Rob Allen, a young American Navy officer, arrives in Vietnam, a country he knows little about, seeking to learn more about its people and culture. He is assigned to a ship that will become a modern version of a 19th-century Mississippi showboat, nicknamed the Mekong Belle.Its mission is to make music, not war.
Melanie Marquis (aka Tran Vi Gian) was born in Vietnam, orphaned as a child, and then educated in France by the French woman living in Vietnam who adopted her. She longs to become a journalist, telling the story of her country's struggle from the inside.
Rob and Melanie meet by chance in a small bookstore in the South Vietnam port city of Vung Tau. He is instantly captivated by her eyes and the lilt in her voice. She is intrigued by his innocence and honest interest in understanding her country.
They meet a second time and their fate as lovers, caught between a choice between love and duty, is cast.