A review by overlookingcovers
White Chrysanthemum by Mary Lynn Bracht
5.0
This book was absolutely heartbreaking. I know next to nothing about the Japanese occupation of Korea. This is not an easy read, but it definitely a must read. Hana and Emi are sisters. When a Japanese soldier shows up on the beach that both Hana and Emi are on, Hana presents herself to the soldier in the hopes that he won’t notice Emi. He doesn’t notice Emi, and Hana is quickly captured and whisked away to a brothel. There starts Hana’s heartbreaking story.
The book flips between Hana’s perspective in the 1940s and Emi’s perspective in the present. This story is gripping, emotional, and frustrating. Both women undergo such terrible events and you keep hoping for a happy ending, or at least a resolution. But will they get one?
The book flips between Hana’s perspective in the 1940s and Emi’s perspective in the present. This story is gripping, emotional, and frustrating. Both women undergo such terrible events and you keep hoping for a happy ending, or at least a resolution. But will they get one?