A Case of Two Cities

by Xiaolong Qiu

Hardcover, 2006

Status

Available

Publication

New York : St. Martin's Minotaur, 2006.

Description

Inspector Chen Cao of the Shanghai Police Bureau is summoned by an official of the Party to lead a highly charged corruption investigation. Tentacles have spread through the police force, the civil service, the vice trade and deep into the criminal underworld. The principal figure and his family have long since fled to the United States, beyond the reach of the Chinese government. But the network is still intact and it is only a matter of time before it becomes stronger than before. Chen is charged - and it is a job he cannot refuse - with uncovering those responsible, and destroying the organisation from the top down to its roots. In a twisting case that reunites him with his counterpart from the US Marshals service - Inspector Catherine Rohn - Chen must find a measure of justice in a corrupt, expedient world.… (more)

User reviews

LibraryThing member riverwillow
Another fascinating book in the Inspector Chen series which really give an insight into the preoccupations and concerns of 1990s China. In this book Chen ends up in the USA and is united, albeit briefly, with Catherine Rohn. Its a good detective novel too.
LibraryThing member Springsun
This is a wonderful mystery, one of a series about a Chinese police inspector, Inspector Chen, in Shanghai, China. These books can be read in any order, and still enjoyed. The storyline is intriguing, the characters are real, and life in modern China is vividly described. I especially like the
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Chinese poetry quoted. This story is worth reading, and rereading :)
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LibraryThing member pmarshall
Chen is asked to investigate a high profile anti-corruption case, but is he set up to fail? The principal person has left China and is asking for political immunity in the U.S. Following a murder Chen is pulled from the case and sent to the U.S. as head of a delegation of Chinese writers. He
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continues the investigation from the U.S. and while at odds with the party brings some conclusion to the case. As always the author provides insight into contemporary China.
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LibraryThing member mojacobs
For me this fourth book in the Inspector Chen Cao series was less impressive than the previous ones. While information about daily life and the politics of modern-day China were one of the charms of these book, in this latest the politics feature a bit too prominently, the author keeps hitting the
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same nail again and again and again, and the mystery side of the book is very meagre indeed. The poems scattered through the book stay a nice gimmick, and I had no trouble finishing the book, but all in all: a bit disappointing. I will keep recommending the first book in the series, though.”
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LibraryThing member claude_lambert
Qiu Xiaolong lives in the US with a Chinese soul. His hero, inspector Chen, lives in China and deals with corruption and the problems of rapid industrialization. Many aspects make the author precious. Inspector Chen is a poet, and many events remind him of ancient poems, when he does not write one
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himself. My father was like that: he was a professor of economics but he could quote a poem on every occasion; I clearly remember him quoting Baudelaire to our butcher. My father used to say that poetry had helped him survive the savagery of world war II.
Inspector Chen is also gripped by the rules of ancient cultures.
Because of Victorian times, Europeans are not supposed to ask for something directly (they do not risk/or impose on somebody to answer "no"). So they never ask for a cup of coffee, they say "Your coffee is excellent" or "Is there any coffee left", and the hostess understands that the visitor wants more coffee. China has different rules, but it is as complicated, and as a result, inspector Chen is often told what to do in a very symbolic and obscure language (I think this is linked to a principle of deniability). It amuses me. I loved A case of two cities.
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LibraryThing member magentaflake
Inspector Chen of Shanghai asked to lead an investigation into corruption throughout the police force and the civil service. A good read.
LibraryThing member cbl_tn
Shanghai's Inspector Chen Cao is assigned to investigate a high-profile corruption case involving a businessman who is seeking asylum in the United States. When a potential informant dies, Chen begins to suspect that his investigation may be for show, and that top officials may not want him to
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succeed. Might Chen's sudden trip to the U.S. be a diversion or is it the key to solving the case?

Politics is always central to the Inspector Chen novels. This one leans more toward espionage than to crime fiction. It's not particularly light reading, either. The complex plot and ambiguous dialogue require the reader's careful attention. I made the mistake of reading this one when I had a lot of distractions. Perhaps that's why I didn't enjoy it as well as the other books I've read in the series. When I'm ready to read the next one, I'll have to make sure I pick a time with fewer distractions.
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LibraryThing member fphoppe
It's pretty good. I like the occasionally stilted English which, while correct, reflects the sensibility of another language. Much like as a child of German parents, I might say, "I to the store go." Not exactly incorrect English, but not the way a native speaker would say it.
LibraryThing member bsquaredinoz
A CASE OF TWO CITIES opens with seemingly unrelated incidents: the death in somewhat scandalous circumstances of a long serving policeman and Inspector Chen Cao of the Shanghai Police Bureau being put in charge of an investigation into high-level corruption. Chen’s tactics are, of necessity,
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circuitous but he and the people he chooses to seek help from prove to be in danger. Even when he is appointed at the last minute to head a delegation of Chinese writers on a tour to the USA he is not beyond the reach of those with empires to protect.

I have not read the previous three novels featuring this character and there were a couple of times when it felt like I was missing out on some crucial information, but for the most part it was possible to read this book as a standalone novel. For someone who reads crime fiction as much for they way it offers me a window into other places and cultures as for the mysteries A CASE OF TWO CITIES has a lot to offer. Of most interest for me was the small details of life in modern China where a kind of state sponsored capitalism has become the dominant economic force. As Qiu Xiaolong was born in China before moving to the US as an adult I have to assume that this depiction is as authentic as it seemed when reading it and I found this aspect of the book genuinely absorbing. When the book’s action moves to America it is equally interesting seeing a more familiar setting through the eyes of people who are not used to it.

I also enjoyed meeting Chen and seeing him in action. He faces some of the same challenges as fictional police everywhere but having to combine his policing duties with a role as a leading Party cadre adds a layer of complexity and the fact this is topped off with being a recognised poet makes him unique amongst fictional sleuths. His working and personal lives both require a very delicate balancing act between all of these priorities and and this can add both danger and sadness given that he is not always free to do what his heart might want. There are a lot of minor characters in the book and I did find this a bit overwhelming for keeping the story straight in my head plus it meant that none of the other characters was really fleshed out in any depth. His trusted offsider and his wife are probably the only two I’ll be able to remember for any length of time.

Narratively I did find myself getting lost a little at times. Apologies to all the poets out there but the liberal inclusion of poetry and a kind of long-form homage to T.S.Eliot detracted rather than added to the book for me. I’ve never really liked this kind of thing (I do rather like poetry, I just prefer it to be in a separate universe to prose) and here I found it particularly annoying as I was having trouble enough keeping track of all the unfamiliar names and places. But it was probably the style of investigation that made the story harder than normal to follow. I don’t know if was because this case involved such a politically sensitive issue or if this is how Chen’s cases always play out but nothing every really moves in a straight forward direction: every tiny bit of progression has to come via an oblique angle that, at times, isn’t even recognisable as investigative work.

Overall though I really enjoyed A CASE OF TWO CITIES, even if I might have missed a few nuances of the plot and can heartily recommend it to those who like to travel virtually via their crime fiction. The setting, engaging protagonist and understated suspense all make for a very satisfying reading experience.
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LibraryThing member leslie.98
I really like Chen Cao. In this 4th entry in the series, Chen is asked to work on a case of corruption with connections very high up in the government. The realities of both the difficulties in investigating and the likelihood that most of the high ranking officials involved will end up getting
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away with it, though well portrayed, were depressing.

I did like the fact that Chen met up with U.S. Marshal Catherine Rhon once again during his visit to the U.S..
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LibraryThing member whitewavedarling
Xiaolong's Inspector Chen series offers a fantastic blend of character, atmosphere, and mystery, with all of the books being anchored in poetry and attention to the details of Chinese culture in Shanghai, especially when it comes to food and custom. This is the fourth book in the series, and was
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somewhat of a departure from the earlier books in the series. Where earlier books felt more centrally focused on a mystery, this one ranged across multiple cases/concerns (multiple continents, even), and seemed just as focused on attending to Chen's character and the literary aspect of the series. That took some getting used to, I admit--it wasn't exactly what I'd expected upon picking up the book--but I ended up enjoying it. And, as always, Xiaolong's inclusions of poetry made the book that much richer, even if it sometimes stretched believability that they'd come so easily to the characters' minds.

I would say that, so far, this book is an outlier in the series, and that readers would definitely want to start with the first three books. The other caveat is that it feels like this book ends on less firm footing than normal, and leads directly into the next book--to the extent that it almost feels like this is a two-parter more than a stand-alone in some ways. I'll be making a point of picking up the next book sooner than later because of it, but regardless, I certainly recommend the series.
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LibraryThing member leslie.98
3.5*
I really like Chen Cao. In this 4th entry in the series, Chen is asked to work on a case of corruption with connections very high up in the government. The realities of both the difficulties in investigating and the likelihood that most of the high ranking officials involved will end up getting
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away with it, though well portrayed, were depressing.

I did like the fact that Chen met up with U.S. Marshal Catherine Rhon once again during his visit to the U.S.
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Barcode

5436
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