Though it provides an interesting look at present-day Beijing and the lasting effects of China’s Cultural Revolution, this book left me unsatisfied and was not at all what it was marketed to be. It was mysterious, but hardly enough to classify it as a mystery novel. It read more like a family drama which, though I found interesting, was not what I expected from a book about a girl starting her own detective agency.The mystery aspect of the novel was second to Mei’s relationship with her mother (and her sister, and her old college friends, and her ex-boyfriend…) yet despite all the detail, their relationship did not actually grow or change throughout the book. Instead, the reader gets a whole lot of background without seeing much present-day interaction. Though Mei acquires more knowledge, she is ultimately in the same place at the end of the novel as she was in the beginning. As for her detective work, I was somewhat skeptical of the very limited resistance Mei met with as she questioned person after person in this novel. The majority of characters were all willing to help her and give her, a stranger, many details about their lives before becoming suspicious of her inquiries. It seems all the answers were just there for her, all she had to do was ask. Ultimately, this book reads as an intro to what the author obviously intends to make a series. It spent so much time setting up characters and background that there was hardly much plot. Still, because of the details on Beijing-living and an assumption that her relationship with her family would somehow alter, I liked reading the book until I realized I was nearing the end and then I thought, “oh, wait, that’s it?” NOTHING gets resolved.
Interesting novel, a little light on the actual "mystery" and there's really only one dead body, but the mysteries of life for a adult daughter, her mother, those who are connected with her and questions of the past are probably the "bigger" mysteries at work here. A decent story of a woman trying to do alone what's really not been done or even fits well with the complexities of Chinese life, both modern and traditional. Mei is an interesting character, tho' a bit sad...by the end, you do come to understand some of that sadness and that's helpful.I kind of enjoyed reading a story that reflects a very different perspective on life than mine, mainly because it is a Chinese perspective and from an insider, not based on what a Western-thinker sees of China. Also to get a glimpse of individuals are influenced by the shifting wins of tradition, politics, and idealogy. It's interesting that no matter what leaders and thinkers try to impose on people, there are something basics of human nature that just don't adapt...or find ways around it. There is a different rhythm to the writing, and word pictures that were vivid but not the "usual" in western writing...that was fascinating once I got the hang of it. Cautious recommendation--it doesn't move very fast and you have to be willing to adjust to the cultural differences in the style of presentation and story--but if there's a second Mei Wang...I may be willing to pick it up.
Do You like book The Eye Of Jade (2008)?
Buena historia. Comienza como una novela estilo Sherlock Holmes en la China socialista pero concluye siendo mas una búsqueda personal en los secretos del pasado de una inconforme y exigente madre; aprendiendo de conocerse a si misma y su familia, Wang Mei busca conformarse y definir a lo que su vida ha llegado y luchar con los rumores que le persiguen demostrando su valía en una China que lucha entre las antiguas tradiciones y abrazar la modernidad de un mundo cada vez mas absorbente. Buenos personajes y una trama envolvente nos lleva a una China donde aun se ven las castas y como el poder y el dinero puede comprar no solo favores, sino también destinos.
—Moni Hernandez
Is there something good to be said of the Chinese Cultural Revolution of the 1960s? If there is, do not expect Diane Wei Liang to say it. She left China with wounds from that era as well as the experience of Tiananmen Square, another more recent negative event in Chinese history.The Eye of Jade is the first in what is so far a two book series about a Beijing woman private investigator. More are anticipated. The first quarter of this book focuses on character development of the protagonist and some of the supporting characters. The balance of the book is as much a story of a Chinese family as it is a mystery. As you might expect in the first book of a series, some people and situations are introduced that you might expect to reappear in future books. Murder, family secrets and a lost love all take their turn. And then there is the Cultural Revolution that still tears apart this family many years later.I give the book an extra star because one aspect, the lost love that briefly reappears, resonates and speaks to me as one who has a long ago lost love. It’s that part of me that thinks some chick lit is quite OK. Whether this book is chick lit or a mystery, I will leave for others to debate.
—Larry Bassett
Argh! I was really hoping this would be a new Maltese Falcon noir story set in 21st century China. It starts that way! And then it very very quickly becomes a sort of chick-lit thingy about mother-daughter relationships and sisterly relationships and lost-love regret.But it had so much promise! The twist on the detective/secretary flirtation; the mysterious missing rare object; the setting! Modern Beijing with a backstory in post-revolutionary craziness; the unexpected family involvement; the dashing lover from the past. Too many good devices squandered on touchy-feeliness. Boo.It feels a lot like Diane Wei Liang chickened out on really going to town on Maoists and the current Chinese government. Considering she lives in Chicago, this is pretty unacceptable.
—Megan
