I love history the good the bad and the ugly. It is apart of us. It may not be pretty but it is truly something we can learn from and grow from. This story shows a dark part of history. But it show the light that can come out of the dark.

Donaldina {Dolly} Cameron is the light for these woman and girls who have been victims of Human Trafficing, Prostitution and drug addiction that they have no control of. She in away is their savior from the dark. She helps them over come the unthinkable and find happiness. She is so amazing to sacrifice her own happiness and her life so others may have a better life and be happy. She will let nothing get in her from filling mission of protecting these women and girls.

This subject was a hard subject for me. But I learned to love each character and to share their triumphs with them. But I also mourned and wept with them and was even be a bit frightened for them. It is a book full of so many emotions and one you will not be able to put down.

What a time for Heather B Moore to write such a book. Especially with the big fit of Human Trafficing that is going on. To bring it out of the darkness and educate people more on it. She wrote such a beautifully compelling story!

*it is a very clean book

I was given a copy from Shadow Mountain via NetGalley. These opinions & thoughts are my very own.

Thanks for giving me this opportunity!

I highly recommend reading this book.
Based on a true story with some added friction this is a story you will be thinking about a long time after you finish the book.
With a subject that is hard to visualize it happening Heather has managed to write it in an easy to read style that will not let you put the book down.
I do not want to take away from Donaldina Cameron because by all means she was a great person who unselfishly risked her own life to rescue these girls. I do have a problem that religious and missionaries always feel the need to convert and make it a condition to be helped. These girls had lost everything, their family, their virtue and pride. The one thing that connected them to the past and helps them survive was their memories and believes. This is true of today’s missionaries and was true in the Eighteen and Nineteen Hundreds.
Our heart bleeds for the conditions these girls were kept in but we ignore the fact that some of these conditions still exist and not necessary in third world countries.
Have this book teach us a bit of history and make us more aware of today’s world. Heather Moore did a great job in telling the story.

What an amazing book by Heather B. Moore! This book was wonderfully written and researched. I loved how Heather wrote about such a hard story. It was difficult to read about what these women and children went through but I was inspired by the way Donaldina helped these women get out of a horrible situation. This was a very inspiring book that makes me what to help change the world. I loved how tactfully Heather wrote about the situations the Chinese women were in and how she helped us to see them as victims needing saving. I thought this was a wonderful book and I am glad that Heather chose to write it.

I received a complimentary book from publishers, publicists, and or authors.  A review was not required and all opinions and ideas expressed are my own.

The Paper Daughters of Chinatown is a powerful story based on Donaldina Cameron and Mei Lien’s lives. It is easy to care about both women and cheer them on. Dolly (Donaldina) takes a position at a Shelter for Chinese Women and Girls. We learn about her life, her family and how she works her way up to director of 920. Mei Lien is lured from her mother’s home in China to be drugged and forced into prostitution in Chinatown (San Francisco, CA).

Heather B Moore has created a work of historical fiction at the turn of the century (1900) in San Francisco, CA. The subject matter is heartbreaking but it is a story that must be told. Moore is a great writer, alternates the point of view and keeps the story moving with a quick pace. The subject matter, the racism and mistreatment of Chinese Immigrants was handled in a very caring way and I never felt there was a downslide into racism or a “white” savior point of view.

I was riveted and came to care for the characters. San Fransico’s Chinatown was home to criminal organizations called The Tong. Often the masterminds behind brothels and young Chinese women being sold as domestic slaves. I didn’t know about this dark history and it was very moving.

Come for the history. Stay for the amazing women whose stories need to be heard.

Was given an ARC by Netgalley for a fair review.

I have read several books lately that depict events in history, and even though it is fictionalized, the books are based on enough facts to educate the reader (and me) about tragic events in the past.

We hear a lot in the news today about slavery, racism, and trafficking, but I was not aware of the Chinese women that were sold into prostitution and slavery in San Francisco (and other areas) in the late 1800s in the early 1900s. This book sheds a light on the events of that time and the work of one woman, Donaldina Cameron (Dolly), to rescue as many of those young girls and women as possible.

I was amazed at the amount of research the author did prior to writing this book. She shares that information at the beginning and the end of this book. Make sure to read those, especially at the beginning, because it will set up the story for you and perhaps give you an insight into this book while you are reading the novel.

This story weaves together both hope and tragedy. Not every rescue was a success but Dolly never gave up and continued to fight for these young girls to show them that life could be better for them outside of the brothels and opium dens. It broke my heart that some of these girls were as young as 9 (potentially younger) and in many cases, I do not think their parents knew what was going to happen to them when they sent them to the United States. The sad part is that it was their own countrymen that forced them into this life and sold them over and over again.

There are two storylines that are told, the one of the home and another of a young woman, Mei Lien. The story of the home starts in the late 1800s and Mei's story starts in 1903, however, we find the stories merging several years later. While many of the characters were actual people that were involved in the Occidental Home, Mei Lien is a fictional character. However, her story could easily be one of the many women that came through the home and was probably a combination of many of the women that did come through and were impacted by Dolly and the home.

Dolly was definitely a force to be reckoned with during her time at the home. Her bravery astounded me and gave me hope that there are those out there fighting for those that cannot defend themselves. She put herself in harm's way more than once and must have had angels watching over her as she rushed to extract those in trouble from their situations. She also gave her life to this pursuit and while she never had children, considered all of the Chinese girls her children and they looked fondly upon her as well.

This book could easily have been twice as long and gone into more depth of what Dolly did for the home and her personal life. While we see glimpses of her family, a man she loved, and some of her history, it was not the main focus of the book (nor should it have been). Her life, her calling, was the Occidental Home and she realized that and gave up any sort of life outside of the home because she felt this is where she needed to be. You have to admire those that realize their calling in life and go full force into that life.

This is a wonderful book and we give it 5 paws up. Anyone that is a fan of historical fiction based on actual events will most likely enjoy this book.

You know when you read a book and you can hardly put it down? When the story is so compelling that you are drawn completely in. The characters become dear to your heart. The story is intriguing and very inspiring that it compels you to want to find a way to follow in the footsteps of the characters or the theme of the book. Well, that’s what this story was for me. I didn’t want to stop reading it until I was completely finished because I was completely drawn in. I loved the characters. They tugged on my heartstrings. I ached and cried for these characters. For their joys that turned to sorrow. For their hopes that shattered and were destroyed. And yet my hope was rekindled alongside many of these characters as I watched them be rescued and allowed the possibility of healing hope and joy and love in their lives.

Donalinda (Dolly) Cameron’s life didn’t follow the plan that most young women believe will happen. Instead she finds herself in her mid-twenties with a broken engagement. Looking for something that she can do to feel as if she is helping and not a burden, she finds herself joining the Mission home in San Francisco to teach sewing to the young Chinese girls who were rescued from slavery and sex trafficking. As she teaches and gains the trust of the girls, she is able to share her natural gifts of compassion and love with them. I really enjoyed the way the author showed the emotions of Dolly from her beginning days at the Mission home, to going on her first rescue mission, to standing next to a rescued Chinese girl on trial, to not backing down against those who were angry at Dolly for disrupting their source of income.

As we get a few chapters into the story the author introduces us to a fictional character, one who is meant to show us what a Paper Daughter of Chinatown would have experienced from being approached in China to become a bride in America, to arriving in San Francisco, to becoming a slave. Mei Lien is the young Chinese girl who’s fictional story we get to follow. I really enjoyed the alternating stories that were working towards converging together. Mei Lien’s story was a few years in the future compared to Dolly’s story. I loved how the two stories came together.

The rich history of this story was a reflection of the research and dedication of the author in trying to write an amazing woman’s story. And the many others who began the effort that Dolly and many, many others worked and sacrificed so much for. If you read one other book this year, let me urge you to consider it to be this one. It is an inspiring, beautiful, albeit at times heart wrenching, tale of human nature, compassion, sorrow, hope, healing, and love. Immerse yourself in Donalinda Cameron’s life story and discover the good of human nature. I highly recommend this wonderful story for you.

Content: Surprisingly with the story involving the history of human trafficking and prostitution in San Francisco, I would say that it was a clean read. I would recommend for more mature readers because of the nature of the story. The author wrote it in a very sensitive way while still portraying the gravity of these girls’ situations. There are descriptions for when the girls are rescued which show the living conditions of the small rooms many of the girls are kept in and the filth. There really isn’t a lot of description of the prostitution. More just knowing that they are enslaved in those situations. Some of the more high end courtesans are shown in banquets where men come to bid or pay for the women, and they leave the banquet, but nothing further. With Mei Lien’s story it is a fade to black scene. There is also talk of the use of opium which was a big issue in this point in history in San Francisco. Some of the characters are forced to take opium and it shows a little bit of the effects of opium and addiction. There is also talk about some of the Chinese girls being hurt or tortured as young slaves before they are/would be transferred to prostitution. Also some talk about kidnapping and forced marriages. But honestly, even with the above mentioned content, I really felt like this was written in a very clean way. I’m a pretty conservative reader as far as content and was expecting possibly more content due to what the story is about but I felt like it was kept very tame and sensitive.

I received a copy from the publisher, Shadow Mountain Publishing, via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions in the review are my own.

Happy Reading!!!

I really enjoyed this book. I also liked learning about the brave men and women who saved these women and children.


I also appreciated the fictional Mei Lien . Expect to cry.

Donaldina Cameron was trying to find her place in life after a failed engagement when she arrived in San Francisco at The Occidental Mission Home for Girls. All of her sisters were married and raising their families and Donaldina (Dolly) wanted to know where she fits in. She had agreed to teach sewing for a year at a Presbyterian Mission Home. At first, all Dolly was expected of, was to teach the young girls and woman sewing to give them life skills. She never thought that it would alter the course of her life. In 1895, Donaldina started what would encompass her entire life. She loved her daughters.

This was a part of history that I had never heard of though I am familiar with slavery involving Chinese-Americans I had never heard of Donaldina Cameron’s work. It was very interesting.

I found the first half to be slow, but I liked the alternating story of Mei Lien and showing her life before in Hong Kong, and how she came into prostitution, and how she came to live at The Occidental Mission Home for Girls. I very much connected to her. I was also rooting for Tien and how Dolly showed her patience and compassion, and how it led to the strong friendship between the two. I enjoyed the second half and found it easier to enjoy. It was a tough reading because of the subject but it was well worth my effort.

My gratitude to Shadow Mountain Publishing and NetGalley. All opinions expressed are my own.

I was really excited to receive this ARC as I have read other books about paper wives, but none about the ones that were rescued and saved from a fate worse than death. Unfortunately, this is not going to be the book that gives me any insight to that life.
When I started the book, the introduction from the author about all the research she did in regards to this topic was absolutely fascinating and I could not wait to dive in. Then the book itself started and it was like it was being written by a different person; flat, tepid, bland, unbelievable, and absolutely nothing of the fascination of the introduction. I was immediately disappointed, but continued to read. Finally, at 20%, I was forced to quit and count this as a DNF. I am deeply disappointed, as I was really looking forward to this book.
My take on it is this: I think the author should have written a nonfiction book about this subject; her introduction proves that to me. She is gifted with writing about the stuff she learned, but not in a historical fiction way. If she had stuck to the nonfiction narrative of the introduction, I would have stayed entranced and finished this book ASAP.
I read a quote from Antonia Fraser today, and it seems to fit here [even though I typically love historical fiction and read a lot of it, she is not wrong]:
"I cannot read historical fiction because I find the real thing so much more interesting."

Perhaps the author will write another book on this subject in nonfiction form; I can only hope. I know that I would not hesitate to read it should she write it.

Thank you to NetGalley and Shadow Mountain Publishing for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is a story that stays with you long after you've read "The End" and closed the book. That's one reason why Heather B. Moore is one of my favorite authors. She did a lot of heartbreaking research to tell the story of Donaldina Cameron who started working as a sewing teacher (in 1895), and later became the director of the Occidental Mission Home for Girls in San Francisco (from 1900-1934), saving thousands of Chinese girls and young women from prostitution, slavery and abusive situations.

The author weaves the true story of Donaldina's (Dolly) work with the Occidental Mission Home with the fictional story (based on true events) of Mei Lien, one of the "paper daughters" brought from China, who thinks she's coming to America for an arranged marriage to a Chinese man already in the U.S. Soon Mei Lien finds herself being sold to the highest bidder, locked in a room, and addicted to opium.

Once I got into the story and was able to keep the characters straight, I was completely absorbed into the lives of these women. This book brought out so many emotions--fear for Dolly as she went on rescues for the young women who asked for help, and fought the powerful tong; sadness for Mei Lien and the other women as they discovered they'd had been lied to; rage that people (especially other women) could do that to their fellow human beings.

I admire Donaldina Cameron for dedicating her life to these girls and women who had been abused. She not only gave them an education, she taught them life skills, got them to trust again, and loved them as if they were her flesh and blood. They truly were her daughters. Hers is an amazing story and it couldn't have been told by a better author than Heather B. Moore.

I received a complimentary copy from NetGalley and the publisher, Shadow Mountain. All thoughts and opinions expressed in my review are my own.

This story was so good! I didn’t know anything about the paper daughters before reading this, and it was shocking and horrifying to learn about. I found myself putting the book down more than once to find out more about things, such as the Chinese Exclusion Act and foot binding. Donaldina Cameron was a saint, and I was continually amazed at her strength and perseverance, even when she was terrified.

I found myself wishing we could have learned more about officer Cook. He was such an integral part of the story, and I wanted to find out more about his background .

This is a book that I recommend to everyone, and I also recommend researching all of the things that you will learn about in this book. Sometimes history is ugly, but it’s still important to learn about it so we don’t repeat that ugliness.

I received an ARC from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

The Paper Daughters of Chinatown intrigued me due to its subject matter, as while I knew a bit about Chinese immigration and how they were marginalized in the US in the first part of the 20th century, I didn’t know the full extent of it, largely due to my own ignorance and lack of effort in doing the research. And the fact that this was about someone who fought against the sex trafficking Chinese women were subjected to also intrigued me.

However, I also went in with a healthy amount of skepticism, given the fact that the author, Heather B. Moore is a white woman, and it could easily go wrong, given the tendency toward white savior narratives.

And the verdict in that regard is…mixed? Moore definitely did her research into the period and the subject matter, including a lot of supplemental notes both introducing and concluding the narrative. She also depicts the Chinese women with relative compassion, and took the time to seek feedback from sensitivity readers, which I can appreciate…to an extent.

And I think she makes an important point in illustrating how Donaldina Cameron’s role and mission were different from others she worked with, particularly by referencing the “White Man’s Burden,” as originally written about by Rudyard Kipling, and interrogating that concept. It demonstrates how Cameron did not see people of color as lesser and thus able to be enslaved, as others at the time did.

However, Cameron also engages with other common assimilationist ideas, like teaching the women English and requiring Bible study. While the former could be seen as helpful in order to survive in the US if they choose to stay, the latter feels disrespectful. What I find most interesting about this is the fact that it is included as a discussion question at the end of the book, suggesting Moore and/or publisher wants to see it used as a point of discussion, which I found really odd. And upon doing a bit of further digging, I found that this policy of enforcing Christianity actually caused harm for one of the women at the hands of her family.

The book also suffers from the issue of trying to depict a snapshot of someone’s life, cutting off at a place prior to its natural conclusion. Cameron went on working after the time period portrayed in the book, resulting in the end feeling a little anticlimactic.

I do feel I should have seen some of this coming, given some of the red flags stated above (white author, story centering a white woman), and I will be using the included recommended reading list as a starting point to get a more nuanced picture of the people and events the story concerned, as I can at least commend that aspect, even if the execution wasn’t good. However, I feel this is another book that does more harm than good, in spite of any good intentions.

If you are a lover of history or someone like me that is hiding behind a rock, this is a fantastic read! I did not know of the extent of human trafficking that happened in the early 1900’s. This book is the real life events of the “paper daughters” in San Francisco in the early 1900’s. Heather B. Moore has done her do do diligence in researching this subject and the life of Donaldina Cameron. One of the amazing women that helped bring attention, fight, and save so many young Chinese girls, from the depths of despair. This book is based on true historical events with fictional changes for the storyline. It is a raw look into the lives of these girls that were robbed of their youth and lives. There is no offensive language. It is a mild telling of the brutal attacks and the violent assaults of these girls. The mention of undressing and prostitution is also mild, but necessary to the story. I would rate it as PG-13 because the subject. I would recommend it to my teenage daughter and all adults. Thank you to Shadow Mountain Publishers, Heather B Moore and Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review this book!

Normally, I would not have picked this book to read, preferring to read something more contemporary and lighthearted. But I have enjoyed this author's writing capabilities and decided to read and review this historical story of a remarkable woman named Donaldina (Dolly) Cameron. Dolly worked tirelessly to save as many Chinese girls and women caught up in the human slave trade in the late 1800s and early 1900s of San Francisco's Chinatown. This author turned a spotlight on the harsh reality of these young women without graphic descriptions of their abuses. Instead, she brings to life those captives with a compassionate (and passionate) story that will move even the most hardhearted person.
While the background setting of this novel is dark, the triumphs of this 1 woman is inspiring and should be an ensign for all Christians to "sow where one is planted".
Kudos Heather B. Moore for a story well told!

Heather B. Moore craftfully wrote the story of the paper daughters of Chinatown. She shares the real life story of Donaldina Cameron in a way that I wanted to keep reading until I finished.

While being a hard story to read because of the very real tragedies that happened in California in the 1900s. The novel brings awareness to the history of sex-trafficking without being overbearing or too much. It brings hope by sharing the success stories of the women who were rescued from the criminal tong.

I would recommend this story to anyone who can handle reading the difficult stories present within. The book is meaningful and shares an importance piece of history.

I wasn't aware of the problem of the import of young Chinese girls and women into the USA at the end of the 19th Century to be sold into human slavery. I wasn't aware - but equally, I wasn't the slightest bit surprised. Young women were being sold into prostitution and domestic slavery all over the world in those days. Sadly, it still happens today. 'The Paper Daughters of Chinatown' is set in San Francisco and tells the story of Donaldina Cameron, a woman who goes to work as a sewing teacher at a home that rescues Chinese girls from slavery and finds her meaning in life.

The problem with books based on the true stories of real people, is that real life often falls short of fiction. At times there's a real sense of 'Here we go again' as the staff head out to rescue yet another poor, opium-addicted, bruised and battered young girl from horrible conditions. It's all just very 'samey'. At times it reads like a YA novel - carefully avoiding being too explicit about what's actually happening to these poor girls. Much is hinted at. Little is explicitly stated. If it had been written for 12-year-old readers, I would have probably made allowances for that and for the overly simplistic writing style.

When I first joined Goodreads a few years ago, I picked up a much-used comment that applies to this book - that is "Show don't tell". This book is all telling and no showing and is the weaker for it. It has the simplistic style of 'he said, she said, he did, she reacted'. We get told somebody is sad or frightened when it would be so much better to show us how they react and let us work out for ourselves that's how they feel.

Donaldina - Dolly - doesn't develop through the book. We don't really get to understand her more at the end than we did at the beginning. Some of the girls do well but again, do we really get to 'know' them?

My assumption when reading this was that this was probably a new author's first published book. I was surprised to discover the author has more than 50 published books. Clearly lots of people don't mind her style, but I was amazed that such a rudimentary writing style is quite so popular.

I'm giving this 3-stars with a thank you for introducing us to the stories of these young women. But I'm sad that the task of telling the world about their lives wasn't given to somebody who could have made them come alive more through their writing.

I received a free ARC ebook from NetGalley in return for an honest review.

Thanks to Shadow Mountain Publishing and NetGalley for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

I love historical fiction and love reading about topics I don't know as much about. The Paper Daughters of Chinatown was an incredible read. I loved the authors note at the beginning which included some historical context and a little more on the real Donaldina Cameron and why she chose to only write this story based on a few years.

The description from the publisher is: A powerful story based on true events surrounding Donaldina Cameron and other brave women who fought to help Chinese-American women escape discrimination and slavery in the late 19th century in California.

This was a very well written historical fiction. I was drawn into the story and how much Donaldina did to rescue and help the Chinese women sold into slavery and prostitution. I definitely want to read more about Dolly and on this topic.

I only have appraised words for Heather B. Moore’s book. Meeting Donaldina Cameron and her brave work against slavery, abuse against young Chinese girls is been an enlightened experience for me. It’s shame that this horrendous problem is still taking palace in our days even with the hard word that people like Ms. Cameron had done over the years. A great and must read book.

Although I was aware of paper sons, until I read Paper Daughters of Chinatown I had no knowledge of the scope and methods of human trafficking of young Chinese women and girls in the late nineteenth and into the first quarter of the twentieth century. I am grateful to Heather Moore for telling their stories through the work of Donaldina Cameron and the mission house she oversaw for 39 years in San Francisco's Chinatown. Moore is an excellent story teller, drawing readers into her book quickly and keeping them rapt throughout. More than one reader will stay up late, "lost" in the pages of this book. While she describes these women's plights vividly and creates a deep understanding of the dangers involved in rescuing the girls, Moore is less successful in portraying "romantic" relationships, even at a time when there were few displays of affection in public or acknowledgements of feeling of love. This is a minor quibble, however, and one that won't deter most readers. The Paper Daughters of Chinatown definitely is a book worth reading.

The Paper Daughters of Chinatown is a compelling account of the plight of young Chinese women who were brought to the states under false pretenses and then trafficked. It recounts the true story of Donaldina Cameron and the many Chinese women who worked to free the girls and help them make their own way. It was heartbreaking, beautiful, triumphant, fantastic! It shows a side of our history that is not often looked at and reveals the many ways each person can make a difference and be a force for good. Seriously, this one took my breath away!