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annieb123's review
4.0
Originally posted on my blog: Nonstop Reader.
Thief of Souls is the first book in a procedural series by Brian Klingborg. Released 4th May 2021 by Macmillan on their St. Martin's Press imprint, it's 288 pages and is available in hardcover, audio, and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links and references throughout. I've really become enamored of ebooks with interactive formats; it makes finding phrases or passages so much easier when reading.
This is a well written modern police procedural set in rural China. I found the characters believable and well rendered, both from their internal motivations and their external interactions with one another and their environs. Despite graduating with honors from the top police university in China, Inspector Lu Fei has had a less than stellar career arc up to this point and has been transferred to a small rural town outside of a major metropolitan area in China. We do become privy to the reasons behind his transfer later in the book (no spoilers). His usual official duties include finding chickens and helping residents with their internet problems. The office is not prepared to deal with a serial killer, yet that's exactly what he's faced with. Soon the CIB (China's FBI equivalent) is called in to help and much of the book turns on the politics of inter-agency investigation and (lack of) cooperation.
Protagonist Lu Fei is both dogged and intelligent and begins to unravel the many layers of complexity tied up in the crimes surrounding the murders as well as uncovering information which powerful local government personnel would strongly prefer to remain hidden. The climax and denouement are satisfying and tensely written. I'm looking forward to future books with Inspector Lu Fei.
Four stars.
Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.
Thief of Souls is the first book in a procedural series by Brian Klingborg. Released 4th May 2021 by Macmillan on their St. Martin's Press imprint, it's 288 pages and is available in hardcover, audio, and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links and references throughout. I've really become enamored of ebooks with interactive formats; it makes finding phrases or passages so much easier when reading.
This is a well written modern police procedural set in rural China. I found the characters believable and well rendered, both from their internal motivations and their external interactions with one another and their environs. Despite graduating with honors from the top police university in China, Inspector Lu Fei has had a less than stellar career arc up to this point and has been transferred to a small rural town outside of a major metropolitan area in China. We do become privy to the reasons behind his transfer later in the book (no spoilers). His usual official duties include finding chickens and helping residents with their internet problems. The office is not prepared to deal with a serial killer, yet that's exactly what he's faced with. Soon the CIB (China's FBI equivalent) is called in to help and much of the book turns on the politics of inter-agency investigation and (lack of) cooperation.
Protagonist Lu Fei is both dogged and intelligent and begins to unravel the many layers of complexity tied up in the crimes surrounding the murders as well as uncovering information which powerful local government personnel would strongly prefer to remain hidden. The climax and denouement are satisfying and tensely written. I'm looking forward to future books with Inspector Lu Fei.
Four stars.
Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.
strawberrychu's review
3.0
I would say that this book was pretty good for the most part. The murders themselves were interesting enough to keep my attention. One thing though is that I was able to figure out who the serial killer was immediately when he was introduced. It was pretty obvious. I would have enjoyed it more if there was some big plot twist/reveal of who the killer was but oh well. The authors description of the female characters was also kind of strange at times. Not a bad read.
tilgen's review
3.0
If you enjoy mysteries with themes of conspiracy and corruption while learning about Chinese culture and history, you'll like this book.
Overall this is a decent mystery book, not great but not bad either. One of the unique things is about this book is that it not only takes place in China but it switches between the rural environment of Raven Valley and the urban metropolis of Harbin.
The author has worked in Asia for many years, has an M.A. in East Asian Studies and it shows with his knowledge drops of Chinese culture in this book. This is very helpful for providing context for a book that takes place in a country that's not a very popular setting for a lot of western mysteries.
The dynamics between Lu Fei and his precinct are cliché but enjoyable, you have the rough edged boss whose also fair, the two lazy cops, a mute, and a few others with less than noteworthy personalities. The author does a good job of keeping you guessing of the killer being either a powerful businessman/politician in the city or a hardened factory worker in the country.
Unless if I missed something, I disliked how we're fed a mystery about the victim's finances and then not provided an answer to how she afforded her apartment and fancy clothes.
Again, a good mystery with an unusual setting, and while I am open to reading the 2nd book in the future, I'm not eager to read it right away.
Overall this is a decent mystery book, not great but not bad either. One of the unique things is about this book is that it not only takes place in China but it switches between the rural environment of Raven Valley and the urban metropolis of Harbin.
The author has worked in Asia for many years, has an M.A. in East Asian Studies and it shows with his knowledge drops of Chinese culture in this book. This is very helpful for providing context for a book that takes place in a country that's not a very popular setting for a lot of western mysteries.
The dynamics between Lu Fei and his precinct are cliché but enjoyable, you have the rough edged boss whose also fair, the two lazy cops, a mute, and a few others with less than noteworthy personalities. The author does a good job of keeping you guessing of the killer being either a powerful businessman/politician in the city or a hardened factory worker in the country.
Unless if I missed something, I disliked how we're fed a mystery about the victim's finances and then not provided an answer to how she afforded her apartment and fancy clothes.
Again, a good mystery with an unusual setting, and while I am open to reading the 2nd book in the future, I'm not eager to read it right away.
paperwitches's review
3.0
Thank you to the author, the publisher, and Netgalley for the ARC!
A fun little murder mystery with a interesting perspective, as it takes place in China. While a bit preditable, it's cultural inspiration was nice to read.
A fun little murder mystery with a interesting perspective, as it takes place in China. While a bit preditable, it's cultural inspiration was nice to read.
bubblescotch's review against another edition
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
katatayl's review
3.0
*giveaway ARC*
This book was… OK. It was a nice way to spend an afternoon when I didn’t have classes and I’m a speedreader, but I don’t think it was anything special. I didn’t love it.
There were times when the narrator would give a sidenote explaining a piece of context, which was helpful for the times when I didn’t actually know what was being referenced, but I feel like it would be better if the explanation was in the context rather than explicitly stated.
Additionally, it felt like the focus was more on Chinese culture and educating readers than it was on the murder or on generating suspense. Which makes sense, since the author has degrees in East Asian Studies (interestingly enough, one of them is from the university I’m currently attending!) but I tend to like my mysteries more on the intense thriller side of things.
In short: It was interesting, a nice way to spend an afternoon, and kept me engaged for the 3 hours it took to finish
This book was… OK. It was a nice way to spend an afternoon when I didn’t have classes and I’m a speedreader, but I don’t think it was anything special. I didn’t love it.
There were times when the narrator would give a sidenote explaining a piece of context, which was helpful for the times when I didn’t actually know what was being referenced, but I feel like it would be better if the explanation was in the context rather than explicitly stated.
Additionally, it felt like the focus was more on Chinese culture and educating readers than it was on the murder or on generating suspense. Which makes sense, since the author has degrees in East Asian Studies (interestingly enough, one of them is from the university I’m currently attending!) but I tend to like my mysteries more on the intense thriller side of things.
In short: It was interesting, a nice way to spend an afternoon, and kept me engaged for the 3 hours it took to finish
testingmywilltolive's review against another edition
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
srlemons42's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
4.5