Edward Rutherfurd was born in England, in the cathedral city of Salisbury. Educated at the universities of Cambridge, and Stanford, California, he worked in political research, bookselling and publishing. After numerous attempts to write books and plays, he finally abandoned his career in the book trade in 1983, and returned to his childhood home to write SARUM, a historical novel with a ten-thousand year story, set in the area around the ancient monument of Stonehenge, and Salisbury. Four years later, when the book was published, it became an instant international bestseller, remaining 23 weeks on the New York Times Bestseller List. Since then he has written seven more bestsellers.
takes an entertaining, educational journey through China's rich and complex history, geography, art, and diverse cultures during a tumultuous epoch * Booklist * The unparallelled master of the historical saga returns, this time, with an eye on China. Beginning with the First Opium War in 1839 and continuing through the present day, Rutherfurd tells a sweeping tale that brings to life a nation's history, traditions and the people who lived through it as if by magic * Newsweek * A spectacularly glorious epic! . . . This barnstormer of a book can take its rightful place as a true historical epic * On-Magazine * Bravo; this is a big, complex and utterly involving portrait of 19th-century China * The Times * It's a bravura performance, fizzing with incident, excitement and energy * Daily Mail * Rich in detail, it'll give all readers pause for thought * Belfast Telegraph *