The second Margaret Campbell/Li Yan mystery (originally published in Great Britain in 1999) finds the American forensic pathologist and the Chinese detective investigating a series of beheadings. Four murders in a month: Could this be the work of a serial killer, the first Beijing has ever seen? While the mystery is grisly and intriguing, it's the relationship between the two leads that elevates the book above many others in the genre. May expands on the cross-cultural themes he introduced in the first novel, The Firemaker, exploring the two principals through their different approaches to solving a crime, and their gradual discovery of common investigative (and personal) ground. The author could have gone for the slick, familiar fish-out-of-water story, but by choosing a subtler approach, he rewards us with a far deeper, far more satisfying story. David Pitt
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