Arabesk

Barbara Nadel's mysteries about Istanbul are always wonderful. She captures the atmosphere of this amazing city. Inspector Ikmen, overweight, alcoholic, stubborn, is a complex character.

I'm so glad I found Barbara Nadel! While I learnt a little about the Ottoman Empire at school & have never been to Turkey, I'm engrossed in the adventurous mysteries of the much-married, chain-smoking, witch's son homicide Inspector Ikmen & his co-workers in modern-day Istanbul. Each book is rich in atmosphere, culture & history, & not for the faint of heart. If, like me, you want your mysteries to be unusual & adult as well as being packed with characters, drama, humor & surprises, then dive in to Barbara Nadel's series!

Istanbul is as much a character in Ms Nadel's books as any of the humans. Having lived in that exciting city for a while, I think she captures its nuances and everyday life as much as its "exoticism" perfectly. As such, the setting will make this (and the rest of the Cetin Ikmen police procedurals) attractive to many lovers of the crime genre. However, Ms Nadel does not stick just to the exotic image of tourist Istanbul, but takes you down its alleyways and into its darker sides. Nadel is billed as "the Donna Leon of Istanbul", which tells you which market the publishers are pitching for. This is not without justification, and I think Ms Nadel exceeds in brining her location, and characters to life. There is a likeable cast of ongoing characters and her mysteries are well plotted and intriguing. Blathazar's Daughter was a fine debut. This is the third (the second is "A Chemical Prison"), and as a crime genre addict I was not disappointed.