Customer Reviews

The Mao Case: An Inspector Chen Novel (Inspector Chen Novels)

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I have now read in order Xiaolong's entire Detective Chen series. THE MAO CASE may be the series best since the first book, DEATH OF A RED HEROINE which still remains for me the series best. My complaint with the series as it has progressed is that the characters personal lives have not grown. Chen's character has developed to a degree but he still seems frozen in time and in his position as the poetry loving police inspector who has put career over his personal life. The various cases or story lines in each volume seem to take president over the on going development of each character. I for one don't read the books because of the particular case or to find out who done it, but for the setting (China in the 1990s as it turns to capitalism) and characters response to these changes. I thing one handicap is that Xiaolong is only a serviceable writer. His paragraph's and dialog are simple, short and without much descriptive or visual depth. He services the plot more than he is able to embellish it. One often asks if he is just going through the motions now? In the MAO CASE we do see some improvement and get some interesting insights into the Cultural Revolution and it's on going impact on the Chinese population and politics of the 90s as well as some personal information on Chairman Mao. This gets this volume some depth and interest that the first book had. This volume also allows us to enjoy having some of the other major characters involved in the case in some inventive ways although I can not say they have progressed very far in their lives. So overall this is a fast fun read which I recognize it's not great literature and may also be an acquired taste. I personally will continue to look forward to the next Chen book. I have mentioned in my prior reviews of the Chen series that my tastes as a reader are not for mysteries and that this is the only series I have read.

Every Chen mystery is a feast of impressions of the wacky world of present-day China, with its Big Bucks, little secretaries, gangsters - and the scarred survivors of the Cultural Revolution. This book adds to the mix an exploration of the unsavory personal life of Chairman Mao.

Inspector Chen is on the trail of some Mao materials that mighty prove embarrassing to the Party. Three beautiful women, dead and alive, stand between Chen and the solution.

A handsome intellectual with Confucian ethics, Chen has a princely quality that makes him good company in every adventure. When stalled, he ponders snippets of haunting poetry that sometimes prove oddly useful in solving the case.

Some might say there are too many contrivances and coincidences in the plotting of this book, but I'm so enamored of Qiu Xiaolong's writing, I looked the other way.

I recommend reading the whole series, starting with Death of a Red Heroine, to get the full flavor of Chen's character. Every book in the series is delightful.

The Beijing leadership is concerned with the sudden appearance of wealth by a seemingly impoverished young artist living well above her means. Normally no one would think twice of Jiao's affluence, but she is the granddaughter of Xie, a film star who Chairman Mao personally liked; additionally Jiao's mother died during the Cultural Revolution cleansing. Needing expeditious subtly to determine if the painter is peddling "Mao material" five decades old that could embarrass the Party and China, the brass hand the Top Secret case to Shanghai Police Department's Special Case Chief Inspector Chen Cao; known for his success, speed and especially discretion.

Chen begins with the mother whose life was explored in a bestseller. Using Cloud and Rain as access, Chen goes undercover pretending to be an author conducting research into a historical novel. This enables him to meet Jiao and her friends at the still alive Xie's run down home. There the older woman hosts a group who cherishes the pre-Communist culture until murder leave Chen suspecting grandmother and or granddaughter as the killer(s) especially their shared convenient alibi.

The sixth Chen Chinese police procedural (see WHEN RED IS BLACK and RED MANDARIN DRESS) contains a strong investigation, but it is the profound look at the early Mao days in comparison to modern day China that brings the uniqueness to the story line. Chen is at his best with his asides about brass, bureaucrats, and bull as he diligently works the "Mao material" inquiry that turns into a homicide; he is more comfortable with the latter as the former is loaded with pompous interference. Mindful of the Bush Administration concealing Korean War Era documents that have been declassified for years and open to the public in the government archives, fans of the Shanghai inspector will enjoy his latest case as a reluctant Chen knows the penalty of dealing with anything Maoist even decades old.

Harriet Klausner

I enjoyed Death of a Red Heroine probably because this author was new to me and he mentioned things about China that I was very unfamiliar with. The Mao Case was my third novel read in the Inspector Chen series. My feeling is that the author has grown careless in his presentation. There is too much emphasis on poetry which ruins the flow of the story. A little poetry is nice but just a little. There were several grammar errors that should have been caught by a good editor (or the author). My guess is that English is not Xiaolong's native language and I'm afraid it shows in his awkward writing style. This review may come across as overly critical but as an American reader I really do expect excellence in the English language. I do appreciate the willingness of Xiaolong to open up Chinese history to critical inspection and to share this with the Western readers.

Chief Inspector Chen investigates the possibility that artifacts remaining from Mao's sordid private life with a lovely movie star--Shang--could surface and embarrass Beijing. He focuses on the tragic lives of Shang, a suicide; her daughter Qian, also dying young; and her granddaughter Jiao, implicated in this plot to profit from exposing Mao's dalliance. Poetic language for sex, including "cloud and rain," "silk stockings soaked with dewdrops," and "plum blossom," contrast in Chen's mind with with Mao's harsh imperial rule, "surrounded by the enemy I stand firm and invincible," "the master controlling...", and "a hurricane comes." The story, steeped in melancholy, weighed down by details of Mao's relentless command and emotional brutality, ends realistically with "the sun sinking in

blood."

Qiu Xiaolong expresses a Chinese sensibility in Chen, looking for the blank space in a scroll as well as the landscape. His task here is politically dangerous on all sides. His quest exposes the personal tragedies of Mao's Cultural Revolution and the current gulf between rich and poor in Shanghai, both revealing individual agonies invisible to those ruling inside the Forbidden City. The idealistic poet inside himself becomes a supportive character to his primary cop character, his assigned social duty. He tries to succeed for the Party and himself, which means he abandons his love for high-born Ling. The old men he deals with, the rich friends, the poor police couple, the nostalgic party-goers, the delicate and beautiful young artists, all try to form a life on the wrecked remnants of lives Mao has left them.

I loved the history so thoughtfully knit throughout the book, personal stories new to me. I loved the haunted, fated future of the dancer and those coming after. I enjoyed the villain, a variation on the theme of the story, the impact of Mao on one person. I appreciated the women in bright colors, the indomitable old men, Ling's insight, and Chen's eccentric detection. The conversation between Ling and Chen irritated me--can't these two smart people break through Chinese restraint, embrace and explore love without political overtones? Are they condemned to solitary longing, which makes great poems but poor lives and bad love scenes? With Shanghai moving forward, all these characters need to make some contemporary progress as well.

It is always difficult to decide which is more valuable when reading an Inspector Chen novel: the mystery plot itself, or the poetic and cultural references incorporated in therein. Each element is a gem in and of itself. In this latest effort in the series, the poetry (and love life) of Chairman Mao contributes highly to the story.

Once again the party calls on the Chief Inspector to solve a politically sensitive case. It appears that some artifact or other valuable document may have been given by Mao to a Shanghai actress who probably was one of his many mistresses. The item was never found, but is suspected to be in the possession of the woman's granddaughter. It is not known whether its discovery would prove embarrassing to the Party of Mao, and Internal Security is chomping at the bit to apply hard tactics to find it.

Chen, on the other hand, goes about the task like the cop he is, not to mention his other talents as a poet and professional writer, checking and quoting poems and literature in an effort to reach a satisfactory conclusion to what he dubs "the Mao Case." Each Chen mystery is a delight to read, filled with all sorts of charming quotations, proverbs and bits of Chinese culture and history. The present novel is no exception, and it is highly recommended.

In this, the sixth and latest of Qiu Xiaolong's Shanghai-based mystery novels, his inimitable police inspector Chen Cao is confronted with his most threateningly political investigative assignment. THE MAO CASE indeed reaches back to the Cultural Revolution and the time of Mao and his notorious wife, Jiang Qing (Madame Mao).

The story line revolves around a twentyish young woman named Jiao, granddaughter of a famous actress named Shang Yunguan with whom Mao had an amorous relationship that ultimately resulted in Shang's suicidal death. Jiao's tragic family history didn't just end with her grandmother's suicide, however. Her mother Qian also died young, reputedly in a tragic accident. Jiao has recently and without apparent income of her own or support from a Big Bucks "sugar daddy" taken up residence in a luxurious new apartment in Shanghai. She spends much of her free time studying painting with other students in the home of an older Shanghai man named Xie, but she seems otherwise uninvolved in business affairs of any sort.

The State authorities in Beijing, including the secret police, fear that Jiao has acquired sudden new wealth as a result of something, perhaps highly embarrassing or detrimental to Mao's image, that may have been passed from her grandmother through Qian and finally to her. No one knows what the item(s) might be, but the Chief Inspector has asked Inspector Chen to go undercover, getting as close to Jiao as he can to determine whether she has any such incriminating or damaging materials in her possession. Should Chen not be successful with his approach, the Secret Police will be given free reign to use their own, rather more brutal methods, to extract the truth and find the suspect materials. Yet what begins as an investigation with deep historical and political ramifications unexpectedly grows to include murder.

Although this novel is entirely self-contained, it contains Qiu Xiaolong's usual supporting cast of characters and love interests: Detective Yu, Yu's wife Peiqin and his father, the ex-cop Old Hunter, and of course Chen's longstanding love interest, Ling. THE MAO CASE also offers the literary features which invariably make Qiu's Inspector Chen novels so fascinating: the first-hand observation of life in modern-day Shanghai, the fascinating insights into everyday Chinese culture, and the engaging references to China's musical and literary tradition from Suzhou-style Kunqu opera (historical precursor to Beijing opera) to the four great classical novels to Tang Dynasty poetry.

Qiu offers explanations of the subtlety of Chinese writing styles (the soft sexual references to clouds and rain), and he brings to bear within the context of the story line both homely adages ("It's easy to throw rocks at one already fallen to the bottom of a well.") and lovely excerpts of Tang poetry ("There is always a loss of meaning/in what we say or do not say/but also a meaning/in the loss of the meaning."). He displays a sense of wry humor as well, comparing for example the collective, orchestrated chatter of China's newspapers over Hu Jintao's "harmonious society" to the "never-tiring cicadas in the trees" (a reference anyone who's spent a blazing hot summer in and around Beijing can readily appreciate).

The only drawback to this edition of Inspector Chen is the resolution of the Mao Case mystery itself. For the first time from among the previous Inspector Chen novels I have read, Qiu fails to find a convincing way to wrap up the conundrum he creates. The finale seems heavily contrived and far too implausible in terms of human behavior. The author's talent for story line, character, and sense of place go a long way to compensate, but the "reveal" is the whole point of mystery stories, and THE MAO CASE falls a bit short in both character motivation and the final details of the great secret. Some readers may well feel shortchanged by story's end, and not without good reason. On balance, still a pleasurable read.

Well, rats! I don't have any more Chief Inspector Chen mysteries to read, so I hope that Qiu Xiaolong soon completes another one. I love the characters Chen of course who is torn between a police inspector and an intellectual who wants to be a filial son to his mother, but seems too much of a confirmed bachelor to provide her with grandchildren.

Yu his humble partner who is canny like his father Old Hunter also a policeman. Yu deeply loves his smart and hardworking wife Pequin who does her best to help him on cases while raising their son and working as an accountant for a state run restaurant.

And then there is Gu the Mr. Big Bucks with triad ties who helps Chen in anyway he can.

In the Mao case Chen is again given a case to work from those higher up in the party. The granddaughter of a woman who was a mistress to Mao seems to be living beyond her means. The party is fearful that she has something of Mao's to sell, so they send Chief Inspector Chen to investigate. The whole case could prove to be politically dangerous so Chen is reluctant to involve Yu.

I am a great fan of the Inspector Chen series. I met the author at a booksigning and was immediately drawn to his love and limitations imposed by his native country. I am clearly not a Chinese gourmet because some of the descriptions of the food were a bit gross.

When Inspector Chen Cao is brought into a case that is already being handled by 'Internal Security', he knows that he will be walking on eggshells during the whole investigation. He has been told by Party Officials in Beijing, that he should put his 'eccentric' notions to work to find something that 'might' be detrimental to the memory of Mao and therefore to the Party. Great, except no one is sure what IT is.

His only clue is that the granddaughter of the 1930s actress Shang was a lover of Mao and she may have something that was 'passed down' to her through her mother (Qian). Shang committed suicide, and Qian was killed in an 'accident' during the Cultural Revolution. Being the member of a 'black family' Jiao was put into a state orphanage after her mothers apartment was ransacked by the Red Guard. So what possibly could the be the legacy that the girl would have?

The question is not so archane as it may seem because in the last year of so she has moved into a luxury apartment and quit her job. She seems to have no manner of earning money or of being the 'little concubine of some 'Big Bucks'. Chen has his work cut out for him because in eight days 'Internal Security' will 'get tough' with Jiao.

As a second background story, Chen has to deal with the 'loss' of his HCC girlfriend in Beijing. Ling has gotten married. But an old friend of Ling and Chen, named Yong, is trying to get them back together. Ling has moved back in with her parents as soon as she returned from her honeymoon. So what's the story here? Can and does Chen want her? We will probably have to wait for the next book to find out. Personally, I'm rooting for 'White Cloud'.

Zeb Kantrowitz

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