Charlie Chan returns, but where?

Snow has never been a common setting in the classic Charlie Chan mystery novels, but when it appears, it changes everything: the pace, the danger, the logic of the case. As I look ahead to the future of the new Charlie Chan series, the question of setting has been on my mind — and whether it might be time for the famous detective to confront a mystery shaped by cold, isolation, and unfamiliar terrain.

Charlie Chan and Snow: A Familiar but Rare Setting

Fans of Earl Derr Biggers will recall that Charlie Chan’s first real encounter with snow appears in Biggers’ final novel, Keeper of the Keys, when Chan is summoned to the Lake Tahoe region on the California–Nevada border. Snow was never a frequent setting in the original Charlie Chan mysteries, but when it appeared, it mattered.

When I began the Charlie Chan Returns series with Death, I Said in 2023, my goal was for readers to feel as though the Biggers novels were continuing — not being rewritten, but respectfully extended. No one could replicate Biggers’ distinctive voice or mastery of mystery, but I wanted to re-create Charlie Chan and his 1930s world in a way that felt authentic to longtime book and film fans.

Why Setting Matters in Mysteries

In mystery fiction, place is never just a backdrop. Setting shapes the puzzle, the suspects, and often the detective himself. Charlie Chan readers know this well — whether he’s navigating San Francisco streets, traveling cross-country, or working closer to home.

I began the series in a familiar Biggers location, San Francisco, before sending Charlie on a family trip to Boston in the second book, The Tangled String. Most recently, I returned him to San Francisco in Beyond Murder.

Where Will Charlie Chan Go Next?

Some reviewers have already said they’re “waiting for the fourth book,” which naturally leads to the question: where should Charlie Chan investigate next?

One possibility is Honolulu. Of Biggers’ six Charlie Chan novels, only The House Without a Key and The Black Camel are set there — and even in the films, Charlie often seems to be traveling more than staying home. An entire mystery set in his hometown, complete with Chief Kashimo and family appearances, is tempting.

The other possibility is something very different.

Snow.

A snowy setting would present Charlie Chan with unfamiliar terrain, fresh challenges, and a mystery shaped as much by weather as by human nature. If Charlie were to pack his bags again, where would that cold-weather case take him?

For now, Charlie himself offers the best answer:

“Patience. In time, the mulberry leaf becomes silk.”