This book was lent to me by my mother-in-law.A Cup of Light follows Lia as she flies to Beijing to examine a set of valuable porcelain pots. As an appraiser, she is one of the best, however what she arrives to is greater than she imagined.This is a book that i would not normally read however I’m glad that i did. It’s always good to broaden your horizons.The story was fairly slow to start off with and didn’t really pick up the pace until at least a third of the way through. Even then, it was still quite a gentle pace.The descriptions in the book intrigued me. I felt like the author was trying to write in a way that tapped into your senses however i don’t think it quite hit the mark so instead felt a little forced.I couldn’t figure out whether i liked Lia or not. It wasn’t that she annoyed or frustrated me, there was just something about her that prevented me from connecting with her. I didn’t really like Michael, however considering what he’d just been through, he was a little messed up. I actually liked all of the other characters, which thinking back on, were all Chinese! Not sure what that’s about.The suspense in this book is good. It slowly builds and builds without you ever realising it until you’re actually holding your breath. What i loved is that from the style and the writing, you couldn’t figure out whether the author was going to have a happy ending or not. Even though it sucks if everything falls apart, it’s a lot more interesting wondering whether everything will actually work out in the end or not. A lot of books have the suspense but you always know it will be fine…this book, it kept me guessing.I’ve never really thought about porcelain pots in depth before however from reading this story i want to find out all about them. It was really fascinating and when i visit China next, i really want to visit The Porcelain Trail!There was some slight sex in this book and one scene was actually quite in your face, albeit very short. I don’t like reading content like that, however the fact that i know my mother in law read it makes it even more awkward!Although the blurb hints at it, i didn’t realise this was a romance novel. Yes, it has a lot of other aspects to it, however underlying, it’s just a romance novel. I was kind of disappointed as i didn’t actually like that part of it. I would have happily enjoyed it without any of the romance.I was fascinated with the way in which Lia used the Greek/Roman mnemonic system to memorise every pot she’d ever beheld plus any information she’d ever read. At first i found it unbelievable however i researched it and found out that it is actually a real thing. It may have been taken slightly further in the book than is actually possible however it was still very cool.Overall it was an interesting and unique story. I would recommend it to those who like art and/or cultural fiction.www.readingforthemasses.wordpress.com
What a great book! I never knew about chinese porcelain cups, but they are a whole world unto themselves. They are incredibly valuable, but there are also many fakes ("fang gu") that are difficult to spot. The main character is a chinese cup expert, and her descriptions and her fascination with the cups are contagious. She is assigned to review the contents of a recently found collection that contains the most exquisite cups she has ever seen, with the finest, tiniest paintings and unique porcelain shades. She is also deaf and wears hearing aids. Taking her aids out and having the world silent is a reprieve for her, a relief actually. I was actually envious and almost wondering what the perfect silence would be like. There is also romance, the mystery of where the cup collection came from, and the shady Chinese underworld of art smuggling and peddling forgeries. There are a couple undeveloped storylines, like one about a Silicon Valley Chinese-American gazillionaire interested in buying the cups. We just learn very little about him, and I wonder why his stories and others were included. (Hopefully my book club will explain the deeper meaning to me.) Also, there are too many characters to manage and keep straight. I was mainly interested in the couple of primary characters. But other than these very minor criticisms, this is basically a perfect novel. UPDATE: As I reflect more on this book over the years, I realize it deserves the final 5th star. It is a truly great book that will stay with you long after you finish it. Plus, major kudos to Ms. Mones for "liking" my review recently. I totally appreciate authors who like their readers!
What do You think about A Cup Of Light (2003)?
This book was a sensual pleasure. This second novel by the author of Lost in Translation is a wonderful mix of delighting the senses with art and with love. Lia Frank, a porcelain expert for a high-end auctioneers (think Sothebys), flies to China to evaluate twenty pieces of porcelain her and her boss are given to understand are being offered quietly for sale by the Chinese government. With a buyer already in place, Lia’s job is to check the value, make sure there aren’t any fakes in the mix, and try to work out where the porcelain comes from. What she discovers on arrival is that there aren’t twenty pieces, there are 800 pieces. Staggered, astonished, Lia settles in for a much longer stay than she anticipated.Mones weaves Lia’s knowledge of porcelain through the story like a fine, never-ending banquet, as a reader, you truly drink from a cup of light and are enlightened. I’ll certainly never look at any good chinese porcelain the same way again. An added twist is that Lia is deaf. She wears hearing aids, but while she works she takes them out, and gives over all her other senses to the porcelain. It speaks to her in a language only those who are willing to hear can understand.And while during the day Lia’s senses and intellect are tested by the porcelain, at night she starts to get to know her neighbour in the little apartment block she is staying in, an American doctor and researcher, trying to come to grips with a divorce and the aftermath of cancer. Lia opens herself to love, and takes a chance on finding happiness.At the same time, she wrestles with the problem of where so much porcelain has come from, and who is responsible for the few fakes she has found. Fakes so beautiful, they are as worthy of credit as the originals they almost succeed in replicating. The answers she finds will turn her ideas about forgery on their head.This novel manages to be sensual, intriguing and enlightening. I loved it.
—Michelle Diener
A nice page-turner, and a good insight into Chinese culture ~ 2000. The author has constructed an interesting central character (the porcelain expert, memory super-enthusiast) and a good mix of supporting characters, some more disreputable than others. The mystery about the origin of the pots, and a nice bit of intrigue about shady deals quite interesting and fun too. Not all loose ends tied up at the end, but that's not a bad thing - leaves a bit of work up to the reader to decide your own ideas ;)
—Patrick
I have read all four of the author's novels, including her most recent, Night in Shanghai. I thought that A Cup of Light preceded Lost in Translation but, in fact, it was her second novel. I liked this book even more than I liked Lost in Translation, which says a lot. Both are set in China. One, Lost in Translation, follows an attempt to learn what happened to the bones of Peking Man during the Japanese invasion and occupation during World War II. The main character is the American-born translator for the man searching for the remains. The other, A Cup of Light, follows the art and porcelain treasures collected by the Chinese emperors over a period of more than a thousand years. The last emperor abdicated in 1911 when The Republic of China was formed. The treasure, however, stayed in the Forbidden City within Peking until the Japanese invasion of the 1930's. Over 19,000 crates were loaded on five separate trains that tried to keep the treasure out of Japanese hands. Some made its way to Nationalist China, some is still in Nanking, China where it is still claimed by both the Republic of China and the Nationalists. Some 40 crates, containing about 800 porcelain items, however, apparently were lost along the route of flight and are now being offered for sale, if the seller can smuggle the crates from Beijing to the free port of Hong Kong. The primary character in this book is an American-born appraiser sent to Beijing to evaluate the items, prepare a catalog, and identify any forgeries. The novel covers every aspect of this story and the larger back stories about the production of this porcelain, its collection by the emperors, and the forgery and smuggling of fine porcelain today. Nicole Mones' telling of these stories is masterful.
—Victor Carson
