4/5 stars.
ebook, 384 pages.
Read from June 24, 2018 to June 26, 2018.
Apologies for the lull in posts, I have been away visiting family and did not prepare as well as I would have liked since I was fairly overwhelmed with work prior to leaving. #excuses?
It isn’t very often that I read a description that legitimately makes me want to read a book and sticks with me. It hit a few things off my list: the plot is set in rural China, which since I am living out in Hong Kong I always find intriguing, secondly, tea is a major topic and anyone that follows this blog knows how much I love tea! I found this book on Netgalley but the jerks didn’t approve me for it. The book clicked around in my head for a few months and I finally decided to cave and purchase it, I have no regrets. This is also my first Lisa See novel and at this point, I can assure you it won’t be my last.
Li-yan and her family live in a remote village in Yunnan and are a part of an ethnic-Chinese minority called the Akha. Growing up, Li-yan’s life is ruled by strong traditions, superstitions and, of course, tea. Tea is the lifeline of her family and of her people. It is backbreaking work but it is what her family has always done. As Li-yan grows, she becomes the only educated person in her family to speak the mainland’s language and when a stranger appears in their village wanting to make his own pu’reh tea on their land, Li-yan becomes his main correspondence. The connection will transform the way their small village has lived for many years. Li-yan falls in love with a young man her family does not approve of and when he leaves for work and she falls pregnant she breaks tradition, and instead of slaying her daughter she reluctantly gives her up for adoption. When her man returns a few months later she tries to rectify her terrible mistake but she is too late, her daughter has been adopted out to a family in the United States. She leads a terrible life with her husband in Thailand before returning to China to start her own tea business. She is very successful but the hole left in her heart from her daughter never goes away. After a remarkable meeting with an old woman near a marriage market, her life takes a turn she could never have expected. There may be hope that she might see her daughter again…
This story is captivating yet is also a very easy read. Lisa See knows how to sculpt her characters and draw her readers in. I also really connected with Li-yan, maybe it’s an age thing or perhaps the strength of her character. If this is what Lisa See’s stories are normally like, then I definitely need to add more Lisa See to my TBR pile.
This book would appeal to a wide variety of readers. Anyone that is interested in a happy ending, China, tea, family and survival stories would adore this book. It is a well-rounded story and Li-yan will touch the hearts of many.
The Pluviophile Writer 
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