The Last Mandarin: A Novel [B2108]

2026 HCDJ in nice clean condition. A gripping stanalone political thriller about family and power co-written by Louise Penny, #1 bestselling author of the Gamache novels, and Mellissa Fung, an award-winning journalist. A mother and a daughter race against time in this all-too-real thriller that reaches from Tiananmen Square all the way to the White House.

Alice Li, a first-generation Chinese American and former food blogger, has long lived in the shadow of her mother, Vivien Li- a Tiananmen Square dissident turned world-renowned human rights activist and passionate advocate for a free and democratic China. When security and fire alarms go off simultaneously all around the world, setting off a panic, the signal is traced back to China. As world leaders scramble to respond, Vivien and Alice are called to the White House in hopes Madame Li can interpret the Chinese intentions. But why involve Alice? If China isn't behind the attack, Vivien warns, someone even more dangerous is pulling the strings. Mother and daughter must join together to overcome their estrangement if they have any hope of preventing global catastrophe. From DC to Ohio to Hong Kong, they work to prevent the next attack, along the way decoding an ancient legend and uncovering a secret language invented by women, for women.

The Last Mandarin is an electrifying study of absolute power and voracious greed, political terror and personal conviction. But it is also an intimate examination of choice, of sacrifice, of memory and myths, both cultural and personal. It is the story of a mother and daughter, as well as a compelling international thriller about the precarious balance of power across the world, and within a family. And what happens when both break down. In a world ruled by power, even family can be a weapon.

From recent mixed Amazon/GoodReads reviews: "Intense!! This book was so intense and wild and crazy and it's my first Louise Penny book and I'm def reading more from her. This book was action packed and fast paced and I read thru the first 100 pages very quick and it had way too many characters but I enjoyed it and enjoyed imagining China and coconut buns and jewels"; "This political thriller combines apocalyptic dangers with a fraught mother/daughter relationship, international alliances, the threat of AI and a crash course in Chinese culture. It is fast-paced and immersive while also spanning the globe from Washington DC to Akron, Ohio, Xi'an to Hong Kong to Taipei. Louise Penny knows how to craft an absorbing mystery and Michelle Fung knows the geopolitics of the current moment. This is the best book of its genre I have read this year."; "Sure, you'll need to take off your credibility cap for this one. It's preposterous. However, I loved the looming threats, the Chinese history & culture, and Alice as our unlikely hero."; "Wow! What a riveting political thriller. This is not one of my usual genres, but I enjoy Louise Penny and thought I'd give it a try. The plot is propulsive, page-turning, on-the-edge-of-your-seat. If it isn't made into a movie, someone has truly missed the boat. The characters are hard to like, especially because you are distrustful of everyone. However, there is character growth for several characters. My biggest dislike is the amount of profanity. F-bombs on almost every page are just jarring and unnecessary. Usually I would DNF a book for that reason, but I was so caught up in the plot I tried to just skim over them."; "I love Louise Penny books and I respect Mellissa Fung as an extraordinary journalist. I was hoping to enjoy this but it was too convoluted. I am okay with suspending belief and just going with a wild plot, but this had too many 'you must be kidding me!' moments."; "Enjoyable read, but very unsettling. The fact that fiction could so easily be fact when we are at the mercy of an inept, demented, fool holding the nuclear codes, is terrifying."