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Book Cover for: Flower Net, Lisa See

Flower Net

Lisa See

In "Flower Net, " Lisa See gives us a China not often seen: An extraordinary nation that is at once admirable and frightening.
Here the veil is ripped away from modern China--its venerable culture, its teeming economy, its institutionalized cruelty--and the inextricable link between China's fortunes and America's is underscored.
In the depths of a Beijing winter, during the waning days of Deng Xiaoping's reign, the U.S. ambassador's son is found dead--his body entombed in a frozen lake. Almost simultaneously, American officials find a ship adrift in the storm-churned waters off Southern California. No one is surprised to find the fetid hold crammed with hundreds of undocumented Chinese immigrants--the latest cargo in the Chinese mafia's burgeoning smuggling trade. What "does" surprise Assistant U.S. Attorney David Stark is his discovery that among the hapless refugees lies the corpse of a Red Prince, a scion of China's political elite.
The Chinese and American governments suspect that the deaths are connected, and in an unprecedented move they join forces to solve this cross-cultural crime. Stark heads for Beijing to team up with police detective Liu Hulan, whose unorthodox methods are tolerated only because of her spectacular investigative abilities. Their investigation carries them into virtually every corner of today's China, and leads them to Los Angeles's thriving Asian community--where their search turns up a bloodthirsty murderer at the apex of China's power structure. Their work together also ignites their passion for each other--a passion forbidden by their respective governments, and one that plays right into the hands of a serial killer.
An accomplishedstage actress, Elaina Davis performed in "Hamlet, " and in "Richard II" and "Troilus & Cressida" for the New York Shakespeare Festival. She was a principal character on television's "As The World Turns, " and has appeared in the film "Contact."

Book Details

  • Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
  • Publish Date: Dec 31st, 2007
  • Pages: 352
  • Language: English
  • Edition: undefined - undefined
  • Dimensions: 8.20in - 5.50in - 0.70in - 0.80lb
  • EAN: 9780812978681
  • Categories: Mystery & Detective - Women SleuthsMystery & Detective - Police ProceduralLiterary

About the Author

Lisa See is the New York Times bestselling author of Dreams of Joy, Shanghai Girls, Peony in Love, Snow Flower and the Secret Fan, Flower Net (an Edgar Award nominee), The Interior, and Dragon Bones, as well as the critically acclaimed memoir On Gold Mountain. The Organization of Chinese American Women named her the 2001 National Woman of the Year. She lives in Los Angeles.

Praise for this book

"This debut thriller is a standout....Complex and exciting....Cleverly confounds readers' expectations". -- Publishers Weekly, starred review
"Moving smoothly from "On Gold Mountain, the priased memoir of her Chinese-American family, See appleis her knowledge of Chinese customs and traditions to a complex and exciting novel...The fascinating picture of China's political heritage and complex social culture makes this debut thriller a standout."
-- "Publishers Weekly (starred review)
""Flower Net proclaims See's considerable talents as novelist, skillfully blending suspenseful storytelling, romantic intrigue, and stirring plot twists...[She] vividly render[s] the turmoil of China's recent history and the paradoxes of contemporary life there. This formidable portrayal of China's culture and the country's harsh system of justice constitutes a striking backdrop for See's compelling tale."
-- "Booklist
""Flower Net is a lively, exciting page-turner, full of creative twists and unexpected turns. It leads the reader into a mysterious Chinese alchemy that is strange and fresh and highly entertaining."
-- Sheryl WuDunn, author of "China Wakes