Book Reviews

Island Of The Thieves

Michael Jaames

Granthan Literary Press

Set in the 16th-century Spanish colony of Las Ladrones, "Isla" follows a Chinese boy named Eng Kang, captured during a pirate siege and sentenced to death. Through haunting trial scenes, brutal executions, and a failed hanging that erupts into claims of divine intervention, the novel traverses colonial violence, faith, and survival. Layered with historical detail and restrained lyricism, it evokes a world where memory, power, and identity are shaped by the tides of empire.

ISBN: 978-0544142848 Read Review

Asian Waters: The Struggle Over the South China Sea

By Humphrey Hawksley

Duckworth

Hawksley provides a vivid, on-the-ground account of the maritime disputes defining the 21st century. While focused on the South China Sea, the analysis of gray-zone tactics and fishing militia operations offers direct parallels to the situation currently unfolding in Las Ladrones' northern waters.

ISBN: 978-1468316521

Destined for War: Can America and China Escape Thucydides's Trap?

By Graham Allison

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

The defining text on the structural dangers of the US-China rivalry. Allison's historical case studies are essential for understanding the systemic pressures that place small states like Las Ladrones in the crossfire. Though sometimes overly deterministic, the framework remains indispensable for policymakers.

ISBN: 978-0544935273