Winner of the 2022 Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Fiction
A New York Times Book Review Editors' Choice
Orphaned young, Ming Tsu is raised by the notorious leader of a California crime syndicate, who trains him to be his deadly enforcer. But when Ming falls in love with Ada, the daughter of a powerful railroad magnate, and the two elope, he seizes the opportunity to escape to a different life. Soon after, the tycoon's henchmen kidnap Ada and conscript Ming into service for the Central Pacific Railroad. Battered, heartbroken, and yet defiant, Ming blazes his way across the West, settling old scores with a single-minded devotion that culminates in an explosive and unexpected finale.