Love in Translation, by Wendy Nelson Tokunaga, is about wannabe singer Celeste Duncan who feels her life is in a rut. But then she receives a puzzling phone call and a box of mysterious family heirlooms which contains clues to the identity of the father she never knew. Impulsively, Celeste flies to Japan to search for a long-lost relative who could be able to explain. With little knowledge of Japanese, Celeste finds a friend in her English-speaking homestay brother, Takuya, and comes to depend on him for all variety of translation and travel needs. As they cross the country following a trail after Celeste's family, she discovers she's developing "more-than-sisterly" feelings for him. But his mum is scheming to reunite Takuya with his ex-girlfriend, and as her search grows dimmer, Celeste wonders whether she's made a terrible mistake in coming to Japan.

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