To what audience would you recommend The Girls of Good Fortune? Is there another book or author you feel has a similar theme or style?
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In the Epilogue (dated August 1995) of The Girls of Good Fortune, Pearl’s daughter says about her granddaughter “the traits that make her ‘different’ have become all the rage, specifically those from mixed ethnicities like mine.”
Recently I’ve read Crow Mary by Kathleen Grissom and Six Days in Bombay by Alka Joshi, which are also about mixed-race characters.
I think those who enjoy historical fiction and strong women characters would be most likely to read these novels.
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This is the first book I’ve read by this author and about the theme of the Shanghai tunnels. I would not recommend the book to anyone under the age of 15 due to the mature content, nor would I recommend to anyone who enjoys Christian fiction.
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I think any fan of historical fiction would like to read this. There is also a lot of topics for book club discussions
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Also, a novel with the freight train hopping theme comes to mind: The Lincoln Highway by Amor Towles.
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I would recommend The Girls of Good Fortune to readers who enjoy historical fictionn and suspense. 
I think she is similar to Kristin Hannah, Susan Meissner, and Jillian Cantor.
In my opinion the novel would be appropriate for high school on up. The historical information could tie in nicely with a Social Studies class. It would also be important to include the research work done by the author.
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This historical fiction novel is filled with history of the Gold Rush and the building of the Transcontinental Railroad. It would fit into a high school American History curriculum.
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I would recommend to book to fans of historical fiction with strong female characters. Readers of Kristen Hannah, Lisa See and Susan Meissner come to mind.
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I would recommend this book to someone who likes a plot-driven book with lots of action and twists. For me it was heavy on fiction and light on history. In contrast, I would recommend Daughters of Shandong by Eve J Chung. Chung does a masterful job of weaving fact and fiction.
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The author herself gives us a list of similar authors —- Kate Quinn, Kristin Harmel, Fiona Davis, Pam Jenoff, and Marie Benedict.
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Good story to group with nonfiction books or articles about related topics, e.g. Chinese railroad work history, tunnels, etc.
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The Girls of Good Fortune is fiction with some of the historical facts. I enjoy historical fiction and the tenor of the time for women who are less than other women- a pregnant woman and a women’s brothel. I enjoyed the book and it depicts the Chinese who are taken for service/slavery without their permission. I think that we don’t have enough books on the plight of the Chinese in California once the railroad was completed. This book was great as it was new to me on the Chinese slavery.
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My book club would really enjoy discussing this book. We like historical fiction that highlights an event in history that is not well-known. The Book of Lost Friends by Lisa Wingate comes to mind.
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This book is good for book club and those that like historical fiction
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I would recommend this to some book clubs because they would have really lively discussions. While the book is more fiction than history, it might make a good introduction to the subject.
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I thoroughly enjoyed Daughters of Shandong by Eve J Chung - goo recommendation, Lynne!
I would recommend this to people who are interested in historical fiction. Luisa, American Dirt is another book that shows people train hopping. I would be too scared to attempt it. The scenes of them attempting to jump on the moving train and of the patrollers shooting at them was frightening.