Louise Penny previously wrote a thriller with Hillary Clinton. This time, she and Mellissa Fung are writing together and the result is electrifying.
The plot of this book is way too convoluted to fully describe in a review. I also would not want to give too much away as the story should be freshly discovered by the reader. Just know that there are a global set of extremely unexpected events, political machinations, a fear of what comes next that is palpable and people who are both good and bad.
The settings are very well described. Readers will feel that they are in DC, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and more as the pages turn. Readers will remember foods, tastes, smells, Xian soldiers, noodle shops, bakeries and a museum, to name just some of the locations.
This is a story of those who want to try to do what is right even when the odds are against them. Readers will watch as characters’ true selves become known for both better and worse. It can take time to know who is on what side.
In addition, however, this is a book about the power of family and other relationships and the immense importance of these bonds even when there are great challenges. There are sisters/brothers, husbands/wives, parents/children and bonds of brotherhood and shared beliefs. There are also relationships between world leaders. This aspect of the book, while perhaps not as thrilling, will linger with the readers.
I recommend this novel most highly. My admiration for Penny has increased again. Kudos as well to Fung whose fingerprint is everywhere in these pages.
Many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press-Minotaur Books for this title. All opinions are my own.
Pub date: 12 May 2026
Post first published on 14 March 2026.
Five stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Description: This gives away some of the plot!
from the publisher
A fast-paced, all-too-real thriller featuring a mother and daughter caught in a global reckoning where family, loyalty, and power collide.
Alice Li, a first-generation Chinese American and former food blogger, has long lived in the shadow of her mother, Vivien Li— a Tiananmen Square dissident turned world-renowned human rights activist and passionate advocate for a free and democratic China.
When security and fire alarms go off simultaneously all around the world, setting off a panic, the signal is traced back to China. As world leaders scramble to respond, Vivien and Alice are called to the White House in hopes Madame Li can interpret the Chinese intentions. But why involve Alice?
If China isn’t behind the attack, Vivien warns, someone even more dangerous is pulling the strings. Mother and daughter must join together to overcome their estrangement if they have any hope of preventing global catastrophe. From DC to Ohio to Hong Kong, they work to prevent the next attack, along the way decoding an ancient legend and uncovering a secret language invented by women, for women.
The Last Mandarin is an electrifying study of absolute power and voracious greed, political terror and personal conviction. But it is also an intimate examination of choice, of sacrifice, of memory and myths, both cultural and personal. It is the story of a mother and daughter, as well as a compelling international thriller about the precarious balance of power across the world, and within a family. And what happens when both break down.
In a world ruled by power, even family can be a weapon.
From the Publisher:
Editorial reviews: This also gives away some plot details
From Kirkus Reviews:
March 1, 2026
What happens when an eminent mystery novelist collaborates with an award-winning journalist on a spy thriller? Pretty much everything you can imagine. While food blogger Alice Li is in retreat from her overbearing mother, famous Chinese dissident Vivien Li, in a restaurant bathroom, the alarm goes off. And not just the fire alarm, but every alarm in the city, the country, and around the world. Their triggering is clearly an act of terrorism, and the silencing of all those alarms, which comes as suddenly and inexplicably as their screeching, is anything but reassuring. Vivien spirits her daughter off to the White House, where Grant McAllister, the director of National Intelligence, informs Alice that her friend and fellow blogger Liam Palmer has just been fished from the Hong Kong harbor. McAllister and Alan Zhou, head of the China Mission Center, are convinced Liam knew something about those alarms, and President Fraser Pardington is determined to do whatever he can to prevent a sequel. He fails, of course, and the second act of global terrorism is even more disastrous than the first. All the president’s men and women initially believe the threat comes from the Chinese government, and Chinese President Chen Jiayang thinks the Americans might be behind it. Alice and Vivien race around the globe to track down the culprit, and what they find will knit together the fates of Alice’s family, the U.S. and China, and the history of the world as we know it. It’s just as exhausting as it sounds, but it may be the most ambitious spy novel you’ve ever read. Copyright © Kirkus Reviews (from a library site)
Joyce's mystery and fiction book reviews with some non-fiction too! 
Wonderful review. Thank you for the recommendation
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