A serial killer is murdering a string of young women in Shanghai, leaving their bodies clad in nothing but an old-fashioned red mandarin dress. Meanwhile, Inspector Chen is having a bit of a nervous breakdown and is thinking about a career change.

I really enjoy how the author has woven in the changing culture in China post-Cultural Revolution. I enjoy the series because it combines a story of life in today's China with an excellent murder mystery.

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Inspector Chen is supposed to be on vacation while he takes a literature course at the college. Unfortunately, with the red mandarin dress serial killer on the loose, he is interrupted with calls from the police telling him they know nothing. This gripping (haha) mystery is filled with literary references, poems and Confusius sayings. There is way too much emphasis on Inspector Chen's research for his paper and how the symbolism of it gives clues to the killer.

It found it boring as too much of Chinese politics both recent and past is thrown in. The story (murder mystery) actually gets lost with all the literary talk and political bull. Definitely not an author I'd read again especially since I only picked it up since I needed and "X" author for a reading challenge.

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