An Aegean April

November 20, 2017
Siger’s ripped-from-the-headlines ninth mystery featuring Chief Insp. Andreas Kaldis (after 2016’s Santorini Caesars) combines a convincing police procedural with lurid thriller elements. When an elderly Greek philanthropist is sliced in half with a sword on Lesvos, the police grab Ali Sera, who works at a refugee-aid NGO on the island, as a handy scapegoat. Dana McLaughlin, Ali’s feisty boss, isn’t convinced. Neither are Kaldis and his tough Athens-based team of cops, who begin a tortuous investigation that must not only deal with physical evidence but also work around government corruption and the distrust between Greece and Turkey. Meanwhile, a crazed but clever assassin, who calls himself Aryan, has decided he wants to take over the refugee-smuggling racket in the eastern Mediterranean and is eliminating the Turkish gangsters who stand in his way. When Aryan returns to Greece to get rid of Dana, Kaldis and the other police struggle to stay ahead of the madman. Vivid local color, agreeable central characters, and exciting action scenes make this a winner.

January 1, 2018

Mihalis Volandes had a practical plan to deal humanely with the refugees passing through the Greek island of Lesvos (also known as Lesbos), but the human traffickers who profit from the business have other plans. Even a member of the Greek elite can be killed, and Volandes's murder is blamed on a refugee-turned-aid worker. When Ali Sera is arrested, his American colleague Dana McLaughlin reaches out to CI Andreas Kaldis, head of the Special Crimes Unit. When Kaldis's team doesn't move fast enough over the Easter holiday, Dana holds a press conference that causes a flurry of activity by the hired killer, the traffickers, and the police. Kaldis's shrewd scheme to catch the culprit leads to a dramatic confrontation at a monastery on Lesvos. Siger's ninth atmospheric mystery (after Santorini Caesars) vividly depicts the political and economic issues involved in the European refugee crisis. VERDICT Fans of Adrian McKinty's Sean Duffy books and other police procedurals that handle violence and political issues with black humor will welcome this outstanding crime novel.--Lesa Holstine, Evansville Vanderburgh P.L., IN

Copyright 2018 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

December 1, 2017
Turkish refugees have been landing on the shores of Lesvos in droves, and some of the Greek island's most prominent citizens have joined the relief effort. But when one of them is murdered outside the mansion of a wealthy shipping patriarch, police suspect one of the refugees. After agreeing to aid in the investigation, Chief Inspector Andreas Kaldis from Athens discovers that Turkish smugglers had a lot to lose if their pipeline to Lesvos were to be cut off. Siger's ninth Kaldis mystery (after Santorini Caesars, 2016) continues its tour through modern-day Greece. This latest outing also offers a perspective on the Balkan Peninsula and the thorny issue of asylum seekers. A fast-paced international series.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2017, American Library Association.)