The Deer and the Cauldron: 3 Volume Set

On the Dragon Throne of China sits the young Manchu Emperor Kang Xi. Back in 1644, his great-uncle Dorgon broke through the Great Wall from Manchuria in the north-east and took the Imperial capital, Peking. Now twenty years later, the Manchus are quelling the last sparks of Chinese resistance, hounding down members of the underground movement known as the Triad Secret Society. But deep in the innermost recesses of the Forbidden City, with its maze of countless eunuchs, and the redoubtable troops of the Imperial Guard, a sinister conspiracy is brewing.

Into this historical setting bursts a young teenage scamp by the name of Trinket. Born in a whorehouse in the southern Chinese city of Yangzhou, Trinket is an unlikely (and reluctant) kungfu practitioner, whose underhand tricks earn him many a harsh word from his masters. Foul-mouthed, lazy, opportunistic, but ultimately likeable and unforgettable, it is Trinket who holds together the picaresque episodes of this last (and many say best) Martial Arts novel by Hong Kong's master storyteller, Louis Cha.

As the poet and critic Stephen Soong has said, this is 'a roller-coaster of a novel, packed with thrills, with fun, rage, humour, and abuse, written in a style that flows and flashes like quicksilver.'