Beautiful Ghosts: A Novel (Inspector Shan Tao Yun, 4) - Softcover

Pattison, Eliot

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0312335091 ISBN 13: 9780312335090

Publisher: Minotaur Books, 2005

Synopsis

In an earlier time, Shan Tao Yun was an Inspector stationed in Beijing. But he lost his position, his family and his freedom when he ran afoul of a powerful figure high in the Chinese government. Released unofficially from the work camp to which he'd been sentenced, Shan has been living in remote mountains of Tibet with a group of outlawed Buddhist monks. Without status, official identity, or the freedom to return to his former home in Beijing, Shan finds himself in the midst of a baffling series of events. During a ceremony meant to rededicate an ancient and long destroyed monastery, Shan stumbles across evidence of a recent murder in the ruins. Now Shan is being torn between some officials who want his help to search the ruins while others want him to disappear back into the mountains - with one group holding out the tantalizing prospect of once again seeing the son from whom Shan has been separated for many years.

In a baffling situation where nothing is what it appears to be, where the FBI, high ranking Beijing officials, the long hidden monks, and the almost forgotten history of the region all pull him in different directions, Shan finds his devotion to the truth sorely tested. Traveling from Tibet to Beijing to the U.S., he must find the links between murder on two continents, a high profile art theft, and an enigmatic, long-missing figure from history ...in Eliot Pattison's Beautiful Ghosts.

About this title

Review:

A murder in a ruined monastery, an FBI agent on the trail of stolen art, a British relief worker, an American billionaire in cahoots with a Chinese minister, and a beautiful woman with a dual heritage are the key ingredients in this thrilling new addition to Eliot Pattison's fascinating series featuring former Beijing detective inspector Shan Tao Yun. Released unofficially from a work camp in Tibet and now living with the forbidden lamas he has sworn to protect from Chinese efforts to eradicate them and their culture, the enigmatic inspector is caught in a web of political intrigue between the Chinese official who arranged his release and the pompous and corrupt Minister of Culture who will stop at nothing, including murder, to possess the ancient treasure believed hidden in the monastery. Shan becomes more complex and multidimensional as he faces new challenges in this adventure, including repairing his relationship with his long-missing son. The action and the central character move from the mountains and provincial capitals of Tibet, to Beijing, and even America. This is the fourth novel in Patison's unique and engrossing series; readers discovering him for the first time will want to read his backlist, especially the Edgar Award-winning The Skull Mantra. --Jane Adams

About the Author:

Eliot Pattison is the author of The Skull Mantra, which won the Edgar Award and was a finalist for the Gold Dagger, as well Water Touching Stone and Bone Mountain. Pattison is a world traveler and frequent visitor to China, and his numerous books and articles on international policy issues have been published around the world.

About this edition

• Publisher: Minotaur Books
• Publication date: 2005
• ISBN 10: 0312335091
• ISBN 13: 9780312335090
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 368