The Jade Dragon will take you on a journey to old Shanghai, where danger, excitement, and romance exist side by side.

In 1935, Shanghai is the place to be. Glittering nightlife, bustling business, and a diverse international community are just some of the appeals of the "Paris of the Orient." Douglas Bainbridge, Office of Naval Intelligence, is beginning a two-year immersion in Shanghai when he runs into Tim McIntyre, a childhood friend from San Francisco. Tim is a reporter for the Associated Press, and he offers to show Doug the local nightlife.

While enjoying a show at the Jade Dragon, Tim never returns from intermission, and Doug finds Tim's body in an alley. The police dismiss it as a robbery gone bad, but Doug knows there was more to it. Bystanders saw Tim arguing with a pair of men before walking away with them.

Doug finds files in Tim's office about Japanese infiltration of a Korean resistance group; and the notorious "Green Gang" that controls the opium trade in China, and has deep ties to General Chiang Kai-Shek himself. Tim's friend and fellow reporter, Art "Jonesy" Jones goads Doug into solving Tim's murder. But in Shanghai, danger lurks around every dark corner.

The Jade Dragon is an upmarket historical mystery, with crossover appeal to fans of spy fiction, and gay & lesbian fiction.

Garrett Hutson