The Diplomat's Daughter: A Novel

For fans of <i>All the Light We Cannot See </i>and <i>Orphan Train</i>, the author of the &quot;thought-provoking&quot; (<i>Library Journal, </i>starred review) and &quot;must-read&quot; (<i>PopSugar</i>) novel <i>The Gilded Years </i>crafts a captivating tale of three young people divided by the horrors of World War II and their journey back to one another.<br><br>During the turbulent months following the 1941 bombing of Pearl Harbor, twenty-one-year-old Emi Kato, the daughter of a Japanese diplomat, is locked behind barbed wire in a Texas interment camp, the victim of misfortune and America's new policies of fear. Plagued by fence sickness, her world changes when she meets Christian Lange, whose German-born parents were wrongfully arrested for un-American activities. Together, they live as prisoners with thousands of other German and Japanese families, but discover that young love can triumph over even the most unjust circumstances.<br> <br> When Emi and her mother are abruptly sent back to Japan, Christian enlists in the US Army, with his sights set on the Pacific front - and a reunion with Emi. Sent away for her safety, Emi lives out the war in a Japanese resort town where many in the foreign community have fled, including both Jews and Nazis. When she overhears a German officer boasting of the men he has murdered in Asia, fate brings Emi back to Leo Hartmann, the son of prominent Austrian Jews, now a refugee in Shanghai - her oldest friend and her first love. Fearing for his life, Emi is determined to find Leo. But will Christian's devotion be strong enough to stop her?<br> <br> Hurtled together by war, passion, and extraordinary acts of selflessness, the paths of these three remarkable young people collide as the fighting on the Pacific front crescendos. With her &quot;elegant and extremely gratifying&quot; (<i>USA TODAY</i>) storytelling, Tanabe paints a stunning portrait of a turning point in history.