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1862: Two women compete for the affections of their opium merchant husband
The House of Wives
What you need to know before your trail
In 1862, a young Jew from Calcutta named Emanuel Belilios leaves his dutiful wife Semah and sets sail for Hong Kong to make his fortune in the opium trade. There, he grows into a prosperous and respectable merchant, eventually falling in love with his Chinese business partner’s daughter Pearl, a delicate beauty twenty years his junior.
As a wedding present, he builds for her the most magnificent mansion in Hong Kong. Then Semah arrives unannounced from Calcutta to take her place as mistress of the house…and life will change irrevocably for all of them.
Travel Guide
Hong Kong and Calcutta
The author writes in his author note that the novel is based on the story of his great-grandfather, a 25 year old Sephardic Jew named Emanuel Raphael Belilios who left his home in Calcutta and moved to Hong Kong which was then a still new British Colony.
He moves to Hong Kong and looks to set up his opium trade. Many had set up a route decades before so he finds an alternate one. through Macau which was a Portuguese protectorate at the time. Taking this alternate route meant that he was soon the foremost opium trade in Hong Kong
Back in Calcutta, Semah grew tired of waiting for her husband and so heads of to Hong Kong. She discovers that her husband had not only created a fantastic job and lifestyle for himself but that he had established a family over there as well.
The family lived in Hong Kong and Emanuel later moved and lived in London
Booktrail Boarding Pass: The House of Wives
Destination: Kolkata (Calcutta) , Hong Kong Author/Guide: Simon Choa-Johnston Departure Time: 1940s
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