Explore A captivating tale of
Historical fiction stemming from the vivid tapestry of China and WWII
John Daniel
Author
Immerse yourself in the world of John Daniel, an author and oil painter whose literary journey is intertwined with his extensive career as an international banking executive living across Asia and Europe. With an eye for detail and a passion for historical events, Daniel draws upon his firsthand experiences in Hong Kong during the vibrant British colonial era.
Hong Kong
Follow the Dragon
PUBLISHED AUGUST 20, 2024
ATTEND HIS HONG KONG FUNERAL
THEN UNCOVER HIS SECRETS…
Follow the Dragon, a novel of historical British Hong Kong, hurtles from true events in south China during WWII to thirty-five years later in the colorful British colony.
In 1980 Jake Salter returns to Hong Kong for his father’s funeral and vows to unearth a problem cryptically hinted in their last phone call. Jake finds secret WWII journals with his dad’s personal wartime history: the British SOE’s Operation Remorse and the British Army Aid Group — the BAAG — including saving the life of Commander M.T. Kwan.
M.T. Kwan, now an elderly billionaire, called the Dragon, convinces Jake to step in for his deceased father to help confront the threat of a dangerous Chinese Triad gang; resulting in Jake risking his life. In addition they must face a dogged Royal Hong Kong Police Inspector’s related death investigation. Jake and Kwan realize how close their family names and fortunes are to monumental disaster, stemming from his dad’s cryptic problem.
Kwan’s Last Mission
COMING JUNE 2026
In August 1945, the Japanese verge on surrender. Two atomic bombs have been dropped on the Japanese main islands. But no British troops are within five thousand miles to retake their occupied colony of Hong Kong. A political vacuum threatens. Which predatory power might step in to take over?
Will the distant British fleet arrive in time? Before Chiang Kai-shek’s two in-route Nationalist armies? Or Mao’s surrounding Communist cadres? Will the Hongkongers, 98% of the populace, push for independence at any moment?
One Chinese agent is on a clandestine mission in the colony, the only man capable of stepping into the coming void and giving Britain a fighting chance. He’s called The Dragon. He also hides an ulterior motive — but she has her own secrets.
Based on true events.
Remembrances, etc.
PUBLISHED 2021
In 2021 the author published a long-planned memoir called Remembrances, etc. The first half is a collection of vignettes, largely from his many years overseas and including such topics as Avoiding a Super Tanker in a Sailboat with No Wind, Comments on the Reasoning for Japanese Conduct in WWII, The Spies of Hong Kong, and The Trackers on the Yangtze. This first half was created from the style of his father’s memoir, The Life and Times of Jack Daniel.
The second half of the memoir is a chronological autobiography which covers being raised in Texas, the overseas years from Asia to London and back to Texas, the years of oil painting, travel notes, and family thoughts.
This memoir was published in a limited hardback edition, and included imported Japanese paper, maps and color photos throughout.
PRIVATE MEMOIR
John Daniel Books 