This is a story which drew me deeper and deeper into it, the more I read. I really, really enjoyed getting to now our main character of Yun Ling in her advanced and early years, and seeing her struggle with her past, present and her future was, at times, heartbreaking. This tells the story of Yun Ling right from when she's a young girl to a woman of advanced years. We see her growing up with her sister, who she was close to, and we see the terrible day the Japanese came and took them both away to a secret camp in the Malayan Jungle. The story from then on flips from present to past as we see her life grow and change and we follow how Yun Ling's been affected by the terrible crimes done to her, and the caring people she's met since.

For me, one of the most impressive things about this story is that it truly captivated me with the lyrical and beautiful descriptions. We have many scenes set in a garden becuase Yun Ling befriends Aritomo, the ex-gardener for the Emperor of Japan. These scenes of beautifully sculpted and coaxed flowers and trees made me really visualise the story and I loved that.

This is definitely a story which is fictionalised, but the raw elements of slave camps and abuse that Yun Ling had to suffer are sadly rooted in truth. It made me want to check out a lot more on the subject and to research into Malaya as I didn't know anything about it before.

I would say that this is a lyrical and beautiful story with some genuinely emotional moments. I would definitely recommend it if you're looking for something a little different, and something that will make you intrigued and horrified all at once.

The audiobook narrator for this was Anna Bentinck and she did a good job of recreating the voice I imagined Yun Ling having. I think that her sorrow and her happiness both came through as pure emotions as she narrated, and that helped the story to feel very genuine and grounded.

4*s overall.