The Chinese Bell Murders by Robert van Gulik
Judge Dee is one of my comfort series. Once in a while, if I need to read something I know I will love, but don't want to put too much effort into it, I'll go back to good old Robert van Gulik. I'm currently and slowly rereading through all the Judge Dee novels but one (which I'm inexplicably missing) in the order of publication. While the Lake Murders had left me a little disappointed, with the Chinese Bell, Robert van Gulik really finds his stride. The procedural (albeit in Tang China) nature of the set-up allows him to intertwine multiple affairs. One is primarily criminal, the other two are both criminal and political. The writing style and pacing are excellent, and the exotic yet superbly evoked ancient China context makes this as wonderful as a crime novel can be.
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