The Nine Curves River by R.F. Kuang

Gyarados.

Wow. Just wow. The Nine Curves River by R.F. Kuang might just be the best short story I’ve come across on the LeVar Burton Reads podcast. This was my first introduction to Kuang’s writing, and I was absolutely floored. Not just by the richness of the story itself, but by the shocking realization that she’s still in her 20s, and can write something as good as this with a level of maturity beyond her years! Her popularity makes sense now and having established herself as a literary force with multiple bestsellers under her belt, the sky's the limit for this author.

The story follows two sisters on a journey to the capital city of Arlong, where they must pay tribute to an ancient water dragon in hopes of ending a devastating drought. This sacred tradition has played out for generations, but the dragon’s price is far more precious than mere gold.

What makes Kuang’s storytelling so exceptional is her ability to seamlessly blend folklore, mythology, and magical realism into a narrative that feels both epic and deeply personal. Despite the brevity of a short story, she crafts a fully realized world—lush, immersive, and tinged with both wonder and sorrow without ever feeling overstuffed or bogged down in exposition. With excellent pacing, every detail builds towards the emotional climax of the tale that is utterly heartbreaking. 

Yet, for all its fantasy elements, The Nine Curves River remains profoundly human at its core. Kuang captures the complexities of sibling bonds: the love, the rivalry, the unspoken regrets. The author meticulously threads them through a story of sacrifice and forgiveness that resonates on a deeply emotional level. There’s an aching beauty in the way she explores loss, duty, and the cost of devotion, that is bound to leave a lasting impression. 

If this is just a glimpse of Kuang’s talent, I need to read more! Yellowface and Babel are already high on my list and who knows, her novels might be compelling enough to pull me away from reading only short-stories.