"Fire Files" - A crime novel series with a focus on humanistic values.

Three out of six volumes of "Fire Files" have won awards from the Ministry of Public Security and the Vietnam Writers Association. This is also the Vietnamese record for the most volumes of a crime novel by writer Lai Van Long - the author of the once-famous work "The Honest Killer".

From a boy who loved reading…

Lai Van Long recounts that he loved reading comics even before he learned to read or write. From the age of 6 or 7, he was fascinated by comics, and later by novels. While attending primary school in Da Lat, young Long would often skip snacks to save money to rent comics, dreaming of the talented and heroic characters... and nurturing the dream of becoming a writer, writing long, captivating series about heroes who fight evil and uphold justice.

That dream stayed with him throughout his teenage years, shaping his plans and determination to achieve it. Since moving to Ho Chi Minh City to attend university, where he could freely read in libraries overflowing with books and hold in his hands thick, world-renowned novels, that dream became even stronger. Because of this dream, Lai Van Long planned to work for 7-10 years after graduating to help his parents and support his younger siblings' education, and then dedicate his entire life to writing.

In early 1992, with his work "The Honest Murderer" winning first prize in the 1990-1991 short story competition of the Literature and Arts Newspaper - Vietnam Writers Association, and being hired as a reporter for the Ho Chi Minh City Police Newspaper, he became even more confident in the path of writing he had dreamed of and chosen. From then on, he quietly accumulated material and emotions for his "dream novel." It was the journalism profession and the working environment at the Ho Chi Minh City Police Newspaper that helped Lai Van Long fulfill his dream after more than 30 years of thinking, researching, accumulating knowledge and emotions.

Throughout that long journey, despite facing obstacles and pressure, he never gave up on his dream. Initially, he wrote series of articles, sometimes a few dozen, for the Ho Chi Minh City Police newspaper to "make ends meet." When the opportunity arose (the Editor-in-Chief assigned him to write the script for the 1,100-episode film project "Fire Files"), he worked enthusiastically, sleeping only 3-4 hours a day. Having envisioned the "dream novel," the author became even more determined to overcome all difficulties, juggling journalism, family responsibilities, the film project, and secretly planning the elaborate book series through the script and storyboard.

...to the dream book series

The first volume of "Fire Files," "Code Name D9," was adapted into a 38-episode series, broadcast on nearly 40 television channels, including foreign ones. It won the "Green Star Award" for "Most Popular Television Series," and the remaining volumes were subsequently adapted into films by investors. Three out of six volumes of "Fire Files" won the "Golden Pen" award from the Ministry of Public Security in 2018 and the "For National Security and Peaceful Life" novel competition (2017-2020), jointly organized by the Ministry of Public Security and the Vietnam Writers Association. The novel series is the result of 30 years of creative work by author Lai Van Long. This is also why the Vietnam Record Organization awarded "Fire Files" and its author, Lai Van Long, a certificate for the record of the longest-running crime novel series.

The six-volume, 2,400-page crime novel series "Fire Files" depicts the arduous and heroic struggle of the army and people of the Southeastern region of Vietnam under the leadership of the Party in the resistance wars against France, Japan, and the United States... to achieve national independence and reunification. Alongside this is the decades-long fight against crime by the Ho Chi Minh City Police force.

In that process, the ironies of history gave birth to a family with four generations of generals, and also included related members who were leaders of provinces, military regions, and the police force... especially Hoang Duc Dinh - a criminal police officer, but also the son of the brutal bandit general Hai Cuoc, and the grandson of the notorious female bandit Tam Lai. The struggle between the two forces of good and evil surrounding the generations of this family is intertwined with the revolutionary struggle history of the Southeast region and the process of renewal and development of Ho Chi Minh City in particular, and the whole country in general…

Each historical period bears the mark of different eras, between two forces with differing ideals, personalities, and strengths. This gives rise to ironic tragedies for each character. From this, over 500 characters throughout the novel intertwine and struggle against each other, intensifying the dramatic and heroic conflict that spans a century. Ultimately, the fourth generation, despite a few new bandits, boasts brilliant intellectuals, outstanding police officers, talented doctors, and artists. They look back on the past of their grandparents and parents with more empathy than resentment, contributing to erasing hatred and moving towards a brighter future.

Towards humanistic values

It is evident that the common thread running through this work is the pursuit of goodness and enlightenment. From a young age, having read Victor Hugo's "Les Misérables," the author of "Fire Files" has deeply admired and respected the humanist and compassionate ideals of this literary giant. Therefore, when given the opportunity to focus on writing his "dream novel," Lai Van Long set the goal of creating a "writing that promotes goodness," brimming with noble humanistic values.

Therefore, police officers from the time of the resistance against the French and Americans, such as Colonel Hoang Duc Liem (Ut Liem), a Hero of the Armed Forces, to the leading generals of the Ho Chi Minh City Police during the period of reform and integration, and up to the current generation such as Colonel Ut Liem's ​​grandson, Captain Hoang Duc Dinh, and their superiors and comrades, have all enforced the law with a spirit of tolerance and leniency, creating all conditions for offenders to repent, reform, and strive to rebuild their lives.

In all the cases, even when facing cold-blooded killers who murdered without hesitation, they appealed to human kindness—the love between husband and wife, father and son, mother and child, brother and sister—to awaken even the smallest seeds of goodness in those criminals, helping them to atone for their crimes as human beings with a conscience, rather than as brutal, vicious "machines."

In the final case in the book series "Fire Files" (volume 6 - The Beauty in the Mist) - Colonel Minh, Head of the Criminal Police Department of Ho Chi Minh City, even named it "the Buddha's Hand case" to exonerate and save the life of the bandit leader Son Cut. His subordinates, such as Major Thanh, Captain Hoa, Captain Dinh, and Senior Lieutenant Thu, also facilitated Son's reunion with his first love, healing each other's emotional wounds. From there, Son was motivated to strive in prison to return to his wife and children as soon as possible. The dancer Saly, Son's first love, also abandoned her ambitions for fame and fortune to live a peaceful and happy life, waiting for Son's sentence to be reduced so that their family could be reunited...

Despite being written over a period of 30 years—quite a long time for a novel—the author demonstrates a steady, consistent pace and a solid style. This is precisely what makes this thousand-page crime novel so captivating.