Desire, virtue, courtesans (also known as sing-song girls), and the denizens of Shanghai's pleasure quarters are just some of the elements that constitute Han Bangqing's extraordinary novel of late imperial China. Han's richly textured, panoramic view of late-nineteenth-century Shanghai follows a range of characters from beautiful sing-song girls to lower-class prostitutes and from men in positions of social authority to criminals and ambitious young men recently arrived from the country. ...

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • A Chinese family becomes enmeshed in a dramatic story, uncovers past secrets and tragedies, and learns that love can transcend death in this “engrossing [and] thought-provoking meditation on what it means to be human” (People, Critic’s Choice) from the acclaimed author of Snow Flower and The Secret Fan.“Electrifying . . . a fascinating and often surprising story of women helping women, women hurting wom...

Rediscover the A Puffin Book series and bring the best-loved classics to a new generation - including this 25th anniversary edition of Chinese Cinderella, complete with a special introduction by Julia Eccleshare.Born into the world with her story already written and woven with bad luck, Adeline turns her attention to school, where she discovers that she is a talented writer, much to Father's disapproval.'Writer! You are going to starve!'But...

For eight groundbreaking years, Xinran presented a radio programme in China during which she invited women to call in and talk about themselves. Broadcast every evening, Words on the Night Breeze became famous through the country for its unflinching portrayal of what it meant to be a woman in modern China. Centuries of obedience to their fathers, husbands and sons, followed by years of political turmoil had made women terrified of talking openly about their feelings. Xinran won their trust...

From the author of Three Souls comes a vividly imagined and haunting new novel set in early 20th century Shanghai-a story of friendship, heartbreak, and history that follows a young Eurasian orphans search for her long-lost mother.That night I dreamed that I had wandered out to Dragon Springs Road all on my own, when a dreadful knowledge seized me that my mother had gone away never to return . . .In 1908, Jialing is only seven years old when she is abando...

**"Dark, gorgeous…feels authentically Chinese and it works like a charm." --Washington Post Book World on A Case of Two CitiesChief Inspector Chen Cao of the Shanghai Police Department is offered a bit of luxury by friends and supporters within the Party – a week's vacation at a luxurious resort near Lake Tai, a week where he can relax, and recover, undisturbed by outside demands or disruptions. Unfortunately, the once beautiful Lake Tai, renowned for its...

“Duncan Jepson magically inhabits the life of a young Chinese woman in 1930s Shanghai….I thoroughly enjoyed this book.”—Janice Y. K. Lee, New York Times bestselling author of The Piano Teacher“Breathtaking….A great work that will move its readers.”—Hong Ying, international bestselling author of Daughter of the RiverReaders previously enchanted by Memoirs of a Geisha, Empress, and the novels of Lisa See will be capti...

The second book in the Inspector Chen investigationsInspector Chen’s mentor in the Shanghai Police Bureau has assigned him to escort US Marshal Catherine Rohn. Her mission is to bring Wen, the wife of a witness in an important criminal trial, to the United States. Inspector Rohn is already en route when Chen learns that Wen has unaccountably vanished from her village in Fujian. Or is this just what he is supposed to believe? Chen resents his role; he would rather i...

Maidservant Yue-ying is not one of those beauties. Street-smart and practical, she’s content to live in the shadow of her infamous mistress—until she meets the aristocratic playboy Bai Huang.Bai Huang lives in a privileged world Yue-ying can barely imagine, yet alone share, but as they are thrown together in an attempt to solve a deadly mystery, they both start to dream of a different life.Yet Bai Huang’s position means that all she could ever be to him is his concubine—wil...

When the murder of a woman is reported to the Shanghai police while Inspector Chen is on vacation, Sergeant Yu is forced to take charge of the investigation. The victim, Yin Lige, a novelist known for her banned book, has been found dead in her tiny, humble room off the stairwell of a converted multi-family house. It seems that only a neighbor could have committed the crime, for the building is kept locked at night. But there is no apparent motive. Sergeant Yu tries to unravel the reclusiv...

**Originally banned in China but later named one of that nation’s most influential books, a searing novel that portrays one man’s transformation from the spoiled son of a landlord to a kindhearted peasant.“A work of astounding emotional power.” —Dai Sijie, author of Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress**From the author of Brothers and China in Ten Words: this celebrated contemporary classic of Chinese literature was also adapted for film by Zh...

Welcome to the infamous Pingkang Li—home of the celebrated Lotus Palace courtesans, and a place of beauty and treachery…Charming and seductive, Mingyu is the most sought-after hostess in the pleasure quarter. She has all men wrapped around her finger—except Constable Wu Kaifeng, the one man she can’t resist, the only man to have placed her in chains.Wu Kaifeng’s outwardly intimidating demeanor hides a reluctant, fierce attraction to beautiful Mingyu. But th...