#2 Russian Treasures

White Shanghai

Elvira Baryakina
3.96
223 ratings 29 reviews
Some called the city the "Splendor of the East"; others the "Whore of Asia". A melting pot of different nations, fused by war and commerce, this was the Shanghai of the 1920s. The Great Powers are greedily exploiting China for its cheap labor and reaping the cruel rewards of the opium trade. However, as a flotilla of ships carrying the remnants of the defeated White Army enters Shanghai, the uneasy balance of this frenetic international marketplace comes under threat. Among the refugees is Klim Rogov, a journalist whose life and marriage have been destroyed by the Russian revolution - all he has left are his quick wits and a keen worldliness that will serve him well in navigating the lawless jungle of Shanghai. He finds work as a reporter in a British-run newspaper, rubbing shoulders with international gangsters while defying the intrigues of sinister communist agents, clinging all the time to the hope that someday he'll be reunited with his beloved wife, Nina.
Genres: Historical FictionChinaFictionRussiaAsia
546 Pages

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