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Shou |
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 Shou byDeborah and Joel Shlian iUniverse 419 pages, 2000 ISBN 158348759X Reviewed by PJ Nunn Read our review of Wednesday's Child Read a second review of Shou Read our author interview Dr. Lili Quan is dedicated, hardworking and focused on her studies on the process of aging. But things at work aren’t going as well as she’d like. When the opportunity to travel to China offers a chance to fulfill her mother’s dying wish that she return to her ancestral homeland, Lili takes it. Lili’s mother was born in China and, even after she traveled to America, she clung to the customs of the old life. So Lili isn’t surprised to find a culture excruciatingly different from her own. She’s not there long however, before she begins to question the seemingly coincidental events that initiated her invitation. Vulnerable to the affairs of the heart that she’s neglected so long in favor of her work, Lili soon finds herself enamored with Chi-Wen Zhou, the man sent to accompany her to her final destination. Attraction turns to suspicion when she discovers that not only is her grandfather Dr. Ni-Fu Cheng alive and well, but Chi-Wen works for a man who knew of his existence and of Lili’s relationship to the famed scientist all along. What Lili believed was a spontaneous visit was really a carefully orchestrated summons, placing both her life and that of her grandfather in grave danger. SHOU is not a typical mystery although it has all of the right elements. Reading the book successfully immerses the reader in another place and time, making the sights, sounds and even the fragrances of a distinctly different culture come alive. It is easy to feel Lili's heart-pounding terror as she flees for her life. The Drs. Shlians have done an admirable job of capturing the historical events that took place in Tianamen Square so many years ago, making those events come to life on the page through the story of one woman's unusual struggle. SHOU is a deeply absorbing novel that readers won’t soon forget. |
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