"Vietnam 1916, the Perfume River at dawn: A red-lacquered boat glides along the riverbank, guided by the rhythmic paddling of an ancient oarsman. As the sampan nears the shore, a wedding party prepares the landing site for the arrival of the intended bride. Inside the sampan's cabin, the bride waits nervously to meet the groom and his family - for she his never laid eyes on her betrothed.

When she sees her husband for the first time, she is shocked to find a young boy no more than seven years old - she has been tricked into providing the family with a daughter-in-law's free labor.".

"More mother than wife, Ven takes care of her young husband, Dan, until the day he is forced to leave his childhood behind. This happens when, from a hidden spot, Dan witnesses his father being brutally murdered by the village's power-hungry mayor.

Dan and his family are forced to flee their ancestral home to escape the mayor's terrible rage, and it is only when Dan grows up and realizes he is in love with the one person he can never have - the mayor's own granddaughter, Tai May - that he is forced to create his own destiny."--BOOK JACKET.