The Island Where Time Stands Still by Dennis Wheatley

Dennis Wheatley is always prodigal in the richness of the fare he provides, and the island on which Gregory Sallust finds himself is no ordinary one. Here live a lost community of Chinese, ruled by descendants of the ancient Imperial House. When the throne suddenly becomes vacant, an expedition sets out to find the true heir. Its members include Gregory himself and the lady A-lu-te, as charmingly lovely as her name; their search leads ten thousand miles across the Pacific into the remotest regions of inland China and back again. Death in horrible forms and treachery follow them as closely as their shadows. Here we have fast-moving high adventure, with that tingle of the spine which tells us that this is vintage Wheatley, the master at his most skilful.