Longlisted for the Baileys Women's Fiction Prize

In a flat above a noisy north London market, translator Iona Kirkpatrick starts work on a Chinese letter. Two lovers, Mu and Jian, have been driven apart by forces beyond their control.

As Iona unravels the story of the lovers, Jian and Mu seem to be travelling further and further away from each other. Iona, intoxicated by their romance, sets out to bring them back together, but time is running out.

Xiaolu Guo was named as one of Granta's Best of Young British Novelists

Xiaolu Guowas born in south China. She studied film at the Beijing Film Academy and published six books in China before she moved to London in 2002. Her books includeVillage of Stonewhich was shortlisted for the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize,A Concise Chinese-English Dictionary for Loverswhich was shortlisted for the Orange Prize for Fiction,20 Fragments of a Ravenous Youthwhich was longlisted for the Man Asian Literary Prize, andI Am Chinawhich was longlisted for the Baileys Women's Prize for Fiction. In 2013 she was named as one of Granta's Best of Young British Novelists. Xiaolu has also directed several award-winning films includingShe, A Chineseand a documentary about London,Late at Night. She lives in London and Berlin.

Two lovers, separated by oceans and an oppressive political regime, desperate to find their way back to each other.