Customer Reviews

River of the Dead

5 star:		(3)
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The Ikmen mysteries are marvellous portraits of Istanbul, delights for someone like me who's preparing to visit for the first time. But this one takes Inspector Suleyman off to the wild, strange eastern part of the country where he encounters people and practices -- even a living saint and a snake goddess -- that stress his cosmopolitan sensitivities and cause him to reconsider his relationship to his Ottoman roots. All in an area where the Mesopotamian plain stretches out in such misty vastness that it is referred to as "the ocean," and all while poor Ikmen and his long-suffering wife Fatma are confronted by their long-lost son -- a fascinating, convoluted, but very believable story, with the kinds of vivid characters that make all Nadel's books such treats. And plenty of blood and gore.

If you enjoy the Inspector Ikmen series, you will love this one.

There is only one little detail that I just can't ignore, though. A body turns up on the riverbank that has come from the war in Iraq. How? Rivers flow south from Turkey INTO Iraq, not the other way around.

Other than that, I truly enjoyed the depiction of the southeast of Turkey, and the rich mixture of heritage & cultures found there.

I love mystery books that in addition to a great plot provide insight into a culture and a place. This one fills the bill wonderfully. While many people think of Istanbul as an exotic and mysterious place, this one takes us to a place in Turkey that even Istanbul residents find exotic and mysterious.