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A review by gadrake
The Janissary Tree by Jason Goodwin
3.0
This is an intellectual historical (circa 1836) mystery that may appeal a bit more to men than women. Anyone with an interest in the Ottoman Empire, geography, famous figures in history such as Napoleon and Russian czars, or eunuchs and harems will be fascinated.
There is a good mystery here. It became a bit difficult to follow however for several reasons. The large cast of characters' names were not obviously feminine or masculine so readers have to keep remembering who is who every time you put the book down for a bit. Many terms were Turkish, so again, it was a tad problematic remembering whether one term meant a servant or another term meant a captain of the guard. The geography references much of the world even though the story takes place in Istanbul and some of the characters are from Poland, France, Russia, and Darfur. Had to look up info on the Ottoman Empire just to understand why these people and places were being included. There was even a slight reference to New York. Finally, there are references to both past and future generations. So a bit of an orientation problems at times.
The appealing main character, Yashim, is a very masculine eunuch who loves to cook. He inspires trust and makes friends easily. He solves problems and is a person others can rely upon. The story involves corruption, deceit, greed and lies ... excellent ingredients for a stellar mystery. Am likely to read the next book in the series The Snake Stone just to see if the author simplifies the story lines a bit while retaining a smart mystery.
There is a good mystery here. It became a bit difficult to follow however for several reasons. The large cast of characters' names were not obviously feminine or masculine so readers have to keep remembering who is who every time you put the book down for a bit. Many terms were Turkish, so again, it was a tad problematic remembering whether one term meant a servant or another term meant a captain of the guard. The geography references much of the world even though the story takes place in Istanbul and some of the characters are from Poland, France, Russia, and Darfur. Had to look up info on the Ottoman Empire just to understand why these people and places were being included. There was even a slight reference to New York. Finally, there are references to both past and future generations. So a bit of an orientation problems at times.
The appealing main character, Yashim, is a very masculine eunuch who loves to cook. He inspires trust and makes friends easily. He solves problems and is a person others can rely upon. The story involves corruption, deceit, greed and lies ... excellent ingredients for a stellar mystery. Am likely to read the next book in the series The Snake Stone just to see if the author simplifies the story lines a bit while retaining a smart mystery.