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15 Reviews

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4.5 out of 5 stars (15 customer reviews)

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10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Judge Dee at his best, April 4, 2004

By

JLind555 - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Emperor's Pearl: A Judge Dee Mystery (Judge Dee Mystery Series) (Paperback)

More than half a century ago, Robert Van Gulik translated an ancient Chinese detective novel about a real-life Chinese magistrate named Dee Jen-Djieh who lived around 700 A.D.; evidently he had so much fun that he decided to write a few more Judge Dee mysteries of his own. "The Emperor's Pearl" is among his better ones. On the night of the dragon boat races in Poo-Yang district, the drummer of the boat favored to win the race collapses; turns out he's been poisoned. Judge Dee is called in to investigate, and finds out he has not one murder on his hands, but a whole string of deaths involving a missing domino, a malevolent river goddess, and the theft of the Emperor's Pearl, still unsolved after a hundred years. With the help of his trusty seargeant Hoong Liang and a lady wrestler named Violet Liang (no relation), Judge Dee unravels the tangled mess and puts everything to rights.

Unlike the classic Chinese detective novel which reveals in the beginning whodunit and focuses instead on how the crime was solved, "The Emperor's Pearl" is more like a contemporary novel in which we have to wait for the end for the resolution. There are some interesting plot twists and turns and enough surprises to satisfy the most diehard mystery fan. It's too bad Van Gulik didn't bring back the formidable Violet Liang in a subsequent novel; she's a delightful invention who's worth a book all by herself.

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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Satisfying mystery in exotic setting, June 15, 2003

By

David Brukman (USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)

This review is from: The Emperor's Pearl: A Judge Dee Mystery (Judge Dee Mystery Series) (Paperback)

Judge Dee, a magistate in 7th century China, is forced by the weather to stop at a remote mountain monastery. There, while the storm rages, Dee observes suspicious behavior and hears stories of ghosts and vague accusations of murder.

The investigation shows the judge many secrets, some personal and some criminal, places him in danger of his life, and exposes to the reader the religions and manners of ancient China; surprisingly modern in some respects and almost unimaginable in others.

In the end, Dee's perception of human motivations as well as his logical mind allow him to redress injustice, improve the lives of several young people, and give the reader a solid solution to intellectual puzzles.

A mystery in the classical sense, this concentrates more on the plot than on characters, and gives a well-integrated lecture in history.
--[...]

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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Clever mystery with a little extra, March 30, 2008

By

Ronald van Vollenhoven (Sweden) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)

This review is from: The Emperor's Pearl: A Judge Dee Mystery (Judge Dee Mystery Series) (Paperback)

This novel, written by the author both in English and in Dutch ("De Parel van de Keizer") is part of the second series of mystery books featuring Judge Dee as the sleuth. These novels are a bit shorter and a bit "lighter" than the first series of five books, which starts with "The Chinese Maze Murders" ("Labyrinth in Lan-Fang"). Once again Judge Dee solves three unrelated mysteries, using his skills of observation and logical thinking, employing casual conversations with various protagonists as his main approach. However, in this book Judge Dee also surprises the reader by an unusual gambit that almost misfires.
What I liked most about this book were hints of the supernatural that nonetheless stay within the limits of the traditional mystery novel.
This novel makes great bedtime or vacation reading!

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

3.0 out of 5 stars Not so great little book...
Moderately interesting narrative! What goes against it is it's exorbitant price! That too for such a little book, barely even makes it to 200 pages. Not much value for money.

Published 3 months ago by Prabal Guha Biswas

4.0 out of 5 stars A Lost Treasure Recovered
Although the title of this review could be taken for a summary of the plot, I'm really using it to describe this edition, published by the University of Chicago Press... Read more

Published on May 11, 2009 by Miz Ellen

5.0 out of 5 stars Thew Emperors Pearl
I thought I had read all of the Judge Dee books and then I stumbled across this one. I absolutely love Van Gulik and this book does not disappoint.

Published on December 30, 2008 by Victoria L. Brooks

5.0 out of 5 stars Clever mystery in ancient China with a little extra
This novel, written by the author both in English and in Dutch ("De Parel van de Keizer") is part of the second series of mystery books featuring Judge Dee as the sleuth. Read more

Published on May 31, 2008 by Ronald van Vollenhoven

5.0 out of 5 stars book on TAPE
I am so lucky to have found this story--Judge Dee stories qare wonderful, and I only wish they would put them out in CD form rather than cassette tape, but These are antiques, and... Read more

Published on December 26, 2007 by Jolinda J. Meredith

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent
All the "Judge Dee" books I have read are good. Some better than others, sure, but I like them all. Read more

Published on September 10, 2006 by Inga Bra Rardttir

5.0 out of 5 stars The Emperor's Pearl
ROBERT VAN GULIK HAS THE ABILITY TO HOLD YOU IN SUSPENSE FROM BEGINNING TO END. HIS KNOWLEDGE OF THE AREAS OF CHINA AND THE PEOPLE HELP ONE TO IMMEDIATELY ENTER INTO THE STORY AS... Read more

Published on September 28, 2005 by William C. Pettibon

4.0 out of 5 stars Enjoyable, classical mystery in Tang dynasty China
The annual boat race is a popular tradition in many Chinese cities near rivers and lakes. The festival provides an opporunity for feasting and betting, but in some cases it's an... Read more

Published on June 15, 2003 by David Brukman

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Judge Dee mystery
I have read several Judge Dee mysteries and this is one of my favorites. There are a lot of interesting plot twists and some sad and cruel surprises. Read more

Published on May 13, 2002 by Melissa K. Bourdius

5.0 out of 5 stars a pearl indeed
the book is very interesting!!

Published on October 13, 2000

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Inside This Book (learn more)
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First Sentence:
A tall man was lighting a stick of incense on the altar of the River Goddess. Read the first page

Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
ten gold bars, dragonboat races, noon rice, marble bridge

Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Sergeant Hoong, Tong Mai, Amber Lady, Sheng Pa, Sia Kwang, Miss Liang, Mandrake Grove, Gold Lotus, Kwang Min, Kou Yuan-liang, Mister Sergeant, River Goddess, Miss Violet Liang, Miss Lee, White Goddess, Number Nine, Number Two, Temple of Confucius, Tong I-kwan, Miss Amber, Halfmoon Street, Tao Gan, White One, Holy Heaven, Imperial House

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