"Ottoman Intrigue
Reviews by MARILYN STASIO
Published: November 4, 2007
When you read a historical mystery by Jason Goodwin, you take a magic carpet ride to the most exotic place on earth. Like its predecessor, “The Janissary Tree,” winner of the Mystery Writers of America’s 2007 Edgar Award for best novel, THE SNAKE STONE (Sarah Crichton/Farrar, Straus & Giroux, $25) is set in 19th-century Istanbul during the reign of Sultan Mahmut II and features the subtle sleuthing of Yashim Togalu, a eunuch with eyes and ears exquisitely attuned to the cacophony of life in his cosmopolitan world. But with the sultan on his deathbed after a 30-year reign, a deep unease has settled over the city, now poised uncertainly for a momentous historical shift. "
More:Reviews of Crime Novels - Marilyn Stasio - New York Times
