The Girl Who Wrote in Silk

In a house on Orcas Island, the stories of two young women unfold: a 19th-century Chinese-American and a recent college graduate trying to piece together a mystery left behind.Inara Erickson, just out of business school, has a corporate job at Starbucks waiting for her. She just needs to settle her aunt's estate before she steps into adulthood. Aunt Dahlia has left her Rothesay, the family compound on Orcas Island in the Puget Sound. But when Inara gets there, she begins to take Dahlia's old dream of turning the place into a hotel seriously. While poking around, she finds a piece of elaborately embroidered cloth hidden in a stair tread. She returns to Seattle with two objectives: to find out more about the embroidered sleeve and to convince her father to finance her conversion of Rothesay into a boutique hotel. Alternating with Inara's story, Mei Lien's tragic tale comes to light. Born in Seattle, she lives with her father and grandmother above their dry goods shop until public sentiment turns violent. On the tail of the Chinese Exclusion Act, her whole neighborhood is forced onto a boat for China. But the ship's racist owner, Inara's great-great-great grandfather Duncan Campbell, has other plans-to dump his human cargo into the sea. Mei Lien is rescued by Joseph McElroy and brought to his homestead on Orcas. They fall in love, marry, and have a son but are ostracized-and worse yet, Duncan Campbell is their neighbor. Meanwhile, Inara is beginning her own romance with Daniel Chin, an academic who's helping her research the origin of her embroidered cloth. When Inara discovers that her ancestor, soon to be commemorated in a city park, is a mass murderer, she has to decide whether to reveal her secret. Though there are a few unnecessary coincidences, Estes' debut is a pleasing blend of historical fiction and contemporary drama. COPYRIGHT(1) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

Starred review from December 1, 2015
Estes's debut novel alternates between the turn of the 20th century and today, when Inara Erickson finds a beautifully embroidered sleeve hidden in the staircase at her newly inherited island estate. Intrigued, she asks a professor of Asian history to help her find out more and together they discover a century's worth of secrets, horror, and love stitched onto the delicate sleeve. As they unravel the mystery behind the embroidered story, alternating chapters reveal the sorrowful life of Mei Lein, a Chinese girl who left behind her story stitched on silk. VERDICT Loosely based on historical fact, this eye-opening and beautifully written novel will captivate listeners. Beautifully narrated by Emily Woo Zeller, who helps bring the story alive with her delicate, yet masterful voicing.--Erin Cataldi, Johnson Cty. P.L., Franklin, IN

Copyright 2015 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

June 1, 2015
Estes' first novel tells the mesmerizing story of generations and cultures coming together. Inara Erickson has inherited her beloved aunt's Orcas Island estate and decides to turn the estate into a boutique hotel. Then Inara discovers an intricately embroidered sleeve hidden under a loose stair tread and, working with Daniel Chin, a local professor of Asian studies, Inara learns the story of the sleeve's creator, Mei Lin, a survivor of a purge in the late 1800s to rid Seattle of its Chinese community. As Inara's research takes her deeper into the story, she discovers the truth behind Mei Lin's miraculous survival and how a faded sleeve, buried for decades, will have the power to unite or divide a family. Inspired by true events, Estes' novel looks deep into the heart of one family. Carefully crafted and perfectly paced, the novel takes readers on a deeply satisfying, memorable journey. Part mystery and part romance, the novel is also a fascinating look at an often forgotten period of Pacific Northwest history and a moving reminder of the stories we all share.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2015, American Library Association.)