The Lotus Shoes book cover by Jane Yang

The Lotus Shoes

Adult • Cultural Heritage
Set in 1800s China Bound feet symbolize societal status Maidservant sold into servitude Artistry offers a path to freedom Betrayal looms in the Sisterhood

1800s China. Tightly bound feet, or "golden lilies," are the mark of an honorable woman, eclipsing beauty, a rich dowry and even bloodline in the marriage stakes. When Little Flower is sold as a maidservant—a muizai—to Linjing, a daughter of the prominent Fong family, she clings to the hope that one day her golden lilies will lead her out of slavery.

Not only does Little Flower have bound feet, uncommon for a muizai, but she is extraordinarily gifted at embroidery, a skill associated with the highest class of a lady. Resentful of her talents, Linjing does everything in her power to thwart Little Flower's escape.

But when scandal strikes the Fongs, both women are cast out to the Celibate Sisterhood, where Little Flower’s artistic prowess catches the eye of a nobleman. His attention threatens not only her improved status, but her life—the Sisterhood punishes disobedience with death. And if Linjing finds out, will she sabotage Little Flower to reclaim her power, or will she protect her?

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Edition information

Book details

Publication date
2026
Print length
384 pages
Language
English
ISBN
978-0778310686

Cultural Heritage

Reader guide

What to Know Before Reading The Lotus Shoes

An empowering tale of two women from opposite sides of society in 1800s China. Their extraordinary journey unfolds amidst sisterhood, betrayal, love, and triumph.

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Why readers connect with The Lotus Shoes

A concise view of the book’s strongest literary signals and the reading interests shared by people connected to it on bks.social.

Reader connection

Readers connected to this book most often reflect Psychological Moral Explorer reader archetypes. Their strongest shared genre interests include Crime, Mystery, Thriller, and Literary Fiction. They are commonly drawn to themes such as Psychological Moral Explorer, Exploring Justice And Consequence, Seeking Dark Psychological Tension, and Exploring The Fractured Self.

About the author

Jane Yang

Jane Yang

Jane Yang was born in the Chinese enclave of Saigon and raised in Australia where she grew up on a diet of superstition and family stories from Old China. Despite establishing a scientific career, first as a pharmacist and later in clinical research, she is still sometimes torn between modern, rational thinking and the pull of old beliefs in tales passed down through the family. She lives in Australia with her family.
A favorite quote

“"Brilliantly written, masterful storytelling, and hard to put down. This story will stay with me for a very, very long time." —Heather Morris, #1 bestselling author of The Tattooist of Auschwitz”

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