Inspector Lu Fei, although graduating first in his class from the prestigious police academy, has been assigned to a backwater in northern China. Lu is not unhappy. He enjoys his Shaoxing wine and reciting poetry to the attractive bartender, Yanyan. Not much is happening until Lu receives a call. There has been a murder. A young woman has been killled. Lu and his constables find her in the bathroom. Disconcertingly, her heart, lungs, and liver have been removed and the cavity sewn shut with an autopsy type stitch.
Lacking the necessary resources to handle the case alone, he requests a team of investigators from Beijing. However, unlike Lu, the inspector who arrives is more interested in a quick arrest to enhance his reputation. This leads to conflict because Lu is determined to solve the case and not take the easy way out.
The setting in modern China was new to me, but I found it interesting and very well done. The descriptions of the characters and the physical setting are excellent. Some of the writing is almost poetic. The author enhances the feel of China by having Lu quote classical poetry, particularly to Yanyan.
The author starts each chapter with a quote from Chairman Mao Zedong. This sets the stage for the background of modern China where corruption is rampant and striving for position is more important than justice to some officials.
I received this book from St. Martin’s Press for this review.
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