A Case of Two Cities

　　Inspector Chen Cao of the Shanghai Police Bureau is summoned by an official of the Party to lead a highly charged corruption investigation. Tentacles have spread through the police force, the civil service, the vice trade and deep into the criminal underworld. The principal figure and his family have long since fled to the United States, beyond the reach of the Chinese government. But the network is still intact and it is only a matter of time before it becomes stronger than before. Chen is charged - and it is a job he cannot refuse - with uncovering those responsible, and destroying the organisation from the top down to its roots. In a twisting case that reunites him with his counterpart from the US Marshals service - Inspector Catherine Rohn - Chen must find a measure of justice in a corrupt, expedient world.

　　Qiu Xiaolong was born in Shanghai. He was selected for membership of the Chinese Writers' Association and published poetry, translations and criticism in China. He has lived in the United States since 1989 and has an M.A. and Ph.D. in Comparative Literature awarded by Washington University. His work has been published in many literary magazines in America and in several anthologies. He has been the recipient of the Missouri Biennial Award, the Prairie Schooner Readers' Choice Award, a Yaddo and a Ford Foundation Fellowship. He lives in St. Louis with his wife and daughter.

　　"A CASE OF TWO CITIESis Qiu Xiaolong's fourth novel in a series of compelling Shanghai crime novels... This fast-moving crime novel admirably depicts the intriguing struggles of characters grasping a foothold in a new and rising China."
　　 -- TLS
　　"A fascinating picture of the new China emerges ... the gentle, erudite Chen is its ideal interpreter."
　　 -- Independent on Sunday
　　"Leisurely, atmospheric and rich in behind-the-scenes detail ... As enjoyable as the scrumptious Shanghai meals often scoffed."
　　 -- Boyd Tonkin, Independent