Chinatown Beat

(Paperback)

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Description

Detective Jack Yu grew up in Chinatown. Some of his friends are criminals now; some are dead. Jack has just been transferred to his old neighbourhood, where 99 percent of the cops are white. Unlike the others, confused by the residents who speak another language even when they're speaking English, Jack knows what's going on. This debut mystery from Henry Chang powerfully conveys the sights, sounds and smells of Chinatown, as well as the attitudes of its inhabitants.

Reviews

Praise for Chinatown Beat

Chang has a cool, measured style that lets in some light . . . on a society that lives by its own rules.
The New York Times Book Review

For readers who relish noir suspense, it doesnt get much better than this stunning novel.
The Boston Globe

All the expected locales are heregambling and dance halls, brothels, secret societiesbut the author, who grew up in Chinatown, keeps things fresh by inserting Chinese phrases and explicating cultural folkways on nearly every page . . . This is a nasty, terse slice of noir, and Yu is a fellow whose adventures should be worth following.
Washington Post Book World

Chinatown Beat is a classic noir, filled with longing, violence, and that uniquely urban melancholy, but it also brings something new to the table, a loving specificity of a people and place, the multicultures of New Yorks Chinatown, that has rarely if ever been encountered in fiction before. A real discovery.
Richard Price, author of Lush Life, a New York Times Notable Book of the Year

Heres a dark slice of New Yorks Chinatown that most of us . . . have probably never seen. Henry Chang takes us on an unforgettable guided tour of its lower depths. In a field awash with pallid noir thrillers, this one is the real thing. A genuine winner.
Herbert H. Lieberman, author ofCity of the DeadandShadow Dancers

A dramatic evocation of the exotic . . . More rewarding than a trip to Chinatown.
Qiu Xiaolong, author ofDeath of a Red Herione

Changs debut novel is one of this years most impressive. Here, the object isnt to figure out whodunit . . . The suspense comes from tracking Jack Yu through his investigation, navigating the shifting tides of Chinese turf wars, generational tension, and his own internal struggle with being a standup Chinaman and an effective cop. This is a character well worth knowing.
January Magazine, Best Crime Fiction of 2006

Author Bio

A lifetime New Yorker, Henry Chang was born and raised in New York's Chinatown, where he still lives. Chang's writing often focuses on the world of Chinese immigrants. A graduate of CCNY, he is the author of the acclaimedYear of the Dog, Red Jade, and Death Money, also known as the Detective Jack Yu series. Henry Chang can be found online atChinatowntrilogy.com.