The Janissary Tree: A Novel
by Jason Goodwin
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Book Summary Information
Author: Jason GoodwinEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2007-05-15
ISBN: 0312426135
Number of pages: 336
Publisher: Picador
Book Reviews of The Janissary Tree: A Novel
Book Review: "But he was that creature rare even in nineteenth-century Istanbul. Yashim was a eunuch."
Summary: 3 Stars
This was a very hard book for me to rate. On one hand, the writing is breathtaking, and the description of Istanbul is magnificent. The author demonstrates excellent writing skills and communicates the characteristics of the environment, the architecture, the food and the people convincingly and proficiently. If I had expected a literary work that told about life in Istanbul in the nineteenth century, I would be totally satisfied.
Sadly, this was supposed to be a mystery novel, and from that perspective I felt that I was short-changed. Even though the main character is unusual and provides an added level of interest to the story, I think that the author could have made the mystery part of the plot more appealing. It seemed to me like the murders and subsequent investigation in which Yashim was involved were just an excuse for the author to display his descriptive skills.
The fact that this is Goodwin's first attempt at fiction has not gone unnoticed by me, so even though I would not recommend this book to someone looking just for a mystery, I can appreciate its good points. I can also see that if the author reaches a better balance between his "non-fiction tendency" and his newly found interest for writing fiction, he is capable to deliver great quality. That is why I will probably read the next book of the series, with the hope that this is the case.
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