PAUL FRENCH

La verdad del macabro asesinato de una joven inglesa que conmocionó a Pekín en 1937. Pekín es una mezcla embriagadora de privilegios y escándalos, suntuosos bares de cócteles y fumaderos de opio, señores de la guerra y corrupcion, rumores y supersticiones. Un mundo cuyo final esta cada vez mas proximo. En el exclusivo Distrito Diplomatico, los extranjeros estan asustados. Las tropas japonesas estan preparadas para el ataque y se dice que el gobierno chino esta a punto de llegar a un acuerdo con Tokio que abandonaria Pekin a su suerte. El miedo reina entre las viejas murallas de la ciudad, en una de las cuales, no muy lejos del inicuo Arrabal, se eleva una enorme torre de vigilancia. Los chinos de la ciudad creen que esta encantada por los espiritus zorro, que se alimentan a costa de mortales inocentes. Entonces, una noche extremadamente fria, alguien arroja alli el cuerpo de una inocente mortal. Se trata de la hija de un antiguo consul britanico, y cuando se revelan los detalles de su muerte nadie puede creer que un ser humano pueda tratar a otro de esa manera. Este extraño asesinato paraliza a los habitantes de Pekin, incluso mientras los japoneses van apretando su lazo sobre la ciudad. Mas de setenta y cinco años despues de estos sucesos, Paul French encuentra por fin la solucion al caso que se le habia negado, en una historia que hara que mantengas bien cerca a tus seres queridos...

Enero de 1937. Pekín es una mezcla embriagadora de privilegios y escándalos, suntuosos bares de cócteles y fumaderos de opio, señores de la guerra y corrupción, rumores y supersticiones. Un mundo cuyo final esta cada vez mas proximo.En el exclusivo Distrito Diplomatico, los extranjeros estan asustados. Las tropas japonesas estan preparadas para el ataque y se dice que el gobierno chino esta a punto de llegar a un acuerdo con Tokio que abandonaria Pekin a su suerte. El miedo reina entre las viejas murallas de la ciudad, en una de las cuales, no muy lejos del inicuo Arrabal, se eleva una enorme torre de vigilancia. Los chinos de la ciudad creen que esta encantada por los espiritus zorro, que se alimentan a costa de mortales inocentes. Entonces, una noche extremadamente fria, alguien arroja alli el cuerpode una inocente mortal. Se trata de la hija de un antiguo consul britanico,y cuando se revelan los detalles de su muerte nadie puede creer queun ser humano pueda tratar a otro de esa manera. Este extraño asesinatoparaliza a los habitantes de Pekin, incluso mientras los japoneses vanapretando su lazo sobre la ciudad.Mas de setenta y cinco años despues de estos sucesos, Paul French encuentra por fin la solucion al caso que se le habia negado, en una historia que hara que mantengas bien cerca a tus seres queridos....

The revealing story of the legendary Wallis Simpsons controversial and formative year in China in the 1920s.Compelling Dr Amanda Foreman Fascinating Lisa See Riveting Anne Sebba Surprising Anne de Courcy Convincing Hugo Vickers Intriguing Julia Boyd A book of fascinating revelations Laurence Leamer Magisterial, beautifully written and impeccably researched Alexander Larman In her memoirs, Wallis Simpson described her time in China as her Lotus Year, referring to Homers Lotus Eaters, a group living in a state of dreamy forgetfulness, never to return home. That year, however, was also used to damn her in the eyes of the British Establishment. Determined to save the monarchy, the British governments China Dossier of Walliss rumoured amorous and immoral activities in the Far East portrayed her as sordid, debauched, influenced by foreign agents, and unfit to marry a king. But little was really known about how she spent that mysterious period in her life until now. Paul French, the New York Times bestselling author and award-winning historian of China, uncovers a completely different picture, portraying a woman of tremendous courage who may have acted as a courier for the US government, undertaking dangerous undercover diplomatic missions in a China torn by civil war. Despite the many challenges she faced, from violent riots to the breakdown of her abusive first marriage, it was there that she established her confidence and independence, developed her unique fashion sense, and forged friendships that would last a lifetime. She emerged from that year as the elegant, stylish, cosmopolitan and worldly woman for whom a king gave up his throne. Wallis Simpson: Her Lotus Year in 1920s China takes a headlong dive into Walliss early, formative years and into the chaotic and thrilling China of the period to explore the untold story of a woman too often maligned by history.

Paul FrenchNorth Korea remains one of the least understood nations on earth; a nuclear enabled "Hermit Kingdom" ravaged by economic mismanagement and reliant on illegal weapons sales, smuggling and counterfeiting for most of its foreign reserves while undergoing a prolonged famine and propped up by aid donations. Not a normal country in any sense of the word, its nuclear weapons program makes it a country whose actions could have global ramifications. This book demystifies North Korea through revealing the daily life of its citizens; the political and economic history of the nation; the reasoning behind the country''s combative way of engaging the world and the tentative economic reform process now being undertaken. The prospect of a nuclear North Korea preferring brinksmanship to engagement and negotiation, makes understanding Pyongyang''s guiding principles, motives and possible future increasingly important.

Que segredos esconde um dos países mais reservados e perigosos do mundo?A Coreia do Norte sempre foi objeto de fascínio e preocupação por parte de todo o mundo. Um país reservado, misterioso e inaces

The Badlands by Paul French - a gripping criminal portrait of pre-communist Peking, from the interntional bestselling author of Midnight in PekingThe Badlands, a warren of narrow hutongs in the eastern district of pre-communist Peking, had its heyday in the 1930s. Home to the citys drifters, misfits and the odd bohemian, it was a place of opium dens, divebars, brothels, flophouses and cabarets, and was infamous for its ability to satisfy every human desire from the exotically entertaining to the criminally depraved. These vignettes of eight non-Chinese residents of the precinct White Russians, Americans and Europeans bring the Badlands vividly back to life, providing a short but potent account of a place and a way of life until now largely forgotten, but here rendered unforgettable.Praise for Midnight in Peking:An instant true crime classic. Grips from the first page to the last David Peace, author of Red Riding and The Damned UnitedFascinating and irresistible. I couldnt put it down John Berendt, author of Midnight in the Garden of Good and EvilWritten in the style of a gripping murder mystery, but all the facts are true Kirsty Lang, BBC Radio 4 (Book of the Week)Engrossing true crime whodunnit... A terrific read Andrew Holgate, Sunday TimesBorn in London, Paul French has lived in China for more than 10 years. He is a widely published analyst and commentator on China; his books include a history of North Korea, a biography of Shanghai adman and adventurer Carl Crow, and a history of foreign correspondents in China.

New York Times bestselling author Paul French (Midnight in Peking) returns to the Chinese capital to tell 18 true stories of fascinating people many Americans among them who visited the city in the first half of the 20th century. From the ultra-wealthy Woolworths heiress Barbara Hutton and her husband the Prince Mdivani, to the poor American girl Mona Monteith, who worked in the city as a prostitute; from socialite Wallis Simpson and novelist JP Marquand, who held court on the rooftop of the Grand Hotel de Pekin, to Hollywood screenwriter Harry Hervey, who sought inspiration walking atop the Tartar Wall; from Edgar and Helen Foster Snow Pekings It couple of 1935 to Martha Sawyers, who did so much to aid China against Japan in World War II; Destination Peking brings a lost pre-communist era back to life.

For the privileged a cosmopolitan pleasure ground; For the desperate a port of last resort.A pot of gold at the end of an Oriental rainbow; A thick slice of hell denounced from the pulpit.The start of a journey for many; The end of the road for some.A place to find fame, or to seek anonymity; Rogues, chancers, showgirls, criminals For so many people from so many lands, there was one phrase that sent a tingle of hope or a shiver of anticipation down every spine: DESTINATION SHANGHAI

Shanghais champion storyteller - He grips his reader to the end EconomistGripping, breakneck ultra-noir reminiscent of vintage Ellroy David Peace, author of Red or DeadIf you love Richard Lloyd Parry and David Grann, dont miss City of Devils Megan Abbott, author of Dare Me1930s Shanghai could give Chicago a run for its money. In the years before the Japanese invaded, the city was a haven for outlaws from all over the world: a place where pasts could be forgotten, fascism and communism outrun, names invented, fortunes made - and lost. Lucky Jack Riley was the most notorious of those outlaws. An ex-Navy boxing champion, he escaped from prison in the States, spotted a craze for gambling and rose to become the Slot King of Shanghai. Ruler of the clubs in that day was Dapper Joe Farren - a Jewish boy who fled Viennas ghetto with a dream of dance halls. His chorus lines rivalled Ziegfelds and his name was in lights above the citys biggest casino.In 1940 they bestrode the Shanghai Badlands like kings, while all around the Solitary Island was poverty, starvation and genocide. They thought they ruled Shanghai; but the city had other ideas. This is the story of their rise to power, their downfall, and the trail of destruction they left in their wake. Shanghai was their playground for a flickering few years, a city where for a fleeting moment even the wildest dreams seemed possible.In the vein of true crime books whose real brilliance is the recreation of a time and place, this is an impeccably researched narrative non-fiction told with superb energy and brio, as if James Ellroy had stumbled into a Shanghai cathouse.

Midnight in Peking is a gripping true murder mystery by Paul FrenchTHE INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER - AS HEARD ON BBC RADIO 4A first-rate murder story, a thrilling narrative. Hurtles along from one cliffhanger to the next SpectatorPeking, 1937:The teenage daughter of a British consul is brutally slaughtered. The police investigation is botched; as war looms British and Chinese authorities close ranks. A grieving father vows to uncover the truth - alone.Seventy-five years later, historian Paul French uncovers a stash of forgotten documents revealing the killers identity . . .For those who loved The Suspicions of Mr Whicher and Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil this is a riveting and evocative true crime classic.Gripping, spellbinding . . . drawing the reader from the very first pages into an unwholesome, macabre worldGuardianPart historical docudrama, part tragic opera . . . it is Frenchs enormous achievement that he pieces together the puzzle. He tells this tale with the skill of an Agatha ChristieFinancial TimesFascinating and irresistible. I couldnt put it downJohn Berendt, author of Midnight in the Garden of Good and EvilVivid, pulsating, riveting. It is the storytelling flair that marks Midnight in Peking so highly: with its false leads and twists . . . it sucks the reader in like the best fictionScotsmanBorn in London, Paul French has lived in China for more than 10 years. He is a widely published analyst and commentator on China; his books include a history of North Korea, a biography of Shanghai adman and adventurer Carl Crow, and a history of foreign correspondents in China.