The Fourth Sacrifice

Li Yan has been told that he must end his relationship with Margaret Campbell and to distract him he is involved in the investigation of a gruesome series of beheadings. Margaret is keen to leave Beijing but when an American citizen becomes the fourth victim of the beheadings she is asked to stay by the American Embassy. Her investigations show that the fourth victim was the perpetrator of the previous three attacks, so why was he killed, and by whom? Meanwhile glamorous TV historian Michael Zimmerman is in China to make a film about the discovery of the Terracotta Warriors and Margaret has an excuse to move on from Li.

This is another excellent novel from May featuring the juxtaposition between Eastern and Western cultures in China. The show more inclusion of the effects of the Cultural Revolution and the impact of China's 'one child' policy are key aspects of this story and are handled with sensitivity. My only complaint is that I found the actual conclusion of the plot a little hurried and far less believable than all that went before. May is a talented writer of thrillers. show less

The Fourth Sacrifice by Peter May is the second in his Yan & Campbell series set in contemporary Beijing. In this case there has already been three victims, all found drugged, with their hands tied behind their backs and decapitated. The fourth victim was found in the same way but he was an American diplomat. Margaret Campbell, an American forensic pathologist, and Li Yan, a senior Chinese detective, make a great team, but in this book, they have finished their slow romantic dance around each other. The romance is over, there were too many complications but now instead of going home broken hearted, the United States Ambassador has asked Margaret to stay on in China and work this case with Li Yan. She agrees and in doing so meets another show more man which could be a start to a new relationship. Li Yan is devastated to see Margaret making an effort to move on, but he is not ready to go against his superiors who have deemed the relationship harmful.

Although this character driven story didn’t work quite as well as the first mystery, The Firemaker, Peter May excels in his descriptions of a gritty, chaotic modern day China. His sense of place and cultural descriptions immerse the reader in China and this coupled with his vivid depiction of people, activities and food are what makes this book come alive.

The Fourth Sacrifice is an unique blend of mystery, romance and culture that made for fascinating reading. show less

The Fourth Sacrifice by Peter May is a recommended thriller and the sequel to The Firemaker.

On the eve of her departure for home, Dr. Margaret Campbell, a forensic pathologist from the United States, is asked to work with the Chinese police and conduct the autopsy of a beheaded man. The man, Yuan Tao, was a naturalized citizen of the United States and he was also apparently the fourth beheaded man in a string of ritual murders that could indicate the work of a serial killer. Margaret finds herself working with police Deputy Section Chief Li Yan, with whom she previously had a romantic relationship, and she is bitter at his perceived rejection of her. She doesn't know that Li was ordered to end his relationship with her. To further show more complicate matters archeologist Michael Zimmerman, as he introduces Margaret to the treasures of China, is making it clear to her that he is very interested in a relationship with her.

The plot mixes mystery, romance and history in the character driven narrative. The quality of the writing is good. May does do a great job setting the place and provides a lot of excellent information about and background for the Chinese culture. He provides the descriptions and background to create a total picture of China. Aside from the cultural references, there are little nit-picky details and lack of details about other topics that annoyed me. I could chose to set them aside and simply enjoy the story, which is predictable, but moves along quickly (when not trying to educate us about Chinese culture which does slow down the forward movement of the plot).

Since The Fourth Sacrifice is character driven, Margaret presents a bit of a problem, as she is a very unlikable character. Now, I haven't read the first novel, so perhaps she is more personable in that novel and the broken relationship is what drives her negative attitude. While I enjoyed this novel, it didn't leave me wanting to read the first one.

Disclosure: My review copy was courtesy of Quercus.
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Second in a rereleased crime trilogy set in China. I was pretty sure I knew who did it about 70% through. All the lovely Chinese detail (lots of food and scenery) was a bit too much after that point. I was pretty much urging the two protagonists to "Get on with it!" Add some really stupid behavior by the previously fairly smart American pathologist (yes, a woman - how did you guess) and I decided I wouldn't be reading the final book. The obligatory 'clever use of computers' scene really shows the book's age. Meh

I think that Peter May is a very good thriller writer, but that the China series is not his best work. There is a lot of detailed research evident in this novel; I now know a lot more about the Terracotta Warriors than I did last week; but I not enamoured of the lead characters and the plot is a bit clunky. Not unenjoyable, but not memorable. I'll concentrate on May's other books and series before returning to this one again.

I really like Peter May. Like the first book in this series, the outcome was predictable. The story was interesting and quite readable.

Excellent series set in Beijing. Good stories, good characters, lots of information about China in change. Second 3 books very difficult to find, first 3 books reprints perhaps?