The paper Lantern Twins

Liverpool, 1947. For two years, Elsie and Thomas Lee have believed their father walked away from them. Then Thomas smashes one of his carved wooden boats, and a hidden letter reveals the truth.

Their father did not leave by choice. He was forced to go.

With a mysterious drawing as their clue, the twins set out to find him. Their search takes them far from Liverpool's familiar streets, across dangerous seas and into a China scarred by war. Every answer brings another question, and finding their father may be only the beginning.

Behind them waits a mother afraid to hope. Ahead lies a truth that reaches beyond their own family.

Inspired by the forced repatriation of Chinese seamen from post-war Liverpool, The Paper Lantern Twins is a story of courage, belonging and two children determined to find the father they never stopped loving.