The teardrop story woman

the long version

The Teardrop Story woman is Mei Kwei, born in Malaya in 1934 and doubly cursed - not only is she female, but she also has a tiny teardrop mole in the corner of one eye: a sign of bad luck that presages disaster. Fate proves kinder to Mei Kwei who inherits her grandmother's extraordinary good looks and gift for storytelling. As she grows up, Mei Kwei must cope with the attention of the men who begin to encircle her, attracted by the intensity of her beauty and by her spirit. She runs from these men to a man who cannot love her back - the charismatic Father Martin, a French Catholic missionary - and the demands of the flesh and the spirit come into fearful collision. Set in Malaya in turbulent 1950s, this is an irresistible story of passion and obligation where no one is safe, least of all those watched by jealous men or exacting gods.