Review of Shanghai'd

[Brayan Uribe]

[Following is a volunteer review of "Shanghai'd" by Curtis Stephen Burdick.]

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5 out of 5 stars

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A grand adventure. It reminded me of the classics. And I do not say that lightly.

In Shanghai’d, we follow Joshua. An American young man who takes an offer to board a ship to join the California gold rush with the promise of getting money. What he doesn’t know is that this decision will take him on a path full of misadventures, wins, and losses, and so many tribulations that he will emerge a completely different man.

The author does a great job orchestrating the path our protagonist will have to endure. Every event that leads to a new episode of Joshua’s adventure feels organic and believable, partly because he and the characters around him are well crafted and developed and partly because the author knows how to connect each dot in the puzzle that is the plot of his book. The supporting and even minor characters all have clear personalities and have a reason to be in the book, and this is such a testament to the penmanship of the author, being able to create such a big array of vivid and colorful characters (really any of the characters, the cook, Cantu, Yuan, Stark…) no matter if they’re friends or foes.

And not only do we have a likable protagonist with a clear personality, but we also see growth and change in him as the book goes on, the way he takes more and more part in the action as things get riskier, and the psychological toll it takes on him doing the things he has to do to survive.

I am giving the book 5 out of 5 stars; it deserves no less and I don't have any complaints or anything negative to say. It has a well-crafted plot, believable characters, and a lot of fun and action. I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to read a fun and entertaining book that is also well-made.

Only one question, though: whatever happened to Martha?!

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Shanghai'd
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