Red Roulette

An Insider's Story of Wealth, Power, Corruption, and Vengeance in Today's China

By: Desmond Shum

Narrated by: Tim Chiou

“THE BOOK CHINA DOESN’T WANT YOU TO READ.” —CNN​

SELECTED AS A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR by THE ECONOMIST and FINANCIAL TIMES

This “powerful and disturbing” (Bill Browder, author of Red Notice) New York Times bestseller is narrated by a man who, with his wife, Whitney Duan, rose to the top levels of power and wealth—and then fell out of favor. Whitney had been disappeared four years before, but this book led to her dramatic reemergence.

As Desmond Shum was growing up impoverished in China, he vowed his life would be different. Through hard work and sheer tenacity he earned an American college degree and returned to his native country to establish himself in business. There, he met his future wife, the highly intelligent and equally ambitious Whitney Duan who was determined to make her mark within China’s male-dominated society. Whitney and Desmond formed an effective team and, aided by relationships they formed with top members of China’s Communist Party, the so-called red aristocracy, he vaulted into China’s billionaire class. Soon they were developing the massive air cargo facility at Beijing International Airport, and they followed that feat with the creation of one of Beijing’s premier hotels. They were dazzlingly successful, traveling in private jets, funding multi-million-dollar buildings and endowments, and purchasing expensive homes, vehicles, and art.

But in 2017, their fates diverged irrevocably when Desmond, while residing overseas with his son, learned that his now ex-wife Whitney had vanished along with three coworkers.

This vivid, explosive memoir shows “how the Chinese government keeps business in line—and what happens when businesspeople overstep” (The New York Times) and is a “singular, highly readable insider account of the most secretive of global powers” (The Spectator).

Excellent In-depth analysis

This book gives a comprehensive and personal look at one mans experience within the Chinese capitalistic society. It shows the changing attitude of the Chinese Communist Party initially supporting aggressive capitalism, turning repressive ultimately using their legal system to jail those they feel threatened by.

A real book about THE Communism

A must-read book in 2021 about the CCP’s corruption, kidnappings, lying, and deceit: first they dazzle their opponents with smiles and gifts, then came with their true intentions which is human destruction.

should be a required reading

a very good insight into China and what doing business there actually looks like.

Very Informative

This is a great read if you are interested in more about doing business in and with China

Interesting listen and details

For those interested in how a lot of high level businesses are done in China, this book gives a little insight into it. Of course this is on the highest level with the people involved, but the idea trickles down. For people who have worked in China and lived there understand should not find anything too surprising. What was interesting about this book was Shum's willingness to name names.

Naturally, since this is based on Shum's account of the events, some of the details will be biased. Nonetheless, it's a fascinating listen just to hear about it from a fringe insider.