"A dark, delicious tale that will creep its way into your brain and leave you examining your own soul for signs of moral rot. Was it their aunt's mysterious death at sea? Estella's unhappy marriage to a dangerously brutish man? Or were the shifting loyalties and unspoken resentments at the heart of their opulent world too much to bear? Can Gwendolyn, at last, confront the carefully buried mysteries in their family's past and the truth about who she and her sister really are? Traveling from the luxurious world of the rich and powerful in Indonesia to the most spectacular shows at Paris Fashion Week, from the sunny coasts of California to the melting pot of Melbourne's university scene, The Majesties is a haunting and deeply evocative novel about the dark secrets that can build a family empire-and also bring it crashing down.
As Gwendolyn struggles to regain consciousness, she desperately retraces her memories, trying to uncover the moment that led to this shocking and brutal act. But now Gwendolyn is lying in a coma, the sole survivor of Estella's poisoning of their whole clan. Growing up in a wealthy, eminent, and sometimes deceitful family, they've relied on each other for support and confidence. Gwendolyn and Estella have always been as close as sisters can be. Each time I reflect on feminist resistance and negotiation, the book continues to remind me: ‘‘The master’s tool will never dismantle the master’s house.In this riveting tale about the secrets and betrayals that can accompany exorbitant wealth, two sisters from a Chinese-Indonesian family grapple with the past after one of them poisons their entire family. Sister Outsider problematises the universalising white feminist discourses and demands that we recognise difference. When I started my graduate studies in the US, I realised that the feminist theories that shaped me were predominantly Western, and so I embarked on a journey to decolonise my feminist scholarship. Toeti Heraty’s long prose poem was the first to offer a feminist interpretation, portraying Calon Arang as a tale of anxiety when patriarchal power is threatened by the presence of a powerful woman.
The Balinese tale of Calon Arang, a vengeful witch who spread death and disease and adorned herself with human organs, has been told many times in Indonesian arts and culture. Another crucial text that sparked my interest in horror, the grotesque, and monstrous women.
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