How did you come up with the idea of Ava Lee, and the people around her, like Uncle?
Her name and character simply arrived in my imagination. Then I developed characters and relationships around her. As I wrote, her character became better and better developed, and her relationships became clearer, and I found myself going back to add additional layers and details as the book and the series developed.

Why did you make her gay?
Ava is a strong, beautiful woman, and I knew there would be a temptation to involve her in a romantic relationship. I thought that any involvement she had with a man would almost certainly weaken her personality, and if not make her subservient, then at least limit her strength. So I made her gay, and in a way which is completely matter of fact. She is completely comfortable with whom she is, and her sexuality is just a normal part of her life. No big deal. I don’t write explicitly about her sex life, and I think that’s just part of it being completely normal and natural.

Is this series similar to the “Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” series?
Not at all. Ava Lee is a socially well-adjusted Chinese-Canadian accountant who operates a business recovering missing money. While I admire the “Girl” series, they are quite different in terms of characters, plots, themes, and writing styles.

But there are some similarities…young, petite, gay, independent, skilled in violence?
Those are pretty broad categories…there are characters throughout the book world who are young, or gay, or pretty.

Does the world need another crime series?
I’ve always really enjoyed the genre and felt I could contribute to it with a new and unique character. I hope people enjoy the book.

How do you choose your locations for the book?
The locations almost chose themselves… I’ve travelled the world over the course of my life and career, and I’m able to bring those experiences to the story. I chose locations for Ava that fit the plot and that made sense to the story.

What is the significance/meaning of the title? isn’t it a weird title for an English-language book?
The title is based on fact that the villain in the book is from Wanchai, and his zodiac sign is the water rat.

What happens in Book 2? What’s it called?
The next book is called The Disciple of Las Vegas and involves an internet gambling scam that Ava is asked to solve. Her pursuit of the money takes her to Vancouver, Manila, and San Francisco.

Tell me about Ava’s relationship with her father.
Ava has a complex relationship with Marcus Lee that gets introduced in The Water Rat of Wanchai. Marcus Lee is a wealthy business man who lives in Hong Kong, and maintains a family structure with essentially three families – in Canada, Hong Kong, and Australia. Ava is part of the Canadian family. There is a natural distance in the relationship, but also a closeness and complexity that evolves as the series evolves.

Is Uncle part of the Triads?
That is a bit of a mystery, and it’s going to stay that way for the time being. All I will say at this stage is that more and more is revealed of the characters in subsequent books.

Ava is the hero, but she’s willing to break the law – even to injure people – in order to get money back for people she barely knows. Does this make her little more than a bounty hunter? Does she have a conscience?
Ava’s major concern is for her clients, whose lives are potentially being ruined by the loss they have suffered. Ava’s personal motto is ‘people always do the right things for the wrong reason’. One of her strengths is being able to find out how to motivate people to do the right thing, ie, return the stolen money. Of course, this ‘motivation’ can take many forms, which as a last resort may include violent ones.

I don’t believe there are perfect people, or perfect heroes. Ava has a conscience, and at her heart is a decent person. There is no question that she does some things that are troubling to both the reader and to herself, but when she makes a difficult decision, or does a violent act, she does it with the belief that it is the right thing to do, and will full awareness of the potential consequences.

Why choose the fish business for a topic? That’s an odd choice.
It’s a business I know.