Order of Inspector Chen Books
Inspector Chen is the protagonist in a series of crime thriller/mystery novels by Chinese author Qiu Xiaolong. Inspector Chen Chao is a cop with a great sense of integrity. He also loves to quote poetry. Although Inspector Chen is the main character, the series is not about one character, but about China as a whole. The books include topics such as poetry, philosophy, Chinese cuisine, architecture, history, politics, herbalism and of course, police procedure.
Qiu Xiaolong introduced his Inspector Chen character in 2000 with the Anthony Award-winning novel Death of a Red Heroine. The series is currently ongoing. Below is a list of Qiu Xiaolong’s Inspector Chen books in order of when they were originally published (which is the same as their chronological order):
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Publication Order of Inspector Chen Books
| Death of a Red Heroine | (2000) | Description / Buy at Amazon.com |
| A Loyal Character Dancer | (2002) | Description / Buy at Amazon.com |
| When Red is Black | (2004) | Description / Buy at Amazon.com |
| A Case of Two Cities | (2006) | Description / Buy at Amazon.com |
| Red Mandarin Dress | (2007) | Description / Buy at Amazon.com |
| The Mao Case | (2009) | Description / Buy at Amazon.com |
| Don't Cry, Tai Lake | (2012) | Description / Buy at Amazon.com |
| Enigma of China | (2013) | Description / Buy at Amazon.com |
| Shanghai Redemption | (2014) | Description / Buy at Amazon.com |
| Hold Your Breath, China | (2020) | Description / Buy at Amazon.com |
| Becoming Inspector Chen | (2021) | Description / Buy at Amazon.com |
| Inspector Chen and the Private Kitchen Murder | (2021) | Description / Buy at Amazon.com |
| Love and Murder in the Time of Covid | (2023) | Description / Buy at Amazon.com |
Publication Order of Inspector Chen Collections
| Poems of Inspector Chen | (2016) | Description / Buy at Amazon.com |
| Inspector Chen and Me | (2018) | Description / Buy at Amazon.com |
Publication Order of Judge Dee Investigation Books
| The Shadow of the Empire | (2022) | Description / Buy at Amazon.com |
| The Conspiracies of the Empire | (2024) | Description / Buy at Amazon.com |
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Inspector Chen Synopsis: Death of a Red Heroine is the first novel by Qiu Xiaolong and the first in the Inspector Chen series. The body of a a young woman is found by two friends in a Shanghai canal by two friends. She is inside a black garbage bag and naked. She is identified as a national model worker, well-known for following the rules of the Communist Party. As Inspector Chen Cao digs into her past, he finds himself challenging the very political forces that have guided him for his entire life. Chen must go behind the backs of his own superiors if he wants to get to the bottom of this murder, and will have to risk his career and maybe even his life in order to see justice done.
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