Ela Lee – författare

'Compelling, heartbreaking, and beautifully written . . . Will stay with me forever' Jennie Godfrey'A novel of secrets, love and grief, it cements Lee as a writer to follow.' RED*A RADIO 2 WINTER BOOK CLUB PICK*'A beautiful, tender story of displacement and loss which shows the resilience of the human spirit' Cecile Pin'Deeply moving and graceful, it shines light on a secret slice of Korea’s history, gradually unveiling the secrets that bind – and divide – three generations' Silvia ParkA sweeping story of three generations of women who cross continents and decades to find truth, forgiveness and compassion.Incheon, 1985. A nameless baby is born in a minbak in South Korea and vanishes nine days later.London, 2008. When tragedy strikes, Hana faces ruin. She is forced to move her family – her teenage daughter Ada and ailing mother Youngja – into a single room with her, converting the rest of their home into a minbak, in a painful echo of her past life.In the confined space of their shared room, there is nowhere to hide. As the past collides with the present, all three women are forced to face not only their family’s dark history, but that of an entire country.‘Lyrical and devastating Minbak is a flawless meditation on memory, love and misunderstanding.’ Ella King‘A poignant and precise novel by a writer of great skill’ Nicola Dinan‘Had me utterly engrossed. An incredible story of love, conflict and heartbreak.’ Rosie PriceReaders are LOVING Minbak:’Tender, heart wrenching and honest’’A masterpiece, a perfect exercise in empathy and survival’’A quietly devastating novel about three generations of Korean women whose present is, in different ways, haunted by the past . . . Beautiful and bittersweet’’Heartbreaking but utterly stunning’’Stunning – at the core of it, it feels like it’s a book about choices, memory, and ultimately, love’’All I can say is WOW!’

‘An ambitious gut-punch of a novel’ Bobby Palmer, author of Isaac and the Egg' So nuanced, assured, and utterly devastating ' Layne Fargo, author of The Favourites‘Will have you hooked until the last page’ Cecile Pin, author of Wandering SoulsShe did everything right. So why did it go so wrong?Men like him – in positions of power who watched the wheels of suppression turn from a distance, standing by and doing nothing – were the protectors of the broken system.They’re the fuel that made the fire burn.Jade is everything she ever wanted to be. Successful lawyer. Dutiful daughter. Beloved girlfriend. Loyal friend. Until one night, something terrible happens after a work event, and she starts to wonder if she really wants to be the person she’s become.She’s learned to laugh when she’s felt like crying, opted to be invisible when she wanted to speak up and changed her identity to please people.But now Jade has a decision to make.Protect her job and reputation or expose the truth and face the consequences?READERS LOVE JADED:'I loved Jade. Rooting for her felt like rooting for myself' 'One of the most moving books I’ve ever read’‘I urge everyone to read this'

‘An ambitious gut-punch of a novel’ Bobby Palmer, author of Isaac and the Egg' So nuanced, assured, and utterly devastating ' Layne Fargo, author of The Favourites‘Will have you hooked until the last page’ Cecile Pin, author of Wandering SoulsShe did everything right. So why did it go so wrong?Men like him – in positions of power who watched the wheels of suppression turn from a distance, standing by and doing nothing – were the protectors of the broken system.They’re the fuel that made the fire burn.Jade is everything she ever wanted to be. Successful lawyer. Dutiful daughter. Beloved girlfriend. Loyal friend. Until one night, something terrible happens after a work event, and she starts to wonder if she really wants to be the person she’s become.She’s learned to laugh when she’s felt like crying, opted to be invisible when she wanted to speak up and changed her identity to please people.But now Jade has a decision to make.Protect her job and reputation or expose the truth and face the consequences?READERS LOVE JADED:'I loved Jade. Rooting for her felt like rooting for myself' 'One of the most moving books I’ve ever read’‘I urge everyone to read this'

The night the baby without a surname was born, the army rolled into his mother’s townIncheon, South Korea, 1985. The country is revolting against a dictatorship, but in the local boarding-house, the chaos inside is only just beginning. When Hana is pulled from school to work in her family’s minbak, all she wants is to escape her small town. When she finally does, she leaves as an exile, a ruin, or a martyr, depending on who you ask. Her mother Youngia is left behind with the torment of both of their decisions.London, 2008. Ada knows little about her mother, Hana. When tragedy hits, Hana has no choice but to move her daughter and ailing mother into a single room and turn the rest of their home into a minbak. As the past collides with the present, Ada is determined to unearth her mother’s secrets. But her obsession will lead to a discovery that unravels not just her family’s dark past, but that of an entire country’s.From Korea’s industrial estates to London’s suburbs, the three women cross continents and generations to find truth, forgiveness and compassion.‘Had me utterly engrossed. An incredible story of love, conflict and heartbreak.’ Rosie Price‘Lyrical and devastating MINBAK is a flawless meditation on memory, love and misunderstanding.’ Ella King‘A poignant and precise novel by a writer of great skill.’ Nicola Dinan

'Compelling, heartbreaking, and beautifully written . . . Will stay with me forever' Jennie Godfrey'A novel of secrets, love and grief, it cements Lee as a writer to follow.' RED*A RADIO 2 WINTER BOOK CLUB PICK*'A beautiful, tender story of displacement and loss which shows the resilience of the human spirit' Cecile Pin'Deeply moving and graceful, it shines light on a secret slice of Korea’s history, gradually unveiling the secrets that bind – and divide – three generations' Silvia ParkA sweeping story of three generations of women who cross continents and decades to find truth, forgiveness and compassion.Incheon, 1985. A nameless baby is born in a minbak in South Korea and vanishes nine days later.London, 2008. When tragedy strikes, Hana faces ruin. She is forced to move her family – her teenage daughter Ada and ailing mother Youngja – into a single room with her, converting the rest of their home into a minbak, in a painful echo of her past life.In the confined space of their shared room, there is nowhere to hide. As the past collides with the present, all three women are forced to face not only their family’s dark history, but that of an entire country.‘Lyrical and devastating Minbak is a flawless meditation on memory, love and misunderstanding.’ Ella King‘A poignant and precise novel by a writer of great skill’ Nicola Dinan‘Had me utterly engrossed. An incredible story of love, conflict and heartbreak.’ Rosie PriceReaders are LOVING Minbak:’Tender, heart wrenching and honest’’A masterpiece, a perfect exercise in empathy and survival’’A quietly devastating novel about three generations of Korean women whose present is, in different ways, haunted by the past . . . Beautiful and bittersweet’’Heartbreaking but utterly stunning’’Stunning – at the core of it, it feels like it’s a book about choices, memory, and ultimately, love’’All I can say is WOW!’

‘An ambitious gut-punch of a novel’ Bobby Palmer, author of Isaac and the Egg' So nuanced, assured, and utterly devastating ' Layne Fargo, author of The Favourites‘Will have you hooked until the last page’ Cecile Pin, author of Wandering SoulsShe did everything right. So why did it go so wrong?Men like him – in positions of power who watched the wheels of suppression turn from a distance, standing by and doing nothing – were the protectors of the broken system.They’re the fuel that made the fire burn.Jade is everything she ever wanted to be. Successful lawyer. Dutiful daughter. Beloved girlfriend. Loyal friend. Until one night, something terrible happens after a work event, and she starts to wonder if she really wants to be the person she’s become.She’s learned to laugh when she’s felt like crying, opted to be invisible when she wanted to speak up and changed her identity to please people.But now Jade has a decision to make.Protect her job and reputation or expose the truth and face the consequences?READERS LOVE JADED:'I loved Jade. Rooting for her felt like rooting for myself' 'One of the most moving books I’ve ever read’‘I urge everyone to read this'