All the Flowers in Shanghai: A Novel

In 1930s Shanghai, where following the path of duty takes precedence over personal desires, a young Chinese woman named Feng finds herself in an arranged marriage to a wealthy businessman. In the enclosed world of the Sang household-a place of public ceremony and private cruelty-she learns that, above all else, she must bear a male heir.

Ruthless and embittered by the life that has been forced on her, Feng seeks revenge by doing the unthinkable: giving away her firstborn, a daughter. But years later, she must come to a reckoning with the sacrifices she has made to assure her place in family and society, before the entire country is caught up in the fast-flowing tide of revolution.