book concerns a young woman named Xiao Yen, a newly-gra [...]

I found this story marvelous. I know nothing of Chinese history or mythology, but this book had the feeling of a culture genuinely different from my own. Too often, when fantasy even bothers to make a pretense at being non-Western, it essentially means an entirely Western story that happens to be populated by non-Western characters. Not so here. I loved that this story felt unfamiliar enough to make me aware of my standard assumptions about fantasy and hero's journey narratives, yet not so unfam [...]

I am a big fantasy sci-fi buff, but after a time I just had to stop reading the books because they were so similar, or I would realise 20 pages into it that I had already read it. No such problems there with Leah R. Cutter's Paper Mage (ROC, 2003). What could possibly be new in the world of fantasy? "In a small Chinese village during the Tang Dynasty, an unsure young woman has managed to elude the conventions of her society to become a gifted paper mage-one who creates magic with the ancient art [...]

People talk a lot about pacing with this book, and I can understand the complaint. It's not very swashbuckling; each chapter sort of plods along, interesting and engaging but not a page-turner.The really incredible part about this book (and the reason I finally decided on a four-star rating instead of three) is the sheer amount of research that went into it and also the textured, gritty world that Cutter put together. This is a book you don't read for the story as much as you read to live in the [...]

This review contains my unbiased opinion of Paper Mage by Leah Cutter and should not be taken as an absolute. Some spoilers may be found in the contents of this review relating to the story. You have been forewarned.This story follows the journey of a paper mage by the name of Xiao Yen as she travels as a guard for a caravan. A misunderstanding eventually leads to her becoming involved in the task of freeing the soul of an imprisoned deity and then dealing with the ramifications of that. The sto [...]

(Version française longue suit)Xiao Yen is a paper mage: she folds paper into an animal or a thing, then does magic, so the paper becomes what she’s folded. However, she’s a woman trying to fill a man’s role during the Tang dynasty, in China, and the only people willing to hire her are foreigners.The story alternantes between her formative years and her mission, which is getting more and more complicated by the foreigneurs's desires, a strange magical woman traveling with them, and the lo [...]

I've often wished that there were more books that had an Eastern influence to them. There's a lot of Western fantasy, but not much that has to do with Chinese or Japanese mythology or lives or the like.And then I picked up Paper Mage, by Leah Cutter. The book, as many of my books in the TBR mountain are, is somewhat old. It was published in 2003 and it was Leah's debut book. It's a great story and so unique it makes me smile just having read it.But it's not an *easy* read. For all that I wanted [...]

This book was one of the more unique books that I have in a while. The entire magic of the world was interesting. It felt nice to be reading a fantasy book not set in some medieval world. The magic was something different and wasn't your typical wizards and whatnot. I liked both of the story-lines that were being told: Xiao Yen's paper mage training and her adventure as a new mage. I know some people didn't like how the author changed from the past and to the present every chapter. I, however, r [...]

Xiao Yen is a rarity--a female who can harness paper magic. After years of relentless training, she hires out to protect a travelling caravan. Within days, she is enlisted in the fight against an evil, immortal warlord. After defeating a dragon and the warlord, she races back to her home city to warn them of the warlord's unleashed army. Xiao Yen has a very precise personality that the author carefully constructs in the present day and in flashbacks to her training. The world is a well-developed [...]

“It was interesting to read about someone else' s culture. I previously did not know a lot about Asian culture, nor ever got a chance to look into it. However, I found myself immersed in seeing the culture,traditions, and behaviors of that culture through the novel. I admired how the author meshed myths and fairy tale elements together. As for the character development it was okay There was periods where the time changed in the book and we only saw that persons perspective in flashbacks.The ch [...]

Warning: This review contains spoilersSpoiler space. This is to keep the spoilers away from the people who want to avoid reading them. I really wish would find a way to hide spoilers under some kind of cut so I wouldn't have to ramble on like this. But ramble on I must until they come up with something to hide spoilers. I enjoyed the book. I was glad Xiao Yen didn't give up her magic. I've found that in books where a female has great power there's a tendency for her to give up her power to be n [...]

This novel for a perfectly acceptable, escapist piece of fiction. Unfortunately that's all it was. Within the story, the heroine initially bucked tradition by learning magic and then was thrust into world events where she interacts with mystical beings and dragons, not to mention foreigners. Unfortunately the book felt quite juvenile and lacked the momentum I have come to expect. Additionally, Cutter used the strange conceit of alternating chapters from the main characters childhood and magic tr [...]

I found this book enjoyable but frustrating at times. I loved the introduction and would have been interested if the book had continued with Mei Mei. I think the events of the past would have been better grouped in sequential order as the story lost some of its potency knowing what would happen. There were a few sections where I was left scratching my head (view spoiler)[ to me the book read like it was for teenagers then bam there was a somewhat descriptive rape scene(hide spoiler)] and 1/4 of [...]

I always love reading fantasies that take place in the non-Western historical world. The idea of paper magic is an interesting one and very different from traditional ideas of magic. I enjoyed the book; it told a very good story with a very likable main character. However, I did not like Wang Tei-Tei very much; she seemed to be manipulative and demanding in her quest to get an immortal peach for herself. But since she did not get much "screen" time, it was a minor point, and she was an important [...]

This book had a lot going for it from an unusual kind of magic to a setting based on Chinese culture (a setting which I have not run into very often) to a female protagonist who was not a "pretty, pretty princess" or an overeducated . Unfortunately, I had set it aside half-way through to do some reading for work and just couldn't get back into it when I picked it up again. I leafed through the second-half to find out the ending, and I think if I had kept with it, I might not have as low an opini [...]

Mostly a sweet story of a girl having to choose between the life of a paper mage (her aunt's wish for her) or the traditional life of a devoted daughter, wife and mother (what everyone expects of her). The story takes a surprisingly brutal turn in the final third of the book but remains a strong tale of familial expectations and personal choice.The descriptions of the ancient Chinese landscapes, clothing and mythology are the real treat of this book.

A comfort reread from my shelf.I might be a little biased because I first read this book during trying times, and it was a great friend to me. The story itself is about choices and consequence, and the plot is relatively fast paced - although I prefer the parts where the main character is on the road. This book is a keeper.

Well-researched fantasy based in Tang dynasty China. Narrative bogged down by extensive cultural references, female protagonist oppressed by societal structure. Pretty depressing and also hard to feel sympathetic. Not helped by lack of driving passions/goal/conflicts.Was on the recommended reading list in "Writing the Other".

While I liked the Tang dynasty location and the more unique magic and world building, the story felt different. now, it could be a homage to how Chinese stories go vs. Western (I wouldn't know) but the last half felt like it should have come and there was a lot of foreshadowing which never happened. But, it ended on a good note emotionally.

How a young girl becomes a paper Mage, and what she does on her first job. Told from Xian Wei's point of view, in China at the time of Charlemaign. The barbarian foreigners are from what we now call Germany and the really, really bad guy is Tibetan.Sometimes a bit slow, and I wish Xian Wei was not quite so hard on herself, but a nice book anyway.

I enjoy oriental flavor fantasy tales. This one helped recharge my own creative powers for a few days. I wrote several pages of my Orcish Dreams manuscript. This story reminded me strongly of the Disney movie Mulan. This writer is definitely going places. Sadly this book is going back to the library. =)

I loved the premise of this when I first saw it and I've been looking forward to reading it.Unfortunately, I got halfway through and realised I was bored. I just didn't feel inspired to finish and didn't mind that I wasn't going to discover the fates of the characters.So a great premise that failed to deliver for me.[Copied across from Library Thing; 9 February 2013]

Interesting, easy read. I remember someone recommended it to me, someone who rarely gave any book recommendations Possibly because of my interest in origami, I think. But it also served my interest in non-Western fantasy. I think I gave the book away, which is sad, because now I'm interested in revisiting it.

I wasn't expecting to like this book at all. I just needed something to fill in my time while waiting to be picked from school, and I found this book in my school library. It was a really cool read! Think Mulan, with magical origami

Interesting concept and world, but not as much character development as I prefer. Still, it was a good book to read in the car on a long drive.

Found this book wen I was 14 and I vividly recall the part where Xiao Yen was raped, it gave me fucking nightmares. I was unable to finish the book

I loved this book. Not least because the main character ends up alone( as in single) but happy enough with her life. not enough books ever show that this is an option.

will look for more by this author. Interesting