Perfect harmony - Barbara Wood

A thriller spanning two time zones with two central characters. Beginning in the 1920s, Mei-Ling is the daughter of a Chinese mother and American father. But when their marriage fails, she is sent to America for a better life and struggles to make a living by selling herbal remedies. Her precarious income is threatened when a competitor steals her secrets and during the ensuing row, there is a death. The companies fight for survival in the courts and Mei-Ling wins, going on to expand the business into the internationally successful Harmony Biotech.
In the present-day, Charlotte is the head of Harmony Biotech. Her life has been threatened, her housekeeper's house burned down and three of her colleagues know why. Charlotte is in love with her childhood friend, Jonathan, but though he loves her too, he is married. Through his genius with computers, he tracks down her e-mail stalker and uncovers a family secret that goes back to Mei-Ling's lover and, en route, they find a path for their love.