Scan barcode
julialou's review against another edition
3.0
The first half was a bit dry, but the second half quickly became exciting and rather disturbing at parts. The books is written in the style of old Chinese murder mysteries telling stories about the historical Judge Dee. In medieval China, the judge was a mix of detective, judge, and governor, and Judge Dee was particularly clever and well-known. Completely different from anything I have ever read.
setobox's review against another edition
4.0
I had to read this for my Chinese History class but it was a really good read. I loved it and the ending of it made me gasp and feel bad for one of the characters.
paul_cornelius's review
5.0
More than ever, Judge Dee begins to doubt himself and question his capabilities to solve crimes correctly and timely. (In his postscript, van Gulik argues that this was his intent, especially in Nail Murders.) Not only that but the price he pays for being slow on the uptake is the loss of one of his long-time lieutenants. It's one of the more shocking scenes in any Judge Dee mystery, when this dependable ally is murdered towards the end of the book. So, full of regrets, second guesses, and missed chances, the Dee of Nail Murders has a modern air about him, a detective vulnerable to misdirection and even intimidation. (Also modern is the style of writing. In the past, I've noted how especially in the later novels van Gulik seems to employ a hardboiled way of expressing himself. Again, in the postscript, he comments on turning the old Chinese detective stories into pieces of action, with "concise" depictions of the settings and movements.)
Nail Murders apparently is also the final book in the five series of fictional Dee novels van Gulik first penned. It has a sense of conclusion about it, in fact. As with the others in the "first five" Nail Murders is longer and more complicated. This also is something van Gulik addresses in one of the postscripts, noting how he reduced from 20 or 24 the number of characters to merely a dozen in the next series of Dee novels he was preparing at the time this story went off to the publishers. For these reasons, I must admit that it is the earlier Dee stories I most enjoy. The problem was that van Gulik felt he was overwhelming the majority of his readers with novels too involved with difficult to remember characters and situations. Was he wrong? Probably not. The market for paperback mysteries preferred shorter and shorter efforts as the 60s and 70s came upon the scene. Van Gulik would not have been the only author to take this path, either.
Nail Murders apparently is also the final book in the five series of fictional Dee novels van Gulik first penned. It has a sense of conclusion about it, in fact. As with the others in the "first five" Nail Murders is longer and more complicated. This also is something van Gulik addresses in one of the postscripts, noting how he reduced from 20 or 24 the number of characters to merely a dozen in the next series of Dee novels he was preparing at the time this story went off to the publishers. For these reasons, I must admit that it is the earlier Dee stories I most enjoy. The problem was that van Gulik felt he was overwhelming the majority of his readers with novels too involved with difficult to remember characters and situations. Was he wrong? Probably not. The market for paperback mysteries preferred shorter and shorter efforts as the 60s and 70s came upon the scene. Van Gulik would not have been the only author to take this path, either.
roshk99's review against another edition
3.0
Another entertaining Judge Dee that has a few dark twists.
darkchocolate's review against another edition
5.0
Amazing as always! All books from the Judge Di's series are greatly written with lots of turns of events!
quynh23's review
adventurous
mysterious
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
charlottej's review
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder
Moderate: Violence and Grief
Minor: Domestic abuse
gazakas's review against another edition
5.0
Εξαιρετικό. Αρχαία Κίνα, λεπτεπίλεπτη νοητική κατασκευή, καταιγιστική δράση, ψυχολογική ανάλυση επαγγελματία.
naverhtrad's review
5.0
Warning: spoilers
This is not my favourite of the classic Judge Dee mysteries by van Gulik, but without a doubt it ranks among the best-written. It is the last of the books in the Judge's career as magistrate, and it is the last of the books in which Hong Liang makes an appearance. It reads as a murder mystery and as a typical gong'an novel, yes. But it also reads as a tragic drama in grand traditional Chinese style - complete with mournful poetry, a tale of doomed love, and a true moral dilemma which entraps both Di Renjie and his subordinates.
In his first few weeks in the fictional town of Beizhou, Di Renjie is, as usual, confronted with three cases: the disappearance of the betrothed Miss Liao Lianfang; the grisly murder of Mrs Pan, the wife of an elderly antiques dealer; and the poisoning of the famous martial artist Lan Dakui. These turn out, in fact, to be two separate murder cases rather than one, but they pit Judge Dee and his opponents against one of the single cleverest, most skilful, most determined and most ruthless villains van Gulik has yet written. All the more so because, thanks to her intimate knowledge of the law, near-sociopathic daring and her ability to manipulate people, the widow Chen Baozhen comes very, very close to beating Di Renjie at his own game. Through a careful web of lies she manages to situate herself as the wrongful victim of his corruption, and thereby place him at risk of his career, his life and the total ruin and shame of his family.
In order to bring Chen Baozhen to justice, Di Renjie brings himself to the end of his resources. None of his regular assistants can help him, and one of them has himself been murdered in the course of his duties. One woman alone, the kindly and sensible Mrs. Guo, holds the vital clue, but she can't divulge it to the just judge without incriminating herself of a cold-case murder long since buried and forgotten. Di Renjie himself has to decide between his duties as an administrator of justice and his personal feelings of gratitude and growing affection for Mrs. Guo. Van Gulik writes this tragedy superbly - Mrs. Guo sacrifices herself by giving the judge the clue that saves his life and career, but he is then forced by his office to investigate her, knowing exactly where it will lead.
The underworld, martial-arts, 'barbarian' and supernatural elements are still present in this novel, but they are downplayed considerably in favour of the central drama of the investigation and its consequences. However, the Sinophile puzzles - in this case, qiqiaoban (tangrams) - play a very major role in the investigation, and provide a vital clue in the murder of Lan Dakui which leads to Chen Baozhen as the culprit.
I'm not exaggerating in the slightest when I claim that this is van Gulik's best-written novel. It shows Judge Dee at his most vulnerable, and thus also best illustrates the strength of his character. If you don't read any other books in this series - read this one.
This is not my favourite of the classic Judge Dee mysteries by van Gulik, but without a doubt it ranks among the best-written. It is the last of the books in the Judge's career as magistrate, and it is the last of the books in which Hong Liang makes an appearance. It reads as a murder mystery and as a typical gong'an novel, yes. But it also reads as a tragic drama in grand traditional Chinese style - complete with mournful poetry, a tale of doomed love, and a true moral dilemma which entraps both Di Renjie and his subordinates.
In his first few weeks in the fictional town of Beizhou, Di Renjie is, as usual, confronted with three cases: the disappearance of the betrothed Miss Liao Lianfang; the grisly murder of Mrs Pan, the wife of an elderly antiques dealer; and the poisoning of the famous martial artist Lan Dakui. These turn out, in fact, to be two separate murder cases rather than one, but they pit Judge Dee and his opponents against one of the single cleverest, most skilful, most determined and most ruthless villains van Gulik has yet written. All the more so because, thanks to her intimate knowledge of the law, near-sociopathic daring and her ability to manipulate people, the widow Chen Baozhen comes very, very close to beating Di Renjie at his own game. Through a careful web of lies she manages to situate herself as the wrongful victim of his corruption, and thereby place him at risk of his career, his life and the total ruin and shame of his family.
In order to bring Chen Baozhen to justice, Di Renjie brings himself to the end of his resources. None of his regular assistants can help him, and one of them has himself been murdered in the course of his duties. One woman alone, the kindly and sensible Mrs. Guo, holds the vital clue, but she can't divulge it to the just judge without incriminating herself of a cold-case murder long since buried and forgotten. Di Renjie himself has to decide between his duties as an administrator of justice and his personal feelings of gratitude and growing affection for Mrs. Guo. Van Gulik writes this tragedy superbly - Mrs. Guo sacrifices herself by giving the judge the clue that saves his life and career, but he is then forced by his office to investigate her, knowing exactly where it will lead.
The underworld, martial-arts, 'barbarian' and supernatural elements are still present in this novel, but they are downplayed considerably in favour of the central drama of the investigation and its consequences. However, the Sinophile puzzles - in this case, qiqiaoban (tangrams) - play a very major role in the investigation, and provide a vital clue in the murder of Lan Dakui which leads to Chen Baozhen as the culprit.
I'm not exaggerating in the slightest when I claim that this is van Gulik's best-written novel. It shows Judge Dee at his most vulnerable, and thus also best illustrates the strength of his character. If you don't read any other books in this series - read this one.
More...