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Chung Kuo. For three thousand years, as the Great Wheel turned and a dozen mighty dynasties rose and fell, this was the name the Han- the Chinese- gave their land: Chung Kuo, the "Middle Kingdom".

Now, at the turn of the twenty-second century, it has come to mean much more. For more than a hundred years the Empire of the Han has encompassed all of the world, the Earth's bloated population of 36 billion contained in its vast, hive-like cities. War, famine and political instability are things of the past. The Council of Seven- Han lords, each more powerful than the greatest of the ancient Emperors- rule Chung Kuo with an absolute authority, their boast that they have ended Change and stopped the Great Wheel turning.

Yet at the moment of its supreme strength and confidence, Chung Kuo is suddenly vulnerable. A new generation of powerful young merchants begin to challenge the authority of the Seven, demanding Change. But Change means war and a return to the savageries of the past.

The Middle Kingdom is the first volume in an epic future history, breathtaking in its scope. Criss-crossed by human patterns of love and betrayal, heroism and treachery, intrigue and excitement, it is one of the most outstanding achievements of recent times.

There had been war- a war which the great world-spanning empire of Chung Kuo had survived. But at a cost.

The Seven- rulers of Chung Kuo- were weak. Weaker than they had ever been. Now, in the teeming lower depths of their great City, the current of change is flowing again, turning the Great Wheel, and one event- a murder, perhaps, or a palace plot- might throw the world into chaos once more.

Now, in Chung Kuo: The Broken Wheel, Wingrove broadens his canvas and gives us another rich and evocative grand tale. It is the story of four men from all walks of society, whose fates are inexorably intertwined like the yin and yang. It is their treachery and heroism, betrayal and love, intrigues and adventures that drive this fascinating tale to its ultimate conclusion, and change the course of humankind.

The seven T'ang- the Chinese kings who rule the seven great city-continents of Chung Kuo- are grappling to hold on to their power. The Dispersionists- the group of European elite who conspired to bring down the Chinese rule- have been brutally destroyed. But now more violent bands of rebels are climbing the levels of the great cities, carrying out mass destruction and gaining power among the downtrodden people in the lower levels of the city. Can the young kings continue to rule by the ancient Chinese tenets of peace through strict order and stability? Or dare they allow change and progress to alter their ancestors' vision of an enforced Peace of Ten Thousand Years?

The pressure comes from within and without- as the brash young T'ang of City Africa dares to confront his ruling brothers, and Li Yuan, the new young T'ang of City Europe, must fight to maintain not only the allegiance of his people but the loyalty of his own wife. Can he and his small group of supporters and friends stop his prophetic dream from coming true- the dream of a great white mountain of bones where the great city once stood...?