The Printed Page

Title: The Secret Mandarin (Amazon UK link)
Author/website: Sara Sheridan
337 pages
Publisher: AVON, a division of HarperCollins Publishers Ltd
Publication date: September ’09
Genre: Historical fiction (faction as the main character Robert Fortune was indeed a real person)
Would I recommend this book: Undecided though I would read other books by this author
Journal notes: For the most part I enjoyed The Secret Mandarin though I did have issues with the two main characters and part of the storyline. I was drawn to The Secret Mandarin for two reasons: the beautiful cover art and the setting – China in the mid-1840s. I love reading stories set in the Asian culture especially if they are historical in nature. The legends, mythology and belief system fascinate me. There is a certain magic that draws me in. It’s the whole East vs. West thing. So for the part story line based solely on Robert and Mary’s journey and adventure across China I was hooked. Before starting The Secret Mandarin I didn’t realize it was based, loosely, on part of Robert Fortune’s life.

As to the characters themselves both Robert and Mary are extremely selfish and self-centered. I never did warm up to either. And frankly the way Mary views the relationship between herself, Robert and Jane at the end of the book just plain didn’t sit well with me.

A disgraced woman. A faraway land. A forbidden love! An unforgettable tale set in Victorian London and 1840s China from a shining, young historical talent. Desperate to shield her from scandal, Mary’s brother-in-law, the ambitious botanist Robert Fortune, forces her to accompany him on a mission to China to steal tea plants for the East India Company. But Robert conceals his secret motives – to spy for the British forces, newly victorious in the recent Opium War. His task is both difficult and dangerous – the British are still regarded as enemies by the Chinese and exporting tea bushes carries the death sentence. In these harsh conditions Mary grieves for her London life and the baby she has been forced to leave behind, while her fury at Robert intensifies. As their quest becomes increasingly treacherous, Robert and Mary disguise themselves as a mandarin and man-servant. Thousands of miles from everything familiar, Mary revels in her new freedom and the Chinese way of life – and when danger strikes, finds unexpected reserves of courage. The Secret Mandarin is an unforgettable story of love, fortitude and recklessness – of a strong woman determined to make it in a man’s world and a man who will stop at nothing to fulfil his desires.

(The Secret Mandarin was provided to me by Ms. Sheridan’s publicist from Harper Collins. I was not paid and will be sending this book to another book blogger )