Book Synopsis:
Based on a little-known true story, from award-winning author Siobhan Daiko comes a tale of love and survival against all the odds set in Hong Kong at the start of the Pacific War.
In the spring of 1939, dashing young William Burton and the beautiful Constance Han set sail from London on the same ocean liner to Hong Kong.
Romance blossoms while they enjoy games of deck quoits and spend sultry tropical evenings dancing under the stars. Connie is intrigued by Will’s talent for writing poetry, and she offers to give him Cantonese lessons to help him with his new job— a cadet in the colonial service.
But once in Hong Kong, Connie is constrained by filial duty towards her Eurasian parents, and their wish for her to marry someone from her own background. She can’t forget Will however, and arranges to meet him in secret under the magnificent canopy of a flame of the forest tree— where she fulfills her promise to teach him to speak Chinese.
Before too long, trouble looms as Japanese forces gather on the border between Hong Kong and mainland China. Will joins a commando group tasked with operating behind enemy lines, and Connie becomes involved in the fight against local fifth columnists.
When war breaks out, they find themselves drawn into a wider conflict than their battle against prejudice. Can they survive and achieve a future together? Or do forces beyond their control keep them forever apart?
Perfect for readers of Dinah Jefferies, Fiona Valpy and Ann Bennett.
My Review:
The Flame Tree is a fantastic historical fiction book that manages to be both uplifting and emotional at the same time.
Firstly I must admit I didn’t know much about Hong Kong during the second world war so I enjoyed learning more about it. The author does a great job of describing life there so that the reader feels transported to Hong Kong and able to envision everything as if they were actually there. It was definitely a dangerous place to be and I admired Will, Connie and the others who were willing to fight against things that threatened their city.
It was interesting to learn that there was a class system in Hong Kong as I’ve always thought of this as a British thing. It was sad to realise how people were treated depending on what class they belonged to and how prejudice some people were towards other groups that weren’t there own. The cultural differences between the Hong Kong citizens and the British were very stark at times, with the two groups generally discouraged from interacting. This obviously caused a problem when it came to Connie and Will’s relationship but made the reader more invested in the story as I wanted to find out what would happen with them.
Overall I really enjoyed this story and can’t wait to read more from this author. The characters were all well drawn and likable so that I enjoyed getting to know them over the course of the book. The author has cleverly written the book so that I felt that I got inside the character’s heads at times so I really knew what made them tick and almost feel everything that they feel.
Huge thanks to Rachel from Rachel’s Random Resources for inviting me onto the blog tour and to Boldwood for my copy of this book.
About The Author:
Siobhan Daiko is a British historical fiction author. A lover of all things Italian, she lives in the Veneto region of northern Italy with her husband, a Havanese dog and a rescued cat. Siobhan was born of English parents in Hong Kong, attended boarding school in Australia, and then moved to the UK—where she taught modern foreign languages in a Welsh comprehensive school. She now spends her time writing page-turners and living the dolce vita sweet life near Venice. Her novels are compelling, poignant, and deeply moving, with strong characters and evocative settings, but always with romance at their heart. You can find more about her books on her website http://www.siobhandaiko.org
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