In her new novel, DAUGHTERS OF THE SUN AND MOON, Lisa See introduces us to three Asian women who endure one of the most difficult time periods in the history of America and immigration. As only she can do, See weaves together memorable characters and thorough research into gripping historical fiction that will leave you at once satisfied and wanting to know more at the end.

See’s latest world is post-Civil War California. The gold rush of the late 1800s brought men from all over America and the world to the Gold Mountain --- the west coast --- to mine in search of riches and better lives. Male Chinese immigrants were treated abysmally, often relegated to overworked, underproducing mines or the building of railroads. The fate of female Chinese immigrants was even worse. Women were transported to America solely for their financial or status value: to marry men they had never met and produce their offspring, or to serve as prostitutes, often laden with debt and unable to escape servitude.

"As only she can do, See weaves together memorable characters and thorough research into gripping historical fiction that will leave you at once satisfied and wanting to know more at the end."

In DAUGHTERS OF THE SUN AND MOON, See focuses on the actual small community of approximately 200 Asian immigrants in Los Angeles, a county of only 5,000 people in 1870. At the time, anti-Asian sentiment was rampant amongst the whites and Latinos, and tensions built to a brutal night when a mob massacred 18 Chinese men. The Night of Horrors. This is fact. The 1871 Massacre happened, and See tells its story through the view of three women.

Petal has been sold by her family at home and travels to America not knowing what awaits her. She is bought by a Tong gang leader and pushed into prostitution. Clever and tenacious, Petal spends her days plotting how to escape or how to buy out her debt. She grows medicinal plants to help the town doctor, sends for her younger brother, and is kidnapped by a rival gang. But “big-footed” Petal remains committed to finding her way out of this cruel life.

Dove is a naïve dreamer. She leaves her native land to marry a man who is a mystery to her. But she envisions a handsome mate who will give her children and a roof over her head --- love at first sight. The reality is quite different, and while her husband does prize her beauty, he keeps her prisoner in her new home and his store, fearful that other men will covet her and take her away. She, too, is kidnapped at one point.

Moon is married to the town’s traditional Chinese medicine practitioner. Seemingly infertile, she spends her days assisting her husband in preparing concoctions, salves and teas that will help others through illnesses, pregnancies and the monthly “moon water.” The daughter of a doctor, Moon is well-versed in the healing arts. Her husband is respected enough that he also is visited by Caucasian patients, and he is often called upon to serve as a character witness in cases against the Chinese. But this does not protect them from the four hours that will change their lives and those of Petal and Dove forever.

The three women cross paths on more than one occasion prior to that night and build a secret bond that ultimately will save them all.

See’s strengths as a writer are many. And these deeply rich, fleshed-out female characters are among her best. But the fact that Petal, Dove and Moon are based on actual women who lived through the Night of Horrors opens a world of questions about their experiences and what happened to them then and after that horrible night. 

This powerful retelling of the massacre itself, in all its brutality and inhumanity, will stick with you long after you read the book’s End Note on its history. It is hard to ignore the parallels of discrimination in the 1870s and what we see today in the news every day. See’s no-stone-unturned research has given us a completely immersive world of aggression and heartbreak that leaves us wondering: What should we have learned from the 1871 Massacre?