The setting is Hong Kong, 1963. The action spans scarcely more than a week, but these are days of high adventure: from kidnapping and murder to financial double-dealing and natural catastrophes—fire, flood, landslide. Yet they are days filled as well with all the mystery and romance of Hong Kong—the heart of Asia—rich in every trade…money, flesh, opium, power.
Noble House: Asian Saga, Book 5
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Book Description
The setting is Hong Kong, 1963. The action spans scarcely more than a week, but these are days of high adventure: from kidnapping and murder to financial double-dealing and natural catastrophes—fire, flood, landslide. Yet they are days filled as well with all the mystery and romance of Hong Kong—the heart of Asia—rich in every trade…money, flesh, opium, power.
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Review
"The last time I was so taken with a spellbinding safari was when I read Gone With The Wind."—Los Angeles Times.
“Clavell’s biggest triumph yet…storytelling done with dash and panache...a rousing read.” —Washington Post
“Fiction for addicts…extravagantly romantic…a book that you can get lost in for weeks…staggering complexity…not only is it as long as life, it’s also as rich with possibilities.” —New York Times
“Tremendous entertainment…a seamless marvel of pure storytelling.”—Cleveland Plain Dealer
“A mesmerizer…spellbinding.” —Los Angeles Times
“Breathtaking…only terms like colossal, gigantic, titanic, incredible, unbelievable, gargantuan, are properly descriptive.…Clavell has made himself the king of super-adventure thrillers.” —Chicago Tribune Book World
From the Paperback edition. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.
“Clavell’s biggest triumph yet…storytelling done with dash and panache...a rousing read.” —Washington Post
“Fiction for addicts…extravagantly romantic…a book that you can get lost in for weeks…staggering complexity…not only is it as long as life, it’s also as rich with possibilities.” —New York Times
“Tremendous entertainment…a seamless marvel of pure storytelling.”—Cleveland Plain Dealer
“A mesmerizer…spellbinding.” —Los Angeles Times
“Breathtaking…only terms like colossal, gigantic, titanic, incredible, unbelievable, gargantuan, are properly descriptive.…Clavell has made himself the king of super-adventure thrillers.” —Chicago Tribune Book World
From the Paperback edition. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.
From the Publisher
The setting is Hong Kong, 1963. The action spans scarcely more than a week, but these are the days of high adventure: from kidnapping and murder to financial double-dealing and natural catastrophes -- fire, flood, and landslide. Yet they are days filled as well with all the mystery and romance of Hong Kong -- the heart of Asia -- rich in every trade... money, flesh, opium, power.
"The last time I was so taken with a spellbinding safari was when I read Gone With The Wind." -- Los Angeles Times. --This text refers to the Mass Market Paperback edition.
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First Sentence
The police officer was leaning against one corner of the information counter watching the tall Eurasian without watching him. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt
The police officer was leaning against one corner of the information counter watching the tall Eurasian without watching him. Read the first page
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Customer Reviews
Most helpful customer reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Mass Market Paperback
James Clavell was a WONDERFUL Writer (yes, with a capital W) and NOBLE HOUSE was a gift he left to us!
Through his eyes we visit Hong Kong in the 1970's. Clavell, like a virtuoso connaisseur of the human condition he is, manages to interweave a multitude of stories into a continuous carpet of a city living fast, taking risks, winning and loosing but never giving up.
Heads of huge conglomerates on the verge of foundering - yet never letting go of their rival's throat; dirt-poor Chinese maids striking it rich by a sudden turn of their joss; photographer-Wo and his trophy collection; drug-running smugglers asking for favors-you-can't-refuse; cold war spy networks riddled with double and triple agents; an American stock-market runner trying his hand in raiding Hong Kong companies; ladies getting "pillowed", men getting wooed, fortunes made and lost in the 10 days these all take place. Will the Noble House survive?
To quote Balzac, behind every great fortune lies crime. To prove him right, Noble House is but a thinly veiled reference to Jardine Matheson Holdings Ltd, a real company. Anticlimactically, although a British company operating in China, it is nowadays incorporated in Bermuda - and trying to forget its opium-running past (like so many City of London companies respectable today yet founded on drugs and dead natives).
All these stories are presented masterfully, without ever loosing the reader's interest or dropping the ball of building tension. There were less than a dozen writers who could do this - starting with Homer.
My copy was so worn I had to replace it.
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!
Through his eyes we visit Hong Kong in the 1970's. Clavell, like a virtuoso connaisseur of the human condition he is, manages to interweave a multitude of stories into a continuous carpet of a city living fast, taking risks, winning and loosing but never giving up.
Heads of huge conglomerates on the verge of foundering - yet never letting go of their rival's throat; dirt-poor Chinese maids striking it rich by a sudden turn of their joss; photographer-Wo and his trophy collection; drug-running smugglers asking for favors-you-can't-refuse; cold war spy networks riddled with double and triple agents; an American stock-market runner trying his hand in raiding Hong Kong companies; ladies getting "pillowed", men getting wooed, fortunes made and lost in the 10 days these all take place. Will the Noble House survive?
To quote Balzac, behind every great fortune lies crime. To prove him right, Noble House is but a thinly veiled reference to Jardine Matheson Holdings Ltd, a real company. Anticlimactically, although a British company operating in China, it is nowadays incorporated in Bermuda - and trying to forget its opium-running past (like so many City of London companies respectable today yet founded on drugs and dead natives).
All these stories are presented masterfully, without ever loosing the reader's interest or dropping the ball of building tension. There were less than a dozen writers who could do this - starting with Homer.
My copy was so worn I had to replace it.
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!
By Marc
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
An amazing book. So much more than the 80's tv special. Brings you back to its original settings in the 60's and the turmoil before vietnam and so forth
Format:Mass Market Paperback
A very good novel about Hong Kong. As a native of Hong Kong, it fascinates me.
To my knowledge. all the events that took place in this book had happened in Hong Kong or Asia in some ways.
I must , however, comment that it is much too long for the layman who is not familiar with Hong Kong or China. This is not a spy novel nor a thriller and I wonder if such a person have the patience or time to go through it. In this day and age of television, this could be a great TV series but such a long and detailed book may not have much appeal. In any case, I must commend James Clavell for producing this book.
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4.4 out of 5 stars
Most recent customer reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
Noble House
As I said earlier I was very disappointed because I did not receive a new copy of Noble House, but with your recent refund of 20 % I reappraised your standing to 4 star. G.W. Read more
Published 16 months ago by G.W. Sampson
3.0 out of 5 stars
A typical action-drama
Not bad, if you like a story about businessmen wheeling and dealing, although a bit long.
Published on Jun 2 2004 by Paul Wilkinson
5.0 out of 5 stars
Better than taipan
This book is the best book i ever read, but again this book is not recommended for lower class because it might offend them. But if your in upper class well one must have it.
Published on May 20 2004 by za
4.0 out of 5 stars
Review by Shane Kennedy - Author of Highbinders
Author James Clavell wrote six epic novels that he referred to as "The Asian Saga" consisting of Shogun, Tai-Pan, Gai-Jin, King Rat, Noble House, and Whirlwind. Read more
Published on Dec 19 2003 by Shane Kennedy
5.0 out of 5 stars
Huge, engrossing novel!!!
This book doesn't have the historical sweep, grandeur and other-worldly feel of SHOGUN, but it is even more densely packed with political and personal machinations, intrigue,... Read more
Published on Sep 17 2003 by RMurray847
2.0 out of 5 stars
Gave up half-way through...
I guess I'll have to be a wet blanket and say - I couldn't finish it. I made it about half-way through and just couldn't keep all the characters straight and trying to understand... Read more
Published on Aug 25 2003
5.0 out of 5 stars
Superb story
James Clavell didn't disappoint me. The story is exciting, you never know what comes next. The ending is great, unlike Tai Pan's abrupt conclusion. Read more
Published on July 6 2003 by Francisco Ramirez España Garcia
5.0 out of 5 stars
OUTSTANDING !!! Clavell's Best
Layers of intrigue. I did not want his book to end. TAI PAN was great but this was better. One of my Top Ten favorite books of all time. Read more
Published on May 27 2003 by A Reviewer
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Great Book That You Won't Want to End
I must have been reading Noble House for about 4 months. The book is huge. When I brought the book to the pool at the Mandalay Bay Hotel and Las Vegas, I had people tell me that... Read more
Published on May 26 2003 by Shogun Len
5.0 out of 5 stars
Simply Amazing
This was the first James Clavell book I had read, and now I am eager to read all of the others. In a word, Noble House is amazing. Read more
Published on Jan 10 2003 by Randyll McDermott
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