Among the Ruins by Ausma Zehanat Khan

First Line: Esfahan is half the world.

Esa Khattak is on much-needed leave from Canada's Community Policing department, connecting to his cultural heritage on a trip to Iran. He is finding peace within the country's beautiful mosques and gardens, but a Canadian government official cuts that short. Now he is expected to look into the death of a renowned Canadian-Iranian filmmaker, Zahra Sobhani, who was murdered in Iran's notorious Evin prison where she'd been seeking the release of a well-known political prisoner.

In no time at all, Khattak finds himself under surveillance and embroiled in Iranian politics, but when the trail he's following leads back to Zahra's family in Canada, he needs the help of his partner, Detective Rachel Getty.

Getty uncovers a conspiracy linked to the Shah of Iran and the decades-old murders of a group of Iran's most famous dissidents, and it is she who realizes that Zahra's murder may not have been a political crime at all.

Ausma Zehanat Khan's series continues its strong characterizations, intricate plots, and fine storytelling. As Esa Khattak finds it increasingly difficult to sidestep the people in Iran who are keeping him under surveillance, and as I learned more about Iran's turbulent history and the fate of its political prisoners, I was struck forcefully by one thing: the powerful sense of entitlement I was born with and so seldom fully realize that I have. Millions of people around the world will never know the freedom of what it's like to be white and American. Don't get me wrong: I do not believe that everyone needs to be white and American, but everyone does deserve to live under the seemingly inviolable umbrella of protection that I was. Moreover, people like me need to be strongly reminded by books like Among the Ruins of just how lucky we are.

This book isn't a mere tale of political injustice in another country, however, although the occasional chapter told from the point of view of an unidentified political prisoner brings that into painful focus. No, we get to see how good a team Khattak and Getty are when they are forced to work thousands of miles apart-- and it is fun to watch Getty put the clues together from the information Khattak manages to sneak out of the country.

There is also a heightened sense of tension as Khattak is being followed by people who wouldn't bat an eye if they killed him-- and this says nothing about the effects of torture on those who must physically endure it as well as on their loved ones who work for their release. The mystery takes on more twists and turns: the Shah of Iran, the legendary crown jewels of Iran, smuggling, historic letters... Among the Ruins is often a feast for the eye and a feast for the mind of the armchair sleuth (as well as giving a cautious note of hope for Iran's future). I certainly look forward to the next book in this series!

Among the Ruins by Ausma Zehanat Khan

ISBN:  9781250096739

Minotaur Books © 2017

Hardcover, 368 pages

Police Procedural, #4 Getty & Khattak

Rating: B+

Source: Purchased from Book Outlet


 

The Language of Secrets by Ausma Zehanat Khan

First Line: The snatch of poetry caught at Mohsin's thoughts, making a mockery of thousands of burnt-out stars flung wide against the banner of the sky.

When minority-sensitive cases come to the attention of any level of law enforcement, it's up to Detective Esa Khattak of Canada's Community Policing Section to take care of them. Since he is still under the microscope for the way his last case was handled, he's surprised when the national security team (INSET) calls him in on another politically sensitive case.

For months, INSET has been investigating a local terrorist cell which is planning an attack on New Year's Day. Their informant within the cell, Mohsin Dar, has been murdered at the cell's training camp just weeks before the planned attack. INSET wants Khattak to give the appearance of investigating Mohsin's death because they can't risk exposing their operation. But Mohsin used to be a close friend, and Esa knows that he's not going to be able merely to go through the motions. So Khattak sends his partner, Detective Rachel Getty, undercover into the mosque that houses the terrorist cell. As Rachel begins developing relationships with the people of the mosque and of the terrorist cell, the reasons for Mohsin's murder only seem to multiply-- and time is running out.

Ausma Zehanat Khan's The Unquiet Dead was one of the best books I read in 2016, so I was looking forward to reading the next book in her Rachel Getty and Esa Khattak series. The Language of Secrets is another splendid entry in the series which had me leaving my comfort zone and entering the world of terrorist cells. 

It was clearer to me in reading this second book that Khattak has so many enemies within the police force that-- unless something happens soon-- it's going to be almost impossible for him to get anything done. The author also plays the differences between her two lead characters to perfection. Those who are familiar with the interpersonal relationships within Muslim families are going to understand Esa Khattak, while those who aren't are going to gravitate toward Rachel Getty. This is certainly true in my case because I find Khattak behaving as though he's the protector and savior of all those whom he cares for to get a little old. In real life, I might behave like his one rebellious sister who will purposely do the exact opposite of what he expects almost every single time. 

There is an excellent rapport between the two leads. They are rapidly learning each other's strengths and weaknesses as well as how each will react in any given circumstance. Khattak is an old pro while Getty needs a lot more experience-- some of which she certainly gets while going undercover.

Although I had my suspicions about a certain character and thus wasn't completely surprised when all was revealed at the end, I did find parts of this absorbing book to be fascinating-- in particular, the ways terrorists try to avoid detection in their communications with each other. This problem of communication has meant that entirely new secret languages have been devised which can twist words of beauty into hatred and death.

After this second page-turner, I'm looking forward to seeing where Getty and Khattak go in the next book in this series. Khattak may annoy me from time to time, but I do like his very different perspective on things.
 

The Language of Secrets by Ausma Zehanat Khan

ISBN: 9781250055125

Minotaur Books © 2016

Hardcover, 336 pages

Police Procedural, #2 Khattak and Getty mystery

Rating: A

Source: Purchased from Book Outlet.


 

The Unquiet Dead by Ausma Zeharat Khan

First Line: Esa Khattak turned his head to the right, offering the universal salaam at the conclusion of the evening prayer.

Detective Rachel Getty knows something isn't right when her trusted boss Esa Khattak asks her to look into wealthy Christopher Drayton's death-- and then scarcely says another word about it. Khattak's team handles minority-sensitive cases, and Drayton's case doesn't fit. Then she learns that Drayton may have been a war criminal with ties to the Srebrenica massacre of 1995. The ramifications are huge, and now she understands why Khattak has been tip-toeing around.

If Drayton was a war criminal, the suspect list could be huge, and the murder investigation itself could have lasting effects throughout the community. It needs to be solved, and solved quickly.

I do not find it strange that Ausma Zehanat Khan chose the framework of a crime novel to write this haunting story of the atrocities carried out in Bosnia. What is crime fiction but the quest for justice? Scattered throughout the book are quotes from survivors' testimony to what happened all along the route to Srebrenica where so many innocents were massacred. These quotes become the Greek chorus of The Unquiet Dead. They serve to remind us how important it is to prove whether or not Christopher Drayton is a war criminal in order for true justice to be done.

As far as I'm concerned, Rachel Getty is the star of this book. Her abusive father, her runaway younger brother, her intelligence and drive-- all of this has come together to turn her into a good, intuitive police officer. I want to see more of her. On the other hand, I didn't much care for her boss, Esa Khattak. As seen here in The Unquiet Dead, Khattak's head is much too easily turned by a pretty face. Since at any given point in time females can make up at least 50% of a suspect list, that's a handicap I'd rather a major character not have. And speaking of Khattak's little foible, there are two important female secondary characters whose portrayals border on caricature.

But as irritated as I was with Khattak and those two women, I was immediately pulled right back into the story by Rachel Getty and Ausma Zehanat Khan's Greek chorus of voices. I have read books before where the dead were supposed to speak, supposed to cry out for justice, but this is the first time for me that they actually did. These voices horrified me. They made me weep. They made me despair-- once more-- for the human race. And they made me demand that Rachel Getty and Esa Khattak find them justice.

This is an unexpectedly powerful book that has me looking forward to the next in the series, The Language of Secrets.
      

The Unquiet Dead by Ausma Zeharat Khan

ISBN: 9781250055118 

Minotaur Books © 2014

Hardcover, 352 pages

Police Procedural, #1 Khattak and Getty mystery

Rating: A+

Source: Purchased from Book Outlet