Saturday, August 4, 2018

#35: Death Notice by Zhou Haohui

When a serial killer who sets elaborate traps resurfaces after many years, the Chengdu police form a special task force to catch him; but the police's own secrets might be their undoing in Zhou Haohui's Death Notice.

Death Notice was a big hit in China, and this first of a trilogy has been translated into English for the first time. 

A rocketing pace, twists and turns, and sometimes improbable plotting sets it comfortably in the western canon of summer blockbusters; but where I enjoyed it the most was insight into the lives of contemporary Chinese, and how our cultures are different.  Notable early on was the casual cover-up of a policeman's murder, as news of it was deemed too upsetting for the public to learn about.

I also enjoyed the motivations of the various task force members, some of which have surprising backstories that dovetail into a cliffhanger ending.

I am interested to read the next entry in this series.

I checked this out from the Morrisson-Reeves Public Library in Richmond, Indiana.

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