Saturday, December 26, 2009

Pretty Dead Things - Barbara Nadel



Another exciting murder-mystery/crime fiction set in Istanbul by British author Barbara Nadel. I had found her books when I was living in Turkey and was really happy to find one of her books in the library in Yellowknife. This book is a newer novel in the Inspector Ikmen series. Inspector Ikmen is one of the best policeman Istanbul has to offer - but he seems to always be involved in solving bizarre crimes and relying on the intuition that his mother (a local self proclaimed witch) has given him.

According to Amazon.com "When Emine Aksu, the flamboyant wife of an Istanbul style guru, suddenly goes missing, Inspector Cetin Ikmen's investigation leads him deep into her strange and colourful past. Emine was a hippie when she was younger, who wholeheartedly enjoyed the liberated lifestyle that swept across Istanbul in the sixties. Her husband suspects that she was visiting an old friend at the time of her disappearance. Meanwhile, Inspector Mehmet Suleyman is called to a terrifying scene at the art deco Kamondo Stairs in the old banking district of Karakoy. The skeleton of a woman has been discovered in one of the large plant containers. Could these two bizarre incidents be linked?"

The first thing I noticed about this book was the cover. There is a beautiful shot of a mosque in Istanbul and it reminded me of my trip to the Blue Mosque with my mother last summer. Living in the North now (where -40 is a normal winter temperature) has made me miss the warmth and the ancient beauty of Turkey. I love the characters in these books and they get more and more interesting after every new novel. The mysteries of Turkey are so different then ones that could happen in North America; maybe thats why I am so interested in them - like the underground tunnels and cisterns. This was a good and easy read and I am looking forward to the next Barbara Nadel book to come my way!

Rating - 3

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