Inspector Chen Cao is back in Qiu Xiaolong’s latest police procedural “Love and Murder in the Time of Covid”, a wonderful addition to a fascinating series that peels back the curtain on everyday life in today’s modern communist China.

Inspector Chen, although I guess it would be more accurate to call him Director Chen since his “promotion” to the Shanghai Judicial System Reform Office, has been moved aside and is busy “convalescing” in his home during the height of the Covid crisis, which is now spreading to Shanghai. The authorities are grappling with how to slow the deadly spread of the disease, adopting strict quarantine measures which might actually be doing more harm than the pandemic itself. He is still being taken care of by his secretary Jin, loyal to a fault and going out of her way to keep Chen relevant.

Their everyday lives are interrupted by Hou Guohua, Deputy Chief of Staff of the Shanghai Government, who has a serial killer on his hands: three victims were brutally murdered outside of the local hospital, and the government wants a quick solution to prevent further panic in the streets. Chen and Jin are whisked away to a fancy hotel, given every assistance, and treated like royalty in order to capture the killer before he strikes again.

The procedural is pretty straight forward, what really sets this book apart is the coming threat of Covid and the reaction of Shanghai as the pandemic worsens. We see people suffering, hoarding as restaurants and stores start to shut down. We see the ever present surveillance get worse as the government uses Covid to increase their intrusions into everyone’s lives. We also see the results of their zero-Covid policy, as people are turned away from hospitals and left to die on their own.

Chen is also getting information out of Wuhan from a friend that tells the awful stories of people living in the epicenter of the catastrophe. Chen struggles with a request from this friend to translate and publish these “Wuhan Files” in the West, so that the government cannot cover up the tragedies that they are causing. Can Chen do the right thing while protecting Jin and all those around him?

A superb addition to the long running series, I think this book more than any other shows how the decisions in Beijing have drastic consequences for the people just trying to live their simple lives. A must read for those trying to understand what really happened several years ago.

I requested and received a free advanced electronic copy from Severn House via NetGalley. Thank you!

*I received this novel thanks to #Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.*

It's been many years since I read the beginning of this series (the two or three first novels, I think) but it has remained in the back of my mind as an agreeable way to learn more about contemporary China. It wasn't any problem at all to pick it back up and can be read independantly.

The murder case here was just an accessory to the description of the horrid zero covid policy led by the CCP. I learned and will probably remember more through this book than I would have watching the news. It was ghastly and inhuman. The everpresent surveillance, be it by the cameras, the drones, the local commitees, the police, coworkers, acquaintances suffocating, privacy basically non-existent. But the worse was all the people forcefully locked in their homes at the slightest suspicion of COVID, whether they were old, young, sick, pregnant, didn't have enough food... or if the building was on fire.

I warmly recommend this book : it's poignant and raises anger...

This is the story of Chen Cao a former Chief Inspector of police in Shanghai who is on convalescence leave. During the early days of Covid there appears to be a serial killer on the loose. The inspector and his faithful secretary Jin investigate the killings at the same time as Chen is translating the Wuhan files. The picture of China during the pandemic is disturbing but is an interesting insight into the way the Chinese authorities enforced their zero covid policies. The murders take something of a back seat to the covid deprivation at times. I enjoyed this book but sometimes the story slowed down and I struggled to stay with it. But I'm glad I did as it was a bit different to my usual books.

This is the second book i read in this series and it's lked being punched because there's a thriller but there's also a dramatic description of China at the beginning of COVID.
It wasn't a relaxing read but it was a good one as the mix of politics and thriller worked well even if the mystery took often the backseat.
Well written and well plotted, highly recommended
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

3.5⭐️/5

I am on the fence about this novel that is first and foremost political and then a serial killer whodunnit.

It is a haunting read, perhaps a little too “fresh” considering that it is set at the height of the Covid pandemic in China, specifically in Shangai that was fast closing down (with a lot of references to Wuhan). It is also pretty obvious where the characters (and I imagine the author) stand when it comes to the situation at the time in China.

When I wasn’t struggling with being uncomfortable reading about Covid and local politics, I thought it a very interesting novel whose major concern is internal, state and country-wide politics.

I would have preferred reading this book as an audiobook because, on paper, some of the dialogues felt strangely wooden, unnatural. The title is perhaps a tad too “obvious”(was it also a play on similar titles like Love in the Time of Cholera?).

There is a little bit of romance going on with former Inspector Chen and his secretary Jin, which added to the tension of the book.

My favorite parts of the novel are the many poems that are featured, all the food that is mentioned, and that former Inspector Chen is an intellectual with a fondness for quoting poems and talking about literature.

I need to start reading this series from its first novel.

Terrific read that blends a mystery with the tense frightening time of COVID. Qiu Xiaolong is an author to watch. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC,

The Inspector Chen series is a favorite of mine, so I was quite interested to see how Qiu would weave the pandemic into this latest book. It's a clever murder story that takes us all over Shanghai while also reporting on how the government is managing the pandemic in Wuhan. It's a chilling story and a statement as well. We also have a very pure romance going on with Chen and his "little secretary."
There's a lot of poetry and references to other works of literature in this book which for some readers will add something and for others, be puzzling. But it's a quick read and paints a vivid picture of the Time of Covid--a picture which we in the West need to see.

Thank you to NetGalley for an advance copy of this book. I hope it turns on many new readers to this series.

I would like to thank Netgalley and Severn House Publishers for an advance copy of Love and Murder in the Time of Covid, the thirteenth novel to feature former Chief Inspector Chen Cao of the Shanghai Police.

Out of favour with the ruling party, Chen is working on a new poetry translation and thinking about translating into English the Wuhan Files, a series of exposés on the everyday reality of China’s zero tolerance policies on Covid, when he is asked to become a special advisor to an investigation into a potential serial murderer at the local hospital.

I enjoyed Love and Murder in the Time of Covid as it has a lot to say about life in modern day China, although, sadly, none of it is good. It reads like a resistance novel with Chen and his friends doing what little they can to get the truth out in the face of massive oppression. I don’t think I realised just how difficult it is to have a free life in China and this is underlined by Chen assuming that his phone is tapped and the hotel room where he is working is under video surveillance.

The hunt for the killer is very much secondary to the author’s other concerns, the effects of the zero tolerance policy on the population and the machinations of the CCP to maintain control. It’s almost dystopian and features many references to 1984. I cannot begin to express what a nightmare it seems (and I have nothing to hide) and how the pandemic precautions were exploited to tighten the noose. I think that this is the most overtly political novel I have read in the series and the author pulls no punches.

Chen has no real difficulty in finding the killer once the hospital administrators are brought to understand that a cover up is not in their best interests. The motive for the murders is heartbreaking, but not overly surprising given some other examples of covid “collateral damage”.

Love and Murder in the Time of Covid is an eye opening read, that I have no hesitation in recommending.

Contrary truths!

A confronting novel. Chen Cao, now relegated to director of the Shanghai Judicial System Reform Office, is recalled from convalescent leave to solve a high profile crime. It seems there’s a serial murderer loose just as China is fighting Covid.
Chen is a poet and policeman. Much like the famous Judge Dee. Only it’s not an empress Chen is keeping at bay, it’s the Chinese Communist Party.
A constant heartbeat underlying the investigation of what is being seen as the work of a serial murderer, is the story of the Covid pandemic in China. The inhumane efforts the Chinese government went to to control the spread of the disease, their infamous zero Covid policy, their surveillance, and severe rules and punishments carried out by the party faithful, administering the harsh regime. People nailed into their apartments, children separated from parents, left alone, no food, people taken into concentration camps, the list is endless.
Wuhan is a focal point of course and Chen has taken on the task of translating into English the Wuhan files, stories of ordinary people who suffer extraordinary hardships during the Covid period. We had it tough in the West, but here the extraordinary lengths the CCP took is, according to Chen, absolutely destructive to the soul of the nation. Very Orwellian! Chen refers to this constantly.
The story of a totalitarian government grinding down its people, all living in fear, except for officials, and a desperate, or brave, few.
A telling juxtaposition is revealed of the general populace’s hardships over against the party officials who can make things happen for their favorites, even in this time of crisis.
Another anomaly was the mention of red envelopes filled with money to bribe doctors and officials. A hangover of historical practices, or the new way?
Continually there are understated, ironic comments from Chen about the situation. Comments containing harsh judgements of the country’s leadership that Chen feels has lost its way.
The relationship between Chen and Lin his secretary is that of mentor and student, older man and younger woman, full of promise and yet nowhere to go in this the twilight of Chen’s life. Perhaps a Chinese operatic moment? Their relationship is fodder for salacious comments inferred to by Hou Guohua, Deputy Chief of Staff of the Shanghai Government. A fast rising star. Comments possibly harking back to historical cultural perspectives on such relationships.
Qiu Xiaolong has given us a troubling novel, with equally as troubling observations that resonate.
I loved the inclusion of Chinese poetry, a prophetic forerunner to each chapter as it unfolds, along with snippets from the Wuhan Files.
The crime it turns out, is heavily influenced by the current intractable Covid rules. A response to the truly awful plight a normal person finds themselves in. More a political and police procedural than a murder story. Well written and a thoughtful read.

A Severn House ARC via NetGalley.
Many thanks to the author and publisher.
(Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.)

Honest cops are like an endangered species in today's China and honest politicians virtually extinct. Qiu Xiaolong has set his latest novel featuring Chen Cao against the terrifying backdrop of China's zero-Covid policy. I fear we know so little about the awful collateral damage death toll and human suffering here in the West.
When the world may come to an end for you tomorrow you still have to take care of today. Chen and Jin are a perfect combination in a book that benefits hugely from being both character driven and plot driven.
Chen is an intellectually stimulating character with his vast knowledge of Chinese poetry and his ability to quote from the classics as well.
Shanghai and Wuhan are brought vividly to life in a novel packing a powerful punch.

The Covid crisis is at its peak in China. Ex-chief inspector Chen Cao is horrified by the way the Chinese Government is using the pandemic as an excuse to put Chinese people under surveillance and by the soaring number of deaths that aren’t covid related.

When he starts investigating a series of murders near a hospital, he is surprised at what has occurred. Under pressure to solve the case quickly he must work diligently to uncover the truth.

This book had a very interesting title, and I was hooked. I was ready to dive into what China looked like during the height of the Covid pandemic. I thought it would be a crime novel with maybe some romance mixed in. The book didn’t really pan out this way. It really was more about living in the strange time right after Covid broke out and how lock downs and the like were taking place. Yes, crime occurred as this book mentioned, but solving the crime wasn’t the highest priority. I found it fascinating, and I’m not sure this was true or just for the novel, but you had to have a negative covid test to get care at a hospital. Tests took about 24 hrs to process. Emergencies still happened, but what do you do? It’s a huge dilemma and one I am curious to find out how it all played out. So for me this book got me thinking and pondering on what occurred, that I really wasn’t focused on the actual story.

I do highly recommend if you want to see what life was like in China during the Covid protocol, but don’t expect much of a story.

Thank you so much to Severn House, and Netgalley, @Netgalley, for this e-arc in exchange for this honest review.

Additional links will be added once posted.

This story is different than I expected. Intrigued by the title, I was hoping for a typical crime novel with a 'who did it' mystery. Meanwhile, this is a very original story whose heart is dominated by police procedures and a very well-read detective Chen with his devoted secretary Jin.
If you're looking for a crime thriller, you'll be disappointed in this book. However, if the crime mystery is not so important, but rather a story in the unusual times of Covid and the scenery of a modern political dictatorship, you can be pleased. I must say that I was shocked reading The Wuhan Files and the everyday life of Chinese citizens presented by the author. At times I had the impression that this was a sci-fi novel with surreal elements of a nightmare in which the characters are stuck. I was also interested in the numerous references to the classical authors of Chinese poetry, which were close to the main character. However, I must say that this is a very unusual literary position, which will undoubtedly reach only selected readers.

I was immediately intrigued by the title of this novel: Love and Murder in the Time of Covid. It conjures visions of surreptitious sleuthing in narrow lanes under the watchful eye of the CCP, and I wasn’t far wrong.

Former Chief Inspector Chen Cao is “recruited” to investigate a series of violent murders close to a hospital in Shanghai, along with the current Chief Inspector and his faithful assistant, Jin. The pandemic is raging in China and the people are suffering as their medical system is completely overwhelmed, some literally dying on the doorsteps of the medical facilities. Meanwhile, the regime clamps down ever harder on communication with the outside world, spinning a story of control and success over Covid due to their superior zero-Covid policy. At the same time, a close friend of Chen Cao’s has written an account of the suffering of the people he has called The Wuhan File and, at great personal risk, Chen Cao is translating this and working with others to get the document out of China.

I note that the publisher has classified this as a police procedural and I think that is a better description of this novel than calling it a mystery. There is very little focus on the “whodunnit” aspect of the story as Chen Cao very easily gets to the bottom of the case. The true interest in the novel lies in the peek into Chinese life that it affords the reader – the subterfuge, the veneer of calm and stability overlying an atmosphere of threat and danger, and the hidden meanings in speech. I will admit to googling quite a bit on the history of Chairman Mao’s reign and cultural revolution to understand some of the references. Some of the language reads a little stilted and awkward, but at the same time is rather charming. One thing that jars, however, is the treatment of Jin as Chen Cao’s “little secretary” and all the attendant sexism that implies. At one point, the Chief Inspector states he will leave Chen Cao in Jin’s “soft hands”, which made me physically cringe. The inclusion of The Wuhan File was a stroke of brilliance however, as a nod to The Wuhan Diaries, and was an excellent addition to the storyline.

Altogether, this was a fascinating read and a glimpse into what lies beyond that red curtain. Many thanks to Severn House for allowing me to read it.

In Shanghai, former chief inspector Chen Cao, (who has been on sick leave), is asked to investigate a serial killer, which is bad enough, but this is at the height of the Covid pandemic, making investigations even more difficult. He’s also very concerned about the Chinese Communist Party’s zero Covid policy - a policy much more dangerous than the pandemic with people actually being nailed into their homes to stop them leaving for even the most basic of needs such as food, medication or medical assistance. The policy was causing many more deaths to the Chinese people due to the inhumane treatment, their inability to access any help at all, and the increased surveillance of the these people who were faced with such a repressive regime. Infuriated, Chen plans to translate The Wuhan File (detailing the daily lives of the repressed), for the whole world to see!
Although fictional, all the incidents recorded in The Wuhan File are real.

The storyline takes something of a back seat, in favour of genuine information on how China dealt with the Covid pandemic as dictated by the Chinese Communist Party. I have to be really honest here and say that I’m afraid I found it really difficult to engage with any of the characters, and also felt that the dialogue seemed amateurish, with way too many poems thrown in too. Sadly, not really for me.

Inspector Chen, having displeased the Party Officials, is on sick leave when he gets an urgent request. There have been three murders in the vicinity of the hospital, and there is fear that there might be a serial killer on the loose. There is also much anger in Shanghai about how the party is handling the Covid crisis with cruel bureaucratic inefficiency. Chen, with the help of his secretary Jin, starts the investigation, while planning to clandestinely translate the Wuhan Files, which document the abuses of citizens during the Covid lockdown. The reader learns about the many ways citizens are spied on in China; in fact, Chen frequently references Orwell's novel, 1984. Recommended for readers who enjoy a mystery with political intrigue. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Inspector Chen now looks at the horrific situation in China during the pandemic, specifically Wuhan and Shanghai in Love and Murder in the Time of Covid. That alone makes it an important book. Most Westerners have little idea on how life was lived at the time in China.
Unfortunately, the writing seems stilted and the author indulges his love of poetry far too often. For me, the poetry added nothing to the novel.
Nonetheless, the image of a pregnant woman in distress being turned away from a hospital because she has no Covid test result is shattering. It's a clear sign that all was not right in the time of Covid in China.
Thanks NetGalley for the ARC.

It pains me to say how much I disliked this book, but that's the simple truth of it. I read several of the earlier titles in the series and had mixed feelings about them, but I thought I would try one more to see if the series was moving in a stronger direction. Now I'm sorry that I did.

The narrative line here is so thin it's damn near transparent. It certainly does nothing to make the characters meaningful. Its primary purpose is to give the author a line on which he can display his views about the impact of Covid on China and what he perceives as a vast gap between the government and the governed in a country poorly understood by most Westerners.

The biggest problem I have with the book, however, isn't the narrative. It's that the prose is simply so unspeakably awful that it's downright painful to read. It's stilted, awkward, and clumsy. Most of the dialogue is so strained and unrealistic that too often it accidentally turns into real laugh-out-loud stuff. There are enough adverbs and exclamation points here to cause Hemingway to climb out of his grave and commit suicide all over again.

Eventually, I found myself wondering if I wasn't missing something. Maybe the idea was to leave the impression that the book was translated from the Chinese in order to create a sense of authenticity, which I suppose could explain the stilted sentences and unrealistic dialogue. If that's what the publisher was doing, however, the imaginary translator they selected must have been a teenaged girl from California.

It gives me no pleasure to speak ill of any book here, but the language and writing style simply made this one torturous to read. Or maybe I really am missing some subtlety in why the book reads as it does. It seems to me impossible that any publisher could release a book this badly written on purpose,

I've dipped in and out of this series and the draw for me is the inside view of recent Chinese history (Qui Xiaolong was born in Shanghai, now lives in the US) and the way Chinese literature, especially poetry, is woven in to provide a non-Western thought world.

As the title indicates, this latest in the series takes place during the Covid epidemic as a series of murders take place around a hospital. This investigation feels rather perfunctory, though, and the real interest in the book is an exposé of the Chinese government's 'zero-covid' policy which involved horrific measures such as nailing people into their homes and covid concentration camps, as well as being an excuse for increased surveillance on the population to prop up an increasingly unpopular and, thus, repressive regime. One thing these books do is draw the line between China, meaning the country and people, and the CCP government.

Interwoven are extracts from the Wuhan File written in real time by one of Inspector Chen's journalist friends, rather convenient in terms of the fiction but compelling reading.