I read about this series in the St. Louis Post Dispatch and had to check out a local author's work. I was not disappointed! The series opens with the death of a "model worker" in Shanghai, a woman who was famous for representing the ideal worker and party member, much like rock stars, actors, and athletes are celebrated in our culture. In the course of the murder investigation we are introduced to Chief Inspector Chen, his lieutenant Yu, and Yu's wife Peiquin. As Inspector Chen works the case methodically, we learn about the changes taking place in 1990s China: the privatization of state run industries, the rise of the high cadre children class, and the growing gap between the well-connected and the average worker. I didn't know anything about living conditions in China and was shocked to learn that even in 1990 many families lived in one-room apartments with communal bathrooms and kitchens. I enjoyed how Chen uses insights from classic Chinese poetry to understand motive and solve the case. Highly recommended. 463 pages.
