Year of the dog : [a Detective Jack Yu investigation] / Henry Chang

Less a conventional mystery than a study in Chinese-American culture, Chang's second novel (after 2006's Chinatown Beat) offers another tantalizing glimpse of precinct and street life in Manhattan's Chinatown. When a prosperous family of four dies in their apartment, NYPD Det. Jack Yu determines it is murder/suicide, probably an effort to save face. Saving face, a powerful motivator in Chinese culture, drives many characters, including Yu's boyhood friend, now gang boss, Tat "Lucky" Louie; young turk Koo Jai, who's trying to pull one over on Lucky; and Sai Go, a dying smalltime bookie who wants to keep his dignity. DA Alexandra Lee-Chow, in contrast, embodies the struggles of ordinary Chinese-Americans who are neither crooks nor celebrities. While some may feel there are too many specifics about Chinese takeout meals and the finale is a bit of a copout, Chang deftly keeps the action moving as he brings the Chinatown neighborhood alive in all its guises.