In this, the third of 14 Fu Manchu books that Sax Rohmer gave the world, Comm. Nayland Smith and Dr. Petrie continue to battle the evil genius Fu Manchu. This book introduces the Si-Fan, a mysterious Eastern organization dedicated to conquering the Western world. The book follows directly from the previous two volumes, and includes several familiar characters. Thus, a reading of the previous books is recommended before going into this one. I'd give this book one star less than the previous two, if only because, as good a writer as Rohmer is, some of the sections of the book are, for me anyway, too vaguely drawn. The geography of the Si-Fan house and of the chapel of Monkswell, for example, are quite hard to picture; your imagination will be working overtime in these sections. (Perhaps this is deliberate on the part of the author?) Several plot points (Hale's mysterious chest, a woman who may or may not be a supreme Empress of sorts) are left in the air, possibly to be resolved in future volumes. There ARE some outstanding set pieces in the book, including the forced operation on Fu-Manchu's bullet-ridden skull and the insect-guarded labyrinth under Graywater Park. The book also features poisonous flowers, an opium den, mysterious codes, a hashish house, kidnappings, fires, leopards, storms and on and on. The pace, as usual for the Fu books, is quite breathless. There's no way that a reader will be bored.