The Firemaker by Peter May reminds me why this author is so well-reviewed and a star in his field. This novel is the first of seven in the China Thrillers series and it will be a pleasure to read each one. Margaret Campbell is a forensic pathologist from Chicago who has been invited to Beijing to lecture for six weeks at the police university. She has left much emotional baggage back home and hopes that China will be a distraction. And a distraction it surely is. An accidental and abrupt meeting with senior detective Li Yan does not bode well and the pair are off to an unfriendly start. But their relationship changes when the pair find themselves investigating three murders together. This police procedural introduces readers to Chinese laws and investigations practices. I admit that I knew very little about life in China and The Firemaker has been quite an eye-opener. Peter May has done years of research into this subject and it shows on every page. This novel is a satisfying murder mystery and a close look underneath the surface of life in China in the present and also in the past. And the whole book is wrapped up with a shocking ending and a very effective cliffhanger to entice the reader to read the entire series. Highly recommended.