Author: Sulari Gentill
ISBN: 978-1-925700-05-3
RRP: $29.99
Publication Date: 21 January 2019
Publisher: Pantera Press
Copy: Courtesy of the Publisher
Thank you to Beauty and Lace and Pantera Press for the opportunity to read All The Tears in China By Sulari Gentill.
Sulari Gentill is an Australian author. All The Tears in China is Book 9 in the award winning Rowland Sinclair mysteries, a series of historical crime novels set in the 1930s. Rowland is a gentleman artist and amateur detective. You need not have read any of the previous books to enjoy this one. It is great stand alone novel, but I am sure after reading it you will want to read the others.
All The Tears in China is set in Shanghai in 1935. Shanghai at this time is a playground for expatriates where fortunes are made and lost. East meets West.
Rowland is sent to Shanghai to represent his brother on family business which is international wool sale negotiations. His instructions are to listen only, do not commit to anything. It should be an easy job.
Virtually as soon as he and his friends arrive in Shanghai , a brutal murder takes place and Rowland is under suspicion. His friends Edna Higgins, a sculptress, Milton Isaacs, a poet and Clyde Watson Jones, a painter, plus several locals they have befriended all help Rowland in his desperate bid to find out who is responsible for the murder and clear his name.
Shanghai at this time is a free trade port where politics and vice entwine with commerce. Exiled Russians, Communists, Germans, Japanese, Chinese and gangsters all make it a dangerous place to be.
A very clever way to help the reader to understand the times are the fascinating News Paper articles preceding each chapter.
There are plenty of twists and turns, action and complicated relationships to keep you interested. Also the main question…….who is the murderer and why has Rowland been framed ?
What I especially likes about the book is the ending. You don’t need to wait until the next book comes out to find out what happens to everyone. There is excellent closure.
I am sure Rowland Sinclair will be in another country having another adventure and I will be sure to read that book too!
This review was written by our Beauty and Lace Club Member, Anne Steer. Thank you Anne for your submission.
Sulari Gentill can be found on Facebook,Twitter, Instagram, and her website.
All The Tears In China is published by Pantera Pressand is available now where all good books are sold.
Thanks to Pantera Press,25 of our Beauty and Lace Club Memberswill be reading All The Tears In China so please be aware there may be spoilers in the comments below
I love to read, any book on any topic. I now love ebooks as they are easier to store, I was running out of bookshelves! My other interests are family, gardening and our beautiful King Charles spaniel dog who is my reading companion.
Sulari Gentill is an award winning author of the best selling Rowland Sinclair Mysteries, which All the Tears in China is book nine of this well received series. It was interesting to note that Gentill also writes under the name of S.D. Gentill, as a fantasy genre based author. I fully intended on reading the first novel in this series, A Few Right Thinking Men, which was shortlisted for the Commonwealth Writers Prize for the Best First Book. However, time got away with me and I found myself reading the latest and the ninth book in this established series. I enjoyed All the Tears in China and for this reason I do not feel that it is necessary to read the previous books in the series to appreciate this novel.
I have had my eye on this series and author for some time. I adore detective crime mystery style books, particularly period pieces, and I was keen on delving into the world of Rowland Sinclair. I had expectations of Rowland being a little like a female Phryne Fisher from Kerry Greenwood’s Miss Fisher series. Although I won’t be able to commit to reading all the previous books in this established series very soon, I am interested in exploring more of Sulari Gentill’s writing, in particular her standalone metafiction novel, Crossing the Lines.
As a newcomer to this series, I did not feel out of the loop. I would prefer to have read the previous books in the series, as I think it would have enhanced my reading experience with All the Tears in China. However, if you are in a similar position to me and time poor, I would happily recommend All the Tears in China to fans of historical fiction, crime, mystery and detective based books.
Rowland is an enigmatic lead and he has such a great page presence. I enjoyed the banter between Rowland and his little gang, I think Gentill has great characterisation skills. Likewise, the sub characters that feature in this novel are rendered well.
In terms of setting, Gentill has nailed it. I appreciated the colour and world of 1935 Shanghai. All the Tears in China features a nicely layered and vivid setting. Gentill accurately portrays the period details of the specific locale, along with the moral thinking and social consciousness of the population at this time. Adding the newspaper and magazine extracts to the opening of each chapter was a bonus side piece that I came to look forward to on each turn of the page. It was my favourite part of the book.
I really enjoyed the mystery aspect of All the Tears in China. My interest was piqued by the mention of a possible connection to the late Grand Duchess Anastasia of Russia who had unclear links to the victim of this tale. Moving alongside this aspect of the case, is the emphasis on the uprising of the Fascists, the Nazis and other extreme political groups. Gentill really works at setting up the incoming storm of World War II, which is just a stone’s throw away.
All the Tears in China is a thoroughly entertaining read. With a winning combination of history, intrigue, colourful characters and a perplexing mystery to solve, All the Tears in China is a book that has broad appeal. I am happy to give this book my full endorsement.
*I wish to thank Beauty & Lace Book club/Pantera Press for a copy of this book for review.
Thank you Beauty and Lace for the opportunity to review All The Tears in China by Sulari Gentill.
This book is the ninth book in a series and I haven’t read any of the previous books. Although I haven’t read any previous books I didn’t find it difficult to pick up.
Although this is not a genre of book I usually read, I very much enjoyed this book and thought it was very well written and entertaining.