Rating: ★★★★★ (5/5)
Author: Amanda Lee Koe
Genre: Contemporary Fantasy / Queer Myth Retelling / Literary Fiction
Ideal For: Readers who crave razor-sharp wit, emotionally complex relationships, and dazzling reinventions of ancient folklore
Amanda Lee Koe’s Sister Snake is the kind of novel that slithers under your skin and refuses to let go. Reimagining the classic Chinese folktale The Legend of the White Snake, this bold, genre-bending story follows two immortal sisters—one in glittering New York, the other in buttoned-up Singapore—as they navigate sisterhood, queerness, and the fierce demand to be seen for who they are.
Why I Picked It Up
As soon as I read the premise—two millennia-old snake spirits trapped in human bodies, reunited across continents—I knew this would be something special. But it was the promise of sharp satire, queer depth, and a feminist lens wrapped in myth that sealed the deal. I was not disappointed.
Plot Summary (Spoiler-Free)
Emerald, the wild and unapologetically queer sister, survives as a sugar baby in New York until a brutal assault in Central Park forces her to seek refuge. Meanwhile, Su—the older, restrained sister—is ensconced in Singapore high society as the perfect politician’s wife.
Bound by a thousand-year pact made under the Tang Dynasty’s full moon, the sisters are compelled to reunite. As they reconcile their opposing life choices, they’re confronted by old wounds, fears of exposure, and the darker side of their serpentine power. A surprise pregnancy and moments of explosive transformation force both to reckon with who they once were…and who they’ve become.
Why Sister Snake Works So Well
1. A Bold Retelling with Queer & Feminist Bite
Koe reimagines ancient myth through a strikingly modern lens—one where queerness, sisterhood, and the price of conformity are at the heart of the narrative. The sparkle of New York contrasts beautifully with Singapore’s polished rigidity, illuminating the pressures both societies place on women and queerness.
2. Characters That Bite and Burn
Emerald is magnetic, chaotic, and irresistibly free. Su is composed, controlled—even self-denying. Their friction and fierce love make for some of the most emotionally charged sibling dynamics I’ve encountered in fiction. Their snake heritage is never just window-dressing; it’s central to their identity, trauma, and power.
3. Prose That Hisses and Shimmers
Koe’s writing is elegant yet punchy, slipping seamlessly between lyrical mythology and biting dialogue. Whether describing shifting snakeskins or the bureaucratic absurdity of authoritarian societies, each sentence gleams with intention.
4. A Multi-Layered Tapestry
At once a thriller, feminist allegory, queer fable, and cultural critique, Sister Snake is rare in its ambition and success. Themes of passing, chosen family, and bodily autonomy are explored through both fantastical and heartbreakingly real lenses.
You’ll Love This Book If You Enjoy…
- The Legend of the White Snake retellings – for their mythic resonance
- The Ghost Bride by Yangsze Choo – for queer, supernatural sisterhood
- The City of Devi by Manil Suri – for magical realism rooted in tradition
- The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern – for lyrical, whimsical worlds
- Sharp feminist fantasy with queer depth and emotional complexity
Final Thoughts: A Myth for Our Times
Sister Snake is a triumph: fierce, glimmering, and unforgettable. Amanda Lee Koe has crafted a novel that murders myths and resurrects them anew—something unapologetically queer, deeply feminist, and exquisitely human. This is a book for readers who want mythology with attitude, sisterhood with teeth, and stories that refuse to be confined.
Dive in—and emerge changed.
