Santorini Caesars

July 18, 2016
Near the start of Siger’s talky eighth mystery featuring Chief Insp. Andreas Kaldis (after 2015’s Devil of Delphi), college student Penelope Sigounas, a brigadier-general’s daughter, is shot and killed at an antigovernment demonstration in Athens. The perpetrators wore black fatigues and balaclavas in the style of police or military personnel, yet the manner of her shooting suggests an execution-style killing. The case takes the wisecracking Kaldis and his colleagues to the island of Santorini, where an important meeting of career military officers known as Caesars will be held. Kaldis and company conduct surveillance in a tavern, where one of the dinner guests may have a connection to the deceased. Siger uses this event and a second dinner as an opportunity for his characters to discuss Greek democracy and to criticize the government. Meanwhile, the possible assassination of the Greek prime minister raises the stakes. The picturesque Greek islands provide some welcome atmosphere.

July 1, 2016
When the black-sheep daughter of a high-ranking Greek military officer is brutally murdered, the motive is murky and the array of suspects immense.Veteran police inspector Andreas Kaldis is called to the beautiful Cycladic island of Santorini, some 150 miles south of Athens, to investigate the shooting of an anti-government protestor near the university. Oddly, forensics determines that professional killers are responsible. The victim is Penelope Sigounas, the disruptive daughter of a brigadier general whose stoic reaction to this family tragedy makes Andreas wonder what he might be hiding. The case resonates with both Andreas, who has a young son and a pregnant wife, and his veteran detective Tassos, who's troubled by the possible political dimensions of the crime. Correctly surmising that the brigadier, assuming he was the intended target, will try to find the killer, Andreas has him followed. The brigadier suspects a group of Greek military men, the Caesars, who think they can run the country better than its elected officials. Andreas assigns the somewhat reckless detective Petro to monitor the Caesars, posing as a waiter. For some reason, the brigadier is not supportive of Andreas' probe, and unfortunately, all roads seem to lead to the imperious prime minister. The eighth case for Siger's police hero (Devil of Delphi, 2015, etc.) has a timely plot and a handful of engaging back stories about its detective team.

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August 1, 2016

In this follow-up to Devil of Delphi, an agitator is killed in downtown Athens during an antigovernment protest. The case leads Chief Inspector Kaldis's team to the island of Santorini. Greece is in chaos, and Kaldis wonders if it is worth continuing the fight.

Copyright 2016 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

September 1, 2016
Chief Inspector Andreas Kaldis finds himself in the middle of yet another mess involving Greece's volatile government. A young woman participating in a demonstration near an Athens university is gunned down by assassins who appear to be highly trained sharpshooters. The victim is a general's daughter, prompting Kaldis and his team to wonder if the shooting is intended to send a message, but to whom and why? The investigation leads to a top-secret meeting of military leaders on the gorgeous island of Santorini, forcing Andreas to leave his pregnant wife to lead a group that will spy on the meeting. That effort reaps intelligence about another assassination attempt in the offing. As always, Siger provides readers with an action-packed plot, well-developed characters with lots of attitude, breathtaking Greek scenery, and a perceptive take on the current political and economic problems affecting Greece. International-crime fans need to be reading this consistently strong series.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2016, American Library Association.)