Qiu Xiaolong è il creatore dell'acclamata serie di romanzi gialli dell'Ispettore Chen, ambientata nella sua nativa Shanghai. I suoi romanzi sono lodati per le loro profonde intuizioni sulla società, la cultura e la politica cinese durante periodi di transizione. Qiu intreccia sapientemente trame complesse con descrizioni poetiche e riflessioni filosofiche. Oltre alla sua narrativa poliziesca, la sua opera comprende anche la poesia e traduzioni di versi cinesi, conferendo alla sua prosa un ulteriore livello di profondità artistica.
Set in the Tang dynasty, the story revolves around Judge Dee Renjie, tasked by the ambitious Empress Wu to investigate the disappearance of poet Luo Binwang, who vanished after a failed rebellion. As Judge Dee and his loyal manservant Yang delve into the case, they encounter ominous signs and begin to question the empress's true intentions. This mystery blends historical intrigue with poetry, featuring an appendix of translated works from Tang dynasty poets, appealing to fans of Judge Dee's legendary tales and rich Chinese culture.
Former chief inspector Chen faces a tricky serial murderer case at the height of the Covid pandemic - and risks everything he has to expose the deadly effects of the Chinese Communist Party's so-called zero Covid policy to the world. Over two million copies of the Inspector Chen series sold worldwide. The Covid crisis is at its height in China. Ex-chief inspector Chen Cao is horrified by the way the Chinese Communist Party are using the pandemic as an excuse to put the Chinese people under blanket surveillance and by the soaring number of deaths caused not by Covid, but by the CCP's inhuman 'zero Covid' policy. Chen is debating whether to translate the 'Wuhan File' - a diary of life during the Wuhan disaster smuggled to him by a close friend - and expose the CCP's secrets to the world when to his surprise he is summoned by a high-level party cadre to help investigate a series of murders near a local Shanghai hospital. Under pressure from the Party to reach a quick conclusion and help maintain political stability, Chen investigates, aware that he too has been placed under omnipresent, omnipotent surveillance. And as he works, determined to uncover the truth, no matter what, he risks everything by deciding to translate the Wuhan Files. For one thing is true in China: you must be absolutely loyal to the Party. Otherwise, you are considered absolutely disloyal, and the consequences are dark indeed . . .
Fans of historical Far-Eastern novels will love Anthony Award-winning Qiu Xiaolong's homage to the legendary Judge Dee Renjie in this politically absorbing mystery.
Chief Inspector Chen is assigned to investigate a group of environmental activists trying to tackle the pollution issues in China. The case is supposed to be simple, but it is complicated by Chen having history with the leader of the group. Meanwhile Detective Yu is on the trail of a serial murderer.
Now a BBC Radio 4 Drama Series. 'The system has no place for a cop who puts justice above the interests of the Party. It's a miracle that I survived as long as I did.' For years, Chen Cao managed to balance the interests of the Communist Party and the demands made by his job. He was considered a rising star until, after one too many controversial cases that embarrassed powerful men, he found himself neutralised. Under the guise of a promotion, he's been stripped of his title and his influence, discredited and isolated. Soon it becomes clear that his enemies still aren't satisfied, and that someone is attempting to have him killed - quietly. Chen has been charged with the investigation into a 'Red Prince' - a high Party figure who embodies the ruthless ambition, greed and corruption that is on the rise in China. But with no power, few allies, and his own reputation and life on the line, he knows he is facing the most dangerous case of his career.
Chief Inspector Chen Cao never had a choice about his career. A poet by training, he was assigned to the Shanghai Police Department after college. To his own surprise, he became an excellent detective, and now he's in line to take over the top political position in the department. Which is why the Party has chosen him for the investigation into the death of Zhou Keng. Zhou Keng was running the Shanghai Housing Development Committee when a number of his corrupt practices were exposed. Removed from his position and placed into detention, he apparently hanged himself while under guard. The Party is anxious to have Zhou's death declared a suicide, but the sequence of events doesn't quite add up. Now Chen will have to decide what to do - follow the party line, or seek the justice his position requires and risk angering powerful people...
"Dark, gorgeous...feels authentically Chinese and it works like a charm." --Washington Post Book World on A Case of Two Cities Chief Inspector Chen Cao of the Shanghai Police Department is offered a bit of luxury by friends and supporters within the Party - a week's vacation at a luxurious resort near Lake Tai, a week where he can relax, and recover, undisturbed by outside demands or disruptions. Unfortunately, the once beautiful Lake Tai, renowned for its clear waters, is now covered by fetid algae, its waters polluted by toxic runoff from local manufacturing plants. Then the director of one of the manufacturing plants responsible for the pollution is murdered and the leader of the local ecological group is the primary suspect of the local police. Now Inspector Chen must tread carefully if he is to uncover the truth behind the brutal murder and find a measure of justice for both the victim and the accused.
