From the master of the historical novel, Empress Orchid sweeps readers into the splendid heart of the Forbidden City to tell the fascinating story of a young Chinese concubine who becomes china's last empress. Min introduces the beautiful Tzu Hsi, known as Orchid, and weaves an epic of a country girl who seizes power through seduction, murder, and endless intrigue. When china is threatened by enemies, she alone sees capable of holding her country together. A novel of high drama and lyricism and lavish historical detail, Empress Orchid provides an extraordinary look inside the Forbidden City in its last days of imperial glory and breathes life into one of the most important women in history.

"A Mariner book."