London, 1856. Ben Canaan is a young detective on the payroll of Her Majesty's Executive, riding high on a string of successful cases. Then a notorious crime boss turns up murdered on the city streets, the latest in a series of brutal killings targeting the most powerful men in the global opium trade.

To track down the culprits and prevent more blood from being shed, Ben is sent out to the newly-founded British colony of Hong Kong: a lawless frontier town on the southern shores of China's Great Qing Dynasty. Ben is plunged headlong into a labyrinthine conspiracy, set against the backdrop of an empire in collapse and a sweeping civil war. As his hunt brings him closer to the truth and the ruthless corporate interests that want him dead, Ben is forced to choose between what is necessary and what is just.