Printable Book Club Questions for The Night Tiger by Yangsze Choo

Let’s first talk about the setting of 1930s Malaysia. What are some elements that stood out to you?
Jin Lin has dreams beyond the dressmaking and the dance hall but she’s stifled by the era. Let’s discuss some of the ways that she’s a modern girl stuck in the 1930s.
The story revolves around a severed finger. What were your first thoughts about this going into the book? How did it help present a unique and compelling story?
Oftentimes the book mentions that Ren feels a “tingle, like the twitch of cat whiskers, as though Yi is still with him.” What did you think about this? Do you believe he could feel Yi and a sense of danger that was to come?
Now let’s talk about the doctor William Acton. He’s a man clouded in mystery and later we find out he has a lust for the local girls. But at the time he shows kindness to Ren. What were you impressions of him? When people start to get murdered in the area, did you think he was the killer? Why or why not?
Much of the book centers around superstitions: mythical creatures, conversations with the dead and the Five Virtues of Confucius. Let’s discuss each of these areas:
Mythical creatures: The spirit tiger is belief that a soul could reincarnate as a tiger. At one point, many in the village believe the murders are a result of a spirt together and Ren himself, wonders if the tiger is his deceased former master. What did you think about this?
Conversations with the dead: In an unique twist, there’s seemingly the ability to talk with the dead. Jin Lin dreams of a train station and she talks to a little boy, Yi, who tells her his twin, Ren, is still alive. Ren also has conservations with the dead and even William dreams of a fated lake where his fiancé died. What did you make of all of this? Do you believe the intention was that they were really talking with the dead? Did Yi save Jin Lin and Shin at the end?
Another key aspect of the story was the Five Virtues of Confucius, which is also the name of the five key characters. Ren is benevolence, charity and humanity; Yi is righteousness; Li is ritual or order; Zhi is wisdom and Xin is faithfulness. How did Ren, Yi, Jin Lin, Shin and Lydia fall in line with these ideas? During a conversation with Yi, he tells Jin Lin that maybe they are all cursed and they should have born together in the same family, or even as the same person, not separated by time and place. Do you believe there was a curse and was it broken at the end?
Alright, let’s talk about that romance! What did you think about the forbidden love of Jin Lin and Shin? When did you start to notice they both had feelings for each other? Do you think they will end up getting married one day? Why or why not?
Throughout everything, there’s a murder mystery. Were you surprised that there were two killers: Koh Beng and Lydia?
Jin Lin and Shin survive an attempted murder by Koh Beng. We learn Lydia is also a murder. Ren accidentally serves William poisoned tea and he dies. Let’s discuss all of this. What happens next for Jin Lin, Shin, Ren and Lydia? Will they always be connected? If the author wrote a sequel, what would you like to see happen in it?
What do you think are some of the key themes of this story? In what ways did this serve as a fairy tale?