Description
Set against the turbulent years of the First Opium War, this sweeping historical novel traces how Britain’s pursuit of trade and profit ignites open conflict in Canton, drawing empires, merchants, and everyday lives into a single, volatile web. Across India and China, interconnected networks of shipping, finance, and coercion reshape communities and economies, revealing the human and cultural costs that travel alongside commerce. With meticulous research and a vivid, story-driven style, Amitav Ghosh illuminates themes of capitalism, exploitation, and the dangerous myth of “free trade” when power is profoundly unequal. More than a war narrative, it’s a portrait of lives pulled together by global forces—where the drive for wealth becomes a flood of fire that leaves lasting ruin in its wake.
Available Editions
paperback
Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Published Aug 4, 2015
625 pages
ISBN: 9781429944281
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Details
First Published
2015
Language
eng
Content Warnings
Content and trigger warnings for Flood of Fire by Amitav Ghosh.