Death Doesn't Forget

Jing-nan runs Unknown Pleasures, a well-liked food stall in Taipei's largest night market. When he is framed for a run of high-profile killings, he begins to wonder why the blame always seems to land on him. This is the fourth book in Ed Lin's Taipei mystery series, and it mixes comedy with melancholy.

The story opens with two deaths in quick succession, a petty criminal and a police captain, just as the city gets ready to host the Austronesian Cultural Festival. The event will bring indigenous performers from across the Pacific Rim to Taiwan. Jing-nan is pulled into the investigation. Is someone building a case against him, or is he the next name on the list?

His personal life is unraveling too. The fallout threatens his relationship with Nancy, his girlfriend from graduate school. Nancy must decide whether to reconcile with her estranged mother, who had been living with the slain criminal and had clashed with the dead officer. Meanwhile, Jing-nan has to keep his trusted employees, Dwayne and Frankie the Cat, on his side, since both are dealing with trials of their own. Dwayne, who is of aboriginal descent, tries to chart a course that honors his heritage. Frankie, a man in his seventies, comes to the aid of a fellow veteran in a modern world that appears to have moved on without them.

For Jing-nan, the stakes have never been higher, both personally and professionally, and nearly everything hangs in the balance. Even his standing on social media is at risk.