Mr. Fenby writes the book as essentially a journalist's diary that spans the entire course of 1999 - the final year that Mr. Fenby was editor of the South China Morning Post, arguably the premiere English-language newspaper in Hong Kong. He details not only the key figures in Hong Kong politics and the economy - at a very personal level - but also how China deals with Hong Kong and how the events of 1999 (everything from Falun Gong to the Taliban) shaped China's responses.
I think Mr. Fenby sees 1999 as not only the year that China stopped observing Hong Kong and began acting, but also the year that many of the fundamental agreememnts laid down between China and Hong Kong got tested. He shows the slow erosion of judicial and political autonomy caused, not through outright repression, but by behind-the-scenes deal-making and a desire of the political powers-that-be in Hong Kong not to ruffle mainland feathers.
His book is eminently readable and in many parts reads more like a political thriller than a diary or a report. If there is one criticism with the book, it is that when Mr. Fenby loses his job at the South China Morning Post in July of 1999, his personal hurt comes out quite clearly in the course of the narrative and possibly influences his objectivity throughout the rest of the year. However, were it me, I think that I would be hard-pressed to maintain even Mr. Fenby's level of detachment.
All in all, the book is not only fascinating and illuminating, but it is also quite enjoyable. I found myself caught up in the power play between China and Hong Kong as if it were a first-rate novel. However, the book is not a novel, and it does contain some rather chilling messages for the future of Hong Kong. If you have any interest in China - or interest in China's relationship with the Western world - I recommend not missing this book.