From 1949 to 1968 author Robert van Gulick wrote 15 novels, two novellas and eight short stories featuring Judge Dee, a Chinese magistrate and detective from the Tang dynasty. In addition to
providing the setting for riveting mysteries, Dee’s world highlighted aspects of traditional Chinese culture through his personal relationships with his wives, his lieutenants and the citizens
he served with dedication on the emperor’s behalf. This book gives a synopsis of each Judge Dee story, along with commentary on plots, characters, themes and historical details. Exploring van
Gulik’s influence on Chinese and Western detective fiction and on the image of China in popular 20th century American literature, this study brings to light a significant contributor to the
development of detective fiction.