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A review by constantreader471
Thief of Souls: An Inspector Lu Fei Mystery by Brian Klingborg
4.0
4 solid stars for an engrossing mystery set in rural Northern China. Raven Valley is 70 Kilometers from Harbin and Lu Fei is the Deputy Chief of the township PSB(Public Security Bureau) station. PSB is analogous to a Western Police Department. Winters in this area are very cold, and houses are poorly heated. Lu Fei gets a call on his night off, because the duty constable cannot find the chief. There has been a murder. Yang Fenfang has been found dead. She is from this small village but moved to Harbin several years ago. She returned to Raven Valley to care for her sick mom, who died just 1 week ago..
While the initial suspect is an ex boy friend of Yang Fenfang, there are many twists and turns in the plot. I was not sure who the killer was until near the end. I liked the characters, especially Lu Fei, a lonely, but dedicated policemen. Lu Fei calls this in to the Beijing PSB headquarters and Superintendent Song, Deputy Director of the Criminal Investigation Bureau decides to bring his team to investigate. Song and Lu form an unlikely partnership. The PSB is riven with corruption and interfering politicians. How Lu manages to find the killer makes for a very good read. There is some side story about his non existent love life.
The author is an American who has studied Chinese literature at Harvard. He has done much research and portrays life in rural China authentically to this reader. I have only been to China once, as a tourist, but I have read other mysteries by Chinese authors. His description of Chinese customs and beliefs, particularly ancestor worship, ring true to me. The book is divided into days, as the investigation progresses.
Two quotes:
PSB entering a house: "Lu doesn't bother to knock. In the People's Republic, private property remains a loosely interpreted concept. He opens the door and yells, 'Public Security Bureau!"
Interrogation: "In the people's Republic, there is no legal 'right to remain silent" and no law that requires a lawyer to be present during initial police questioning, so Song launches right in."
I will read more of this author's books if he publishes more. I read this book in 3 days.
Thanks to St Martin's Press/Minotaur Books for sending me this eARC through NetGalley.
#ThiefofSouls #NetGalley
While the initial suspect is an ex boy friend of Yang Fenfang, there are many twists and turns in the plot. I was not sure who the killer was until near the end. I liked the characters, especially Lu Fei, a lonely, but dedicated policemen. Lu Fei calls this in to the Beijing PSB headquarters and Superintendent Song, Deputy Director of the Criminal Investigation Bureau decides to bring his team to investigate. Song and Lu form an unlikely partnership. The PSB is riven with corruption and interfering politicians. How Lu manages to find the killer makes for a very good read. There is some side story about his non existent love life.
The author is an American who has studied Chinese literature at Harvard. He has done much research and portrays life in rural China authentically to this reader. I have only been to China once, as a tourist, but I have read other mysteries by Chinese authors. His description of Chinese customs and beliefs, particularly ancestor worship, ring true to me. The book is divided into days, as the investigation progresses.
Two quotes:
PSB entering a house: "Lu doesn't bother to knock. In the People's Republic, private property remains a loosely interpreted concept. He opens the door and yells, 'Public Security Bureau!"
Interrogation: "In the people's Republic, there is no legal 'right to remain silent" and no law that requires a lawyer to be present during initial police questioning, so Song launches right in."
I will read more of this author's books if he publishes more. I read this book in 3 days.
Thanks to St Martin's Press/Minotaur Books for sending me this eARC through NetGalley.
#ThiefofSouls #NetGalley