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Aug 1, 2026
City on Fire
A Novel of Hong Kong
Summary
John chats with writer and journalist Simon Elegant about his third novel, a crime thriller set during the Hong Kong protests of 2019. City on Fire is published by Pegasus Crime, an imprint of Simon & Schuster. The novel follows Inspector Killian Tong’s investigation of a brutal murder against a backdrop of political chaos, police tensions, and also personal conflict – Killian’s half-sister is a radical protester. John and Simon also discuss the background to the 2019 protests, including the National Security Law and the earlier 2014 Umbrella Movement.
Among the books mentioned were:
- Manchu (1980) by Robert Elegant (a swashbuckling novel by Simon’s father).
- Gorky Park (1981) by Martin Cruz Smith
- Among the Braves: Hope, Struggle, and Exile in the Battle for Hong Kong and the Future of Global Democracy (2023) by Shibani Mahtani & Timothy McLaughlin
- Simon’s book recommendations
- The Immobile Empire (French 1989, English 1992) by Alain Peyrefitte. This is on the 1973 Macartney mission to Peking.
- Apple in China (2025) by Patrick McGee, which explores Apple’s deep entanglement with China’s manufacturing system.
- Ginkgo Season (2025) by Naomi Xu Elegant, a coming-of-age novel set in Philadelphia.
To learn more about Simon Elegant and his novel, visit the publisher’s website here
The Books on Asia Podcast is co-produced with Plum Rain Press . Subscribe to the BOA podcast from your favorite podcast service. podcast service.
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Books on Asia is your guide to finding quality books on Japan and Asia. By offering thought-provoking content in the form of book excerpts, reviews, literary criticism, author interviews and a podcast, we hope to create an intelligent space for people to explore issues on Asia in-depth. We are a book recommendation site and we may make affiliate referral fees through the following online bookstores: Apple Books, Bookshop (U.S.) and Amazon. We recommend only books of the highest quality. We are a reader-based site, concerned with the wants and needs of those seeking to learn about Asia.
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