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A review by tyrshand
Paper Son by S.J. Rozan
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.