A large cast of characters populates this novel of India, China and the British opium traders. It took me awhile to get into the story. This was partly due to the heavy use of a sort of maritime patois which was both colorful and difficult to understand, partly due to a little trouble keeping track of whose story was being told at the moment. I eventually got the thread of the story and enjoyed it very much. Bringing the wide array of characters together on a ship was a clever way to show the clash of culture, religion and class on a personal level.