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I was focusing on was the requirement for his people to show him their extreme loyalty and devotion - or face torture/death - and the “disastrous results for millions of people”. My info comes from:

Wild Swans: Three Daughters of China https://www.amazon.com/dp/0743246985/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_U5YgFbJJ4FS7P

That, and the fat part.

I know you asked for novels, but I'm going to recommend an autobiography: Wild Swans: Three Daughters of China by Jung Chang. The 381 Amazon reviews is an indication of just how good it is.

People who read have this funny habit of learning things. You should give it a try some time, you might learn something, too.

Thanks! I guess you mean this book, right?

All set in or over the communist era.

China:

Wild Swans

Life and Death in Shanghai

Russia:

One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich

The Long Walk.

Couldn't comment when I made this, but if you haven't read Wild Swans by her, you should. It provides a very good narrative for 3 different time periods (pre-communism/revolution/communism) and actual experiences/eye-witness viewpoints. I read it while I was studying Chinese politics, and it opened my eyes. I know this article linked is brief, but Jung Chang is a good writer. While the validity of parts of her other book (Mao: The Unknown story) is debated, she is a worthwhile author to read if you are interested in China.

The link to the guardian article is more informative, but the new book is about empress dowager Cixi >Her "groundbreaking" new biography will "comprehensively overturn … the conventional view of Cixi as a deeply conservative and cruel despot", said Jonathan Cape, and show how she abolished foot-binding, developed foreign trade and diplomacy, and revolutionised China's education system.

I recommend Wild Swans by Jung Chang or Oracle Bones by Peter Hessler. I lived in China for two years, and I found Wild Swans to be particularly useful in terms of understanding the psychology of people in Chinese culture, and how the huge events of 20th century turmoil in China affected ordinary people.