Kirkus
Copyright © Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Two sisters, estranged by circumstance, seek to forge a bond and understand their individual and shared histories.Inja and Miran are near twins. Remarkably close in age, both are artistic and sensitive. But when the novel opens, in 1950, the two girls live on separate continents: When Miran's parents left South Korea for the United States, they were only able to travel with one child. They chose Miran, who had been in poor health as an infant, and left Inja behind with her maternal grandparents, aunt and uncle. Though the family had planned to return for Inja, North Korean troops invade South Korea and war breaks out. Inja and her relatives are displaced to Busan, enduring hunger, cold, and constant instability; in America, Miran struggles to understand her parents' anxiety and helplessness as they wait for news. The novel stretches from the early 1950s through the mid-'70s, alternating between Inja's adolescence in a divided Korea and Miran's coming-of-age in a differently tumultuous USA. Based loosely on Kim's (The Calligrapher's Daughter, 2009) own family history, as detailed in the author's note, this elegant though frequently sentimental novel relies on the power of family secrets to propel the reader through the sisters' lives. Inja, contemplating all she does not know of her American familyand vice versanotes "the strange kind of power one gained from holding secrets." Will Inja ever know the sister who is practically her twin? Will either sister ever truly understand Korea or America, or will they continue to exist in the space between?Though the novel is quiet and occasionally dense with historical exposition, it offers a valuable window into Korean history as well as to issues like immigration and assimilation that couldn't be more relevant today. Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Book list
From Booklist, Copyright © American Library Association. Used with permission.

*Starred Review* Kim's (The Calligrapher's Daughter, 2009) second novel is a timely and moving historical saga illuminating the repercussions experienced by families separated by war. In 1948, Calvin and Najin Cho travel from Seoul to the U.S., hoping to find new opportunities to support their two young daughters. Miran, their adopted daughter, travels with them; Inja is left behind with Najin's brother, his wife, and the grandparents. The Chos plan a quick return, but the Korean War intervenes, and the family remains separated. In alternating chapters, Kim traces the dramatically different lives of each daughter. Inja survives a life of hardship and constant sacrifice, remembering her parents as ghost people to whom she is somehow bound. Miran grows up in a Washington, D.C., suburb and forgets all things Korean, becoming thoroughly American. Because Calvin has ties to the U.S. government, they can't return to Korea, and the years pass until 1963, when they have saved enough to bring Inja to America. How she copes with the cultural change, and how the sisters gradually forge the bond they had only dreamed about, make up the remainder of Kim's heartfelt story, one which will greatly appeal to readers who enjoy the multicultural novels of Lisa See and Amy Tan, stories that enlighten as well as entertain.--Deborah Donovan Copyright 2018 Booklist

Publishers Weekly
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The lives of two sisters growing up on opposite sides of the world-one in war-torn Korea, the other in America-come to life in this finely wrought novel from Kim (The Calligrapher's Daughter), inspired by her family's experiences. In 1948, Najin and Calvin Cho leave Korea for America in search of a better life, taking firstborn Miran with them, but leaving their infant daughter, Inja, behind with Najin's parents, brother, and sister-in-law. The Chos intend to return for Inja when she is older and better able to travel. But the Korean War breaks out, foiling their plans. The Chos send care packages to their family, but that doesn't assuage their anguish at being separated. Told from each sister's viewpoint, readers learn about their vastly different upbringings-Inja's frightening experiences leaving her war-torn home to flee to a safer part of Korea while Marin grew up with the threat of war but in relative luxury. Yet this is also a family with deep secrets, between parents and children and between siblings, and the way these secrets impact the characters when they are finally united reflects Kim's sharp insight into relationships. This is a stirring novel about family and the sacrifices made to keep it whole. (Nov.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

Library Journal
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Opening at the start of the Korean War and inspired by events in the author's life, this heartfelt follow-up to Kim's highly acclaimed debut, Calligrapher's Daughter, focuses on two sisters: four-year-old Inja, who lives in Korea with her grandparents, uncle, and aunt, and her five-year-old sister, Miran, who lives with their parents in the United States. The chapters alternate between the two girls, portraying their distinct upbringings. Clearly, Inja's experiences are more unsettling as she lives through wartime and its aftermath, but Miran's -perspectives as a typical young girl and later teenager seeking attention and affirmation are no less interesting. The story takes a sharp turn when arrangements are made for Inja to immigrate to the United States at age 15, and she must learn to adapt to a family from whom she's long been separated and a way of life different from what she's known. VERDICT Though the ending seems a bit rushed, as the sisters go off to college and enter their twenties, Kim is a true storyteller, and her latest work is engaging throughout. Readers who enjoy family sagas by Lisa See and Jamie Ford will appreciate this one. [See Prepub Alert, 5/14/18.]-Shirley Quan, Orange Cty. P.L., Santa Ana, CA © Copyright 2018. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.