num_pages: 325
description: From award-winning novelist Patrick Neate, a literary mystery that introduces a new kind of British detective, Ugandan-Indian Tommy Akhtar, and a side of London that the mystery world has never seen.  A contemporary murder mystery set in the heart of London, this is the story of Tommy Akhtar, hard-drinking veteran of the Mujahideen, devoted son, sometime private investigator and sometime idol to the thug-lites of the ethnic motley of West London. Hired by a bewitching prostitute, he's to track down the whereabouts of her missing friend, last seen meeting a client in a local dive. But as the search heats up, Tommy's case takes a turn for the sinister, as he's drawn into a murder investigation and the dark side of both the establishment and those who plan to overthrow it.  Written with all the energy and vividness that earned Neate a 2004 National Book Critics Circle Award and the 2001 Whitbread Novel Award, City of Tiny Lights is poised to find a wide new audience for its talented, charismatic young author.
language: English
title: City of Tiny Lights
titlecomplete: City of Tiny Lights
genres: Mystery, Novels, Detective, Thriller, Fiction, Mystery Thriller, Crime
ratings_count: 503
awards: awardedAt: 1167638400000
name: Edgar Award
category: Best Paperback Original
publisher: Riverhead Books