'Burma, 1945: Bea, Plum, Bubbles, Joy and Lucy are five young women in search of adventure. Attached to the Fourteenth Army, fighting a forgotten war in the jungle, they become embroiled in life-threatening battles that will haunt them for the rest of their lives.
'Oxford, 1976: At the height of summer, a woman steals several rare Japanese netsuke from the Ashmolean Museum. These tiny, exquisitely detailed carvings are never seen again.
'London and Galway, 1999: Olivia, assistant to an art-dealer, meets with the elderly Beatrix, who wishes to sell her late husband’s collection of Japanese art. Concealing her own motives, Olivia accompanies Beatrix to a party where friendships will be tested as secrets kept for more than fifty years are revealed.' (Publication summary)
Dedication : For Bettina, Penny, Rhonnie and Sue: for your friendship, your kindness, your strength and your vulnerability.
Epigraph :
'But when the blast of war blows in our ears,
Then imitate the action of the tiger;
Stiffen the sinews, summon up blood,
Disguise fair nature with hard-favour'd rage.'
Henry V, William Shakespeare
