1915. Japenese-occupied Korea Najin Han, the privileged daughter of a calligrapher, longs to choose her own destiny. When her traditional father seeks to marry her into an aristocratic family, her mother defies generations of obedient wives and instead send Najin to serve in the King's court as a companion to a young princess. But the King is assassinated, and the centuries old dynastic culture comes to an end. Spanning 30 years, this exquisite novel is about a country torn between ancient customs and modern possibilities, a family ultimately united by love, and a woman woh never gives up her search for freedom.