A Case of Two Cities: An Inspector Chen Mystery
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'Chen is a great creation, an honourable man in a world full of deception and treachery'
(Guardian )'A luminescent synthesis of a thriller and a literary novel' (Independent on A LOYAL CHARACTER DANCER )
'Stupendous . . . It does what detective fiction can do best: it captures the details, the grit of everyday life . . . A matchless pearl.'
(Fresh Air, National Public Radio, USA on DEATH OF A RED HEROINE )'A vivid portrait of modern Chinese society ... full of the sights, sounds and smells of Shanghai.'
(Wall Street Journal )'Gripping . . . Chen stands in a class with Martin Cruz Smith's Russian investigator, Arkady Renko, and P.D. James's Scotland Yard inspector, Adam Dalgliesh.'
(Publishers Weekly starred review )'With strong and subtle characterisation, Qui Xiaolong draws us into a fascinating world where the greatest mystery revealed is the mystery of present-day China itself'
(John Harvey )Wall Street Journal
'A vivid portrait of modern Chinese society ... full of the sights, sounds and smells of Shanghai.'
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
'A Case of Two Cities' is the fourth book in the Inspector Chen series. This time Chen is called upon to look into corruption across all levels of the Communist party. The previous officer charged with this duty was found dead in a brothel having taken a large dose of 'Chinese viagra' - seemingly framed and unable to clear his name. The stakes are high for Chen and he is in considerable danger as he pursues the Triad businessman, Xing.
It is as the investigation gets underway that Chen is sent to America to head a Chinese Writer's Conference and he reunites with his 'love interest' from one of the earlier novels - Catherine Rohn.
I had been becoming steadily more and more disappointed wth this series as I feel that none of the subsequent books match up to the first book in this series, 'Death of a Red Heroine'. This novel is slightly more involved, but again does not have the same depth of plot or character. Taking Chen away from Shanghai was also a brave move but it was quite nice to see him away from his usual environment.
Whilst you could read this novel on its own, it might be better to start at the beginning and work through, just so you can see the development of the charaters. I still don't think any of the other books in the series have lived up to 'Death of a Red Heroine' but this is still a pleasant way to spend a couple of hours.
It is as the investigation gets underway that Chen is sent to America to head a Chinese Writer's Conference and he reunites with his 'love interest' from one of the earlier novels - Catherine Rohn.
I had been becoming steadily more and more disappointed wth this series as I feel that none of the subsequent books match up to the first book in this series, 'Death of a Red Heroine'. This novel is slightly more involved, but again does not have the same depth of plot or character. Taking Chen away from Shanghai was also a brave move but it was quite nice to see him away from his usual environment.
Whilst you could read this novel on its own, it might be better to start at the beginning and work through, just so you can see the development of the charaters. I still don't think any of the other books in the series have lived up to 'Death of a Red Heroine' but this is still a pleasant way to spend a couple of hours.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
I read this book out of sequence because of some indifferent reviews. I enjoyed the book enormously & regret not reading it in sequence. I enjoyed the parts set in China & then the switch to the USA. I would recommend this book & having now read the whole series look forward to the next book.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Perfect Paperback
Granted Qiu's first language is not English but seriously how could the editors have let this through? Maybe the publishers should have spent some more money on editing the thing as it felt like it was written by somebody in school. I felt it required reading of the previous books to get some insight and to be honest it felt like it was flogging a dead horse just to eek out a bit more money from the series.
But the plot is thin and it seems almost starship troopers monologs through the book to describe things.
But the plot is thin and it seems almost starship troopers monologs through the book to describe things.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Poetic justice
Inspector Chen and his associate Detective Yu unpeel some of the layers of Chinese corruption, pursuing their investigations in Shanghai and the US. Read more
Published 9 months ago by JoTownhead
Just as good!
I simply cannot agree with the majority of the reviews. This the third of the series I have read ("A Loyal Character Dancer" is sadly out of print)and I felt it was as good as his... Read more
Published 19 months ago by Ronald G. Young
Inspector Chen Goes To America
Not as good as the other Inspector Chen books, but it was great to get reacquainted with him anyway..
Published on 7 April 2010 by Hein Kristiansen
Informative but not a great story
This book gives an excellent account of China, with a very good description of the political landscape. It has a great plot too - but it lacks in living up to all of this. Read more
Published on 4 Nov 2008 by Sana
no redeeming features
This is such a badly written book that the only mystery worth pursuing is: "How did it ever get published?". Read more
Published on 4 May 2008 by E. A. N. Otway
A little dip in a beautiful series
Suddenly in a succesful series the author swithes from his/her usual location (in this case Shanghai) and confronts his hero with a strange culture. Read more
Published on 21 Sep 2007 by l'Inspecteur Malgracieux
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