Young, passionate and idealistic, Sister Marie rejects the conformity of her first love, Paul Tan, the police inspector. She embraces the liberalism of her second love, Hans Kuhn, the American missionary, and leads a group of students to question the values of a nation gripped by fear of the government and loss of their rice bowl. They organise a protest march against the Vietnam War, which leads to a riot, detention and deportation of the workers she tries to help. Ser Mei, her student and the daughter of a prostitute, meets a tragic death.

Suchen Christine Lim is the inaugural recipient of the Singapore Literature Prize for her novel, Fistful of Colours. Her fourth novel, A Bit of Earth, and a collection of short stories, The Lies That Build A Marriage, were short listed for the same prize. A co-authored play and a children’s book had also received prizes.

A Fulbright Fellow in the University of Iowa’s International Writers' Program, she has held several writing residencies overseas, including International Writer-in-Residence, University of Iowa, University of Western Australia, Moniack Mhor Writer’s Centre, Scotland, and Ateneo de Manila University, Philippines.

Born in Malaysia, she lives in Singapore.