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snowdrowsey's review
5.0
I loved this story. I learned so much about the history of Chinese people in the Southern United States. I did predict one aspect of the story and that was that this congressman who was Chinese-American wasn't completely Chinese. I couldn't see how that could work, but just had a suspicion about him. It turned out he was descended from a black lady and a Chinese man.
tyrshand's review
4.0
This was my first time trying out this series and even being twelve books in I didn't feel lost. The main characters obviously had a lot of history, but we're caught up quickly. There are some side characters who've obviously been around before, but they had pretty one note interactions -- which was a good thing.
The mystery, itself, was clever in multiple ways and felt new to me. And I do read a lot of mysteries. I could quickly recognize some of the important elements, but not all of them. I also wasn't able to see their pattern until very late into the book. I like that. (sometimes I feel like I've read so many mysteries that I can just recognize what's going to happen before the clues even show up)
I also ended up feeling like I learned a lot about recent history from the book. I knew very little about Chinese history in the U.S. and how recently some of this craziness (and the accepted racism) was present. The book goes over this, however, without ever being preachy. In fact, I think the book manages to be both hard boiled and funny, serious and light in a nicely balanced measure.
The mystery, itself, was clever in multiple ways and felt new to me. And I do read a lot of mysteries. I could quickly recognize some of the important elements, but not all of them. I also wasn't able to see their pattern until very late into the book. I like that. (sometimes I feel like I've read so many mysteries that I can just recognize what's going to happen before the clues even show up)
I also ended up feeling like I learned a lot about recent history from the book. I knew very little about Chinese history in the U.S. and how recently some of this craziness (and the accepted racism) was present. The book goes over this, however, without ever being preachy. In fact, I think the book manages to be both hard boiled and funny, serious and light in a nicely balanced measure.
vkemp's review
4.0
Lydia Chin's mother asks Lydia and Bill Smith to travel to the Mississippi Delta to investigate the murder of Leland Chin by his son Jefferson. Lydia did not know she had cousins in the Delta, which is a very long way from New York. She discovers that this branch of the family is not really related to hers, except via a paper trail, which was the way Chinese families were able to bring relatives to the United States after the completion of the Transcontinental Railroad. They would establish paper trails for immigration purposes. When Lydia and Bill arrive, they meet with Captain Pete, another paper family member, who supports himself by gambling. They also discover Reynolds Tan, another cousin who is running for Congress. As Bill and Lydia investigate, they discover there are secrets in the Delta, secrets that can get you killed. I am so glad to see this series return; it has been a while. Bill and Lydia are a very interesting couple and the plot is intricate and filled with immigration information I did not know. Recommended.
clambook's review
2.0
Either my taste in mysteries has changed, or the Lydia Chin series has run out of gas. Rozan sets this one in Mississippi, which is a mistake -- she doesn't know anything about the landscape and winds up painting the locals as a bunch of two-dimensional country bumpkins. I suspect Rozan returned to the series after a six-year layoff when he standlones were less than sucessful.
heathermassa's review
4.0
I haven't read anything else in this series. Lydia Chin, having gone into PI work against her mother's wishes for a traditional Chinese woman, is sent by her mother (in a crazy turn of events, I'd gather, from the previous books) to find out what happened when a distant cousin is arrested for murdering his father.
She goes into the deep south with her partner Bill, a retired army guy. They meet a lot of people and hear a lot of stories and get into some dust ups. But what was really interesting was the history of Chinese immigrants in the Delta and what that means today.
I thought the mystery was pretty good, too.
She goes into the deep south with her partner Bill, a retired army guy. They meet a lot of people and hear a lot of stories and get into some dust ups. But what was really interesting was the history of Chinese immigrants in the Delta and what that means today.
I thought the mystery was pretty good, too.
thefictionaddictionblog's review
First of all, I have to admit that when I started Paper Son, I didn't realize it was number twelve in a detective series. The NetGalley blurb didn't mention this, and when I got the book, I didn't spend enough time looking at the cover to notice A Lydia Chin/Bill Smith Novel under the title. I picked it for the Chinese and mystery themes, and the book stands alone, but I'm sure there's plenty that I missed without reading the others.
Lydia Chin's mother asks (ok, tells) her to take a case helping out a never-before-mentioned cousin in Mississippi, who is accused of murder. When Lydia asks about this new relative, especially why they don't share a surname, she discovers some of her relatives are descendants of a paper son, and hold his "adopted" father's name. I knew about this practice (Laila Ibrahim's Paper Wife is another good story that hinges on this system) but not about the rest of the life of Chinese immigrants in Mississippi.
Bill Smith, Lydia's work partner and also secretly her romantic partner, comes with her to investigate the murder, and the suspect's escape from custody. In Mississippi, Bill's southern roots come out, and I just loved this part. My husband is a southerner who reverts to his drawl when we cross the Mason-Dixon line for a visit. (Or when he gets off the phone with his very southern mother.)
Their mystery has many twists, including meth dealing, Fine Upstanding Southerners, gambling, family secrets, and a certain interracial couple, no, not Bill and Lydia, another couple who may be keeping their relationship secret from unaccepting relatives. This is much more an exploration of the cultures in the south than a police procedural. There's almost no gore or violence, thankfully, even though the original murder that brought Lydia down south was a a stabbing.
Anyway, I'm so delighted that I didn't realize I was walking into the middle of series, and gave this mystery a try.
Lydia Chin's mother asks (ok, tells) her to take a case helping out a never-before-mentioned cousin in Mississippi, who is accused of murder. When Lydia asks about this new relative, especially why they don't share a surname, she discovers some of her relatives are descendants of a paper son, and hold his "adopted" father's name. I knew about this practice (Laila Ibrahim's Paper Wife is another good story that hinges on this system) but not about the rest of the life of Chinese immigrants in Mississippi.
Bill Smith, Lydia's work partner and also secretly her romantic partner, comes with her to investigate the murder, and the suspect's escape from custody. In Mississippi, Bill's southern roots come out, and I just loved this part. My husband is a southerner who reverts to his drawl when we cross the Mason-Dixon line for a visit. (Or when he gets off the phone with his very southern mother.)
Their mystery has many twists, including meth dealing, Fine Upstanding Southerners, gambling, family secrets, and a certain interracial couple, no, not Bill and Lydia, another couple who may be keeping their relationship secret from unaccepting relatives. This is much more an exploration of the cultures in the south than a police procedural. There's almost no gore or violence, thankfully, even though the original murder that brought Lydia down south was a a stabbing.
Anyway, I'm so delighted that I didn't realize I was walking into the middle of series, and gave this mystery a try.
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