"Singapore, 1936, and the Crown Colony is agog with the news of King Edward VIII's abdication to marry American heiress Wallis Simson. Chen Su Lin, now Chief Inspector Le Froy's secretarial assistant in Singapore's newly formed detective unit, still dreams of becoming a journalist and hopes to cover the story when the Hon Victor Glossop announces he is marrying an American widow of his own, Mrs Nicole Covington, in the Colony. But things go horribly wrong when Victor Glossop is found dead, his body soaked in betel juice. The beautiful Nicole claims she was the intended target. And when investigations into her past reveal a dead lover as well as a husband, Su Lin still can't persuade the men defending Nicole to see her as a black widow murdereress. Even Le Froy seems to be cast under her spell. So Su Lin agrees to chaperon Nicole at the Farquhar Hotel, intending to watch and discreetly question her. But as she uncovers secrets and further deaths result, Su Lin realises she may not be able to save Nicole's life - or even her own.
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