A half-Chinese orphan whose mother sacrificed everything to give him a better chance is raffled off as a prize at Seattle's 1909 World's Fair, only to land in the ownership of the madam of a notorious brothel where he finds friendship and opportunities, in a story based on true events.

"Sentimental, heartfelt….the exploration of Henry’s changing relationship with his family and with Keiko will keep most readers turning pages...A timely debut that not only reminds readers of a shameful episode in American history, but cautions us to examine the present and take heed we don’t repeat those injustices."-- Kirkus Reviews “A tender and satisfying novel set in a time and a place lost forever, Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet gives us a glimpse of the damage that is caused by war--not the sweeping damage of the battlefield, but the cold, cruel damage to the hearts and humanity of individual people. Especially relevant in today's world, this is a beautifully written book that will make you think. And, more importantly, it will make you feel." -- Garth Stein, New York Times bestselling author of The Art of Racing in the Rain “Jamie Ford's first novel explores the age-old conflicts between father and son, the beauty and sadness of what happened to Japanese Americans in the Seattle area during World War II, and the depths and longing of deep-heart love. An impressive, bitter, and sweet debut.” -- Lisa See, bestselling author of Snow Flower and the Secret Fan In the opening pages of Jamie Ford’s stunning debut novel, Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet, Henry Lee comes upon a crowd gathered outside the Panama Hotel, once the gateway to Seattle’s Japantown. It has been boarded up for decades, but now the new owner has made an incredible discovery: the belongings of Japanese families, left when they were rounded up and sent to internment camps during World War II. As Henry looks on, the owner opens a Japanese parasol. This simple act takes old Henry Lee back to the 1940s, at the height of the war, when young Henry’s world is a jumble of confusion and excitement, and to his father, who is obsessed with the war in China and having Henry grow up American. While “scholarshipping” at the exclusive Rainier Elementary, where the white kids ignore him, Henry meets Keiko Okabe, a young Japanese American student. Amid the chaos of blackouts, curfews, and FBI raids, Henry and Keiko forge a bond of friendship–and innocent love–that transcends the long-standing prejudices of their Old World ancestors. And after Keiko and her family are swept up in the evacuations to the internment camps, she and Henry are left only with the hope that the war will end, and that their promise to each other will be kept. Forty years later, Henry Lee is certain that the parasol belonged to Keiko. In the hotel’s dark dusty basement he begins looking for signs of the Okabe family’s belongings and for a long-lost object whose value he cannot begin to measure. Now a widower, Henry is still trying to find his voice–words that might explain the actions of his nationalistic father; words that might bridge the gap between him and his modern, Chinese American son; words that might help him confront the choices he made many years ago. Set during one of the most conflicted and volatile times in American history, Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet is an extraordinary story of commitment and enduring hope. In Henry and Keiko, Jamie Ford has created an unforgettable duo whose story teaches us of the power of forgiveness and the human heart. BONUS: This edition contains a Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet discussion guide and an excerpt from Jamie Ford's Love and Other Consolation Prizes.

Twelve-year-old William Eng, a Chinese-American, has lived at Seattle's Sacred Heart Orphanage since his mother disappeared five years ago. During a trip to the movie theatre, William glimpses an actress on the silver screen who goes by the name of Willow Frost. Struck by her features, William is convinced that the movie star is his mother.

From the New York Times bestselling author of Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet comes a powerful novel about the love that binds one family of women across generations. Dorothy Moy breaks her own heart for a living. As Seattle's former poet laureate, that's how she describes channeling her dissociative episodes and mental breakdowns into her art. But when her five-year-old daughter, Annabel, exhibits the same behavior and begins remembering things and events she has never experienced, Dorothy believes the past has truly come to haunt the present. If she doesn't take radical steps, her daughter will be doomed to face the same debilitating depression that has marked her life. Through epigenetic therapy-an experimental treatment designed to mitigate inherited trauma-Dorothy intimately connects with the past generations of women in her family: Faye Moy, a nurse in Burma serving with the Flying Tigers; Afong Moy, the first Chinese woman to set foot in America; Zoe Moy, a student in England at a famous school with no rules; Lai King Moy, a girl quarantined in San Francisco during a plague epidemic; and Greta Moy, a tech executive with a unique dating app. Through reliving their painful stories, Dorothy comes to understand the true cost of inherited pain. As the past bleeds into the present, Dorothy discovers that trauma isn't the only thing she's inherited. A stranger is searching for her in each time period. A stranger who's loved her through all of her genetic memories. And that person is most certainly not her current husband, Louis. To protect her daughter's future, Dorothy must break the cycle and find a way to cross time and resolve all past traumas, to find the love that has long been waiting, and find peace for Annabel. Even if it means she must sacrifice her only chance at life and happiness

Hemda Horovitz is nearing the end of her life. As she lies in bed in Jerusalem, memories from the past flood her thoughts: her childhood in the kibbutz spent under the gaze of her stern, pioneer father; the lake that was her only solace; and her own two children-one she could never love enough, and the other whom she loved too much. Avner, the beloved child, has grown up to be a heavy, anguished man, disillusioned by his work and trapped in a loveless marriage. When visiting his mother in the hospital, he witnesses a devoted couple's final moments together; after the man's death Avner becomes obsessed with finding the woman, and a strange and delicate relationship unfolds. Dina, Hemda's daughter, has put aside her career in order to give her teenage daughter, Nitzan, the warmth she never received from her own mother. But Nitzan is withdrawing from her, and Dina is overcome by a longing to adopt another child-a longing that, if fulfilled, may destroy her fragile family. Zeruya Shalev's electrifying new novel is at once a meditation on the state of modern Israel and a profound exploration of family, yearning, compromise, and the insistent pull of the past.

The fall had cast its chilly grip over the woods, a foreboding silence settling over the landscape as five teenagers drove down the winding road. Excitement thrummed in the air with each mile they closed in on their secluded cabin, but an undercurrent of unease rippled beneath their laughter. The year was 1980, and with Halloween only a few days away, they had planned this getaway—an escape from their everyday lives full of responsibilities, homework, and the looming threat of adulthood. As their car wound through the increasingly dense forest, the teens were oblivious to the watchful eyes that followed their progress from the shadows between the trees. Twisted shapes slithered just out of sight, their forms barely distinguishable from the gnarled branches that clawed at the darkening sky. They were armed not only with snacks and a few bottles of cheap beer but also a VHS tape of what they believed to be the scariest movie of all time: *Horrifying Tales From The Dead*. The tape sat innocuously in Jason's backpack, its presence a constant reminder of the thrills that awaited them. Little did they know that the real horror would far surpass anything captured on that magnetic strip. "Almost there! Can you believe we actually did this?" Jason shouted, bouncing in the back seat as the headlights flickered over treetops. His enthusiasm was infectious, but Jamie, sitting beside him, couldn't shake the feeling that something was...off. The trees seemed to lean in closer with each passing moment, their branches reaching out like grasping fingers. "I still can't believe my parents let me come," Rachel admitted, her laughter more playful than nervous. "They said 'sure just don't burn it down.'" As she spoke, a chill ran down her spine, causing her to shiver involuntarily. She chalked it up to excitement, unaware of the malevolent forces already closing in around them. "Just don't do anything stupid like last year's party," Mia chimed in, rolling her eyes dramatically. The memory of that night flashed through her mind—the acrid smell of smoke, the panicked screams, the feeling of suffocation. She pushed the thoughts away, focusing on the adventure ahead. "Hey, that wasn't my fault! The fire extinguisher was empty!" Rachel laughed, but her words seemed to hang in the air, echoing strangely in the confines of the car. For a moment, the laughter died, replaced by an uncomfortable silence as each of them contemplated what might have happened if things had gone differently that night. As the car pulled up to the cabin, its weathered wood screamed of secrets untold and a thousand ghost stories spent in whispered tones. The structure loomed before them, a dark silhouette against the twilight sky. Windows- like hollow eyes stared down at them, and for a split second, Ben could have sworn he saw movement behind one of the curtains. They stepped out into the cool, crisp air, the crunch of dead leaves beneath their feet sounding unnaturally loud in the stillness of the forest. As they gathered their belongings, a distant howl echoed through the trees, causing them all to freeze momentarily. "Just a wolf," Jason said with a nervous chuckle, but the tension in his voice betrayed his unease. "Nothing to worry about." They made their way into the cabin, the old floorboards creaking ominously beneath their weight. Dust motes danced in the beams of their flashlights, giving the air a thick, oppressive quality. The smell of mold and decay assaulted their nostrils, a stark reminder of the cabin's long abandonment. As they settled in, Ben began setting up the old television that had been blessed with a dusty VHS player. The ancient appliance hummed to life with a sound not unlike a death rattle, its screen flickering with static that seemed to form fleeting, nightmarish shapes. "Alright, who's ready for some scares?" Ben grinned, rubbing his hands together. But even as he spoke, a sense of foreboding settled over him like a shroud. "Me! But keep the lights on. I hate jump scares," Mia said, suddenly wary. She glanced around the room, her eyes lingering on the dark corners where the lamplight didn't quite reach. Was it her imagination, or were the shadows moving? "Too late! It's Halloween; it's time to get terrified!" Jason barked with enthusiasm as he slid the tape into the player. The machine accepted it with a mechanical groan that sounded almost pained. As the movie started, the cabin filled with the flickering light from the screen, dancing shadows stretching ominously across the walls. Their laughter quickly evaporated as Count Drac Von Stoller appeared, his long face twisting into a ghastly grin. Dressed in a tattered cape and a mockery of elegance, he seemed to breathe life into the very air around him.

A high school senior wins a space suit in a soap jingle contest, takes a last walk wearing "Oscar" before cashing him in for college tuition, and suddenly finds himself on a space odyssey.