TLC Book Tours Review and Giveaway: The Woman in the White Kimono by Ana Johns

Title: The Woman in the White Kimono
Author: Ana Johns
Format: ARC
Publisher: Park Row
Publish Date: May 28, 2019
Source: TLC Book Tours

What's the Story?:

From Goodreads.com: "Japan, 1957. Seventeen-year-old Naoko Nakamura’s prearranged marriage to the son of her father’s business associate would secure her family’s status in their traditional Japanese community, but Naoko has fallen for another man—an American sailor, a gaijin—and to marry him would bring great shame upon her entire family. When it’s learned Naoko carries the sailor’s child, she’s cast out in disgrace and forced to make unimaginable choices with consequences that will ripple across generations.

America, present day. Tori Kovac, caring for her dying father, finds a letter containing a shocking revelation—one that calls into question everything she understood about him, her family and herself. Setting out to learn the truth behind the letter, Tori’s journey leads her halfway around the world to a remote seaside village in Japan, where she must confront the demons of the past to pave a way for redemption."

My Two Cents:

"The Woman in the White Kimono" is a great historical fiction told in two different times. The first story line takes place in 1957 where Naoko is promised to the son of her father's business partner but instead she falls in love with an American sailor. Her family deems her relationship inappropriate and is anything but supportive. In the present-day United States, Tori is taking care of her ill father, who is still hiding secrets in the twilight of his life. These secrets will bring Naoko's and Tori's lives together with surprising results!

In historical fictions with a historical and a present-day narrative, I have a tendency to like the historical narrative better. While I was initially more drawn to what Naoko was facing in the late-1950s, I really liked reading about Tori and how she uncovered her father's past. The author gives you just enough detail in a really beautiful way to keep you reading. Both Naoko and Tori were such great characters. They are both very different but also very strong and you all already know I love a book filled with family secrets!

I loved the historical detail of Naoko's story. I haven't read a lot set in Japan in the post-World War II era. The ill feelings between the Japanese and Americans like Naoko's American lover are still very raw and definitely fraught. I loved watching the characters work through all of this throughout the book. I loved being introduced to this time period through these characters.

Overall, this was a great read!

Review:

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