The publisher’s blurb for The Murder of Mr. Ma by John Shen Yen Nee and SJ Rozan recommends it for fans of Guy Ritchie’s Sherlock Holmes and I can’t disagree. But I would go further and recommend it for fans of Sherlock Holmes regardless of print, film, or audio or, well, really anyone who enjoys well-written and entertaining historical mysteries.

Set in 1924 London, someone is killing Chinese nationals and academic Lau She plays Watson to Judge Dee Ren Jie’s Holmes complete with amazing action moves, disguises, and a bit of a drug problem as they search for the killer. This is the first in a series and it is one rollicking tale of derring-do. The main characters are well-rounded and make for a very likeable duo. As to the mystery, it is complex and kept me guessing right to the big reveal at the end. And for us history buffs, there is some real history mixed in with the fiction. Definitely a fun beginning to the new series and I look forward to future adventures of Lao and Dee. I received an audioversion of this book from Netgalley and RB Media narrated by Daniel York Loh who does an amazing job especially with all the different London accents. ( )

I was excited to see S.J. Rozan involved in this collaboration. It's a strange but really fun (and subtly thought-provoking) historical romp set in 1920s London that pairs a Chinese Dr. Watson-style narrator with an impressive Judge Dee - not *that* Judge Dee, but cut from the same cloth as classical Chinese crime stories, a wise outsider who is able to solve crimes and fight bad guys with acrobatic skill; this is somehow paired with a dash of dime novel, but it all works.

The pair investigate the disappearance of a Chinese national who was recruited (like Dee) to provide labor in the battlefields of France during World War I. (Who knew? This is one of those historical lacuna that makes stories like this so enlightening.) They soon are investigating a string of murders while avoiding the interference of a bigoted police officer. There's just enough depth folded into this froth of a story to make it much more than it may seem on the surface.

There are hints Judge Dee will return in future adventures. I'm looking forward to them.