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Xiaolong Qiu

    1. január 1953

    Qiu Xiaolong je autorom oceňovanej série detektívnych románov s inšpektorom Čchenom, ktoré sa odohrávajú v jeho rodnej Šanghaji. Jeho diela sú cenené pre hlboký vhľad do čínskej spoločnosti, kultúry a politiky počas prechodných období. Qiu majstrovsky spája napínavé zápletky s poetickými opismi a filozofickými úvahami. Okrem detektívnych románov sa venuje aj poézii a prekladom čínskej poézie, čo dodáva jeho próze ďalšiu vrstvu umeleckej hĺbky.

    Enigma of China
    Love and Murder in the Time of Covid
    Inspector Chen and the Private Kitchen Murder
    Years of Red Dust
    Death of a Red Heroine
    A Loyal Character Dancer
    • A Loyal Character Dancer

      • 368 stránok
      • 13 hodin čítania

      Praise for Qiu Xiaolong highlights his impressive storytelling in this sequel, which transitions from a poetic, exotic setting to a more modern and commercial portrayal of China. The novel features Inspector Chen of the Shanghai Police Bureau, appealing to Sinophiles who wish for an insider's view of Shanghai. The narrative skillfully balances travelogue elements with critical insights, using the murder mystery as a vehicle to explore deeper social issues. Inspector Chen is tasked by his mentor to escort U.S. Marshal Catherine Rohn, who is on a mission to bring Wen, the wife of a key witness in a major criminal trial, to the U.S. However, Chen discovers that Wen has mysteriously disappeared from her village in Fujian, raising suspicions about the situation. Despite his desire to investigate a triad killing in Shanghai's Bund Park, Chen is compelled to prioritize his duty to maintain good relations with Inspector Rohn. As he navigates this delicate situation, he strives to balance his roles as a diligent cop, a principled man, and a loyal Party member. Qiu Xiaolong, a celebrated poet and critic from China, now resides in St. Louis with his family.

      A Loyal Character Dancer
      3,9
    • Death of a Red Heroine

      • 480 stránok
      • 17 hodin čítania

      Alternate Cover Edition for ISBN 9781569472422 Qiu Xiaolong's Anthony Award-winning debut introduces Inspector Chen of the Shanghai Police. A young “national model worker,” renowned for her adherence to the principles of the Communist Party, turns up dead in a Shanghai canal. As Inspector Chen Cao of the Shanghai Special Cases Bureau struggles to trace the hidden threads of her past, he finds himself challenging the very political forces that have guided his life since birth. Chen must tiptoe around his superiors if he wants to get to the bottom of this crime, and risk his career—perhaps even his life—to see justice done.

      Death of a Red Heroine
      3,5
    • Years of Red Dust

      Stories of Shanghai

      • 242 stránok
      • 9 hodin čítania

      Set against the backdrop of modern China, this collection of linked short stories chronicles fifty years of transformation through the lens of Red Dust Lane in Shanghai. It captures the evolution from the optimism following the Communist revolution in 1949, through the turmoil of the Cultural Revolution, to the pro-democracy movements and Tiananmen Square riots. Each story reflects the broader historical shifts while revealing the personal experiences of those living in this small yet significant street, making history both epic and intimate.

      Years of Red Dust
      4,0
    • Removed from his position as chief Inspector, Chen Cao has been installed as director of the Shanghai Judicial System Reform Office but immediately placed on involuntary 'convalescence leave.' Despite being on leave, the murder of an acquaintance leads Chen to get involved in an investigation that shares a striking similarity to a Judge Dee novel.

      Inspector Chen and the Private Kitchen Murder
      4,0
    • Love and Murder in the Time of Covid

      • 208 stránok
      • 8 hodin čítania

      Former chief inspector Chen faces a tricky serial murderer case at the height of the Covid pandemic - and risks everything he has to expose the deadly effects of the Chinese Communist Party's so-called zero Covid policy to the world. Over two million copies of the Inspector Chen series sold worldwide. The Covid crisis is at its height in China. Ex-chief inspector Chen Cao is horrified by the way the Chinese Communist Party are using the pandemic as an excuse to put the Chinese people under blanket surveillance and by the soaring number of deaths caused not by Covid, but by the CCP's inhuman 'zero Covid' policy. Chen is debating whether to translate the 'Wuhan File' - a diary of life during the Wuhan disaster smuggled to him by a close friend - and expose the CCP's secrets to the world when to his surprise he is summoned by a high-level party cadre to help investigate a series of murders near a local Shanghai hospital. Under pressure from the Party to reach a quick conclusion and help maintain political stability, Chen investigates, aware that he too has been placed under omnipresent, omnipotent surveillance. And as he works, determined to uncover the truth, no matter what, he risks everything by deciding to translate the Wuhan Files. For one thing is true in China: you must be absolutely loyal to the Party. Otherwise, you are considered absolutely disloyal, and the consequences are dark indeed . . .

      Love and Murder in the Time of Covid
      3,4
    • Chief Inspector Chen Cao never had a choice about his career. A poet by training, he was assigned to the Shanghai Police Department after college. To his own surprise, he became an excellent detective, and now he's in line to take over the top political position in the department. Which is why the Party has chosen him for the investigation into the death of Zhou Keng. Zhou Keng was running the Shanghai Housing Development Committee when a number of his corrupt practices were exposed. Removed from his position and placed into detention, he apparently hanged himself while under guard. The Party is anxious to have Zhou's death declared a suicide, but the sequence of events doesn't quite add up. Now Chen will have to decide what to do - follow the party line, or seek the justice his position requires and risk angering powerful people...

      Enigma of China
      3,9
    • The Conspiracies of the Empire

      • 192 stránok
      • 7 hodin čítania

      Set in the Tang dynasty, the story revolves around Judge Dee Renjie, tasked by the ambitious Empress Wu to investigate the disappearance of poet Luo Binwang, who vanished after a failed rebellion. As Judge Dee and his loyal manservant Yang delve into the case, they encounter ominous signs and begin to question the empress's true intentions. This mystery blends historical intrigue with poetry, featuring an appendix of translated works from Tang dynasty poets, appealing to fans of Judge Dee's legendary tales and rich Chinese culture.

      The Conspiracies of the Empire
      3,5
    • Hold Your Breath, China

      • 336 stránok
      • 12 hodin čítania

      Chief Inspector Chen is assigned to investigate a group of environmental activists trying to tackle the pollution issues in China. The case is supposed to be simple, but it is complicated by Chen having history with the leader of the group. Meanwhile Detective Yu is on the trail of a serial murderer.

      Hold Your Breath, China
      3,7
    • Red Mandarin Dress

      • 320 stránok
      • 12 hodin čítania

      Chief Inspector Chen Cao of the Shanghai Police Department is often put in charge of politically sensitive cases. Having recently ruffled more than a few official feathers, when he is asked to look into a sensitive corruption case he takes immediate action - he goes on leave from work. But while on vacation, the body of a murdered young woman is found in a highly trafficked area and the only notable aspect is that she was redressed in a red mandarin dress. When a second body appears, this time in the People's Park, also in precisely the same kind of red mandarin dress, the newspapers start screaming that Shanghai is being stalked by its first sexual serial killer. With the Party anxious to resolve the murders quickly, Chen finds himself in the midst of his most potentially dangerous and sensitive case to date.

      Red Mandarin Dress
      3,8