The Tattooed Heart

When Freedom Feels Harsher Than Prison, Where Can the Soul Find Its Home?

The Tattooed Heart is the third volume of the Redemption Trilogy. Scarred by family conflict and crushed by social prejudice, a once bright young woman fell into rebellion and prison. Behind bars she found confidence and kindness, but outside, freedom brought harsher chains-estrangement, rejection, and broken love.

Through the voice of her departed soul in dialogue with a spiritual guide, The Tattooed Heart is not only a story of pain and stigma but also of redemption. Xuemo leads the reader beyond judgment to the deeper work of the heart: to see through illusion, to release selfishness, and to discover the freedom that comes from wisdom and compassion.

Xuemo, born in 1963 as Chen Kaihong, is a renowned writer from Gansu, China. He has written over 80 books, published in more than 200 editions, with translations available in over 20 languages.

His novel Into the Desert won the 2022 Excellent Translation Award by the China International Communications Group (CICG), 2024 NYC Big Book Award for Women's Fiction and the 2024 Independent Press Award for Literary Fiction. His novel Curses of the Kingdom of Xixia won the 2024 NYC Big Book Award for World Literature. The novel Wild Fox Ridge won the 2024 International Impact Book Award and the 2025 NYC Big Book Award, and was honored with the 2025 International Book Awards. He topped the International Media Spotlight List at the Frankfurt Book Fair 2022, even surpassing the Guest of Honor, Spain, became the most remarkable and memorable events of the Frankfurt Book Fair 2022. The e-book editions of Desert Rites, Desert Hunters, White Tiger Pass, Love Letters from the Goddess, Eternal Love and Reclaim the Throne of Your Heart have repeatedly ranked No. 1 on Amazon's bestseller lists.