The Secret Sharers

Qiu’s latest outing for Shanghai police detective Chen Cao (after Love and Murder in the Time of Covid) finds Cao once again taking on totalitarian forces. Chen has been demoted from his post as chief inspector on the Shanghai Police Bureau and placed on convalescent leave after rattling Communist Party leadership by threatening to expose their corruption; as far as he’s concerned, he’s headed for the “trash bin of the proletarian dictatorship.” With his free time, Chen accepts a request from his PI friend, Old Hunter, to help investigate the disappearance of fortune teller Xiaohui from his own home. The case was brought to Old Hunter by real estate developer Mei, who credits Xiaohui’s advice with helping her avoid significant financial loss. Chen learns that Xiaohui’s fate may be connected to his decades-old involvement with the 1989 student protests in Tiananmen Square. Chen, who remained silent at the time, has lingering guilt about his cowardice, so he’s extra invested in finding Xiaohui—even when doing so jeopardizes his chances of returning to the police force. Qiu nimbly mixes pathos, suspense, and political intrigue into a potent narrative cocktail. This long-running series still has gas in the tank. (Jan.)