A review of ‘The Shanghai Circle’ by a member of the Online Book Club on the 25th of February 2024

4 out of 5 stars

The first book of the Chinese Circle trilogy follows the lives of Joseph, the son of a gang leader, Davina, the future heiress of a company, Thomas, a humble born Englishman and Irina, a hopeful Russian woman, as they battle their own storms in Shanghai, China and henceforth become intertwined in each other’s lives.

Henderson presents an action-packed novel with a drizzle of romance and factual historical events. Through the history of 1936 Shanghai and Hong Kong, he threads a fictional story that leaves you eager and hysterically anxious from page to page.

As the book stays true to its adult themes and explicitness, it demands an older and mature audience who are willing to stretch their reading capacity, endeavour on a road of compassion and apply critical judgement where necessary.

Henderson’s book encourages local minds to search above and beyond their scopes and into the real events of Shanghai, a humbling and broadening experience that all need a taste of.