Tai-Pan
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- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-07-30 09:54:02
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：James Clavell
- ISBN：8379981596
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Reviews
Isaac Solberg
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4。68 stars。。。 I liked it just a bit more than Shōgun。 The ending on this one really got me good and might be the reason why it 。11 stars more than Shogun。。。 It blows my mind that someone is able to write a story like this， let alone a 7 book series。 James Clavell must be some kind of genius historian/fiction author。 V-impressive。 Although I've the rest of the series isn't as good， I'm still eager to see the connection between the first two as they seemed to have just about nothing to do with ea 4。68 stars。。。 I liked it just a bit more than Shōgun。 The ending on this one really got me good and might be the reason why it 。11 stars more than Shogun。。。 It blows my mind that someone is able to write a story like this， let alone a 7 book series。 James Clavell must be some kind of genius historian/fiction author。 V-impressive。 Although I've the rest of the series isn't as good， I'm still eager to see the connection between the first two as they seemed to have just about nothing to do with each。If someone were to not want to enjoy this book/series， I'd understand that。 There's a lot of characters/plot developments to keep track of and it can be very easy to get lost in。 Which made me thankful to read it after a few of my friends （one being my very own eldest brother， Gabe！） so I could rely on them for insights that I might have missed。 With that being， said I'd recommend it （the series （from what I've read so far）） to help understand the nuances between Western and Eastern cultures as they encounter each other。 I found myself understanding and relating most to the characters from the Western cultures。。。 Also， hi Simon。 。。。more
Stefan
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I always wonder what exactly is the reason in writing that you can’t put away a book and get super attached by reading it。 But Clavell clearly mastered it。 Shogun was an awesome read and Tai Pan is as great too。 If the back setting seems interesting， go read this or Shogun。
Maureen
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Ayant adoré "Noble House"， j'avais hâte de retrouver le même univers chez James Clavell。 Malheureusement， j'ai été un peu déçue， notamment à cause du rythme que j'ai trouvé trop lent。 L'histoire m'a parue moins intense， moins riche en suspense。J'ai tout de même bien aimé l'ambiance des débuts de Hong-Kong， et le style très précis et descriptif de James Clavell qui donne du relief à tous ses personnages - aussi antipathiques soient-ils。La lecture en anglais ne m'a pas facilité la tâche， surtout a Ayant adoré "Noble House"， j'avais hâte de retrouver le même univers chez James Clavell。 Malheureusement， j'ai été un peu déçue， notamment à cause du rythme que j'ai trouvé trop lent。 L'histoire m'a parue moins intense， moins riche en suspense。J'ai tout de même bien aimé l'ambiance des débuts de Hong-Kong， et le style très précis et descriptif de James Clavell qui donne du relief à tous ses personnages - aussi antipathiques soient-ils。La lecture en anglais ne m'a pas facilité la tâche， surtout au niveau du vocabulaire de la navigation maritime : je pense que ça m'a empêchée de bien comprendre certaines scènes "d'affrontements"。 。。。more
Neil Thomas
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Superb and even better knowing how well researched it is。 As good a piece of historical fiction for drama， characterisation and accurate context as I've read。 Superb and even better knowing how well researched it is。 As good a piece of historical fiction for drama， characterisation and accurate context as I've read。 。。。more
Shaun Crawford
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How Clavell managed to hold the countless story reigns in of this door-stop of a book in complete control is remarkable。 A decadently detailed snap-shot of rich， complex characters navigating a fantastic moment in history。
Kam eghdami
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Read again after decades and enjoyed the masterpiece just as much。
Lewis Weinstein
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A marvelous read 。。。 great characters & plot 。。。 fascinating history
Ella
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This book started off a bit of a drag - the first chapter was 80 pages long or something ridiculous。 However， it did improve， and regardless of the real historical accuracy of the novel， I did find it fascinating to get some sort of insight into what the first （British） settlement of Hong Kong might have looked like。 While revealing all of the characters’ thoughts and hidden motives did make them more likeable and relatable， I found it a little frustrating that the reader was privy to every hidd This book started off a bit of a drag - the first chapter was 80 pages long or something ridiculous。 However， it did improve， and regardless of the real historical accuracy of the novel， I did find it fascinating to get some sort of insight into what the first （British） settlement of Hong Kong might have looked like。 While revealing all of the characters’ thoughts and hidden motives did make them more likeable and relatable， I found it a little frustrating that the reader was privy to every hidden plot， made by every character， the moment it developed。 This gave a more holistic view of everything going on， but resulted in a lack of intrigue and suspense。 What’s the point of a main character， when we know all the thoughts and opinions of every other character as well？That being said， the titular character was still very clearly the centre of attention。 He had to be correct about everything， perfect in every way and either looked up to or feared and respected， which irritated me intensely。 Was it really necessary to make him so much more open-minded and “ahead of his time” than the other characters？ There were far too many mentions of his insistence on hygiene and cleanliness， in comparison to his counterparts who were generally filthy by modern standards， for my liking。 I understand that some people have always been open-minded and insightful， no matter the era， but his behaviours were too obviously “modern” （still keeping in mind this was written in the 1950s） for this to appear wholly realistic to me。 And though this novel did keep me relatively engaged with the plot for most of it’s length， it was much longer and more time consuming than I had anticipated。 I approve of where finally ended， but I wish it hadn’t needed to be so long or detailed in the first place。 Perhaps a factual account of the British settlement of Hong Kong next？ 。。。more
Tamara Mousa
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Amazing saga with a beautiful historical description about the way the British ruled Asia via selling opium to the Chinese in exchange of buying tea。You can find a summary about it in my blog- https://www。tamarayousefmousa。com/ Amazing saga with a beautiful historical description about the way the British ruled Asia via selling opium to the Chinese in exchange of buying tea。You can find a summary about it in my blog- https://www。tamarayousefmousa。com/ 。。。more
Stefan Smetanko
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Almost perfect in every way， from the depiction of how free trade between countries enlighten both cultures and how government intervention is always there to put a damper on both。 Dirk is one of the best literary characters I've ever had the pleasure of following along on their journey。 I bless my joss that I discovered this novel。 Almost perfect in every way， from the depiction of how free trade between countries enlighten both cultures and how government intervention is always there to put a damper on both。 Dirk is one of the best literary characters I've ever had the pleasure of following along on their journey。 I bless my joss that I discovered this novel。 。。。more
Jessica
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This novel had such a strong white man savior complex in the main character that I couldn’t finish it。
SunPath73
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DNF in the first scene， in which five or six central characters attend a flag-raising， mutter under their breath， and think about the complicated ways in which they hate each other。I know James Clavell isn't exactly a prestige author， but King Rat was really good。 He should have been better than this！ DNF in the first scene， in which five or six central characters attend a flag-raising， mutter under their breath， and think about the complicated ways in which they hate each other。I know James Clavell isn't exactly a prestige author， but King Rat was really good。 He should have been better than this！ 。。。more
Ketaki Bhagwat
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I excitedly picked up this book to read since I enjoyed Shōgun to the core， but ended up being rather disappointed。 I loved Shōgun because the characters were well written， the main characters had a lot of growth throughout the book， the clash of Eastern versus Western culture stood out really well， the period of Japanese history Clavell chose for writing it was exciting， and there was one main plot which glued the book together。 This book however。。。 I like historical fiction because you come to I excitedly picked up this book to read since I enjoyed Shōgun to the core， but ended up being rather disappointed。 I loved Shōgun because the characters were well written， the main characters had a lot of growth throughout the book， the clash of Eastern versus Western culture stood out really well， the period of Japanese history Clavell chose for writing it was exciting， and there was one main plot which glued the book together。 This book however。。。 I like historical fiction because you come to know a lot of that particular period in history。 Tai-Pan in that sense does have a fairly accurate description of China in the 1800s， the opium war and the founding of Hong Kong。 What it severely lacks is a one cohesive plot and a rather weak central character。 Isolated events happen throughout the book which are resolved rather quickly without any main plot。 The main character is already all-powerful， so you see little to no character development so you barely see his weaknesses。 These two aspects have ruined the book for me。 No anticipation， no intrigue， I am not invested in the book even after finishing half of it。 Highly disappointing。 I don't think I'll finish this one。 。。。more
Javier
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Me estaba gustando。 Me estaba gustando mucho， de verdad。 Piratas， conspiraciones， barcos， con un fondo histórico en la fundación de Hong Kong。 Si no fuera por el final eran 4 estrellas。Aunque no voy a decir directamente como acaba， digamos que es precipitado， repentino， y ahorra al autor cerrar como media docena de hilos que había dejando colgando。 Una pena。 Merece leerlo， pero el final va a decepcionarte。 Seguro
passepartout_reviews
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 I loved it。 The whole book， from start to end， even if the rythm sometimes failed， as the chapters are have very different lengths。 The first chapter is soooo long。Then sometimes there were very short chapters。 It is normal as it presented all the characters。 The book is very long， but it's not tiring nor boring。 I think the most big strength of this books are two main elements: the amazing characters and the story。 The story， which is true， as it is an historical novel。 And what a novel！！ The g I loved it。 The whole book， from start to end， even if the rythm sometimes failed， as the chapters are have very different lengths。 The first chapter is soooo long。Then sometimes there were very short chapters。 It is normal as it presented all the characters。 The book is very long， but it's not tiring nor boring。 I think the most big strength of this books are two main elements: the amazing characters and the story。 The story， which is true， as it is an historical novel。 And what a novel！！ The geopolitical context is incredible， the exotism of the city of Hong Kong before it was even Hong Kong ， and the fundations of how it became the city it is now。 Having been in Hong Kong two summers ago， it helped me a lot to understand some things I saw and I became more excited again。 Furtheremore， the life of the characters is so catching。 I was really thrilled by they stories and what was going to happen for them。 There are realistic characters。 With shadows， with good and bad aspects in their background， personalities and actions。 My favourites are Mary Sinclair， May-May and Gordon Chen。 At the end， I really worried for them。 The style is interesting too。 The author jumps a lot between points of view， but he does so with elegance， and you adapt very quickly to it， completly absorbed by the story， the fate of Hong Kong and Macao， the fate of the world， the fate of the characters。 I highly recomend it if you want to read an thrilling exotic adventure and in the meantime learn history and understand the world as it is today。 *********************SPOILERS BELOW ****************************I thought everybody might die， except for the Tai-Pan。 Even if i was affraid for his life more than once， in the end i declined the idea， and the story seemed to prove me right。 So i was a bit devastated in the end。 But oh the end。 That acknoledgment of Culum being the new ruler。 That: "Yes， Tai-Pan" 。 What a marvellous last sentence。 I ended the book with a big smile on my face， despite all。 Even despite Gordon disappointed me， because he is a bit of a traitor， even if I understand his point of view， but the end。 That end。 I cannot wait to read the complete saga。 。。。more
Liya Ma
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3。8 stars。 This was pretty good but nowhere near the caliber of Shogun。
Jon Dean
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One of my favorite。 Always aN Enjoyable read。
Thomas Stacey
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I had some good joss when I picked this book out， by God！What a fantastic read。 Set in the 1840’s， Tai Pan follows Dirk Struan， the titular character， during the founding of British Hong Kong， as he seeks to become the undisputed ruler of the new colony。 Clavell can really write: it’s astonishing how easily he can put you into the heads of the many varied and interesting characters and create a vibrant atmosphere as East meets West in a clash of cultures。 It’s not quite on the level of Shogun， b I had some good joss when I picked this book out， by God！What a fantastic read。 Set in the 1840’s， Tai Pan follows Dirk Struan， the titular character， during the founding of British Hong Kong， as he seeks to become the undisputed ruler of the new colony。 Clavell can really write: it’s astonishing how easily he can put you into the heads of the many varied and interesting characters and create a vibrant atmosphere as East meets West in a clash of cultures。 It’s not quite on the level of Shogun， but then again what is？Audible listeners: the narrator is absolutely superb。 He gives such flair to his performances and is a man of a thousand accents， including several English dialects， Scottish， Chinese， American， Russian， Irish， Portuguese and even Australian。 He narrates Princes， Lords， ladies， governors， traders， peasants and prostitutes so convincingly you’ll find yourself lost in the story as it unfolds blissfully before you。 Highly recommended。 。。。more
Brian V
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 4 1/2 stars。 Another page-turner， this time about China and Hong Kong in the mid 19th century。 The central importance of Hong Kong in the domination of China and trade with China by the British is illuminating; the contrast between the British and Chinese culture， and the role of opium and trade in the colonization of China are well presented and compelling; and the characters and intrigue absorbing。 There is more focus on the intra-British rivalry and less on the British-Japan tensions than in 4 1/2 stars。 Another page-turner， this time about China and Hong Kong in the mid 19th century。 The central importance of Hong Kong in the domination of China and trade with China by the British is illuminating; the contrast between the British and Chinese culture， and the role of opium and trade in the colonization of China are well presented and compelling; and the characters and intrigue absorbing。 There is more focus on the intra-British rivalry and less on the British-Japan tensions than in Shogun， which provides a more extensive cultural contrast。Set in the turbulent days of the founding of Hong Kong in the 1840s， Tai-Pan is the story of Dirk Struan， the ruler - the Tai-Pan - of the most powerful trading company in the Far East。 He is also a pirate， an opium smuggler， and a master manipulator of men。 This is the story of his fight to establish himself and his dynasty as the undisputed masters of the Orient。 。。。more
Teodora Petkova
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Страхотна книга， както и очаквах！
Matthew Schiller
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Excellent novel and thoroughly entertaining。 Always mesmerized by how real the world Clavell creates。 It’s like you are there living and breathing with the characters。 I started the Asian saga with Shogun so am very excited to continue in with this series。
Louis Macko
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When I finished reading this story， I found myself wondering how much more interesting it might have been if told from the perspective on a Chinese， non-Western character in addition to Dirk Struan。 Struan's paternalism and sexism and racism， best exemplified by his ridiculous relationship with May-May， are nauseating to modern readers。 The Chinese women are beautiful sex objects， the men ugly and conniving。 The closest we get to a sympathetic Chinese character is Gordon Chen， who despite being When I finished reading this story， I found myself wondering how much more interesting it might have been if told from the perspective on a Chinese， non-Western character in addition to Dirk Struan。 Struan's paternalism and sexism and racism， best exemplified by his ridiculous relationship with May-May， are nauseating to modern readers。 The Chinese women are beautiful sex objects， the men ugly and conniving。 The closest we get to a sympathetic Chinese character is Gordon Chen， who despite being a nationalist fanatic， cannot shake his undying loyalty to the British father who refuses to publicly acknowledge him and barely even speaks to him。 Overall， Tai-Pan has so much potential with its setting and its era， but Clavell ruins it with his disgustingly dated depictions of women， Chinese people， and the attitudes of white men toward them。 Even the character of Skinner is described as fat just so that Struan can view him as amoral and weak-willed。 It's totally unnecessary and cannot be written off by saying， "Those were the views that existed at the time。" Surely the Chinese and the women on nineteenth century Hong Kong did not see themselves that way。 。。。more
Nae
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As always， every time I reread one of the books in the series there is something new to find that I had missed before。
Nathan
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A fun little jaunt in the world of opium smugglers in Hong Kong in 1830's。 This book is heavy on the fiction and light on the history， but it still manages to throw in a couple funny references。 Like the idea that the missionary in the book was the one who converted Hong Xiuquan to Christianity and started the Taiping Rebellion。 It's funny that James Clavell chose to make his pro free trade novel about drug smugglers and using military force to force other countries to trade with you。 But maybe A fun little jaunt in the world of opium smugglers in Hong Kong in 1830's。 This book is heavy on the fiction and light on the history， but it still manages to throw in a couple funny references。 Like the idea that the missionary in the book was the one who converted Hong Xiuquan to Christianity and started the Taiping Rebellion。 It's funny that James Clavell chose to make his pro free trade novel about drug smugglers and using military force to force other countries to trade with you。 But maybe he was making a more nuanced point about what free trade is really about。 The main character Dirk Struan is the biggest Mary Sue I have ever seen in a book。 He is always right， has knowledge about the future， and always saves others when they get in a jam。 But he does have one fatal flaw that moves the story forward。All in all a fun book about pirates and intrigue， and the same characters continue on in the next book Gai-Jin， so I may have to read that one。 。。。more
DogfacePonySoldier
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Great book。 Not as good as Shogun but still holds its own。
JP Jennings
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Outstanding novel of the Orient and specifically of the founding of Hong Kong。 The characters were vibrant and almost lifelike。
Liubov Lukina
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Good adventure book， for me a little too dynamic action， but the characters are pretty well developed。 When you are tired of all the woke/highbrow/mindfulness reading， read Tai-Pan。
Nepheli
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An impressively well-written and crafted book， from the details of the era it takes place in to the dialogues with the heavy accents to the character work。 Unfortunately， I didn't enjoy it as much as I hoped I would， mostly because I didn't care about the characters or the plot， which I found a bit uninteresting。Also， I have to mention how uncomfortable it was to read Struan's and Maymays abusive relationship。 Struan hits her multiple times， mostly when she disobeys him， but she is always there， An impressively well-written and crafted book， from the details of the era it takes place in to the dialogues with the heavy accents to the character work。 Unfortunately， I didn't enjoy it as much as I hoped I would， mostly because I didn't care about the characters or the plot， which I found a bit uninteresting。Also， I have to mention how uncomfortable it was to read Struan's and Maymays abusive relationship。 Struan hits her multiple times， mostly when she disobeys him， but she is always there， loyal and in love - she says that Struan was right to hit her， and they have happy sex。 This abuse is usually justified by Struan in his head because "that's how Chinese men do it， and it's the only thing their women understand。 If he doesn't hit her， she will feel horrible and insulted and unloved later" （or something on that vein）。 In all， it was impossible for me to like or root for an abusive opium trader that is more handsome， clever and charismatic than anyone around him （though I admit I enjoyed some of his most clever moments）， and not even the author appears to be bothered by the （a）morality of the opium trade。 。。。more
Gareth Maybury
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Fantastic book。
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Tai-Pan
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Tai-Pan&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft
The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Tai-Pan&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0