Repentance by Andrew Lam
France, October 1944. A Japanese American war hero has a secret.
A secret so awful he’d rather die than tell anyone–one so entwined with the brave act that made him a hero that he’s determined never to speak of the war. Ever.
Decades later his son, Daniel Tokunaga, a world-famous cardiac surgeon, is perplexed when the U.S. government comes calling, wanting to know about his father’s service with the 442nd Regimental Combat Team during WWII. Something terrible happened while his father was fighting the Germans in France, and the Department of Defense won’t stop its investigation until it’s determined exactly who did what.
Wanting answers of his own, Daniel upends his life to find out what his father did on a small, obscure hilltop half a world away. As his quest for the truth unravels his family’s catastrophic past, the only thing for certain is that nothing–his life, career, and family–can ever be the same again.
Daniel Tokunaga is a successful cardiac surgeon of Japanese-American descent. He’s never given his father’s war service a second thought until Department of Defense makes contact wanting to know about his war efforts. Daniel has a difficult relationship with his estranged father who’s always been remote and strict.
The book follows Daniel in the present day and his father Ray in the past. Through tragedy, Daniel learns who his father really is and what he sacrificed for his family’s sake.
I knew there were Japanese internment camps in the USA but didn’t know anything more. I would have liked to know more about the camps and more about how the Japanese came to volunteer to fight despite their treatment.
The book is well written, but I would have liked to learn more about the camps and situation in the US at that time. I also found Daniel to be very judgmental and easy to find the worst about his father.
3/5
Published: Tiny Fox Press (May 1, 2019)
Format: ebook
Source: Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours
About the Author
Andrew Lam, M.D., is the award-winning author of Repentance, Two Sons of China, and Saving Sight. His writing has appeared in The New York Times and The Washington Post. Born in Philadelphia and raised in central Illinois, he graduated summa cum laude in history from Yale University, where he studied military history and U.S.-East Asian relations. He then attended medical school at the University of Pennsylvania, followed by specialty training to become a retinal surgeon. He is an Assistant Professor at the University of Massachusetts Medical School and resides in western Massachusetts with his wife and four children.
His newest book is Repentance, a historical novel and riveting family drama entwined with the history of the 442nd Regimental Combat Team, a group of Japanese American soldiers who fought valiantly in Europe during WWII while many of their families were incarcerated in camps like Manzanar at home. The 442nd became the most decorated unit in U.S. military history.
Learn more at Andrew Lam’s website. You can also follow him on Facebook, Twitter, and Goodreads.
Blog Tour Schedule
Wednesday, May 1
Interview at Jorie Loves a Story
Thursday, May 2
Review at Bookish Sarah
Friday, May 3
Feature at What Is That Book About
Monday, May 6
Review & Interview at Passages to the Past
Tuesday, May 7
Excerpt at The Book Junkie Reads
Wednesday, May 8
Review at Pursuing Stacie
Guest Post at Let Them Read Books
Friday, May 10
Feature at CelticLady’s Reviews
Monday, May 13
Feature at RW Bookclub
Tuesday, May 14
Excerpt at Myths, Legends, Books & Coffee Pots
Wednesday, May 15
Review at Bookramblings
Feature at Coffee and Ink
Review at Comet Readings
Review at Jorie Loves a Story
