Review: The Headmaster's Wager
Posted by Cathie on Thursday, September 12, 2013. Filed under: historical fiction, published in 2012, review, reviewed in 2013
The Headmaster's Wager by Vincent Lam
Published by: Hogarth
Our source: Won via a Goodreads Giveaway
Our source: Won via a Goodreads Giveaway
What it’s about (from Goodreads):
Percival Chen is the headmaster of the most respected English academy in 1960s Saigon, and he is well accustomed to bribing a forever-changing list of government officials in order to maintain the elite status of his school. Fiercely proud of his Chinese heritage, he is quick to spot the business opportunities rife in a divided country, though he also harbors a weakness for gambling haunts and the women who frequent them. He devotedly ignores all news of the fighting that swirls around him, but when his only son gets in trouble with the Vietnamese authorities, Percival faces the limits of his connections and wealth and is forced to send him away.
In the loneliness that follows, Percival finds solace in Jacqueline, a beautiful woman of mixed French and Vietnamese heritage whom he is able to confide in. But Percival's new-found happiness is precarious, and as the complexities of war encroach further into his world, he must confront the tragedy of all he has refused to see.
Our thoughts:
The Headmaster's Wager is chock full of Chinese tradition, political corruption and romance during wartime in Saigon. Despite being a painful look back on the Vietnam era, I really enjoyed the story line.
I thought this book was very powerful, and Lam kept me captivated by the many twists and turns the story takes. I also felt that the ending left it open to the possibility of a sequel in the future. I would definitely be interested in reading more of Lam's work. He is a very talented writer.
We would recommend this to:
Fans of historical fiction, those interested in the Vietnam war.
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