Review: Bridge of Scarlet Leaves by Kristina McMorris

Bridge of Scarlet Leaves by Kristina McMorris

Publisher: Kensington Publishing 

Pages: 437 

Format: book

Buy the Book: Amazon 

Goodreads:  Los Angeles, 1941. Violinist Maddie Kern's life seemed destined to unfold with the predictable elegance of a Bach concerto. Then she fell in love with Lane Moritomo. Her brother's best friend, Lane is the handsome, ambitious son of Japanese immigrants. Maddie was prepared for disapproval from their families, but when Pearl Harbor is bombed the day after she and Lane elope, the full force of their decision becomes apparent. In the eyes of a fearful nation, Lane is no longer just an outsider, but an enemy.

When her husband is interned at a war relocation camp, Maddie follows, sacrificing her Juilliard ambitions. Behind barbed wire, tension simmers and the line between patriot and traitor blurs. As Maddie strives for the hard-won acceptance of her new family, Lane risks everything to prove his allegiance to America, at tremendous cost.

Kritters Thoughts:  Another historical fiction that took me completely by surprise!  Set in a time that I feel doesn't get too much press - the time after the attack on Pearl Harbor and about a group of people that felt discrimination but it isn't always publicized - the Japanese community.  I was familiar with the the attack itself and what became after it, but only in a general history sense, definitely not the detail that is told through this interracial couple who defeat the odds.


Without ruining the plot, Maddie is a Caucasian female who finds herself in a relationship with a Japanese male who is just a few years her senior and their lives are torn apart by the news of Pearl Harbor and what this could mean for their individual families and the family they were starting to create.  The perspective of this book jumped a little between the two characters, but had to so the reader could get the full picture.


As we all know, there was a war and there were causalities, but I can honestly say I wasn't happy about who died in this book.  I may have picked another character if I was in control, but this didn't ruin the book for me, it just made me a little sad to say goodbye, which I guess is a good thing that I was so involved that I didn't want him to die.  


I would recommend this read to those who may be wary to the historical fiction genre, it was very accessible and the characters could almost be present in any moment in history during a time where a group of people were being discriminated.

Rating: definitely a good read, but can't read two in a row

Disclosure of Material Connection:  I received one copy of this book free of charge from Rare Bird Lit.  I was not required to write a positive review in exchange for receipt of the book; rather, the opinions expressed in this review are my own.