Rating: ★★★★
I received an ARC of this book for free from TLC Book Tours as part of a review tour.
This was such a heartbreaking read! It was sad, yet beautifully written.
This book has dual storylines, but I loved that the author really let the historical story shine! Naoko’s story was the more interesting of the two, so I was glad that the author devoted more time to it and was able to really flesh it out.
The subject matter of the book touches upon a very unknown part of history. It deals with the relationship between American servicemen and local Japanese woman and the children they had. I never knew about this so I was really fascinated by this story. Also being mixed race myself (I’m Filipino and white) I was particularly struck by the attitudes towards mixed race people. I could tell that the author did a lot of research and I liked the author’s note at the end where she talks about the real life inspiration behind the book.
The strongest part of the book is the writing. Ana Johns writes in such a tragically beautiful way that perfectly captures the mood of the story.
The book is a little slow in the beginning, especially with the contemporary storyline. But by the time you get near the end, you’ll be flipping pages like crazy to find out what happens next.
Overall, I recommend this book for historical fiction lovers, especially those with an interest in Japan.
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Odd and Bookish 
I love stories featuring mixed relationships and people (I’m half Filipino too!), so this book is a must read for me. Nice review 🙂!
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Wonderful review! This sounds so incredibly fascinating. I’m also mixed race and from a military family, so I’m really intrigued by this. I’ll definitely be getting a copy.
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