China, 1937. When Japanese bombs start falling on the city of Nanking, Hu Lian is cut off from her home and must evacuate with her university. Students, professors, and staff become refugees as they embark on a thousand-mile journey on foot. They bring personal belongings, library books, lab equipment, kitchenware, and most precious of all - the Library of Legends, the only existing copy of a 500-year old collection of myths and folklore. Shared hardships draw Lian closer to her classmates, forging new friendships and possibly a romance. But a family secret makes her vulnerable to political machinations and Lian is forced to turn away from her friends, especially after a student is found murdered.

"A beautifully-written story of a pivotal period in the making of modern China ... Luminous and enthralling." -- Margaret George, New York Times bestselling author of The Splendor Before the Dark, The Confessions of Young Nero, and The Autobiography of Henry VIII.

“A gorgeous, poetic journey ... pure enchantment!” -- Kate Quinn, New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of The Alice Network and The Huntress

In early 20th century Shanghai, an ancient imperial dynasty collapses, a new government struggles to life and two girls are bound together in a friendship that will be tested by duty, honour and love.

Abandoned in the courtyard of a once-lavish estate outside Shanghai, seven-year-old Jialing learns she is zazhong—Eurasian—and thus doomed to face a lifetime of contempt from Chinese and Europeans alike. The Yang family, new owners of the estate, reluctantly take her in as a servant. As Jialing grows up, her only allies are Anjuin, the eldest Yang daughter, and Fox, an animal spirit who has lived in the courtyard for more than three hundred years. But when a young English girl appears and befriends the lonely orphan—and then mysteriously vanishes—Jialing’s life takes an unexpected turn. A Globe and Mail National Bestseller. Nominated for the 2019 International Dublin Literary Award.