E. V Thompson

It is 1856. Cornish schoolteacher Talwyn is grief-stricken when her father's body is discovered by coastguards on the rocks at the foot of cliffs near their home. Worse is to come, and grief turns to horror when she learns that his death was not a tragic accident. He was murdered.

When a Chinese peasant girl is chosen as a concubine to Li Hung, she quickly learns the reality is far from honourable. She is sent away, but rescued from her Junk by a Royal Marine Second Lieutenant. When the young officer becomes involved in the Taiping Rebellion, their blossoming relationship looks doomed.

In 1837 when rich deposits of copper ore are discovered, a huge influx of miners flock to the area, bringing with them problems alien to the countrymen. Goran, whose working life is divided between two farms finds himself caught between two cultures.