The story of Hudson Taylor is one of adventure and excitement - of improbable answers to prayer, opposition from the establishment and triumphs of faith. Even more interesting is the story of the relationship at the heart of it all - the story of Hudson and Maria Taylor.

There are few love stories as enchanting as that of Hudson Taylor, the pioneering missionary, and Maria Dyer. Their relationship and short marriage flourished in the bitterest of circumstances because their lives were firmly rooted in their devotion to God, as well as to each other.

They were a perfect match, (though not perfect people), a couple who show us how to share our lives at the deepest level.

John Pollock draws his material extensively from original letters and papers. What unfolds is a picture of courage and adventure in Imperial China, a lost world of pigtails, Mandarins and dragon-roofed temples. It also shows how Maria played a crucial role in shaping the ministry of a Yorkshire lad who, against oriental and western opposition, changed the way that missionaries work.