The Emperor's Pearl
US publication: 1963
Author: Robert Van Gulik
Detective:
Genre: Novel
Plot
summary and comments:
It all begins on the night of the Poo-yang dragonboat races in 699 A.D.: a drummer in the leading boat collapses, and the body of a beautiful young woman turns up in a deserted country mansion. There, Judge Dee—tribunal magistrate, inquisitor, and public avenger—steps in to investigate the murders and return order to the Tang Dynasty. In The Emperor’s Pearl, the judge discovers that these two deaths are connected by an ancient tragedy involving a near-legendary treasure stolen from the Imperial Harem one hundred years earlier. The terrifying figure of the White Lady, a river goddess enshrined on a bloodstained altar, looms in the background of the investigation. Clues are few and elusive, but under the expert hand of Robert van Gulik, this mythic jigsaw puzzle assembles itself into a taut mystery.
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“If you have not yet discovered Judge Dee and his faithful Sgt. Hoong, I envy you that initial pleasure which comes from the discovery of a great detective story. For the magistrate of Poo-yang belongs in that select group of fictional detectives headed by the renowned Sherlock Holmes.â€â€”Robert Kirsch, Los Angeles Times
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“The title of this book and the book itself have much in common. Each is a jewel, a rare and precious find.â€â€”Atlanta TimesÂ
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“If you have not yet discovered Judge Dee and his faithful Sgt. Hoong, I envy you that initial pleasure which comes from the discovery of a great detective story. For the magistrate of Poo-yang belongs in that select group of fictional detectives headed by the renowned Sherlock Holmes.â€â€”Robert Kirsch, Los Angeles Times
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“The title of this book and the book itself have much in common. Each is a jewel, a rare and precious find.â€â€”Atlanta TimesÂ
::READERS REVIEWS::
A Lost Treasure Recovered - Although the title of this review could be taken for a summary of the plot, I'm really using it to describe this edition, published by the University of Chicago Press. Illustrations by the author appear in full page size!
Here Judge Dee tackles a strange murder case that begins when the drummer on the dragonboat favored to win the festival races drops dead just before the finish line. As Dee traces the prior movements of the murdered man, he goes in the guise of a boxing master. A beautiful and refined woman hires him to guard her steps as she goes to a meeting. Although she pays him well and dismisses him, Dee can't resist following her farther. He finds her still-warm body and the gold she had in her sleeve is missing. Then he discovers that the gold she was carrying was to have been used to purchase the Emperor's Pearl, a treasure that had gone missing one hundred years ago and which had caused the execution of four people!
Dee is hampered on this case because his usual assistants are out of town. Only his old servant, Sgt. Hoong is available to help. With the "tough guys" out of town, the action lags in spots. But with the assistance of a small tortoise, Dee draws the murderer out of hiding in a denouement in the library that will have the reader on the edge of the chair, hair standing on end!
Thew Emperors Pearl - I thought I had read all of the Judge Dee books and then I stumbled across this one. I absolutely love Van Gulik and this book does not disappoint.
Clever mystery with a little extra - This novel, written by the author both in English and in Dutch ("De Parel van de Keizer") is part of the second series of mystery books featuring Judge Dee as the sleuth. These novels are a bit shorter and a bit "lighter" than the first series of five books, which starts with "The Chinese Maze Murders" ("Labyrinth in Lan-Fang"). Once again Judge Dee solves three unrelated mysteries, using his skills of observation and logical thinking, employing casual conversations with various protagonists as his main approach. However, in this book Judge Dee also surprises the reader by an unusual gambit that almost misfires.
What I liked most about this book were hints of the supernatural that nonetheless stay within the limits of the traditional mystery novel.
This novel makes great bedtime or vacation reading!
Excellent - All the "Judge Dee" books I have read are good. Some better than others, sure, but I like them all. Intelligent, well written, humane, and even sometimes with a touch of humor. A good mystery is worth a lot and these books by Gulik are certainly that.
The Emperor's Pearl - ROBERT VAN GULIK HAS THE ABILITY TO HOLD YOU IN SUSPENSE FROM BEGINNING TO END. HIS KNOWLEDGE OF THE AREAS OF CHINA AND THE PEOPLE HELP ONE TO IMMEDIATELY ENTER INTO THE STORY AS IF YOU ARE ACTUALLY THERE. I HAVE READ ALL OF JUDGE DEE MYSTERIES AND WISH THERE WERE MORE.
::AMAZON REVIEWS::
A Lost Treasure RecoveredAlthough the title of this review could be taken for a summary of the plot, I'm really using it to describe this edition, published by the University of Chicago Press. Illustrations by the author appear in full page size!
Here Judge Dee tackles a strange murder case that begins when the drummer on the dragonboat favored to win the festival races drops dead just before the finish line. As Dee traces the prior movements of the murdered man, he goes in the guise of a boxing master. A beautiful and refined woman hires him to guard her steps as she goes to a meeting. Although she pays him well and dismisses him, Dee can't resist following her farther. He finds her still-warm body and the gold she had in her sleeve is missing. Then he discovers that the gold she was carrying was to have been used to purchase the Emperor's Pearl, a treasure that had gone missing one hundred years ago and which had caused the execution of four people!
Dee is hampered on this case because his usual assistants are out of town. Only his old servant, Sgt. Hoong is available to help. With the "tough guys" out of town, the action lags in spots. But with the assistance of a small tortoise, Dee draws the murderer out of hiding in a denouement in the library that will have the reader on the edge of the chair, hair standing on end!
Thew Emperors PearlI thought I had read all of the Judge Dee books and then I stumbled across this one. I absolutely love Van Gulik and this book does not disappoint.
Clever mystery with a little extraThis novel, written by the author both in English and in Dutch ("De Parel van de Keizer") is part of the second series of mystery books featuring Judge Dee as the sleuth. These novels are a bit shorter and a bit "lighter" than the first series of five books, which starts with "The Chinese Maze Murders" ("Labyrinth in Lan-Fang"). Once again Judge Dee solves three unrelated mysteries, using his skills of observation and logical thinking, employing casual conversations with various protagonists as his main approach. However, in this book Judge Dee also surprises the reader by an unusual gambit that almost misfires.
What I liked most about this book were hints of the supernatural that nonetheless stay within the limits of the traditional mystery novel.
This novel makes great bedtime or vacation reading!
ExcellentAll the "Judge Dee" books I have read are good. Some better than others, sure, but I like them all. Intelligent, well written, humane, and even sometimes with a touch of humor. A good mystery is worth a lot and these books by Gulik are certainly that.
The Emperor's PearlROBERT VAN GULIK HAS THE ABILITY TO HOLD YOU IN SUSPENSE FROM BEGINNING TO END. HIS KNOWLEDGE OF THE AREAS OF CHINA AND THE PEOPLE HELP ONE TO IMMEDIATELY ENTER INTO THE STORY AS IF YOU ARE ACTUALLY THERE. I HAVE READ ALL OF JUDGE DEE MYSTERIES AND WISH THERE WERE MORE.