In the turbulent Shanghai of Republican-era China, the glittering foreign concessions conceal human desire and moral ruin beneath their dazzling, extravagant surface. Rouge’s Curse tells the story of Liu Ruyan, a woman from Suzhou whose family falls on hard times and sells her to Shanghai’s most renowned brothel, Flower’s Embrace. Thanks to her extraordinary beauty, talent, and mastery of music, chess, calligraphy, and painting, she soon becomes its leading courtesan. Yet behind the glamour lies the humiliation and struggle of being treated as a commodity, as well as the resourcefulness and helplessness required to deal with all kinds of people: warlords, merchants, revolutionaries, and gangsters. The novel delves into how Liu Ruyan protects herself in her own way and seeks dignity amid the tide of history, and how she makes choices between love and loyalty, life and death. She falls for someone she should never have loved and is drawn into a thrilling political struggle. Ultimately, amid a maelstrom of love and hatred, she reveals the tragic song and indomitable spirit of the women of her era.
