The Baklava Club: A Novel (Investigator Yashim)
Goodwin, an Ottoman Empire expert, introduced his historical series set in early nineteenth-century Istanbul in 2006 with The Janissary Tree, which won an Edgar for Best First Novel. The five novels in this series (this is purported to be the last) take a thin slice of Ottoman history, from 1836 to 1842. Yet, readers of the series learn, this slice is jam-packed with, well, byzantine levels of intrigue. The man who can unravel many of these plots and counterplots is Yashim, a eunuch detective. Here the action in Istanbul centers on the putative murder of a Polish prince. Yashim suspects the prince is still alive but hidden and in great danger. Two visitors, both women, afford Yashim the opportunity to play tour guide in Istanbul (one of the best parts of the novel) and to dispense historical side notes—for example, the fact that Viking warriors formed the imperial bodyguard in Byzantine times. Much of the plot and many references, though, are murky. Don’t sail to this Byzantium before reading the other novels in the series. --Connie Fletcher