The Janissary Tree

This mystery novel, set in the Ottoman Empire in the 1830's, is not only a good mystery, but it also is a very interesting description of a very exotic time and place.

My husband and I love mysteries and are voracious readers. Right before leaving on a recent trip to Istanbul, I purchased several 2007 Edgar Award nominees to read during our journey. This turned out to be our favorite -- perhaps because we picked it up to read after leaving Istanbul. I cannot guarantee the accuracy of the description of every location in which this page turner is set. However, having seen the twisty back streets of Istanbul, heard the call to prayers echo from mosque to mosque, seen the bath houses, the location of the Janisarry Tree and the real towers of this ancient city, both my husband and I felt the author sets the mood of Instabul to a "T." Yes, we would have liked to see a little more character and plot development -- especially since the characters are so,so unique and the plot so intriguing. Goodwin paints wonderful word pictures about the people and places he includes in this mystery. The mental picture of the Polish ambassador at the Sultan's party, his toes blackened to hide the holes in his boots; the description of life in the Topaki Palace harem; the oh-so-lovely Russian ambassador's wife -- all come quickly to the mind's eye. We are waiting for Goodwin's next book and were delighted to have this who-done-it to help us remember our magical trip to Istanbul.

The tale alone is facinating (as you can see from the other reviews), but it is set in Ninteenth Century Istanbul when the Ottomans are struggling to enter the modern world. The fictional story enhanced by the scholarship of Mr. Goodwin concerning the Ottoman Empire and the City of Istanbul makes this a facinating book. I am looking forward to other stories in this series.

Not only set in the location of Istanbul in the 1830s but also set inside the fabric of the Ottoman empire life; there a clever and resourceful eunich is the go-to man when the Sultan's mother wants to solve the murder of a haarem girl and at same time the head of the army has a slight problem with officers starting to turn up dead in unusual ways. The author's strength is his understanding of the Ottomans and Istanbul; the reader sees and feels the strength of history and culture and its effect on the story. The characters are interesting, the mystery believable, the resolution smart and creditable. Written in 2006 in the structure influenced by Dan Brown's short chapter keep-it-moving style, it was a very enjoyable read and I hope there are more to come.

I'm not going to write a long description of this book -- previous reviewers have done so admirably. But I did have to counteract the lukewarm 4* ratings (and even one inexplicable 3*, given the laudatory review). This book has a lot going for it: -- The eunuch status of the protagonist is not just another weird twist, but central to Yashim's character and ability to operate even in the harem; it forms a constant subtext. -- I had never been interested in Ottoman history before, but found that aspect fascinating (I'll definitely look up the author's non-fiction book on the subject. Perhaps reviewers who had read that book might be a bit bored by this aspect in the mystery under discussion.) -- And most important, the history is critical to the mystery and its resolution. The setting is not just window dressing as is too often the case. -- Though not as snappy as, say, a Spencer novel, the writing is well done and the book gets only more interesting as one approaches the finale.