Despite essentially raised as an Oregon native, I discovered only a dozen years ago about the existence of Portland’s mysterious Shanghai Tunnels. After my subsequent tour, the underground labyrinth periodically tugged at my mind as a setting ripe for a novel.

Eventually, further inspired by a photography book featuring “hapas” (a fond Hawaiian term for half-Asians, like me) and a marathon brainstorming session with a tremendously patient author pal, a story idea began to take shape. But only after a beloved history-buff friend asked if I was familiar with Oregon’s Hells Canyon Massacre, thereby launching me down a research rabbit hole involving the shocking, long-buried atrocity from the late 1800s, did I solidify my novel’s premise.

The final result is a tale that explores the complexity of family and identity, the struggles and beauty of interwoven cultures, and the transcendent power of storytelling.

About the Author

Kristina McMorris is a New York Times, Wall Street Journal and USA Today bestselling author of two novellas and eight historical novels, including the million-copy bestseller Sold on a Monday. Published by Sourcebooks Landmark, Penguin Random House, HarperCollins, Harper Muse, and Kensington Books, her novels have garnered more than two dozen prestigious awards and nominations, most notably the IMPAC Dublin Literary Award, RWA’s RITA® Award, and a Goodreads Choice Award for Best Historical Fiction.