The Shanghai Moon

Author: S.J. Rozen
Stars: 5
Review by: Katherine B.

This is S.J. Rozan's eighth book in a series featuring an unlikely pair of detectives, Lydia Chin & Bill Smith. This was my first introduction to the series and what a pure delight!

There are so many elements of the storytelling by Rozan that I enjoyed. It's about a modern day P.I. woman in New York City who still understands and bows to the significance of following many conventional Chinese traditions. It has a subplot in history, as P.I. Chin follows the case of the stolen "mythical" brooch that was created to commemorate the marriage of a Jewish woman, who escaped from Nazi Germany and resettled in Shanghai, and marries an aristocratic Chinese man. It's about the link from the past to the future as we, like Lydia, become personally involved with the lives of the main characters who began their journey in Shanghai 1938, separate, and are finally rejoined in current day Chinatown in search of the legendary brooch. Sadness, romance, mystery, dead bodies and heartwarming narration by Lydia Chin's voice all combine to create an enjoyable read. I can't wait to read the first 7 books in the series, as I wait for the 9th to come out!