Under A Painted Sky Review

Title: Under A Painted Sky
Author: Stacey Lee
Publisher: G.P. Putnam's Sons 
Genre: Historical Fiction

Blurb: (from goodreads) Missouri, 1849: Samantha dreams of moving back to New York to be a professional musician—not an easy thing if you’re a girl, and harder still if you’re Chinese. But a tragic accident dashes any hopes of fulfilling her dream, and instead, leaves her fearing for her life. With the help of a runaway slave named Annamae, Samantha flees town for the unknown frontier. But life on the Oregon Trail is unsafe for two girls, so they disguise themselves as Sammy and Andy, two boys headed for the California gold rush. Sammy and Andy forge a powerful bond as they each search for a link to their past, and struggle to avoid any unwanted attention. But when they cross paths with a band of cowboys, the light-hearted troupe turn out to be unexpected allies. With the law closing in on them and new setbacks coming each day, the girls quickly learn that there are not many places to hide on the open trail.

This beautifully written debut is an exciting adventure and heart-wrenching survival tale. But above all else, it’s a story about perseverance and trust that will restore your faith in the power of friendship. 

Me: An incredibly unique story with lots of great aspects.

The Ups: I have never read a story like this. It is hard to find a 1800s, going west book that is genuinely interesting, and even harder to find one about anyone of Asian descent. I think that is what made it so fascinating for me, because I could relate to her cultural differences (even though Sammy is Chinese and I am Korean) and everything about the path she chose to take and her journey was fascinatingly different from what I normally read in historical fiction. 

I loved the plot. I find that most 1800s stories tend to get a little slow after a while, which is understandable as there are basically cows, cows, more cows, and grass.

But the book kept me interested the entire time. Maybe it is because they had the constant problem of being men and being caught, but even the "drab" parts managed to keep me hooked.

I really enjoyed the characters as well. Sammy, like I mentioned before, was someone I could relate to, and found myself connecting to with the prejudice and hate she got for her race and the restrictions she felt both as an Asian and a girl at the time. Andy was one of my favorites, a faithful girl with a strong sense of direction that I felt like all the characters, and me as a reader, could rely on. The boys, West, Peety, and Cay...God, I hated them. But I loved them. I cared for all of them so much, even with their significant flaws. The author did a great job at making the reader really feel for all these different characters. 

This book was just a perfect mixture of adventure, suspense, friendship, characterization, eccentricity and everything else. Loved it. 

The Downs: The ending was a bit confusing. I understood it, but I found myself wishing for a bit more of a solid conclusion. 

Overall: A truly unique story with wonderful characters I grew to care for. A fresh take on historical fiction. 

Rating: 5 kisses!