Publisher's Synopsis
"Kung delivers a touching story enriched by its strong atmosphere," Publishers Weekly, Starred Review"There's much to admire in Kung's debut: vivid Hong Kong backgrounds, a sharp eye for conflicts of class and nationality, and the looming threat to the heroine's family," Kirkus Reviews"Kung finds a key plot element in the hidden lives of the thousands of Filipinas who come to Hong Kong as servants for affluent families and live almost like slaves," The Washington Post"It would be easy to assume that Hong Kong is populated solely by spies and incredibly rich people who made their fortunes off the backs of peasants. What distinguishes this book is a compelling sense of place. This is a Hong Kong readers don't come across very often and the author brings the city alive. It's an unusual debut," Chris Petrakos, The Chicago Tribune"This unusual Far East mystery is as notable for its portrayal of Hong Kong while being returned to Communist China as it is for its intimate study of maternal love. Kung proves an expert storyteller, adroitly probing Claire's psyche, imparting the Far East wisdom she gets from her close friend, a Scottish priest and above all, the maturation under stress of Claire's lover and father of her son. The reader will discover the summoning of a poignant, almost visceral, response to the plight of Kung's besieged principals," Buffalo Evening News, Ed KellyForeign correspondent Claire Raymond finds herself uncomfortably sidelined at home on maternity leave. A neighbor's son, Petey, is found dead along the Midlevel district's May Road during the Christmas season only six months before the official handover of Hong Kong from Britain to China. A neurotic anxiety pervades the colonial middle-class and mixes with a mounting religious hysteria among the mistreated Filipina amahs, the housekeepers who slave for Chinese and colonial households. Claire fears for the safety of her own newborn, Caspar. The visit to Hong Kong of Xavier's ex-lover Fabienne adds to her tensions as she investigates Petey's suspicious death.
