Dragon Bones

Chinese inspector Liu Hulan and her American husband, attorney David Stark, find their marriage on rocky ground after the death of their daughter. When Hulan is assigned to investigate suspicious deaths at an archaeological site near the construction of the controversial dam at Three Rivers Gorge, and David is assigned to investigate the possible theft of artifacts from the same site, it seems like a chance for the couple to spend some time together. But what is really going on at the site proves to be much more complicated than it appears--smuggling, religious cults, strange scientific discoveries--and David and Hulan find their lives as well as their marriage on the line.

This was an interesting mix of ancient Chinese culture, show more artifacts and myths, and current Chinese culture, government corruption, politics and cults. I didn’t always like the unnecessary risks Liu took while investigating. It was explained as part of her struggle with her culture’s idea about women but sometimes it just seemed like really bad decisions. The ending was not very believable. I thought this was an uneven story where I liked some parts of it but not others. show less

thoroughly enjoyable international thriller novel. great history/cultural details. I thought the murder details were unnecessarily grisly. but it was definitely a great follow up to the other two books in the series. her plots are very inventive I think and as one writer wrote on the back "documentary social detail that reeks of freshly raked muck." All of her books are flawed and only borderline believable but they are so interesting I don't care. I like mysteries that teach me something I don't know and Lisa See's books definitely do this.

I put it down, bored. I picked it up again - and on p.116 here's the line that convinced me I had something better to do "She was too young and too beautiful to be taken so soon and so viciously."

Liu Hulan and her estranged husband David Stark are reunited in a case involving the smuggling of Chinese heritage assets from an archeological site on the Yangtze River.
Having just returned from a tour of China I was really interested in the locales of the story and the heritage of the Chinese people.
The story explains many of the traditions of the former emperors, the beliefs in symbolism and mythology.
I have not read any of Lisa See’s books but I was able to catch on to her past and her sense of alienation among Chinese investigators and witnesses. The case involves the embezzling of icons from a site on the river that will soon be flooded by the Three Gorges Dam and the ritualistic murder of a researcher and an antique show more dealer.
Good story. show less

This is third in a series featuring Liu Hulan, of which I read the first one (Flower Net) and skipped the second (The Interior). You really don't need to have read either of the first two to be able to follow this one.

As the story opens, Hulan is quasi-estranged from her husband after the death of their little daughter from bacterial meningitis. As a police detective, Hulan has been working on a case involving a group called the All-Patriotic Society, and at the beginning of this book, she attends a rally being held by this illegal group. One of the members is a bit overzealous and decides to kill her daughter, but Hulan shoots her. She finds herself the target of threats, so her superiors send her off to investigate the death of an show more archaeologist working an excavation near where the Three Gorges Dam is built. David, her American husband, is also sent there to investigate the removal of cultural relics from the country. But a bizarre murder later, both David and Hulan find themselves in a great deal of danger.

The core story is very good, a fine mystery and a good look at the pros and cons of the building of the Three Gorges Dam. I understand that this is a part of a series and that it focuses on the character of Liu Hulan, but it was a bit too romantic for my tastes. The end was a bit over the top as well, a bit too melodramatic for me. However, I'd definitely recommend the book to others, including those who are following the series, to readers interested in China, and to readers who like mysteries in an archaeological setting. show less

Liu Hulan and her husband David are having marital troubles. She's on the police force in China nad he is an American lawyer. The Chinese governemnt sends them to an archaeological dig site in the three gorges area to investigate the death of an american student and the theft of artifacts from the site. This is the third book in a series featuring these characters but the book made snse even without having read the previous book. Interesting look in to Chinese society but a bit slow in places.

Weak dialogue, weak story, lots of mythology that I didn’t understand. I wouldn’t recommend it.