The Mao Case

I am a great fan of the Inspector Chen series. I met the author at a booksigning and was immediately drawn to his love and limitations imposed by his native country. I am clearly not a Chinese gourmet because some of the descriptions of the food were a bit gross.

Chief Inspector Chen investigates the possibility that artifacts remaining from Mao's sordid private life with a lovely movie star--Shang--could surface and embarrass Beijing. He focuses on the tragic lives of Shang, a suicide; her daughter Qian, also dying young; and her granddaughter Jiao, implicated in this plot to profit from exposing Mao's dalliance. Poetic language for sex, including "cloud and rain," "silk stockings soaked with dewdrops," and "plum blossom," contrast in Chen's mind with with Mao's harsh imperial rule, "surrounded by the enemy I stand firm and invincible," "the master controlling...", and "a hurricane comes." The story, steeped in melancholy, weighed down by details of Mao's relentless command and emotional brutality, ends realistically with "the sun sinking in blood." Qiu Xiaolong expresses a Chinese sensibility in Chen, looking for the blank space in a scroll as well as the landscape. His task here is politically dangerous on all sides. His quest exposes the personal tragedies of Mao's Cultural Revolution and the current gulf between rich and poor in Shanghai, both revealing individual agonies invisible to those ruling inside the Forbidden City. The idealistic poet inside himself becomes a supportive character to his primary cop character, his assigned social duty. He tries to succeed for the Party and himself, which means he abandons his love for high-born Ling. The old men he deals with, the rich friends, the poor police couple, the nostalgic party-goers, the delicate and beautiful young artists, all try to form a life on the wrecked remnants of lives Mao has left them. I loved the history so thoughtfully knit throughout the book, personal stories new to me. I loved the haunted, fated future of the dancer and those coming after. I enjoyed the villain, a variation on the theme of the story, the impact of Mao on one person. I appreciated the women in bright colors, the indomitable old men, Ling's insight, and Chen's eccentric detection. The conversation between Ling and Chen irritated me--can't these two smart people break through Chinese restraint, embrace and explore love without political overtones? Are they condemned to solitary longing, which makes great poems but poor lives and bad love scenes? With Shanghai moving forward, all these characters need to make some contemporary progress as well.

It is always difficult to decide which is more valuable when reading an Inspector Chen novel: the mystery plot itself, or the poetic and cultural references incorporated in therein. Each element is a gem in and of itself. In this latest effort in the series, the poetry (and love life) of Chairman Mao contributes highly to the story. Once again the party calls on the Chief Inspector to solve a politically sensitive case. It appears that some artifact or other valuable document may have been given by Mao to a Shanghai actress who probably was one of his many mistresses. The item was never found, but is suspected to be in the possession of the woman's granddaughter. It is not known whether its discovery would prove embarrassing to the Party of Mao, and Internal Security is chomping at the bit to apply hard tactics to find it. Chen, on the other hand, goes about the task like the cop he is, not to mention his other talents as a poet and professional writer, checking and quoting poems and literature in an effort to reach a satisfactory conclusion to what he dubs "the Mao Case." Each Chen mystery is a delight to read, filled with all sorts of charming quotations, proverbs and bits of Chinese culture and history. The present novel is no exception, and it is highly recommended.

Every Chen mystery is a feast of impressions of the wacky world of present-day China, with its Big Bucks, little secretaries, gangsters - and the scarred survivors of the Cultural Revolution. This book adds to the mix an exploration of the unsavory personal life of Chairman Mao. Inspector Chen is on the trail of some Mao materials that mighty prove embarrassing to the Party. Three beautiful women, dead and alive, stand between Chen and the solution. A handsome intellectual with Confucian ethics, Chen has a princely quality that makes him good company in every adventure. When stalled, he ponders snippets of haunting poetry that sometimes prove oddly useful in solving the case. Some might say there are too many contrivances and coincidences in the plotting of this book, but I'm so enamored of Qiu Xiaolong's writing, I looked the other way. I recommend reading the whole series, starting with Death of a Red Heroine, to get the full flavor of Chen's character. Every book in the series is delightful.

The Beijing leadership is concerned with the sudden appearance of wealth by a seemingly impoverished young artist living well above her means. Normally no one would think twice of Jiao's affluence, but she is the granddaughter of Xie, a film star who Chairman Mao personally liked; additionally Jiao's mother died during the Cultural Revolution cleansing. Needing expeditious subtly to determine if the painter is peddling "Mao material" five decades old that could embarrass the Party and China, the brass hand the Top Secret case to Shanghai Police Department's Special Case Chief Inspector Chen Cao; known for his success, speed and especially discretion. Chen begins with the mother whose life was explored in a bestseller. Using Cloud and Rain as access, Chen goes undercover pretending to be an author conducting research into a historical novel. This enables him to meet Jiao and her friends at the still alive Xie's run down home. There the older woman hosts a group who cherishes the pre-Communist culture until murder leave Chen suspecting grandmother and or granddaughter as the killer(s) especially their shared convenient alibi. The sixth Chen Chinese police procedural (see WHEN RED IS BLACK and RED MANDARIN DRESS) contains a strong investigation, but it is the profound look at the early Mao days in comparison to modern day China that brings the uniqueness to the story line. Chen is at his best with his asides about brass, bureaucrats, and bull as he diligently works the "Mao material" inquiry that turns into a homicide; he is more comfortable with the latter as the former is loaded with pompous interference. Mindful of the Bush Administration concealing Korean War Era documents that have been declassified for years and open to the public in the government archives, fans of the Shanghai inspector will enjoy his latest case as a reluctant Chen knows the penalty of dealing with anything Maoist even decades old. Harriet Klausner