A review by paul_cornelius
The Lacquer Screen by Robert van Gulik

5.0

Fun. Engrossing. Impossible to put down. This particular Judge Dee mystery is the best of the three I've so far read. Yes, somehow you mostly know who is guilty from very early on. But the joy is watching the judge work and even observe how he becomes shocked at realizations you've already come to. This like I suppose most of these Judge Dee novels is about process. But that doesn't mean the stories don't tantalize you. Not only that, but only three books in, Dee is becoming a character you're comfortable with, someone you can't wait to have over for yet another visit. One thing different I did notice this time, is that the dialogue and even narrative is much more slangy. At times, it sounds like Humphrey Bogart is talking. That separates this from the first two books I read, where Van Gulik pulls a neat trick to create a sense of distance and ancient China: he has Dee talk and think without the use of contractions--yes, this device works--and he uses older idioms instead of more modern ones. That is all out the window in Lacquer Screen. This is a novel that presents us with a Chinese Sam Spade.