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Loading... Flash Houseby Aimee Liu
   None No current Talk conversations about this book.  velvetink | Mar 31, 2013 |   The story is set in post-WW2 India and China. Aiden Shaw, an American journalist, disappears while investigating a story in Kashmir. Is he a spy? A double agent? His wife, Joanna, runs a safe house for girls trafficked into prostitution in Delhi. She is a strong character, loyal to her husband in spite of his apparent desertion of her, and in spite of her love for another man. Joanna has rescued a young girl from a brothel. Kamla is another very strong heroine who struggles to survive and to help Joanna survive as well. The plot is riveting, with enough twists and uncertainties to keep me guessing and turning the pages. The powerful writing, though, does more than tell a good story. There are major themes here about loyalty, survival, guilt and betrayal. Amazing book. (  ) LynnB | Jun 12, 2010 | no reviews | add a review
When a plane carrying American journalist Aidan Shaw goes down in Kashmir in 1949, his wife Joanna refuses to accept that he is dead. Then she learns that a mysterious female reporter has vanished from the same area where Aidan was last seen. Convinced her husband s disappearance is no accident, Joanna enlists the help of his best friend, Lawrence Malcolm, a member of Australia s secret service. In search of answers, they set off, bringing along as translator Kamla, one of the girls from the rescue home Joanna runs in New Delhi. Joanna saved Kamla from an Indian brothel or flash house but Kamla is wise in ways that elude Joanna, and soon it is unclear just who is saving whom.The ensuing journey, leading to the northernmost reaches of India and over the treacherous Karakoram mountain passes, is by turns harrowing and heartbreaking. Suddenly, nothing is as it appears, and as one cruel revelation follows another, this unlikely band finds courage, strength, and unexpected passion in their midst. But will they be strong enough to endure the ultimate betrayal? No library descriptions found. |
LibraryThing AuthorAimee Liu is a LibraryThing Author, an author who lists their personal library on LibraryThing. Current DiscussionsNonePopular covers
 Google Books — Loading...GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)813.54Literature English (North America) American fiction 20th Century 1945-1999LC ClassificationRatingAverage: (3.82)
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Wikipedia in English
4
Aside from my love of history, I appreciated Aimee Liu's writing, a beautiful mix of description, narrative, prose, character development, with an outstanding grip on cultural oppression and the repercussions of war.
The ending while disappointing was indicative of war, espionage, love triangles and of abandoned children. A happy ending would have made the whole journey trite. (