A Cup of Light

(Paperback)

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Description

Lia Frank - an appraiser of fine Chinese porcelain - is sent from New York to Beijing to catalogue and appraise a rare collection of 20 pieces. At the private house she has been given to work in, however, she finds 800 pieces - many originating from the imperial porcelain collection. Are all these beautiful objects authentic Or are some brilliant fakes As Lia examines her treasure, she finds herself drawn into the underworld of Chinese art - professional smugglers who take porcelain between mainland China and Hong Kong, connoisseurs looking for a special piece, and the Chinese police, who seek to impose the highest penalty on smugglers. And Lia begins a love affair that could alter the course of her life forever. In this world, beauty always has a price and nothing can be judged too finely.

Author Bio

Nicole Mones is the author of the award-winning novels THE LAST CHINESE CHEF, LOST IN TRANSLATION and A CUP OF LIGHT, which are in print in more than twenty languages. She started a textile business in China at the end of the Cultural Revolution and ran it for eighteen years, and she brings to her fiction writing an in-depth understanding of China and its culture. Her nonfiction writing on China has also appeared in the New York Times Magazine, the Los Angeles Times, Gourmet and the Washington Post. She is a member of the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations. She lives in Portland, Oregon. www.nicolemones.com