Thousands of prices just dropped across Thryft
Our price drop is now live! Find lowered prices on thousands of one-of-a-kind finds across Thryft
Free delivery on all orders above $30
Get 10% off all year round! Join Thryft Club
Get 10% off all year round and $10 off your next order! Join Thryft Club

Your cart

Your cart is empty

Check out these collections!

Bestselling Fiction
Bestselling Nonfiction
Bestselling Books for Children
Vintage and Rare Books
Vinyl Records
Women's Clothing
Men's Clothing

Find more of what you love

Get thoughtful picks from Thryft’s ever-changing collection of pre-loved books, vinyl and CDs—plus occasional sales and events.

By signing up, you agree to receive marketing emails from Thryft. You can unsubscribe at any time.

This item is sold out

Get an email when a matching copy is available again.

The Light Between Us

Elaine Chiew

Which copies would you like?
Condition and budgetAny condition · No price limit

Excludes delivery. This filters future availability alerts; it is not a price-drop alert.

We check inventory once a day. We’ll email you once when we find a matching copy. Copies aren’t reserved. This does not sign you up for marketing emails.

The Light Between Us

by Elaine Chiew
The Light Between Us
The Light Between Us

Tender diaspora stories of family, distance, belonging

This looks like a thoughtful pick if you enjoy literary fiction that lingers on relationships and the quiet ache of connection across places. Even from the title alone, it suggests emotional nuance, the kind of book readers often describe as gentle but piercing. If you like stories about what holds people together despite separation, this could be a deeply satisfying read.

Note: While we do our best to ensure the accuracy of cover images, ISBNs may at times be reused for different editions of the same title which may hence appear as a different cover.

The Light Between Us

by Elaine Chiew
Condition guide

Book Condition Guide

Books in Like New Condition

This book may contain very minor cosmetic defects, but it is in pristine condition. There should be no yellowing, no foxing, no water damage, and no annotations of any kind on the cover and the pages. For paperbacks, there should not be any crease marks on the spine. This book is good as new — lucky you!

*Books may be missing bundle media (e.g. CD, e-book code), if included.

Books in Very Good Condition

This book has been used, but it is still in a clean condition. There should be no foxing or annotations of any kind on the inner pages, but a sparse amount may be present on the cover, title pages, or outside edges of the book. There should be no water damage of any kind. For paperbacks, there may be light crease marks on the spine.

*Books may be missing bundle media (e.g. CD, e-book code), if included.

Books in Good Condition

We do our best to ensure the quality of our books, but there is no escaping the wear and tear that comes with time. Slight foxing and some annotations may be present on the pages and the cover. There should be no water damage of any kind. For paperbacks, there may be several crease marks on the spine.

*Books may be missing bundle media (e.g. CD, e-book code), if included.

Books in Well Read Condition

This is a well-read book, which means that the previous owner probably really enjoyed it! The cover and pages may include moderate foxing and annotations, but the text is not obscured and still readable. Moderate cosmetic defects and minor water damage may be present on the edges of the book. For paperbacks, there may be multiple crease marks on the spine.

*Books may be missing bundle media (e.g. CD, e-book code), if included.

 

Find out more about our process here.

ISBN: 9781915584670
Author: Elaine Chiew
Publisher: Neem Tree Press
Date of Publication: 2024-09-10
Format: Paperback
Related Collections: Romance, Literary Fiction, Fantasy, Historical Fiction
Related Topics: Historical Romance, War, World War II, Fantasy Romance, Mythology, Classics, Asian Literature, Japanese Literature
Goodreads rating: 3.55
(rated by 108 readers)

Description

The Light Between Us is a Southeast Asian historical romance that defies time and space as an archivist explores Singapore’s tumultuous past through a supernatural connection. When photography archivist Charlie Sze-Toh receives a misdirected letter from Wang Tian Wei, a 1920s colonial-era Chinese photographer, a conversation begins through a mysterious digital folder and photographic plates, sparking a romance that spans lifetimes. In Tian Wei’s era, he searches for his missing friend Aiko, navigating the turbulent streets and the perfumed chambers of a Japanese brothel. In the modern day, Charlie fights to maintain control within a family dynamic dominated by her stepmother, a manipulative matriarch who uses secrets as bargaining chips. As Tian Wei’s letters become tinged by the threat of the Japanese Occupation, will a final letter from Charlie allow their love to endure? Inspired by Elaine Chiew’s archival research into Singaporean history, The Light Between Us weaves Chinese mythology and early 20th‑century colonial Singapore into a sweeping speculative epic. Praise from Melissa Fu, Sequoia Nagamatsu, Hannah Vincent, and Mahita Vas highlights its rich language, immersive memory-work, and willingness to blend love, photography, and history into a genre-defying narrative.
 

Tender diaspora stories of family, distance, belonging

This looks like a thoughtful pick if you enjoy literary fiction that lingers on relationships and the quiet ache of connection across places. Even from the title alone, it suggests emotional nuance, the kind of book readers often describe as gentle but piercing. If you like stories about what holds people together despite separation, this could be a deeply satisfying read.

Note: While we do our best to ensure the accuracy of cover images, ISBNs may at times be reused for different editions of the same title which may hence appear as a different cover.

Romance Books

Shop all
An Arrow to the Moon
Emily X.R. Pan | Little, Brown Books For Young Readers

An Arrow to the Moon

In one line

Star-crossed love wrapped in family magic

Goodreads 3.42

Condition: Very Good

$11.90

60% off est. retail
The Breakup Tour
Austin Siegemund-Broka, Emily Wibberley | Pan Books

The Breakup Tour

In one line

Second-chance romance with backstage music-world spark

Goodreads 3.14

Condition: Well Read

$9.90

All I Want for Christmas
Karen Swan | Pan

All I Want for Christmas

In one line

Festive romance threaded through an art-world mystery

Goodreads 3.97

Condition: Well Read

$9.90

The Final Gambit
Jennifer Lynn Barnes | Little Brown & Company

The Final Gambit

In one line

One last puzzle before billions

Goodreads 4.1

Condition: Well Read

$9.90

Sweetbitter
Stephanie Danler | Oneworld

Sweetbitter

In one line

Seductive restaurant-world coming-of-age in New York

Goodreads 3.33

Condition: Good

$10.90

58% off est. retail
Big Date Energy
Bethany Rutter | Harpercollins

Big Date Energy

In one line

Harness the transformative power of data analytics.

Goodreads 3.52

Condition: Well Read

$8.90 $3.90 56% off

77% off est. retail
The Christmas Letter
Emily Stone | Headline Review

The Christmas Letter

In one line

Tender Christmas romance for fate-doubters and hope-seekers

Goodreads 3.86

Condition: Well Read

$9.90

All About Sarah
Pauline Delabroy-Allard | Vintage

All About Sarah

In one line

Passionate whirlwind disrupts a Parisian teacher's life.

Goodreads 3.46

Condition: Well Read

$8.90 $3.90 56% off

I Fell in Love with Hope
Lancali | Simon & Schuster Uk

I Fell in Love with Hope

In one line

A hospital heist against love, loss, and death

Goodreads 3.8

Condition: Like New

$13.90

The Piano Teacher
Janice Y.K. Lee | Penguin Books

The Piano Teacher

In one line

Love and betrayal in war-torn Hong Kong.

Goodreads 3.36

Condition: Well Read

$13.90 $7.90 43% off

78% off est. retail

Romance Books

Shop all

Literary Fiction Books

Shop all
An Invisible Sign of My Own
Aimee Bender | Doubleday

An Invisible Sign of My Own

In one line

For lovers of odd minds and tender magic

Goodreads 3.69

Condition: Very Good

$11.90 $8.90 25% off

Land of the Well
Sampurna Chattarji | Harper Collins India

Land of the Well

In one line

Dark bildungsroman of friendship and psychological depth.

Goodreads 2.78

Condition: Well Read

$8.90 $3.90 56% off

89% off est. retail
The Deadly Space Between
Patricia Duncker | Picador

The Deadly Space Between

In one line

Oedipal complexities in a modern, digital backdrop.

Goodreads 3.05

Condition: Well Read

$8.90 $4.90 45% off

The Man Who Planted Trees
Jean Giono, Norma Goodrich, Wangari Maathai | Chelsea Green

The Man Who Planted Trees

In one line

Inspiring tale of ecological restoration and dedication.

Goodreads 4.19

Condition: Well Read

$8.90 $6.90 22% off

72% off est. retail
Libertie
Kaitlyn Greenidge | Tbs/gbs/transworld

Libertie

In one line

Freedom beyond a prescribed future

Goodreads 3.48

Condition: Like New

$13.90

The Illuminations
Andrew O'Hagan | Farrar, Straus And Giroux

The Illuminations

In one line

Intimate exploration of memory, war, and family.

Goodreads 3.41

Condition: Well Read

$13.90 $9.90 29% off

Son of Svea: A Tale of the People's Home
Lena Andersson, Sarah Death | Other Press

Son of Svea: A Tale of the People's Home

In one line

Satirical saga of Swedish social democracy dynamics.

Goodreads 3.66

Condition: Very Good

$13.90 $8.90 36% off

67% off est. retail
Eastman Was Here
Alex Gilvarry | Penguin

Eastman Was Here

In one line

Darkly comic downfall of a literary narcissist

Goodreads 3.29

Condition: Well Read

$9.90

The Strange Inheritance of Leah Fern
Rita Zoey Chin | Melville House

The Strange Inheritance of Leah Fern

In one line

Tender mystery for lonely hearts and wanderers

Goodreads 3.85

Condition: Well Read

$9.90

Notes From an Exhibition
Patrick Gale | Tinder Press

Notes From an Exhibition

In one line

A fractured family framed through an artist’s legacy.

Goodreads 3.89

Condition: Well Read

$3.90

Literary Fiction Books

Shop all

You might enjoy this if…

View book details