The Expat :A Novel

The Expat :A Novel by Hansen Shi (2024) 236pp

Although the writing is a bit forced, the topic is cutting edge – international theft of intellectual property. Shi jumps right into the troubles facing ambitious, well-educated young people. His protagonist is Michael Wang, a young disaffected Chinese ivy league graduate working at General Motors. The friction point is Wang’s frustration over the lack of recognition for his brilliance at archetypically, staid GM. The story illuminates the conflicting loyalties of the expat, drawn to the cultural homeland of his parents, repelled by the micro-aggressions of daily life as a Chinese-American, but simultaneously attached to the “American dream” of opportunity. Wang falls victim to the intricacies of unrequited romance, the mysterious and beautiful love interest Vivian. Vivian introduces Wang to a Chinese businessman, actually a government agent, who convinces him to naively provide China with his GM research and his expertise. The situation collapses rapidly as Wang is arrested and detained by the FBI. He agrees to act as a counter-agent, charged with trapping his Chinese spy-master in compromising circumstances. With much hand-wringing angst the story zips along to a hackneyed conclusion, all mysteries resolved in the last twenty pages.