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paul_cornelius's review against another edition
4.0
I don't know how to classify these Judge Dee books, after the initial volume which was translated from Chinese. Van Gulik wrote the first few books and had them published in Japanese and Chinese and then English, apparently. But subsequently published the remaining volumes in the series in English. So we have a Dutch orientalist, creating a fictional Chinese detective, based on an actual Chinese historical figure, and most of it appearing in English. However you want to label them, the books seem interesting to me for a couple of reasons. First, they have a wonderful sense of time and place. Second, as procedural mysteries they keep your interest, while offering subtle comments on morality and virtue along the way. Quite simply, they're fun to read. Gold Murders I see actually takes some of the plot devices from the initial translation of Celebrated Cases of Judge Dee, such as the mechanism whereby magistrate Wang is murdered. So too with the structure, where several crimes occur simultaneously. I suppose that these mysteries offer up an opportunity for some people to be outraged at their Saidian Orientalism. So what? That's probably just an excuse for some people to use that particular approach as a cover for secretly enjoying Judge Dee. I'll bet that happens a lot.
roshk99's review against another edition
3.0
A very early Judge Dee, this is a fun read. It is especially interesting because it is set in China, unlike most other historical mysteries that are set in Europe.
mollyfiddler's review against another edition
3.0
Τρία αστεράκια γιατί μου άρεσε, αλλά όχι τόσο όσο τα άλλα που έχω διαβάσει από την σειρά του Δικαστή Τί.
julietorngaard's review against another edition
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
bittercactus's review against another edition
3.0
I liked it, even with the problems you’d expect from a book written by a Dutch man in the 1950s about a 7th century Chinese detective. Judge Dee even turned out to have a “love is love” attitude towards the one gay character.
lilithka's review against another edition
4.0
I'm simply delighted. Van Gulik manages to create authentically Tang atmosphere and the murders themselves are well thought through as well. If the author did not use Western style of narration I could almost believe the story to have been written in imperial China. After all Judge Dee is based on a real person and Mister van Gulik knew China very well and translated from Chinese.
annewithabook's review against another edition
2.0
I loved the first book of this series, which is simply van Gulik translating a classic Chinese novel. Imagine my disappointment, then, when I read this and didn't like it. The characters feel too different from the first book, even if this is supposed to be a prequel, set at the beginning of Judge Dee's career as a magistrate. Whereas in the first book the characters felt realistic to the time and place, some of the characters' judgements in this book felt more modern and out of place for the setting. Like the first book, the plot interweaves three cases. But where the first book took time developing each case before moving on to the next one, this one throws you into all three cases within the first fifty pages, making it nearly impossible to keep track of what clue or witness goes with each case. Saying that, the only reason I gave this book two stars instead of one is that it is clear that van Gulik knows a lot of the era and many of the details are rich in historical accuracy. It is just also clear that he is a better translator than he is an author. Perhaps I am being too harsh on this book, for its sequels may be better. I'm just still deciding if I'll read them or not.
writerlibrarian's review against another edition
4.0
A reread. Classic Chinese detective tale, almost verbatim from archival accounts. van Gulik was a world renowned sinologist and he had a passion for Chinese criminal justice. His hero Judge Dee is based on an historical judge and his adventures around the Empire starting around 663 AD. It's well done, the reader is put right inside the story and you get to learn a few interesting things about the Empire frontier life on the Korean borders. I love his original mysteries. The new adventures of Judge Dee are not to be even approached. It's like getting a slice of processed cheese when you had the real thing.
octavietullier's review against another edition
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0