Lydia is dead. But they dont know this yet . . . So begins the story of this exquisite debut novel, about a Chinese American family living in 1970s small-town Ohio. Lydia is the favorite child of Marilyn and James Lee their middle daughter, a girl who inherited her mothers bright blue eyes and her fathers jet-black hair. Her parents are determined that Lydia will fulfill the dreams they were unable to pursue—in Marilyns case that her daughter become a doctor rather than a homemaker, in Jamess case that Lydia be popular at school, a girl with a busy social life and the center of every party.When Lydias body is found in the local lake, the delicate balancing act that has been keeping the Lee family together tumbles into chaos, forcing them to confront the long-kept secrets that have been slowly pulling them apart.
