The story begins in southern China, 1923. Desperate to secure her future, Ling Mei’s parents arrange a marriage to a widower in California. To enter the United States, she must pretend to be her husband’s first wife — a paper wife.

On the perilous voyage, Ling takes an orphan girl named Siew under her wing. Dreams of a better life in America give Ling the strength to endure the treacherous journey and detainment on Angel Island.

But when she finally reaches San Francisco, she’s met with a surprise. Her husband, Li Chinn Kai, is a houseboy, not the successful merchant he led her to believe.

Ling is penniless, pregnant, and bound to a man she doesn’t know. Her fragile marriage is tested further when she discovers that Siew will likely be forced into prostitution.

Desperate to rescue Siew, she must convince her husband that an orphan’s life is worth fighting for. Can Ling find a way to make a real family — even if it’s built on a paper foundation?

Author Laila Ibrahim has also written “Mustard Seed” and “Yellow Crocus.”(SD-Agencies)