Qiu Xiaolong Books in Order
Qiu Xiaolong has written 23 books, published between 2000 and 2026. The first book is Death of a Red Heroine (2000) and the newest is The Secret Sharers (2026). Publication order is the reading order below. 16 of the 23 books listed here are in the Inspector Chen series, which has its own page: Inspector Chen books in order.
- Books
- 23
- Published
- 2000–2026
- Confirmed
- 23 of 23 titles
- Pages on record
- 3,824 in 15 of 23 books
- Reading time
- 64–96 hours
Reading time is an estimate, not a recorded figure: 3,824 pages at 300 words a page, read at 200–300 words a minute, covering the 15 of 23 titles with a page count on record.
Qiu Xiaolong is a Chinese American crime novelist, poet, translator, critic and academic. Born in Shanghai, Qiu travelled to the United States in 1988 to write a book on T. S. Eliot and stayed after the Tiananmen Square protests and massacre of 1989. Thirteen of his novels form the Inspector Chen Cao series of Shanghai police procedurals, opening with Death of a Red Heroine (2000), winner of the 2001 Anthony Award for best first novel, and A Loyal Character Dancer (2002). Poetry and translation sit beside the fiction, in Classic Chinese Love Poems (2003) and Poems of Tang and Song Dynasties (2006). The catalogue holds 23 books dated 2000 to 2026.
How many Qiu Xiaolong books are there?
Qiu Xiaolong has 23 books, released between 2000 and 2026. They include 3 separate series.
Qiu Xiaolong Books in Publication Order
The table lists all 23 Qiu Xiaolong books in the order they were published, with the release year, the page count where one is on record, and how many independent book listings confirm each title. Catalogue data as of September 2026.
- 120004643/4
- 220023603/4
- 320031913/4
- 420031063/4
- 520043093/4
- 62006–3/4
- 720063203/4
- 82007–3/4
- 920082273/4
- 1020093043/4
- 11Disappearing Shanghai: Photographs and Poems of an Intimate Way of LifeQiu Xiaolong Short Story #32012 · 126 pages · confirmed 3/420121263/4
- 1220122723/4
- 1320132883/4
- 1420143083/4
- 1520161283/4
- 162018–3/4
- 1720202083/4
- 1820212133/4
- 192021–3/4
- 202022–3/4
- 212023–3/4
- 222024–3/4
Qiu Xiaolong series and characters in order
The character linked below has its own reading-order page.
- Inspector Chen books in order 18 books
Qiu Xiaolong books grouped by series
Each title below is a row in the publication-order table above. A group whose heading is a link has its own reading-order page; the other groups have no page of their own on this site.
Inspector Chen books in order
16 books by Qiu Xiaolong- 1. Death of a Red Heroine
- 1. Poems of Inspector Chen
- 2. A Loyal Character Dancer
- 2. Inspector Chen and Me
- 3. When Red is Black
- 4. A Case of Two Cities
- 5. Red Mandarin Dress
- 6. The Mao Case
- 7. Don't Cry, Tai Lake
- 8. Enigma of China
- 9. Shanghai Redemption
- 10. Hold Your Breath, China
- and 4 more in the table above
Qiu Xiaolong Short Story
3 books3 titles published under this heading without a numbered place in a series.
Qiu Xiaolong Poetry in order
2 booksJudge Dee Investigation in order
2 booksDo you have to read Qiu Xiaolong books in order?
You only need to read Qiu Xiaolong books in order within each series: the books listed here span 3 separate series, and each series has its own publication order.
Where to start with Qiu Xiaolong
Start with Death of a Red Heroine (2000), the first Inspector Chen book. It is also the earliest catalogued title.
What is the newest Qiu Xiaolong book?
The Secret Sharers (2026) is the newest Qiu Xiaolong book released so far.
Is there a new Qiu Xiaolong book coming?
No next Qiu Xiaolong book is announced in the catalogue, which is a gap in the listings it merges rather than a sign that the run has ended.
Awards Qiu Xiaolong has won
Wikidata records 1 award for Qiu Xiaolong. Each row states whether the title won or was shortlisted, and the year the award was given.
- Anthony Award for Best First Novel2001Wonfor Death of a Red Heroine
Qiu Xiaolong at a glance
- Still publishing
- Qiu Xiaolong published a book as recently as 2026.
- Release pace
- Qiu Xiaolong books have appeared about one a year on average.
- Length
- 3,824 pages across the 15 of 23 books with a recorded length, a median of 272 pages each.
- Busiest decade
- Most Qiu Xiaolong books, 10 of 23, were published in the 2000s.
What the Qiu Xiaolong books are about
14 of the 23 Qiu Xiaolong books carry subject tags in Open Library's catalogue. The subjects below are the ones that recur across them, most frequent first: shanghai (china) is tagged on 8 of 14. The subjects are cataloguers’ headings, not a plot summary.
- Shanghai (china) 8 of 14 books
- Mystery & detective, police procedural 7 of 14 books
- Police 6 of 14 books
- Inspector Chen (Fictitious character) 5 of 14 books
- China 4 of 14 books
- American literature 2 of 14 books
- Mystery & detective 2 of 14 books