THE LAST SIX MILLION SECONDS, by John Burdett

Probably one of the most perfect cases of a shoot-youself-in-the-foot treaty was the one Great Britain made with China: we'll turn over Hong Kong in one hundred years. And then, in an unparalleled catastrophe for the six million residences of the world's busiest and wealthiest port, they had to do it. (God knows what Margaret Thatcher's stomach looked like when she had to let it happen.) For the real residents of the Crown Colony, things were a lot worse: they had the government of Communist China - with its corrupt army, the largest crime organization on the planet - only six million seconds away. Click below for more...
When Hong Kong police inspector "Charlie" Chan Siu-Kai is asked to investigate the gruesome murders of three people, he finds that the victims had been ground up in industrial mincing machines, and beheaded. As there was only piles of ground flesh, the order in which the victims died is unclear. When the heads are found floating in international waters, Charlie finds the government of China has an interest. But, with the clock ticking, how can he investigate a heinous crime that nobody wants investigated? Certainly not the Royal Crown Colony, equally not the PRC. Chan, however, discovers the identity of one of the victims, and is now driven to find the culprits. With some novels, it is difficult to decide where to stop tossing out hints. This plot is complex, the situations graphic and gruesome, the back-story almost as fascinating as the actual events. What a dilemma! Read the book. When this was published, it was a lot more topical, but it will never lose its attraction. Completely absorbing, even this many years later. It's a 5.
Find the author at www.john-burdett.com
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