The Fourth Daughter

In Taiwan, the bond between grandmother and granddaughter opens up a healing world for them both in an inspiring family saga about the comfort of food, untold histories, and indomitable mother love.Chef Liv Kuo’s star is on the rise…until a traumatic incident leaves her emotionally unable to venture outside her Manhattan apartment. But an unexpected reason to break free comes from Ah-Ma, Liv’s beloved grandmother in Taiwan. Ah-Ma needs Liv’s help in finding her fourth daughter, taken from her when the girl was an infant. After all these years, it seems impossible. It’s also a mystery: Ah-Ma’s fourth daughter is an aunt Liv never even knew existed.

“Original, deftly crafted, emotionally compelling…Skillfully defined characters, unexpected plot developments, and author Butler’s distinctive kind of storytelling style, raises this cogent novel of family relationships, tragedies, and reconciliations to an impressive level of literary excellence. Recommended as a prize pick…” —Midwest Book Review

“The Fourth Daughter is one of the best novels I’ve read in a long time. Effortlessly melding family, food, and history into a multigenerational saga that kept me turning the pages well into the night, Lyn Liao Butler swept me away. I’ll be thinking about this story for years to come.” —Camille Pagán, bestselling author of Good for You

“Lyn Liao Butler has woven a stunning tale of love, loss, and the unbreakable ties of family. The Fourth Daughter is a novel that doesn’t flinch from the complexities of truth or the pain of what has been lost—but it also celebrates the resilience of love and the hope that binds generations together. With vivid storytelling and deep emotional resonance, Butler takes us from modern-day New York to the Taiwan of the past, exploring identity, sacrifice, and the power of finding our way home. A rich, wise, and unforgettable novel.” —Patti Callahan Henry, New York Times bestselling author of The Secret Book of Flora Lea