The 1870s gold rush at Palmer River, in Far North Queensland, provides the rich backdrop for the struggles of immigrants trying to find a new place in a strange land.

Young siblings Ying and Lai Yue have left their family behind in China, to seek their fortunes in Australia. As Ying yearns for her parents and younger siblings, she must adopt the disguise of a young man to work alongside Lai Yue, as they attempt to unearth enough gold to scrape a living.

When their fortunes fail, the pair drift into nearby Maytown, where Ying finds work in a local store and Lai Yue joins an overland expedition fraught with peril – from the indigenous tribes that line the route, as well as the members of his travelling party.

In Maytown, Ying – still in disguise – forms an unlikely friendship with troubled white woman Meriem, who has also fallen into a life beneath her hopes and dreams.

As the story unfolds, Lai Yue battles to escape the personal demons that threaten his sanity, while the relationship between the two women evolves through their mutual need for connection and acceptance. When a terrible crime is committed, deep-seated prejudices intensify and blame is immediately levelled at those who are ‘different’.

This thought-provoking, exquisitely realised character study speaks of the timeless and universal need for a place to call home and people to love.

Reviewed by Maureen Eppen