Flower Net

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Flower Net
Author Lisa See
Country US
Language English
Genre(s) Novel
Publisher HarperCollins
Publication date 1997
Preceded by On Gold Mountain
Followed by The Interior


Flower Net (1997) by Lisa See is the first of the Red Princess mysteries. The other two novels in the series are The Interior (1999) and Dragon Bones (2003).

The time frame for Flower Net is January 10, 1997-March 14, 1997. The main narrative ends February 13, 1997 -- just before the death of Deng Xiaoping February 19. The novel introduces Liu Hulan, inspector in the Ministry of Public Security[1] and a Red Princess, and David Stark, Assistant U.S. Attorney, who loves her. It emphasizes Chinese history, culture[2], and role expectations as they change dramatically over time. It also speaks to the state of US-China relations.

The book begins with the murders of two young men, one the son of the U.S. ambassador and the other the son of one of the richest and most powerful men in China. For reasons not clear to Hulan and David, the Chinese and American governments come to the unusual agreement that the two should jointly investigate the murders. See also describes Vice Minister Liu and his frosty relationship with Hulan, his daughter [3]. At the end of the novel the murders are solved and Vice Minister Liu's painful past and the tragic toll it has taken on his life and that of his family are revealed.

The novel's complex plot explores the world of international politics, human trafficking, and the smuggling of illegal goods. It also focuses on human relationships – especially those between father and son, father and daughter.

[edit] Notes

  1. ^ Ministry of Public Security of the People's Republic of China
  2. ^ Culture of the People's Republic of China
  3. ^ See, Lisa. Flower Net, pp. 47-49. Random House Trade Paperback Edition (2008).

[edit] External Links

[edit] References

Krist, Gary. "Pacific Overtures." New York Times, 10/26/1997.

Pearl, Nancy and Barbara Hoffert. The Flower Net. Library Journal, 08/01/1997.

Reed, J.D. Flower Net. People, 11/03/1997.

See, Lisa. "Sex, Race and Peking Man." Review of Nicole Mones' Lost in Translation. New York Times, 09/20/1998.

See, Lisa. "Gang of One". Review of Seymour Topping's The Peking Letter. New York Times, 09/05/1999.

Spencer, Pam. Flower Net. School Library Journal, 04/1998.