Her novels are intensely, violently personal, and because of this they seem to dangle bristling key chains of confession before the unsuspecting reader.
This hugely reduces the chance that rival parties will clash violently with each other, as they might if they were competing for seats in smaller constituencies.
Shanghai--a roiling, boiling stew of the modern and ancient, of violently clashing interests and astonishing contrasts--is the perfect setting for this multifaceted tale.