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Review
'A masterwork of sheer momentum ... compelling' -- Glasgow Herald (The Fourth Sacrifice) 'Stunningly original, highly topical and extremely well written' -- Scotland on Sunday on THE FIREMAKER 'Intense and fascinating' -- Good Book Guide on THE FIREMAKER 'Is the book any good?The answer is a very solid...yes...it's engaging, topical...and certainly qualifies Peter May as a name to watch.' -- Shots
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Glasgow Herald (The Fourth Sacrifice)
'A masterwork of sheer momentum . . . compelling'
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
18 of 19 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
May's newest book about the American pathologist and the Chinese detective is as good as "The Fourth Sacrifice". I especially like the Chinese setting, and May's ability to give all the characters life, not just the main characters. He has the ability to paint a vivid and real image of not only his two main characters, but all the "side-kicks" come to life as well, and makes for interesting reading. The plot itself is both plausible and chilling, with a complex hunt leading up to the end. The little things, descriptions and facts, are thorough but not condescending. It is interesting and refreshing to read a crime novel that is not set in the western culture, the Chinese location gives unexpected details and events, at the same time as it gives the reader a look into China and Chinese culture. Whatever the setting, the basic feelings and motivation in a good crime novel are all there, lust, greed, love, jealousy and fear, all splendidly written. One of my favourite things is that the pathologist Margaret Campbell is not a superhuman (as many other female main characters over the years have been), she's as human as the rest of us. Her struggle against jealousy and her emotional reactions all feel genuine. The discovery of a grave containing women who appears to have been autopsied while still alive gets Ms Campbell into a strange hunt for a killer, and at the end of the chase it is very difficult to put down the book. All in all, a very good book, with both good writing and a good plot! I'm looking forward to read his next novel!
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
10 reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
chinese mystery
9 May 2009
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
This mystery is a bit chilling. It brings up the obvious but not so obvious problems with the one child policy and how China is struggling with their over population and how people respond as well as the more personal story of expatriates who live and love China.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Fascinating look at Chinese culture
18 Mar 2008
Format:Hardcover
When the bodies of eighteen women are discovered in a mass grave at a construction site in Shanghai, Deputy Section Chief Li Yan is sent to establish if the corpses relate to an unsolved similar murder in Beijing. He requests that American pathologist Margaret Campbell be allowed to assist with the forensics. Their on again-off again relationship remains rocky, especially because of local Deputy Chief Nien Mei-Ling, who Margaret finds a formidable competitor for Li Yan's heart. While examining the bodies, Margaret discovers that all of them had organs removed while they were still alive.
I particularly like two aspects of May's books. One is the culture clashes between Li Yan and Margaret Campbell. Despite their strong feelings for each other, they are just very different people. I learn a lot about Chinese culture through Margaret's eyes and would probably make the same missteps she does.
The other is May's ability to explore social and cultural problems in Chinese society. He tries hard to portray both sides of a controversial subject without taking sides. In this book, and a bit of the previous book, The Fourth Sacrifice, that subject is the single-child policy enacted to reduce the population in China. Li Yan's sister previously dropped off her daughter with him when she found she was pregnant with a son. Li Yan remains the child's guardian in this book.
I found more humor in this book than the previous two in this series. The competitions between Margaret and Mei-Ling for the attentions of Li Yan were laugh-out-loud funny. I also find it interesting that these books are written by a Scottish man living in France, writing about an American woman living in China. And he does it very well.
Armchair Interviews says: Super read as a mystery with a lot of cultural learning thrown in.
I particularly like two aspects of May's books. One is the culture clashes between Li Yan and Margaret Campbell. Despite their strong feelings for each other, they are just very different people. I learn a lot about Chinese culture through Margaret's eyes and would probably make the same missteps she does.
The other is May's ability to explore social and cultural problems in Chinese society. He tries hard to portray both sides of a controversial subject without taking sides. In this book, and a bit of the previous book, The Fourth Sacrifice, that subject is the single-child policy enacted to reduce the population in China. Li Yan's sister previously dropped off her daughter with him when she found she was pregnant with a son. Li Yan remains the child's guardian in this book.
I found more humor in this book than the previous two in this series. The competitions between Margaret and Mei-Ling for the attentions of Li Yan were laugh-out-loud funny. I also find it interesting that these books are written by a Scottish man living in France, writing about an American woman living in China. And he does it very well.
Armchair Interviews says: Super read as a mystery with a lot of cultural learning thrown in.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
excellent Chinese police procedural
21 Feb 2008
Format:Hardcover
Already upset that a killer was freed because of either corruption or incompetence in the Procurator's office, Ministry of Public Security Deputy Section Chief Li Yan is not in the mood to talk to anyone. However Detective Wu tells his superior that the dismembered girl found in the shallow grave near the Summer Palace was not buried alone; upwards of twenty females share a grave with her. The powers that be demand Li fix the mess that was shown internationally as a New York bank CEO was the VIP digger in a sea of body parts.
Shanghai Public Security Serious Crime Squad Deputy chief Mei-Ling is assigned to assist Li, who learns from her that there are eighteen torsos and sixteen heads so far. Li's on and off Irish girlfriend pathologist Margaret Campbell arrives following the wake of her deceased father. Although the two ladies compete for the affection of Li, the trio works together realizing that someone apparently conducted autopsies on the female victims while they still lived; the cause of death in each case is the autopsy. They know preventing the monster from more killings comes before straightening out their personal relationships.
This excellent Chinese police procedural will please fans of that sub-genre immensely as this is a top rate whodunit in a country in which connections impedes the strong investigation much more so than in the United States where influence gets a great lawyer. The story line is action-packed and the triangle cleverly developed to allow the reader to understand the motivations including personal demons of the investigating team. However, as with THE FOURTH SACRIFICE, the novel belongs to Peter May's deep insightful look at modern China's Socialist market economy in which Shanghai is filled with Porches, sex shops, discos and nightclubs standing near traditional mom and pop stores.
Harriet Klausner
Shanghai Public Security Serious Crime Squad Deputy chief Mei-Ling is assigned to assist Li, who learns from her that there are eighteen torsos and sixteen heads so far. Li's on and off Irish girlfriend pathologist Margaret Campbell arrives following the wake of her deceased father. Although the two ladies compete for the affection of Li, the trio works together realizing that someone apparently conducted autopsies on the female victims while they still lived; the cause of death in each case is the autopsy. They know preventing the monster from more killings comes before straightening out their personal relationships.
This excellent Chinese police procedural will please fans of that sub-genre immensely as this is a top rate whodunit in a country in which connections impedes the strong investigation much more so than in the United States where influence gets a great lawyer. The story line is action-packed and the triangle cleverly developed to allow the reader to understand the motivations including personal demons of the investigating team. However, as with THE FOURTH SACRIFICE, the novel belongs to Peter May's deep insightful look at modern China's Socialist market economy in which Shanghai is filled with Porches, sex shops, discos and nightclubs standing near traditional mom and pop stores.
Harriet Klausner
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