A Snake Lies Waiting

THE CHINESE "LORD OF THE RINGS" - NOW IN ENGLISH FOR THE FIRST TIME.

THE SERIES EVERY CHINESE READER HAS BEEN ENJOYING FOR DECADES - 300 MILLION COPIES SOLD.

"Jin Yong's work, in the Chinese-speaking world, has a cultural currency roughly equal to that of "Harry Potter" and "Star Wars" combined" Nick Frisch, New Yorker

"Like every fairy tale you're ever loved, imbued with jokes and epic grandeur. Prepare to be swept along." Jamie Buxton, Daily Mail

China: 1200 A.D.

Guo Jing has confronted Apothecary Huang, his sweetheart Lotus' father, on Peach Blossom Island, and bested the villainous Gallant Ouyang in three trials to win her hand in marriage.

But now, along with his sworn brother, Zhou Botong of the Quanzhen Sect, and his shifu, Count Seven Hong, Chief of the Beggar Clan, he has walked into a trap. Tricked by Huang into boarding a unseaworthy barge, they will surely drown unless Lotus - who has overheard her father's plans - can find a way to save them.

Yet even if they are to survive the voyage, great dangers lie in wait on the mainland. The Jin Prince Wanyan Honglie has gathered a band of unscrupulous warriors to aid him in his search for the lost writings of the Great Song patriot General Yue Fei. If he is successful, the Jin armies will gain the key to total victory over the Song Empire, condemning Guo Jing's countrymen to centuries of servitude.

Translated from the Chinese by Anna Holmwood and Gigi Chang

[Jin Yong's] work, in the Chinese-speaking world, has a cultural currency roughly equal to that of "Harry Potter" and "Star Wars" combined . . . With his combination of erudition, sentiment, propulsive plotting, and vivid prose, he is widely regarded as the genre's finest writer . . . Holmwood's translation offers the best opportunity yet for English-language readers to encounter one of the world's most beloved writers -- Nick Frisch, New Yorker.

The most widely read Chinese writer alive. His books have been adapted into TV series, films and video games, and his dense, immersive world inspires the kind of adoration bestowed on those created by writers like western worldbuilders such as JRR Tolkien, JK Rowling and George RR Martin. -- Marcel Theroux, Guardian.

This publishing phenomenon comes to us in a brisk and thrilling new translation . . . The tale is like every fairy tale you're ever loved, imbued with jokes and epic grandeur. Prepare to be swept along. -- Jamie Buxton, Daily Mail.