Hong Kong, 1931.
Amidst the turmoil of prewar China, a colonial bureaucrat is found floating in Victoria Harbor. The Hong Kong police consult John Falco, whose reputation is known even within the halls of China's Presidential Palace.
Falco offers to help, but he's suppressing the truth: He put that body in the harbor — with help from his associates, a Zulu prince and a former IRA terrorist. Police follow the evidence back to the apartment of Yvette Devereaux, where Falco found the body in the first place.
Falco can't be satisfied with tossing away the dead man. If he doesn't find the real killer, the Eurasian cabaret singer will take the blame. But the death trail uncovers a conspiracy threatening China's very future.